When most people buy a car, they look at the purchase price as their total cost. Unfortunately that is only the beginning, there are many hidden costs to car ownership. According to Edmunds, there are seven categories associated with buying, owning and operating a car:
- Depreciation
- Financing
- Insurance
- Taxes and fees
- Fuel
- Maintenance
- Repairs
Want to see how much your car is actually costing you per month? The people at BikesAtWork.com have a real cost of car ownership calculator. Plug in your annual car expenses to find out your true car ownership costs. They also show you how much you could save by not owning a car.
Edmunds has also conducted a study to reveal which cars offer the best value by calculating the cost per mile to own and operate each vehicle. I was surprised to find that Hybrid vehicles do not score well due to their high purchase price. So instead of just looking at purchase price and fuel efficiency, consider the total cost of ownership of any vehicle you own.
Now Pay4Rides would not be free, but it would certainly cost you less than car ownership. Even if you keep your car and just use it less, you could realize significant savings. We are all so conditioned to the 2 car family, would you ever consider giving one up?
photo credit: *davierae*
