Daily Driving Tow Vehicles
How many people daily drive their tow vehicle? I sat down and did the math and the lease payment + fuel + insurance for a basic Chevy Cruze to commute to work in was cheaper than just fuel to com...
Forum Discussion
I agree that trucks cost to much to put on 10,000 miles a year just going back and forth to work. In 10 years, you will have worn out the truck just with those miles alone, not including the fun camping trips.
I have a fuel bill of around $300 a month to drive my Ford Edge back and forth to work - 25 miles each way. When I saw a electric car lease for $139 a month, I investigated. I can charge for free at my work, and the car has a 80 mile range. So I would also need to charge it at home sometimes, and the 10,000 mile lease per year would limit me to only 200 daily trips per year at 50 miles, so care would be needed to not add excessive miles onto the lease, or face a penalty.
Buying extra miles is sensible before signing the lease, as you can change it to a 12,000 or 15,000 mile per year lease in advance, but not so easy once you have 30,000 miles on the car.
In the end, I can not fit my 6'2" tall body into the Smart car easily, and insurance costs to add this car will exceed my fuel costs. I do not want to sell the Edge, as it is all set up for towing behind my motorhome, with braking system, and is very comfortable to carry 4 adults out sightseeing, or take the family someplace.
However it is something to consider when looking over your monthly fuel bill. And how nice would it be to have a electric car as a towed vehicle? I could charge it at the campground for free, and save a few bucks on fuel costs.
I also looked at the Ford Focus electric car. It is nearly as small as a Kia Rio that I already have. I have started driving the Kia to work and home, but it is not nearly as safe "Feeling" as the Edge, should I get in a collision. The Focus comes with about $11,000 in Ford and Federal rebates, making it a economical alternative to the cars I drive now.
My work is also considering purchasing 2 Smart Cars for local deliveries, and they might become available to employees at night to commute home and back to work the next day. This would be a blessing to be able to run those cars totally cost free, as they would pick up the insurance costs and charge them free too!
The think I hate about the Smart Electric car is the 120 volt charger. I hoped it would be built into the car, so you just walk over with a extension cord and plug in the car. However Smart has a removable charger, that you set beside the car, then plug in that to 120 volts and into the car. Anyone can also unplug and walk away with the expensive charger. I guess the Smart engineers never lived in a neighborhood where the locals like to recycle your stuff to provide drug money for themselves. It they are taking $1,000 tailgates off of pickup trucks, think how much easier it would be to pick up a $1,400 4 pound portable charger?
Fred.
I have a fuel bill of around $300 a month to drive my Ford Edge back and forth to work - 25 miles each way. When I saw a electric car lease for $139 a month, I investigated. I can charge for free at my work, and the car has a 80 mile range. So I would also need to charge it at home sometimes, and the 10,000 mile lease per year would limit me to only 200 daily trips per year at 50 miles, so care would be needed to not add excessive miles onto the lease, or face a penalty.
Buying extra miles is sensible before signing the lease, as you can change it to a 12,000 or 15,000 mile per year lease in advance, but not so easy once you have 30,000 miles on the car.
In the end, I can not fit my 6'2" tall body into the Smart car easily, and insurance costs to add this car will exceed my fuel costs. I do not want to sell the Edge, as it is all set up for towing behind my motorhome, with braking system, and is very comfortable to carry 4 adults out sightseeing, or take the family someplace.
However it is something to consider when looking over your monthly fuel bill. And how nice would it be to have a electric car as a towed vehicle? I could charge it at the campground for free, and save a few bucks on fuel costs.
I also looked at the Ford Focus electric car. It is nearly as small as a Kia Rio that I already have. I have started driving the Kia to work and home, but it is not nearly as safe "Feeling" as the Edge, should I get in a collision. The Focus comes with about $11,000 in Ford and Federal rebates, making it a economical alternative to the cars I drive now.
My work is also considering purchasing 2 Smart Cars for local deliveries, and they might become available to employees at night to commute home and back to work the next day. This would be a blessing to be able to run those cars totally cost free, as they would pick up the insurance costs and charge them free too!
The think I hate about the Smart Electric car is the 120 volt charger. I hoped it would be built into the car, so you just walk over with a extension cord and plug in the car. However Smart has a removable charger, that you set beside the car, then plug in that to 120 volts and into the car. Anyone can also unplug and walk away with the expensive charger. I guess the Smart engineers never lived in a neighborhood where the locals like to recycle your stuff to provide drug money for themselves. It they are taking $1,000 tailgates off of pickup trucks, think how much easier it would be to pick up a $1,400 4 pound portable charger?
Fred.
