Math on having a second vehicle

[davisenvy]

I'm thinking about getting a little run around car instead of driving my Duramax as a DD. I drive about 200-250 miles a week and am looking as spending around $5000-$6000 on a little car. I would like to hear from those who have been in the same/similar situation and have done the math on weather it would be better to pocket the $5k and put towards Dmax maintenance or better with a run around car.
I can afford to keep driving the Dmax, but seems like a waste using a truck like that for errands and short commutes.

[tatest]

unless you do a lot of "running around" and the secord car is really cheap to own (e.g. almost zero cost of money and minimal insurance) it will be hard to make it pay.

For $500 - $2000 disposable cars with good mpg, it. can pay off for long distance commuting, like 100-200 miles a day, but not many people do that, because of the time cost.

I use my towing/hauling truck (former 16-22 mpg replaced by a 14-18 mpg one ton) for my 100 miles a month of running around, and save the 35-41 mpg mini car for the long non-rv road trips where the better mpg pays off big.

[afishinado]

Bionic Man wrote:
............... I think we can all appreciate that given that we all have a very expensive hobby in common. Owning an RV doesn't make much financial sense, does it?

Having been into offshore fishing. I told my bride when she first spoke of an RV... "NO WAY, I am not buying another boat!!!" :B

I've told my friends that also ride Harleys when they complain about the costs; After coming from boats, these things are pocket change.

[Bionic_Man]

Interesting discussion, and I think most of the points have been covered.

I am also in the "right tool for the job" camp. My truck (in signature) spends most of the time in the garage. While it is very comfortable to drive, I do not enjoy maneuvering and parking a 3500 crew dually long bed in town.

Sure, there is initial cost of a 2nd (or 3rd vehicle), but there is also a saving in depreciation of a more expensive tow vehicle. If you buy a car right, and it has 100,000 miles on it, and put another 50k on it, there is very little depreciation. If I put 50k additional miles on my truck, there is depreciation.

Maintenance is likely less on the smaller vehicle as well. Oil changes might be the same if you have a diesel with longer intervals, but expenses like tires will be much less. Tires on my truck will last around 40,000 miles (I am not one that gets 100,000 miles out of a set on my truck), and will cost in the neighborhood of $1200 to replace. A small car will get 60,000 or more miles out of a set, and likely be around $400 to replace.

And with how reliable vehicles are these days, repairs on a higher mileage "beater" aren't really a concern for me.

So, I think a lot of it comes down to personal preference. And the economical choice isn't always the right one - I think we can all appreciate that given that we all have a very expensive hobby in common. Owning an RV doesn't make much financial sense, does it?

[afishinado]

jerem0621 wrote:

................ There is no way I am spending 40-60k to let something sit unused and rot down.

Yup.... $20k I can live with.......

I'm kinda spoiled with my cars.... I bought my TV for that purpose only, tow the toy hauler. I have 4 other vehicles that are better at just about everything except pulling that trailer. We plan on taking the trailer on the road once a year (2-3 months), then leaving it parked 250 miles away in a RV park to be used like a get away cabin. So my plan is to put the TV in a storage yard for 9 months a year and dropping all but the comprehensive insurance on it.

[jerem0621]

Lantley wrote:
Good discussion but this is a very subjective topic. Everyone commute is different. Everyones lifestyle is different. Everyones finances are different.

Do you buy a 40K-60K tow vehicle so you can park it vs. driving it.
Do you ride around in a small commuter car vs. a large roomy truck.
Do you want a vehicle you actually enjoy being in vs. driving a vehicle that is less enjoyable/comfortable but provides savings.
WE all have different perspectives. I did not invest in my truck to park it, however I don't have a long commute.
I understand there is a tipping point were savings can be had via a commuter car. That savings can be real or imagined. The tipping point is different for each individual.

What we did is have a beater truck that could haul the trailer that was in good shape and had a nice car we lived with every day. There is no way I am spending 40-60k to let something sit unused and rot down.

Now we have a capable TV and a nice daily driver in our minivan. Just like anything else priorities make all the difference.


Thanks!

Jeremiah

[Lantley]

Good discussion but this is a very subjective topic. Everyone commute is different. Everyones lifestyle is different. Everyones finances are different.

Do you buy a 40K-60K tow vehicle so you can park it vs. driving it.
Do you ride around in a small commuter car vs. a large roomy truck.
Do you want a vehicle you actually enjoy being in vs. driving a vehicle that is less enjoyable/comfortable but provides savings.
WE all have different perspectives. I did not invest in my truck to park it, however I don't have a long commute.
I understand there is a tipping point were savings can be had via a commuter car. That savings can be real or imagined. The tipping point is different for each individual.

[NC_Hauler]

wcjeep wrote:

mbutts wrote:
The thing that stops me from doing this is the cost of insurance.

I bought a new 2012 Civic. The money saved on diesel fuel covered the Honda fuel and car payment. My car insurance went down by adding a new car. The truck was no longer a primary driver. Oil changes are out of pocket extra.

Insurance went down when I added a 3rd. car also, but I still paid more insurance. savings or not...insurance STILL went up, and the cost of fuel didn't offset the cost of the car, insurance,etc....The difference in around the area's I drive and tow now, the difference between reg gas and diesel has closed up...3.85 for diesel/3.59 for reg..still a gap, but it's not the wide spread difference it's been for the past several years.

[wcjeep]

mbutts wrote:
The thing that stops me from doing this is the cost of insurance.

I bought a new 2012 Civic. The money saved on diesel fuel covered the Honda fuel and car payment. My car insurance went down by adding a new car. The truck was no longer a primary driver. Oil changes are out of pocket extra.

[Halmfamily]

We only drive our D/A on Sunday and when pulling the fiver, around 5000 miles per year. I drive 42 mikes each way to work and wife hates driving the truck. I drive a Honda Odyssey as my daily driver and I just picked up a'99 Town Car is beautiful condition for $3000, only 900000 miles. The DW loves to drive that Lincoln, strange thing is its is as long as my D/A. It works for us and we plan to keep the truck as long as we can.

[pasusan]

This is what we've done. Our TV has only been a travel vehicle its whole life. It has taken us wherever we wanted to go when the kids were with us and now... Just added up the costs on it a while ago, including original price and maintenance (everything but fuel): $13,000.

Of course, your mileage may vary. 😉

[Lessmore]

Any small car that would cost $ 5-6K...is used and probably has a few years/miles on it. Don't forget repairs/maintenance when figuring out all this.

I'm not saying it's not a good idea....just look at the whole picture beyond original cost and fuel costs. Insurance also needs to be thrown in to the mix,

[Ridgerunner29]

Our Chevy 2500 is only used when it is needed for towing and hauling. Honda for my daily driving. Miata for the wife's daily driving.

Another thing to consider is the pain in the rear-end it is to drive a crew cab HD truck around in an urban area as a daily driver. I love my truck but I don't like trying to move around in parking lots and on narrow city streets with the truck if a truck is not needed for the job at hand.

[NC_Hauler]

lazydays wrote:
I commute over 650 miles a week for my job. No way in the world would I drive my truck through that morning and afternoon mess. My little Cobalt has 192k miles on it and runs great. I sold my cavalier with 255k miles on it and it was running just as good as the day I bought it. The Colbalt is payed for, cheap on gas, insurance, and maintenance. I consider it a throw away car. Once its used up I'll get another one. I pretty much do not put any money into it unless I have to. So far only brakes and tires in the 9 years wife and myself have owned it.

In your case, I'd do what you've done...I drove 200 miles a day for 22 months to and from work (100 miles one way, 5 day's a week, 1000 miles a week), and purchased a used small car, (been years ago)...Did it again from 97 to 2000, 'cept it was only 120 miles a day, (600 miles a week, but 720 when we worked Saturday's about every other week)...IN THAT scenario, one would just about HAVE to have a second car to commute...Agree in your case.

[NC_Hauler]

lanerd wrote:
Well, let's see. 250 x 52 = 13,000 miles @ say 15mpg =666 gals of fuel at say $3.75/gal = $3250.

A small car would get about 30mpg so 13000 miles would be =430 gals at $3.75/gal would cost about $1625.

So subtracting the two $3250 - $1625 = $1625 that you would save each year in fuel savings.

At these figures it would take you about 3.7 years to pay for itself in fuel savings.

Plug in your own actual figures for mpg, $/gal to get a better/worse cost savings.

Hope this was what you were looking for.

Ron

..and that's not counting the initial cost of the 2nd. car, nor the insurance one needs..at the very least, liability....

I did the second car thing and didn't come out ahead....ended up getting rid of the car and using my TV as my daily driver...Insurance, fuel, tires, upkeep, unless one is going to buy a brand new car as a 2nd. car...anyway...It was just as cheap for me to use truck in my sig in the long run...

[2112]

EcoBullet wrote:
I also like the Sirius radio my truck has in it, and I feel a little more proud driving it than I would an old beater econobox.

My old beater Ranger has a new Sony Sirius/MP3/USB bad^$$ stereo system complements of my son's ex-girlfriend. It was his Christmas present from her.

As far as "I feel a little more proud driving it than I would an old beater econobox"! I have to agree 100%. The 17 yr old Ranger still looks good but it's nothing to be proud of. Even though it's keeping miles off the Big Blue Boy it doesn't feel the same.