How much do you spend on your car each month?

[strider]

All of our vehicles are paid for.  That said, we average about $300 per month in gas, $200 in maintenance and insurance per vehicle.  All are also used daily for the company as well.

My 1990 Miata and the 1969 Datsun 2000 are cheap to own at the moment, except that both are in the shop being restored so maybe not so cheap after all!

And we won't talk about the Lincoln....  yes, we have too many cars.

I also put a lift at the house so that I could take 4 hours and $ 70.00 in parts for a repair the local guy wanted $1,200.00 to do.  The lift was $1,600.00, installation was about $ 200.00 in parts and the lift paid for itself the first year.

[tufsu1]

for me, its more than $600...car loan is a tad under $500, insurance is a bit over $100, and gas is easily $200 a month (I drive a lot for work)....reality is it is probably close to $1000 a month including deferred maintenance expenses.

Crazy!

well consiodering that this week I drove to Miami for work on Tuesday....and am in Ft. Myers for a community meeting tomorrow, maybe not so crazy

[ChriswUfGator]

How much does everyone spend on their cars each month? Car payments, insurance, gas, maintenance, parking, etc.

I've heard people casually throwing around some pretty crazy numbers lately.

I'm not touching this one with somebody else's 10 foot pole...

[urbaknight]

Wow! no wounder the city has practically mandated driving. Just look all of the money their buddies are making!

The insurance industry

The gas stations/oil industry

The car dealerships

The auto shops

The parking garages

The road pavers

All good ol boy connected and endorsed!

[urbaknight]

It's no wonder that the people that have to rely on JTA are regarded as shit in this town! They're not paying all of that money every month to keep those assholes pockets padded!

[GoldenEst82]

My car is paid for.
ins pip/liability $70
I do my own maint, $20-40 every 3-5k miles (I drive 60+ miles a day during the school year, so basically 4 changes/plugs a year, so about $144 yearly maint.)

We are also restoring the car ever so slowly, about $100 in parts every 2 months.
Repairs are done by my husband, about $100 a year to replace actual crap that breaks.

Which totals out to 914 dollars a year- gas not included. Though I will be finished with her restoration this year.(its taken about 4 years)

Totally Jelly of your at home lift Strider!!! That makes so many things SO much easier!!

[Debbie Thompson]

Wish I knew how to repair cars myself.  Something my dad didn't think a girl would need to know.  My car is 15 years old, and I hate car payments enough not to mind driving a 15 year old car.  It's been an excellent car, with most repairs being routine maintenance like tires, oil changes, brake jobs, a couple batteries, and a couple serpentine belts in 15 years. 

Finally, the engine block cracked in April.  I considered buying a new car, because at $2000 for a replacement engine, it was worth more than the car.  Until I thought about it again.  Hmmm....at LEAST $300 a month for even the cheapest car for 5 years.  Or the equivalent $300 a month for 7 months for an engine, and after that I was home free.  Since the body is in good shape (the car's, not so much mine :-)  I went for the repair.  Every day I drive it after November, I'm ahead of the game.

Monthly...about $150 in gas, $70 insurance, and the occasional repair.

[civil42806]

Well my 83 Mercedes sl 380 is paid for, only drive it out for shows.  My 2011 BMW 335I convertible has a few more years.  Guess around 400 a month.   

Sorry couldn't resist, felt like irritating gardenguy and urbaknight

[Lunican]

I have student loans at 6.8%. Instead of continuing to pay the high interest on those loans, I can sell my car (which I have no debt on) use the proceeds to pay down principal. Essentially its using my car to refinance my student loans from 6.8% to around 2%.

You'd be better off just putting your money towards your loans and forget about taking on more debt for a new car. Unless the goal isn't to pay off the loans, but to hold onto them with a lower rate.

[Lunican]

What everyone is spending to get around town is pretty shocking.

Maybe Jacksonville isn't such a cheap place to live afterall. Most big cities offer unlimited transit passes for about $100 per month.

[CityLife]

I have student loans at 6.8%. Instead of continuing to pay the high interest on those loans, I can sell my car (which I have no debt on) use the proceeds to pay down principal. Essentially its using my car to refinance my student loans from 6.8% to around 2%.

You'd be better off just putting your money towards your loans and forget about taking on more debt for a new car. Unless the goal isn't to pay off the loans, but to hold onto them with a lower rate.

I'm not sure you're really following and I haven't explained my entire strategy, but it makes total sense. I've ran it by someone who knows finance very well and they gave me the thumbs up.

[MEGATRON]

Pretty ridiculous that you can finance a car at a lower rate than you can get a student loan.  .

Not really.  Fail to repay a car loan and bank reposes the car.  Fail to repay a student loan and there is nothing to back it up.  More risk for the bank.

[BridgeTroll]

What everyone is spending to get around town is pretty shocking.

Maybe Jacksonville isn't such a cheap place to live afterall. Most big cities offer unlimited transit passes for about $100 per month.

Even that is $1200 per year.  Do the passes include cab fare?  Are you still in Chicago?  How do you go to places outside the city?  What do you do if you need to transport something that requires more than two hands?  How do you grocery shop?  I ask because while I would certainly take advantage of the $100 transport passes I can think of many instances where I would want a car.

[Lunican]

$1200 per year is a bargain compared to $12,000!

I'm not in Chicago, but while there it was very rare to need a car. Groceries were right around the corner. We left the city by train, plane, or sometimes [rented] automobile.

I didn't need to carry many large items, but it was never an issue. Just grab a large cab and go. Or rent the size vehicle you need without paying for it year round. Or just order it online. Lots of options for every scenario.

[urbaknight]

Well my 83 Mercedes sl 380 is paid for, only drive it out for shows.  My 2011 BMW 335I convertible has a few more years.  Guess around 400 a month.   

Sorry couldn't resist, felt like irritating gardenguy and urbaknight

LOL, I'm not irritated, I don't blame people for choosing their own transportation. It's a no brainer in this town. If I could see well enough, I too would have a car.