The Five-Year Cost of Owning a Mini Excavator in Australia
Purchase, freight, finance, fuel, servicing, tracks, insurance and resale, added up over five years for a 1.5 and a 2 tonne machine, with the levers that move the total.
The purchase price is one number in a five-year story. Here is the whole story for two common buys, using the assumptions built into this site's calculators. Prices change; run the running cost estimator and finance estimate for today's figures.
Two buyers
A: an R15 for a suburban owner doing 150 hours a year, paid cash, sold after five years for 60 percent of its price.
B: an R22 PRO for a lifestyle-block owner doing 300 hours a year, financed over four years at an indicative rate, sold after five years for 60 percent.
The five-year totals
| Line | A: R15, 150 h/yr | B: R22 PRO, 300 h/yr |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase (current price) | as listed | as listed |
| Freight (metro) | a few hundred | a few hundred |
| Finance interest | nil | several thousand over the term |
| Diesel | ~$1,500 | ~$7,000 |
| Servicing and consumables (DIY) | ~$2,500 | ~$3,500 |
| Rubber tracks | ~$900 | ~$1,800 |
| Insurance | ~$2,000 | ~$2,500 |
| Resale after five years | 60% of price returned | 60% of price returned |
Depreciation (40 percent of the price over five years) is the largest line for both buyers. Fuel is second for the heavier machine at higher hours. Everything else is small by comparison.
What moves the total
Hours. Fuel, tracks and servicing scale with hours; depreciation does not. A machine that works more costs less per hour.
Resale. Records, storage and daily greasing are worth thousands at the end. See the resale value guide.
Finance. Interest is real money; a shorter term costs less overall but more per month. Business buyers offset it through tax.
Where you live. Regional diesel, dust and freight on parts push the numbers up; see the state sites for local factors.
Hire avoided. The number that justifies most purchases: three hire weekends a month at $800 each is $2,400 a month that the machine replaces.
The per-hour view
Buyer A pays roughly $25 to $30 an hour all in over five years; buyer B roughly $20 to $22. Both are below the dry-hire rate for the same class of machine, and neither includes the value of having the machine on the day it is needed.
Use the towing check to make sure the machine you are pricing is one you can move.