Jordan Rosenfeld

Thu, Jun 5, 2025, 5:01 AM3 min read

Tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump have hit the auto industry, already driving up the costs of cars and even car repairs. While Tesla CEO Elon Musk has suggested Tesla won’t be much affected since most of the electric vehicle maker’s parts are made domestically, that’s not true of all its parts.

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Approximately 25% of its parts come from Mexico, another 10% from other overseas countries (not specified), but most likely China or Canada, according to Barron’s. Additionally, labor costs may go up generally to accommodate other supply chain hikes, and Tesla repairs can be costly because of the specialized nature of its vehicles.

If you own or you’re planning on buying a Tesla, it’s a good time to start beefing up your emergency fund to prepare for unexpected costs. Here are some easy ways to grow your emergency fund now.

Instead of just automating money to your savings monthly, consider upping this to weekly, which can also keep you from overspending in between paychecks. Ideally drop these savings into a high-yield savings account or money market account to surpass inflation.

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If you already have an emergency fund that you want to keep available for other kinds of unexpected costs, consider creating a separate fund just for car repairs or to purchase one. Tesla cars average over $4,200 in repairs costs in the first 10 years of ownership (for new models), according to CarEdge. Thus, that could be a good savings goal to set.

Play games to get yourself to save more. If you catch yourself about to impulse buy, take the amount you would have spent and drop it into your emergency fund instead. If you normally have a meal out once or twice a week, cut it back and put the expected savings into your emergency fund.

If you already own a Tesla EV, calculate how much you’re saving on gas, oil changes and other costs related to having a combustion engine, compare it to what you spend on charging, and put the rest into savings just for the purpose of creating a buffer for repairs.

Compared to a Toyota Camry, for example, a Tesla Model S could save an owner around $235 per month. That would add up to a nice annual nest egg of $2,820 per year. Add some compound interest in a high-yield savings account, say even a relatively low APY of 3% and that’s an additional $2,905 per year you could have in your emergency fund (really more, as the higher amount will continue to compound).