ran across this on y! autos.
http://autos.yahoo.com/chrysler_pt_cruiser_convertible_base-price/?zip=95051
in case the link someday goes dead, it predicts that in 5 years the total cost of owning the continual car will be $46,215, assuming 15k miles/year with this breakdown:
depreciation: $12,602
fuel cost: $13,395
financing: $3,162
insurance: $6,922
maintenance: $2,613
fees, taxes: $2,000
repairs: $1,038
opportunity cost: $4,483
all of these things will be pretty easy to check in the future with the possible exception of the "opportunity cost," which i'd have to dig on a bit to figure out. they give the cost/mile as being $0.62 (dividing the $46k figure by 75k miles). there's also no mention of car payments here (maybe that's offset in the opportunity cost -- i'm a little tired right now to think this through fully).
five years from now i may have to pull one of my accountant pals aside to make sure i'm doing an apples-to-apples comparison.
2008-10-28
2008-10-26
early hallowe'en
got another flicker of the airbag light while driving tonight. just noting it for posterity.
2008-10-24
you destroy what you touch?
another missive from b1-67er.
***
The Automotive Fascist's dad, who was also a big car freak, once told me he believed that skin oil (and other things on the hands) was the biggest destroyer of dashes and upholstery on cars (aside from the sun).
The attached picture is of a hole in the top of the passenger seat on the Galaxie -- where my hand rests when I drive one handed.
[note: this car has since undergone extensive restoration ... can't wait to see it ... it's the chromatic inverse of the continual car: white body, blue roof.]
***
The Automotive Fascist's dad, who was also a big car freak, once told me he believed that skin oil (and other things on the hands) was the biggest destroyer of dashes and upholstery on cars (aside from the sun).
The attached picture is of a hole in the top of the passenger seat on the Galaxie -- where my hand rests when I drive one handed.
[note: this car has since undergone extensive restoration ... can't wait to see it ... it's the chromatic inverse of the continual car: white body, blue roof.]
2008-10-23
lifetime powertrain warranty return (LPWR)
LPWR is my term for money that i have saved by buying a car with a lifetime powertrain warranty. this wasn't a concept i had originally considered when i wrote this blog, but i recently had the turbo and the transmission replaced and didn't want the dollars saved by having this warranty get crossed up with my SCR.
although i've created this new definition in 4/14, i've back dated it to here to keep it more in line with my other definitions.
although i've created this new definition in 4/14, i've back dated it to here to keep it more in line with my other definitions.
service contract return (SCR)
SCR is my term for money that i'm getting back because i have the bumper-to-bumper lifetime wrap on my car. although the primary reason i keep track of this figure is for the actual mechanical work on the car, it can also include things like roadside service (good for the first 7 years/100k miles) and free rentals during service (ditto). this figure is a little scammy because i wouldn't be doing things like renting a car while i have my car serviced if i had to pay for it -- but it's a perk of the program and i see actual dollar figures pass back-and-forth between the chrysler and the rental agencies, so i'm counting it. who knows what the real dollar figure for things like this is? one thing's for sure -- i get a rental car when i get my car serviced and i'm not paying for it. and that's a pretty damn good deal (even if i am essentially paying for it).
also, this number includes any warranty service that is done after the standard 3 year/36,000 mile service less the $100 deductible -- the whole reason i have the warranty in the first place. (4/26/14 addendum: i'm not aware what these actual numbers are, but i've been asking my dealers what the costs would be as i get work done ... SCR isn't IRS accounting accurate, but rather a good ballpark figure).
i paid $1542 for the bumper-to-bumper wrap so once my SCR gets above this figure i've "made money" by buying the wrap.
(the $0 deductible was $1270 more -- once i've made more than 12 warranty trips to the dealer, after 36,000 miles, i would have been better off to buy that policy instead.)
note: the rental car fee for my first service was $35, but was moved down to $28 on subsequent services. i don't know why.
also, this number includes any warranty service that is done after the standard 3 year/36,000 mile service less the $100 deductible -- the whole reason i have the warranty in the first place. (4/26/14 addendum: i'm not aware what these actual numbers are, but i've been asking my dealers what the costs would be as i get work done ... SCR isn't IRS accounting accurate, but rather a good ballpark figure).
i paid $1542 for the bumper-to-bumper wrap so once my SCR gets above this figure i've "made money" by buying the wrap.
(the $0 deductible was $1270 more -- once i've made more than 12 warranty trips to the dealer, after 36,000 miles, i would have been better off to buy that policy instead.)
note: the rental car fee for my first service was $35, but was moved down to $28 on subsequent services. i don't know why.
losing chrysler's blessing
"losing chrysler's blessing" is a phrase i just made up to describe "official chrysler dealerships" that have either gone completely out of business (e.g. united chrysler in las vegas) or have had their dealership credentials revoked (e.g. boardwalk chrysler in redwood city).
i'm driving enough and getting service at enough different places that i thought this would be an interesting figure to keep track of over time. i'm not religiously checking to see if past dealers have no longer made the grade, but if i find 'em, i'll post 'em here.
(this written 12/10/09, but pre-dated to go with other definitions.)
i'm driving enough and getting service at enough different places that i thought this would be an interesting figure to keep track of over time. i'm not religiously checking to see if past dealers have no longer made the grade, but if i find 'em, i'll post 'em here.
(this written 12/10/09, but pre-dated to go with other definitions.)
current TVC
if i was a little more ambitious i'd take the time to figure out how to add a spreadsheet that would be constantly updated here, but i'm not.
this is my first attempt at TVC for the continual car and i wanted to line-item the stuff here to make sure it was right "enough." in the future i'll just be putting figures directly into the header/sidebar/whatever i decide, but for the first snapshot i wanted to list it all out.
car cost out-the-door: US$23,091 (a good deal -- MSRP is $23,325)
gasoline: $2916*
bumper-to-bumper warranty wrap: $1542
insurance: $776
car cover and cleaning supplies: $281
DMV fees: $189 (might be catching some of this twice from the OTD price above)
standard automotive service: $125
parking and tolls: $75
vacuum: $66
total: $29,061
current cost/mile: $1.77
*this is [(16,400 miles/20.4mpg @ $4/gallon) - (4 tanks that have been bought for me)]. the number is definitely within 10% and probably within 5% of the "true" number. obviously, this figure becomes more accurate over time from here.)
this is my first attempt at TVC for the continual car and i wanted to line-item the stuff here to make sure it was right "enough." in the future i'll just be putting figures directly into the header/sidebar/whatever i decide, but for the first snapshot i wanted to list it all out.
car cost out-the-door: US$23,091 (a good deal -- MSRP is $23,325)
gasoline: $2916*
bumper-to-bumper warranty wrap: $1542
insurance: $776
car cover and cleaning supplies: $281
DMV fees: $189 (might be catching some of this twice from the OTD price above)
standard automotive service: $125
parking and tolls: $75
vacuum: $66
total: $29,061
current cost/mile: $1.77
*this is [(16,400 miles/20.4mpg @ $4/gallon) - (4 tanks that have been bought for me)]. the number is definitely within 10% and probably within 5% of the "true" number. obviously, this figure becomes more accurate over time from here.)
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