Commuting

[check]

We have had SUV's since 2003, and cargo space has always neen a priority. I agree that a lot of the SUVs are not very well designed for cargo space. The one we really like is the Honda Pilot, which we bought in 2010. It is the roomiest of all that we checked out in the mid size category. Unfortunately, I think it was last year that Honda redesigned the pilot, and now it is smaller and looks like a jellybean. Do not like it. So we are sticking with our 2010 for now.

 

[Btown]

From what I can see, most people drive pickups to transport air back and forth from work. :laughing: We have a 4x8 utility trailer that does most of what they do with them.

Except if it rolls over, which accounts for 35% of traffic fatalities..And just hope you don’t meet the dump truck driver who feels the same way you do.

And when it comes to active safety - the ability to avoid an accident by turning and or braking - his smaller and much more agile car will avoid the accident altogether, rather than plowing into it like most trucks and their drivers will do.

We have a 2016 Tahoe and I do not understand why anyone drives these things unless they have to tow something heavy. Our Honda Odyssey minivan is much easier to get in and out of, has much more room, is faster, rides better, handles better, is faster, and gets 50% better mpg. But my wife wanted a sailboat that weighs 6,000 lbs on the trailer so she gets to drive the penalty box. SUV’s prove Americans have no driving skill.

Fatals in roll over accidents is due to people not being seat belted 99.9% of the time.

 

[Garandman]

Fatals in roll over accidents is due to people not being seat belted 99.9% of the time.

True enough , for all vehicles.

If you look at the government projections for safety mandates, we should have about -20,000 highway deaths a year. Airbags are pretty much there to protect the knotheads who don’t wear seatbelts.

 

[Kyle_in_Tex]

With fuel at $2.54/gallon and driving 10,000 miles per year, if you spend more than $2032/year on insurance and maintenance for your "commuter car", you are losing money driving a car that gets 50MPG vs one that gets 10MPG.
With fuel at $2.54/gallon and driving 20,000 miles per year, if you spend more than $1524/year on insurance and maintenance for your "commuter car", you are losing money driving a car that gets 50MPG vs one that gets 20MPG.

MPG	Miles/year	Gallons/year	$/Gallon	$/year
10	10000	1,000	$ 2.54	$ 2,540
15	10000	667	$ 2.54	$ 1,693
20	10000	500	$ 2.54	$ 1,270
25	10000	400	$ 2.54	$ 1,016
30	10000	333	$ 2.54	$ 847
35	10000	286	$ 2.54	$ 726
40	10000	250	$ 2.54	$ 635
45	10000	222	$ 2.54	$ 564
50	10000	200	$ 2.54	$ 508

Aaron Z

I need a table set at 36,000 miles per year. Then add depreciation, as it can be the hidden, most expensive factor.

Nice table but it's missing the increased depreciation and added maintenance of the more expensive vehicle.

Insurance on the Accent is about $150 per year, I only carry liability/comprehensive. When I added it to the policy the truck insurance went down (multi-car), so it's actually less than that.

I average 19,000 miles per year on the Accent. It cost $12,500 new + $1000 tax/title so $13,500 in 2008. I don't have every sales receipt for gas that I've run through it but I would guess it averages out to close to $3 per gallon. 191,000/33mpg = 5788 gallons x 3 = $17363 in gas. Truck gets less than 18 mpg these days. 10,611 gallons x 3 = $31,833 minus $17,363 = $14,470 gasoline savings.

Maintenance on the Accent has been very inexpensive. 2 timing belts, 2 wheel bearings, plugs, tires, oil changes, and a couple other minor things. I figure I'm doing far less maintenance on the F150 driving @ about 1000 miles per year so anything I didn't have to spend on the truck because of mileage savings should be subtracted from the car maintenance.

I still think I'm ahead. Even tires are way less expensive.


I completely understand people like to drive trucks. To each their own, it's America after all.

Kevin

Lot of good info here. To each their own. Price of gas has been cheeeeep for the last couple of years. If it gets back to $3.50/gallon, there will be more small cars if it stays high for a year or two.

 

[aczlan]

I need a table set at 36,000 miles per year. Then add depreciation, as it can be the hidden, most expensive factor.

Here is the table with 36k miles/year. Deprecation will vary based on the car make/model/year/options, etc.

MPG	Miles/year	Gallons/year	$/Gallon	$/year
10	36000	3600	2.54	9144
15	36000	2400	2.54	6096
20	36000	1800	2.54	4572
25	36000	1440	2.54	3657
30	36000	1200	2.54	3048
35	36000	1028	2.54	2612
40	36000	900	2.54	2286
45	36000	800	2.54	2032
50	36000	720	2.54	1828

Aaron Z

 

[Kyle_in_Tex]

Here is the table with 36k miles/year. Deprecation will vary based on the car make/model/year/options, etc.

MPG	Miles/year	Gallons/year	$/Gallon	$/year
10	36000	3600	2.54	9144
15	36000	2400	2.54	6096
20	36000	1800	2.54	4572
25	36000	1440	2.54	3657
30	36000	1200	2.54	3048
35	36000	1028	2.54	2612
40	36000	900	2.54	2286
45	36000	800	2.54	2032
50	36000	720	2.54	1828

Aaron Z

Thanks.

I recommend buying a common car with about 80-100K miles on it, for as cheap as you can, thus reducing your depreciation. 36,000 miles a year, after 4-5 years, will totally kill the value of anything. Especially a new car.

 

[poncho62]

I will stick with my truck thanks....That said, its only about 4 miles to work.

 

[Kyle_in_Tex]

I will stick with my truck thanks....That said, its only about 4 miles to work.

I would do exactly the same. I dream of being that close to work, but I love where I live and not many opportunities here.

 

[Garandman]

Places like Edmunds.com will give you the value adjustment for high mileage. For our 2014 outback, 12-15,000 miles/year is “normal.” 144,000 miles decreased the value $4,607.

 

[crashz]

Timely thread. I just switched jobs and traded a company car for a long commute in my own vehicle. 75 miles each way. The F450 is not a commuter in any way and neither is my 2500. So I bought a 2006 CRV. I've done the math and the commuter car almost always pays out for me.

Beyond that, i always hated bringing my nice truck onto job sites or worse, parking in Boston. Had to do both a few years ago with my POS Malibu. Best "Boston" car i owned. Of course it had some battle scars from that job, but thats what it was for.