canoetrpr
Veteran Member
- Joined
- Aug 7, 2005
- Messages
- 2,396
- Location
- Ontario, Canada
- Tractor
- Kubota M7040 cab/hyd shuttle - current, Kubota L3400 - traded
TBN is where I come when it is time to make a difficult decision. This one is related to trucks and transportation.
The Mrs and I sat down and took a very keen look at our finances to try to see where we could cut down on expenses. It has become painfully clear month after month that we are spending a few hundred more than I am bringing in. Obviously this has got to stop. Not sure where it happened but bills have just kept adding up.
We are generally not frivolous purchasers of things. We don't tend to eat out. Heck we don't even have cable or satellite TV. Perhaps the biggest contributers to the bills we have vs. other families at our stage is the hobby farm - small herd of Galloway cattle, tractor and the rural lifestyle in general. But we are not willing to give that up as it is a way of life.
Adding up the records showed that we are spending a whopping amount of cash in vehicles and fuel. I have a 2009 Ford F-150 which I absolutely adore but it is costing me $875 per month in financing. My wife's van is paid for and has a lot of life left in it. I also work 50 km away (cost of rural living) so that is 100km trip to work. My F-150 is good on gas for a 1/2 ton truck but it still adds up to $600 per month in gas. So I am spending about $1500 in my vehicle alone not including maintenance etc.
It seems to be the only place we can realistically cut to balance the budget so to speak.
There is very little I need a truck for around here but when I do it is indispensable. Although I thought I would, I do not find my self hauling back stuff from auctions. The truck comes in handy when I need to make a trip to the dump for something. It was handy for me to take my bucket in to get a quick attach plate welded on and to pick up a heavy insulated dog house that a buddy built for me. A neighbor gave away 15 square bales because they were a year too old for her horses. Probably 1/2 a dozen times a year - you get the idea.
Other than that, it is my daily driver to work and a heck of a nice daily driver it is. A pleasure to drive on country roads in inclement weather. We do get some weather up here in the Toronto are and sometimes some not so well plowed roads.
I've done some research and found that I could sell the truck for about what I owe on it. Realistically, I don't see myself driving a little Honda Fit to work so I will step down to a small SUV like a Subaru Forester or so - about 50% more fuel efficient. It would cut down on what I pay a month by about $300. I could buy a used one about as old as my truck and get it paid off in about as much time as there is left to pay off my truck.
At the end of the day I estimate I would save about $500 a month.
Of course, I am going to be mighty dissapointed on those days when a truck could be very useful! I have found that I could rent a pick up for $110 for the weekend taxes in so that is always an option. I have pondered purchasing a used old pickup for the farm but I worry it won't get used much and will just decline in the weather. I find vehicles don't do well when they sit around and don't get used.
What do you guys think?
The Mrs and I sat down and took a very keen look at our finances to try to see where we could cut down on expenses. It has become painfully clear month after month that we are spending a few hundred more than I am bringing in. Obviously this has got to stop. Not sure where it happened but bills have just kept adding up.
We are generally not frivolous purchasers of things. We don't tend to eat out. Heck we don't even have cable or satellite TV. Perhaps the biggest contributers to the bills we have vs. other families at our stage is the hobby farm - small herd of Galloway cattle, tractor and the rural lifestyle in general. But we are not willing to give that up as it is a way of life.
Adding up the records showed that we are spending a whopping amount of cash in vehicles and fuel. I have a 2009 Ford F-150 which I absolutely adore but it is costing me $875 per month in financing. My wife's van is paid for and has a lot of life left in it. I also work 50 km away (cost of rural living) so that is 100km trip to work. My F-150 is good on gas for a 1/2 ton truck but it still adds up to $600 per month in gas. So I am spending about $1500 in my vehicle alone not including maintenance etc.
It seems to be the only place we can realistically cut to balance the budget so to speak.
There is very little I need a truck for around here but when I do it is indispensable. Although I thought I would, I do not find my self hauling back stuff from auctions. The truck comes in handy when I need to make a trip to the dump for something. It was handy for me to take my bucket in to get a quick attach plate welded on and to pick up a heavy insulated dog house that a buddy built for me. A neighbor gave away 15 square bales because they were a year too old for her horses. Probably 1/2 a dozen times a year - you get the idea.
Other than that, it is my daily driver to work and a heck of a nice daily driver it is. A pleasure to drive on country roads in inclement weather. We do get some weather up here in the Toronto are and sometimes some not so well plowed roads.
I've done some research and found that I could sell the truck for about what I owe on it. Realistically, I don't see myself driving a little Honda Fit to work so I will step down to a small SUV like a Subaru Forester or so - about 50% more fuel efficient. It would cut down on what I pay a month by about $300. I could buy a used one about as old as my truck and get it paid off in about as much time as there is left to pay off my truck.
At the end of the day I estimate I would save about $500 a month.
Of course, I am going to be mighty dissapointed on those days when a truck could be very useful! I have found that I could rent a pick up for $110 for the weekend taxes in so that is always an option. I have pondered purchasing a used old pickup for the farm but I worry it won't get used much and will just decline in the weather. I find vehicles don't do well when they sit around and don't get used.
What do you guys think?