4. CL-Class

24/7 Wall St.: 10 Most Expensive Cars to Own

Make: Mercedes-Benz
Style: CL550 4MATIC 2dr Coupe AWD (4.7L 8cyl Turbo 7A)
True cost of ownership: $142,558
Purchase price: $121,671
Combined (city and highway) MPG: 18

Mercedes spun off the CL-Class from its S-Class in 1998 to hone in on the line’s exclusivity. This is certainly reflected in the vehicle’s cost. The CL550 has the fourth-highest purchase price and finance interest. It also has the third-highest cost of maintenance. Sales of the car have steadily decreased over the years. There were more than 3,200 total registrations in 2007. In 2011, there were 980. (AP Photo)

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Most Expensive C... The cost of a luxury automobile does not end with its purchase price — it begins there. The true ownership costs are often much more than what customers perceive, after repairs, insurance, interest and other expenses are taken into account. For example, an Audi R8 has a price tag of slightly more than $170,000. After five years, the costs of ownership of the R8 are an additional $193,500 on average. 24/7 Wall St. has examined the true cost of ownership for 2012 models sold in the United States, identifying the 10 cars that cost the most to own.

According to the Census Bureau, the median American home costs $221,800, and the median household income is slightly more than $50,000. These should provide some perspective to the cost of buying and maintaining the vehicles on our list. The purchase prices of these cars range from $91,000 to more than $210,000. And the true costs to own the cars for five years range from $117,000 to more than $245,000 — on top of the purchase price.

This list is based on True Cost to Own figures, which were provided by Edmunds.com. 24/7 Wall St. also included fuel economy data from the U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. registration totals from Edmunds.com, and quality and design ratings from JD Power and Associates. (AP Photo/ Manish Swarup)

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10. GT-R Make: Nissan
Style: Premium 2dr Coupe AWD (3.8L 6cyl Turbo 6AM)
True cost of ownership: $117,892
Purchase price: $91,830
Combined (city and highway) MPG: 19

The Nissan GT-R is one of the most sought-after new sports cars in the U.S. Not so desirable is its price. The car’s nearly $92,000 base price is steep to begin with. The GT-R ranks among the top 10 most expensive thanks largely to two a dditional costs on top of its depreciation. First is the car’s maintenance costs, which average $10,043 over five years — the highest amount among all models. The GT-R also has the second-highest insurance costs, at $22,334 for the five years. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

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9. Range Rover Make: Land Rover
Style: HSE 4dr SUV 4WD (5.0L 8cyl 6A)
True cost of ownership: $118,158
Purchase price: $88,862
Combined (city and highway) MPG: 14

Range Rover has the 13th-highest base price of the 291 models examined. However, exceptionally high costs in other areas put the car in the top 10 for true cost of ownership. Compared to other models, Range Rover’s biggest expense is repairs, which cost an average $4,214 altogether for five years. This amount is the third-highest. Also expensive for Range Rover owners are fuels costs. Over five years, owners will pay nearly $22,000 to fuel the car, which gets a mere 12 MPG in the city. The Land Rover has been awarded a five out of five for overall quality by JD Power, but only two out of five for design. (AP Photo/Land Rover)

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8. ActiveHybrid ... Make: BMW
Style: 750i 4dr Sedan (4.4L 8cyl Turbo gas/electric hybrid 8A)
True cost of ownership: $122,076
Purchase price: $101,545
Combined (city and highway) MPG: 20

BMW’s ActiveHybrid 7 has relatively good fuel economy and is also particularly powerful. However, the true cost of the car is much more than the $101,000 price tag. After five years, outside costs, including taxes and fees, insurance and financing interest, ownership of the vehicle averages more than $122,000. The ActiveHybrid 7 does not have particularly good JD Power scores, earning a three out of five for both quality and design. Sales also have been low, with only 118 registrations in the U.S. in 2011.(AP Photo/Jens Meyer)

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7. G-Class Make: Mercedes-Benz
Style: G550 4dr SUV 4WD (5.5L 8cyl 7A)
True cost of ownership: $126,714
Purchase price: $108,900
Combined (city and highway) MPG: 13

The Mercedes G550, a luxury SUV from the company’s G-Class, has a true cost of ownership of more than $125,000. The car has the third-most expensive fuel costs among all models examined, at approximately $23,500 for five years. The car gets a combined MPG of just 13, and just 11 MPG in the city. The G550 also has among the highest finance interest rates. Five years of ownership result in an average $12,000 in interest. Customers apparently do not mind paying these high costs, as the G-Class has been in production since 1979. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

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6. LS 600h L Make: Lexus
Style: 4dr Sedan AWD (5.0L 8cyl gas/electric hybrid CVT)
True cost of ownership: $129,542
Purchase price: $119,019
Combined (city and highway) MPG: 20

Although the Lexus LS — the company’s flagship model — has been in production since 1989, the hybrid LS 600h L has only been around since 2006. According to Edmunds, the full-size luxury sedan is the most expensive model that Lexus produces in large numbers. The car’s base price of $119,019 is the fifth-highest among all companies. The car has very good scores from JD Power, earning a four out of five for overall quality and a perfect five out of five for design. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

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5. SL-Class Make: Mercedes-Benz
Style: SL550 2dr Convertible (5.5L 8cyl 7A)
True cost of ownership: $129,588
Purchase price: $106,718
Combined (city and highway) MPG: 17

Mercedes-Benz has been producing its grand tourer SL-Class since 1954. It was not until 2007 that the company debuted the SL550 convertible. Although it is the seventh-most expensive when ranked by purchasing price alone, it ranks the fifth-most expensive model for overall cost of ownership because of its particularly costly financing interest and insurance. Total registrations of the car have dropped dramatically from more than 5,600 in 2007 to less than 1,500 in 2011. (AP Photo/Thomas Kienzle)

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4. CL-Class Make: Mercedes-Benz
Style: CL550 4MATIC 2dr Coupe AWD (4.7L 8cyl Turbo 7A)
True cost of ownership: $142,558
Purchase price: $121,671
Combined (city and highway) MPG: 18

Mercedes spun off the CL-Class from its S-Class in 1998 to hone in on the line’s exclusivity. This is certainly reflected in the vehicle’s cost. The CL550 has the fourth-highest purchase price and finance interest. It also has the third-highest cost of maintenance. Sales of the car have steadily decreased over the years. There were more than 3,200 total registrations in 2007. In 2011, there were 980. (AP Photo)

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3. ALPINA B7 Make: BMW
Style: SWB 4dr Sedan (4.4L 8cyl Turbo 6A)
True cost of ownership: $153,150
Purchase price: $133,445
Combined (city and highway) MPG: 17

The number of registrations of the Alpina B7 has been significantly lower than that of other cars on this list. This is more the result of a limited number of cars being imported to North America than of customers shying away from its high cost. The car’s purchase price alone exceeds $133,000. It also has among the most costly interest on financing and insurance. When it comes to overall quality and design, the car received scores of just three out of five in both categories from JD Power.(AP Photo/Keystone, Martial Trezzini)

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2. R8 Make: Audi
Style: 5.2 quattro 2dr Coupe AWD (5.2L 10cyl 6M)
True cost of ownership: $193,429
Purchase price: $170,175
Combined (city and highway) MPG: 15

The Audi R8’s purchase price of $170,175 is more than the third-most expensive vehicle’s true cost of ownership. The two-door sports car also has the second-most expensive maintenance costs, reaching $7,370 over five years. It also has particularly high fuel costs, thanks to its 13 MPG fuel efficiency in the city. The R8 does relatively poorly by JD Powers’ standards, scoring a three out of five for both overall quality and design. Despite this, there were 1,173 registrations for the car in 2011 — the most of any year. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)

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1. SLS AMG Make: Mercedes-Benz
Style: 2dr Coupe (6.2L 8cyl 7AM)
True cost of ownership: $245,469
Purchase price: $210,875
Combined (city and highway) MPG: 16

The Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, a luxury grand tourer, has been in production since 2010. Since that point, it has been the most expensive vehicle on the market. The automobile’s purchase price is more than $210,000, and is approximately $40,000 more expensive than the R8’s base price. After depreciation, finance interest, insurance, fuel costs and maintenance over five years, the car’s true cost of ownership during those years is nearly a quarter million dollars. This cost has not prevented the SLS AMG from being popular; total registrations of the automobile increased from 470 in 2010 to 707 in 2011.(AP Photo/ Manish Swarup)

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