My Personal Finance Journey

Personal finance observation, musing and decisions in a journey toward financial independence by 2020 with at least $3 million.


By Topics

Overall:
0. About (10)
1. My Progress (139)
2. Car & Home (107)
3. Credit (138)
4. Banking (33)
5. Saving (49)
6. Investing (308)
7. Taxes (89)
8. Spending (74)
9. Misc (97)
A. Archive (49)



MONTHLY ARCHIVE

Feb 2014 (3)
Jan 2014 (6)
Jan 2012 (1)
Apr 2011 (1)
Mar 2011 (1)
Feb 2011 (1)
Jan 2011 (1)
Dec 2010 (1)
Oct 2010 (1)
Sep 2010 (1)
Aug 2010 (1)
Jul 2010 (1)
Jun 2010 (1)
May 2010 (1)
Apr 2010 (1)
Mar 2010 (6)
Feb 2010 (2)
Jan 2010 (7)
Dec 2009 (3)
Feb 2009 (4)
Jan 2009 (8)
Dec 2008 (1)
Jun 2008 (2)
May 2008 (2)
Apr 2008 (5)
Feb 2008 (3)
Jan 2008 (15)
Dec 2007 (32)
Nov 2007 (6)
Oct 2007 (8)
Sep 2007 (9)
Aug 2007 (24)
Jul 2007 (2)
Jun 2007 (1)
May 2007 (3)
Apr 2007 (4)
Mar 2007 (4)
Feb 2007 (13)
Jan 2007 (6)
Dec 2006 (3)
Nov 2006 (7)
Oct 2006 (7)
Sep 2006 (6)
Aug 2006 (4)
Jul 2006 (10)
Jun 2006 (1)
May 2006 (3)
Apr 2006 (2)
Mar 2006 (6)
Feb 2006 (6)
Jan 2006 (3)
Dec 2005 (1)
Nov 2005 (9)
Oct 2005 (8)
Sep 2005 (13)
Aug 2005 (25)
Jul 2005 (16)
Jun 2005 (17)
May 2005 (19)
Apr 2005 (20)
Mar 2005 (24)
Feb 2005 (23)
Jan 2005 (36)
Dec 2004 (40)
Nov 2004 (34)
Oct 2004 (17)
Sep 2004 (21)
Aug 2004 (59)
Jul 2004 (37)
Jun 2004 (31)
May 2004 (29)
Apr 2004 (52)
Mar 2004 (49)
Feb 2004 (49)
Jan 2004 (31)
Dec 2003 (48)
Nov 2003 (52)
Oct 2003 (29)
Sep 2003 (8)
Aug 2003 (5)
Jul 2003 (2)
Jun 2003 (2)
May 2003 (5)
Apr 2003 (2)
Mar 2003 (2)
Feb 2003 (3)
Jan 2003 (29)



 

Average Lifetime Spending On Cars: $240,000 or More

Contributed by mm | January 29, 2005 4:24 AM PST

According to a American Institute for Economic Research (AIER) study cited by Mototrend, the average American spends between $240,704 to $349,968 on automobile during their lifetime. This does not surprise me too much; after all, I spent a whole $7,504 last year to keep two cars and it represents 11.4% of my annual spending, compared to 29.1% on housing and 22.9% on food and groceries. Even as frugal as I can be when it comes to cars, it will take close to 200 grand to keep one car for 50 years' driving life according to my current setting.

According to Edmunds' True Cost to Own, there are seven types of cost to maintain a car:

- Depreciation
- Insurance
- Financing
- Tax and Fees
- Fuel
- Maintenance
- Repairs

Now here is my advice to cut your auto spending: first, choose a car that fills your needs and bears a low True Cost to Own. Your decision on which car to own affects each and every of the seven cost categories. (In plain words, if you own a Ferrari, there is no way you can keep the cost down. That's why I choose Toyota Camry and Kia Optima.)

Second, consider to own a used car. Especially, I found 2-3 year old used car to be the best deal. To own a (new) used car, you can dramatically decrease your depreciation cost without bringing up your maintenance cost too much.

And if you have more time, read more and work on these cost categories one by one. Here are more advices from PFBlog archives:

- Insurance: choose the right coverage and do your comparison shopping.
- Financing: shop around, and if applicable, use your home equity loan or HELOC to fund your car payments.
- Fuel: Get a cashback credit card that rewards your gas purchases, and know where to get cheap gas from your neighborhood.
- Maintenance: treat your car nicely and avoid maintenance traps
- Repairs: be a bit knowledgeable about your car and, again, shop around

More PFBlog Articles You Might Find Interesting ...


This Post Has Received 3 Comments. Share Your Opinions Too.


Dekorai Commented on August 25, 2005

A new car can be a better value only if you buy it with the intention of driving it to the ground. I bought a new 2005 Honda CRV at $1100 below invoice, reducing my first year of estimated depreciation by almost $3000 and with an aim of keeping it 10 years or atleast 150,000 miles. This is a unique situation where I drove a great bargain on a new Honda, since a 1-2 year Honda's resale value is still substantially higher that any others. This comes back to the TCO (total cost of ownership) and the Japanese are always cheaper in the long run.


Dekorai Commented on August 25, 2005

A new car can be a better value only if you buy it with the intention of driving it to the ground. I bought a new 2005 Honda CRV at $1100 below invoice, reducing my first year of estimated depreciation by almost $3000 and with an aim of keeping it 10 years or atleast 150,000 miles. This is a unique situation where I drove a great bargain on a new Honda, since a 1-2 year Honda's resale value is still substantially higher that any others. This comes back to the TCO (total cost of ownership) and the Japanese are always cheaper in the long run.


Dekorai Commented on August 25, 2005

A new car can be a better value only if you buy it with the intention of driving it to the ground. I bought a new 2005 Honda CRV at $1100 below invoice, reducing my first year of estimated depreciation by almost $3000 and with an aim of keeping it 10 years or atleast 150,000 miles. This is a unique situation where I drove a great bargain on a new Honda, since a 1-2 year Honda's resale value is still substantially higher that any others. This comes back to the TCO (total cost of ownership) and the Japanese are always cheaper in the long run.



Read More ... 102 Posts In The Same Category










This page was last rebuilt at January 27, 2014 07:42 AM PST.
 

RSS FEED





PERSONAL FINANCE BLOGS I READ

Consumerism Commentary
Get Rich Slowly
My Money Blog
All Financial Matters
The Simple Dollar






.

Error 500 - Internal server error

Error 500 - Internal server error

An internal server error has occured!
Please try again later.



Copyright 2003-2014, PFBlog.com. All Rights Reserved. (Privacy Policy)