10 Most Expensive Cars To Insure

nissan gtr red exterior

Each year, Insure.com conducts a study to determine which models draw the highest premiums from the six largest auto insurance companies in the U.S. For the purposes of the study, the quoted rates are based upon a 40-year old single male driver with a clean driving record, good credit, and a 24-mile round trip daily commute. Further, our hypothetical driver was assigned a $500 comprehensive and collision deductible, $100,000 single injury liability, $300,000 for all injuries, and $50,000 in property damage coverage. You’ll find these coverage parameters explained in more detail in our types of auto insurance coverage article.

Logic would seem to dictate high performance cars like Ferrari’s La Ferrari, Lamborghini’s Aventador, and McLaren’s MP4-12C would easily be among the 10 most expensive cars to insure. But logical doesn’t always equate to reality. Hardly anyone buys cars like those to use as their only car, so they qualify for a lower “pleasure use only” insurance rate. Additionally, exotic sports cars seldom accrue more than 1000 miles per year; which further lowers the risk of an incident. Meanwhile, the top car on the list—the Nissan GT-R—is often bought as a daily driver and registers more claims.

Nissan GT-R Track Edition - $3,169 Annually

Nissan’s GT-R is billed as an everyday supercar, and indeed its performance bears this out magnificently. With exotic carbon-fiber body components, all-wheel drive, huge Brembo brakes, and a 545-horsepower twin-turbocharged V6 making 463 ft-lbs of torque, the GT-R is extremely powerful and blessed with exceptionally high limits. It’s a driver’s dream. But if you don’t know what you’re doing, the dream can very quickly become a nightmare. And, because its limits are so high, when a crash happens, it’s usually at very high speeds. The result can resemble the aftermath of a thermonuclear incident—with very lofty resolution costs.

BMW M6 - $3,065 Annually

Another member of the 500-horseower club; the BMW M6 runs a twin-turbocharged 4.4-liter V8 rated at 560 horsepower and 500 ft-lbs of torque. Sadly, all of the things we love about the M6 also make it a prime candidate for this list. Superhuman performance capability, outstanding technical features, exotic materials comprising much of its componentry and its physical beauty all serve to rank it highly on this list as well. What does physical beauty have to do with anything? The BMW coupe is also a popular target with car thieves, which also factors into the M6’s insurance premiums.

Mercedes-Benz CL550 4Matic AWD - $3,019 Annually

The flagship Benz coupe delivers an outstanding blend of comfort, performance, luxury and presence. Designed to both expedite long distance highway travel, and coddle its passengers during day-to-day mundanities, the Benz CL550 is a fabulously expensive and exceptionally well-rounded automobile. And yes, all of these factors work against it when you’re talking about insuring one. Its comfort and luxury means it’s likely to be employed as a daily driver. Its performance means it’s likely to be driven rather quickly, and its price tag means when repairs are needed they won’t come cheaply. However, if you can afford the car…

Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT - $2,986 Annually

Frankly, we were surprised to a SLS on this list, as we’ve always thought of them more as exotic cars, and thus falling into the pleasure category. But it’s here nonetheless. Of course, given its performance potential and the highly specialized skill-set and equipment it’d take to mend one in the event of a crash, if somebody is out there driving an SLS GT with 583 horsepower and 479 ft-lbs of torque every day, the cost makes sense. With numerous lightweight carbon-fiber components and high-priced labor costs (let alone the parts), an SLS GT is insanely expensive to repair.

Porsche Panamera Turbo S - $2,970 Annually

Our favorite German cars aren’t faring too well on this list of the 10 most expensive cars to insure. At this point, the reasons are also starting to become a bit redundant. The Porsche is fast, luxurious, and expensive. With seating for four, hardly anyone is buying a Panamera Turbo S for occasional usage, so it gets lumped in with the mainstream—where it is clearly a standout. Its 550-horsepower turbocharged V8 also makes up to 590 ft-lbs of torque for a zero to 60 of under four seconds. And, if something happens, you’re looking at Porsche repair costs.

Audi R8 5.2 Spyder Quattro - $2,917 Annually

Another surprise find on the list, as we’ve always thought of the R8 as more of an exotic. Although, when you’re driving an Audi R8 under normal circumstances, it is a very easy car to live with day in and day out. In fact, one of the most remarkable things about driving the R8 is how unremarkable driving the Audi R8 feels—until you ask it to show you what it’s got. Then, its true exotic nature comes into the fore in a most vivid fashion. The all-wheel drive convertible Audi’s 525-horsepower V10 sees to that with considerable efficacy.

Mercedes-Benz G63 AMG - $2,887 Annually

The only SUV to make this top ten list, the G63 Benz is outrageously fast; its 563 –horsepower twin-turbocharged V8 sees to that. It’s also very quick, with 561 ft-lbs of torque at its disposal. Meanwhile, it’s still an SUV so don’t expect it to handle like a sports car. Exceptionally capable offroad, the G—even the AMG’d G63—ain’t meant to handle well on the street. Of course, given the cachet of the auto, that’s exactly where most of them wind up doing duty. Expensive parts and expensive labor make putting one straight a costly proposition if bent.

Audi A8 L 6.3 Quattro $2,869 Annually

Don’t let that conservative look fool you; the all-aluminum Audi A8 L 6.3 Quattro is an exceptionally high performing wolf in sheep’s clothing. And no, insurance companies are not fooled one bit. The 12-cylinder engine in the lightweight aluminum sedan produces 500 horsepower and 463-ft-lbs of torque. Further, it is the top of the line for Audi’s flagship model, so the A8 6.3 is absolutely bristling with technical and luxury features, all of which means replacement costs are quite high should an insurance company ever have to do so. For these reasons, the Audi sedan ranks in the top ten.

Jaguar XKR Supercharged - $2,854 Annually

One of the three cars on this list not produced by a German manufacturer, the supercharged 550-horsepower Jaguar XKR makes power like an exotic sports car, but is configured more like a grand touring car. Thus, its buyers are more likely to press it into service as a daily driver. The 5.0-liter V8 delivers 502 ft-lbs of torque to the lightweight aluminum coupe, so it’s very quick off the line as well. Big power, daily driver, aluminum construction, that’s a lot of potential liability in the eyes of an insurance company. The Jaguar’s insurance rates correspondingly reflect those concerns.

Jaguar XK - $2,610 Annually

Going without the supercharger saves you a couple hundred bucks annually, but it still rates the standard XK Jaguar among the top ten most expensive cars to insure for 2014. Of course, even the base Jaguar XK produces 385 horsepower and 380 ft-lbs of torque, so we’re still talking about a pretty fast car—with high repair costs and rather expensive parts. Plus, you need a rather specialized body shop to see to the XK’s aluminum monocoque should it ever get bent and need to dealt with. Long story short, the Jaguar’s an expensive car with high repair costs.