It has been almost half a year since my last cost analysis of my car.
In general, the car still drives well. In a long drive, I have actually managed to get around 49 miles / gallon for about a mile. I am not sure how much historical data the car uses to calculate that, but that was around 2 hours into my trip. My gas efficiency for the entire trip (calculating from my gas receipts) was around 44.5 miles / gallon. The ticket efficiency for highway is 41 mpg, so I am still quite happy about that.
During that trip and judging from the gas efficiency meter, the car drives most effectively between 55 mph to 65 mph. I think it is most effective around 55 mph including all the slight hills. When I reach 70 - 75 mph, the efficiency drops sharply just to maintain a constant speed. Also to note, there was a lot of rain during my trip. This may be a factor but I am not knowledgeable to know.
As for the life of my car, I am averaging around 35 mpg and $3 per day on gas. The cost per day for the total cost on the car has dropped to $54.28 per day from $81.73 per day since the previous post. This cost is estimated to reach $6.78 when the car reaches 10 years assuming gas and insurance remains the same.
It is still cheaper to not own a car in New York City and pay per trip ($2.50 per trip) if you go out once a day (including work). A monthly pass is clearly a cheaper alternative to a car. To top it off, the cost of the car would be greater than $6.78 if you need to pay for parking and lower fuel efficiency. The positive of owning and using a car is the convenience and possibly safety.
Showing posts with label 2012. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2012. Show all posts
Monday, August 26, 2013
Sunday, March 31, 2013
Life: What is the cost per day to owning a car (Take 4 of infinite)
Purpose: There was a period of time that I lived in the city and did not own a car. I have always wondered what are the cost benefits of not owning a car. Besides the cost of the car, I also wanted to include gas and insurance.
Assumptions: Cost of the car is the total cost. This includes tax, fees, paperwork, registration, and basically anything to the one-time payment to purchasing a car. If you do not know how much those are, the cost of the car alone will probably be around $20-21k depending on where you live. The metrics that I have provided are from a 2012 Honda Civic which is about 10 months old. I did not include any other maintenance costs at this time but given a 10 year period, this cost should be negligible. I used 10 years because I figure almost all car models should be last at least 10 years. Calculating months, I assume month is approximately 30.42 days or (365 days / 12 months).
Estimate corrections: The car is newer so will be slightly more gas efficient than older cars. Gas efficiency is mix between regular mode and gas efficient mode. 80% of trips are within 15-30 miles; 20% 120 miles; about 2-4 trips over 500 miles.
Conclusion: The metro is approximately $2.50 / trip or $112 / month (45 trips to break even) or about $1350 / year, so commuting would save approximately $4000 / year. Living expense is much cheaper outside the city. On rent alone, I save approximately $800 / month or $9600 / year. Also, I expect my car to last more the 10 years (hopefully, 20 before any major problems occur) so effectively the final cost will be $6.58 less per day after 10 years. If you expect about $1000 in maintenance, then add approximately $2.80 per day.
Metrics:
Car: $24,000
Assumptions: Cost of the car is the total cost. This includes tax, fees, paperwork, registration, and basically anything to the one-time payment to purchasing a car. If you do not know how much those are, the cost of the car alone will probably be around $20-21k depending on where you live. The metrics that I have provided are from a 2012 Honda Civic which is about 10 months old. I did not include any other maintenance costs at this time but given a 10 year period, this cost should be negligible. I used 10 years because I figure almost all car models should be last at least 10 years. Calculating months, I assume month is approximately 30.42 days or (365 days / 12 months).
Estimate corrections: The car is newer so will be slightly more gas efficient than older cars. Gas efficiency is mix between regular mode and gas efficient mode. 80% of trips are within 15-30 miles; 20% 120 miles; about 2-4 trips over 500 miles.
Conclusion: The metro is approximately $2.50 / trip or $112 / month (45 trips to break even) or about $1350 / year, so commuting would save approximately $4000 / year. Living expense is much cheaper outside the city. On rent alone, I save approximately $800 / month or $9600 / year. Also, I expect my car to last more the 10 years (hopefully, 20 before any major problems occur) so effectively the final cost will be $6.58 less per day after 10 years. If you expect about $1000 in maintenance, then add approximately $2.80 per day.
Metrics:
Car: $24,000
Expected life: 10 years (~365 * 10)
Car per day: $6.575
Insurance (comprehensive): $1600 / year
Insurance per day: $4.38
Miles per day: 35 miles / day
Gas efficiency: 35 miles / gallon
Gas usage: 1 gallon / day
Cost of gas: $3.50 / gallon
Cost of gas per day: $3.50 / day
Total cost / day: $14.45 / day
Total cost / month: $439.52 / month
Total cost / month: $439.52 / month
Total cost / year: $5,274.25 / year
Costs do not include repairs, oil changes, and other maintenance costs.
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