Thursday, October 25, 2018

New Car Running Cost Calculator web app now available.

For a long time I've wanted to create a web app that would enable me to calculate the cost to run a car per kilometre. I've been recording most of the costs associated with my car since I purchased the car in 2008.

Cars cost money, big money. If you know how much a car costs to run per kilometre you can make informed decisions about your choices. For me it's been very instructional doing what if calculations on different car usage scenarios. I've learned a few things even though I've only been using the Car Running Cost Calculator for less than a day.

If you're interested in working out how much it costs you to run your car per kilometre, or even per year, you can check out the Car Running Cost Calculator at www.CarRunningCostCalculator.com.au.

So what things have I learned?
  • Based on my usage the car has cost me around 51 cents per kilometre.
  • Surprisingly trying to save money using public transport instead of your car actually increases the cost per kilometre.
  • Within reason, the more you use your car the cheaper it gets per kilometre.
  • The less you use your car the more it costs per kilometre, which makes the cost of public transport appear more attractive.
  • Registration has cost me around 5 cents per kilometre.
  • Petrol has cost me around 13 cents per kilometre.
Will I change my behaviour based on what I've learned?

In most cases the Car Running Cost Calculator confirms what I already suspected but couldn't easily prove. In a number of scenarios I compared using public transport to using a car, in the past I've felt public transport had a price advantage. Public transport definitely has a considerable time and convenience disadvantage, often taking two to three times longer for a journey, but if I have time, time's not a cost to me. I'm also quite happy taking public transport. However, now I'll be able to better check the public transport cost versus using the car and often the car will not only be quicker, more convenient, but it will also be cheaper.

I should state for clarity that often when I drive there can be two people in the car. The number of people is important as the cost of using public transport goes up by the number of people, whereas in a car the additional cost per person is likely to be under 10%.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.CarRunningCostCalculator.com.au


No comments:

Post a Comment