Extended Road Trip Precautions?

[abscate]

The biggest piece of that 58 cents a mile is depreciation, which doesn't apply in this Forum

[rguzz]

Agree with rental entirely, that's my usual long distance travel plan second to using my wife's Honda, which she needs. In this case, will be hauling stuff and staying a while, making a rental more complicated than usual. Also, can't wait to do a drive after the recent spate of repairs !!

[polskamafia mjl]

I don't know about you guys but I didn't buy my car to be a garage queen. I bought it so I could drive it.

[FlyingVolvo]

I don't know about you guys but I didn't buy my car to be a garage queen. I bought it so I could drive it.

Hell yeah!

I just did over 3,000 miles of driving in the last month and a half without missing a single beat (South Carolina to Oklahoma, then back). Car's got 238,000 miles on it now. Steady highway driving really isn't really what kills these cars; they're meant to be driven!

[erikv11]

It is in fact cheaper to rent a car, simply b/c you get unlimited mileage (which was not the case 30 years ago).

Considering 900-1000 miles...
- Wear and tear on many parts including tires (which last about 30K or so).
- Depreciation of car values.
etc. etc.

Government these days give ~58 cents/mile for work travel. If you subtract the gas cost (which is similar for your own car and the rented car), which is about 8 cents/ highway mile, then 50 cents/mile for wear and tear cost.

So for 900 miles, it is $450 wear and tear on your own car (tire wear, brake wear, belts, pulleys etc. etc.)...you are ahead if you rent a car, which costs only $30 or so per day.

Many people don't realize this, but for long trip you come out ahead if you rent a vehicle. Plus there is no headache, if you are involved in an accident, simply call the rental company for a new vehicle.

This is voodoo accounting, it makes no sense. Some of the numbers are real, sure, but they are irrelevant to this post. Do I lose $7500 each year in wear and tear by driving my 1998 wagon 15,000 miles over 12 months? The best way to estimate the annual wear and tear cost on your car, is to keep a log and then add up what you spend on it over time.

But I agree, a car is for driving, I like taking them on the road.

[cn90]

The discussion of rental is relevant to the thread.

The 50 cents/mile cost is published data, I do not make it up.
This applies to personal vehicle used for business purpose and is used throughout the US.

Of course, this covers most items:
- Wear and Tear
- Depreciation b/c of mileage accumulated
- Insurance cost

So, the wear and tear part: this applies to the average owner who does not fix the car and uses local mechanics, which can be costly.

For this forum, not everyone fixes his own cars, some people here use mechanic.

Even for the DIYers (which are the majority of people here), do some math:
- To calculate average cost per mile, for the last 5 years, what are your costs of parts in terms of cents/miles, assuming you DIY?

Once you know this figure, do some calculation of your cost vs rental cost.

[rspi]

Last time I checked a few years ago, it was costing me between 17 and 21 cents to drive my car. Now since gas is cheaper, I'd say it is costing me about 15 cents per mile. The last road trip in my car was about 3500 miles. I did that in 14 days.

So, it cost me about $525 to take that trip. My thermostat is bad so I got about 25 mpg (140 gallons). Gas cost me about $335. The balance is about $190. I doubt that I could rent a decent car for $190 for 14 days???
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Never mind. I just checked Avis, the cost of a Cruz was $965 for 14 days. Add the gas and I'm up to $1,300 before taxes, insurance, and whatever hidden fees they'll have.

[benpineapple]

The biggest piece of that 58 cents a mile is depreciation, which doesn't apply in this Forum

+1 Haha I agree, no such thing as depreciation with a p80 as far as I'm concerned.

Rental vs. your own car; there are plenty of pros and cons for both. Here's my take on it: last month my wife and I drove the old highway one, from San Francisco to Los Angeles, through Big Sur, the Los Padres forest, and all that cool business. We rented the cheapest, most bottom-line car available (had flown to the west coast, from Michigan). It was a 1.5L Mazda 2. I love driving, but let me tell you, I do not love driving Mazda 2s. Great cars, don't get me wrong, but fundamentally not enjoyable cars to drive. Strictly from a cost-conscious standpoint, you're likely not going to get the same thing out of a road trip driving a cheap car, vs. driving your own glorious P80. I've gone on a lot of road trips, and while it was very beautiful on California, I was thinking the entire time "man, I sure wish I had my V70". We still had a great time, don't worry.

What is the cost of enjoying your drive? Is it more worth it with one option, over the other?

Alright, that's my take on it. As far as precautions go, take plenty of fuses, and I'd recommend having a spare fuel pump relay.

[dorvin]

Just a simple note I'd like to add, it's always nice to be able to take a trip in a car you know, and are comfortable in. Also the bragging rights of saying you did it too!

[estrekal]

Well, at my wife's insistence, we did end up renting a car rather than take either of our cars. The worst case scenario would have been my V70 breaking somewhere between Reno and Las Vegas--there isn't much in between--and me having to leave my car in a place like Tonopah or Goldfield Nevada. It's a two-lane highway for almost 400 miles, which requires a lot of quick passing and hard driving. With that being said, I did see some really old and crappy cars on the road to Vegas, meaning that my Volvo probably would have done just fine.

I ended up with a bright red 2016 Beetle from Hertz for $140 for five days...really not a bad price, but what a piece of junk. That thing was super uncomfortable and it just felt cheap--lots of rattles and shakes. It did get peppered with lots of road debris, including bits of a motorhome that blew a tire and started to come apart right in front of us! Better someone else's car than mine in a scenario like that. I sure did miss the p80 seats, as I said earlier, they sure are great.