Fuel prices put in perspective
The eagle-eyed among you might have noticed an absence of Friends and alloys for the past month.
Sorry, but we don’t think you’ve suffered enough so like an irritating rash, we’re back.
Something that came across the desk during our time away was a survey conducted for insurance firm Hastings.
It reckoned that up to a fifth of all drivers would give up using their cars if fuel hit £2 per litre.
To be honest, that strikes us as complete and utter rot.
Yes, filling up is an expensive occupation but there are other motoring costs equally if not more painful.
Take depreciation. In the A-Z of cars on the market, the Alfa Romeo Giulietta kicks things off. The base model costs just over £19,000, three years later it will be worth less than £8,000.
That’s a loss of more than £300 each and every month.
At the other end of the motoring alphabet the Volvo XC90 ends the list. New, it costs from £35,000 and in three years will have shed more than £20,000 of its value – that’s £550 a month.
If you want a real laugh though look no further than the Maybach 62 uber-limo. Before options that will set you back £367,000 and be worth just £133,000 three years later.
That’s right, the Simon Cowells of this world are kissing goodbye to almost £6,500 each month.
There’s also insurance to consider and as any parent of a teenage driver will tell you, annual premiums of £2,000 or more are not uncommon.
Then there’s tax, servicing, MoTs...
The fact is driving is not cheap, but still it remains just the best way, on most occasions, of getting from A to B.
The greatest luxury in life is the freedom to choose and no other form of transport even comes close to the car in that respect.
Mrs C and I are currently planning an autumn European road trip that will take us through France, Switzerland, Germany and Italy.
We did something similar a few years ago and had a ball.
Our car took us to some amazing places, allowed us to explore roads we didn’t know and, with curtains velcroed around the windows at night, also served as our hotel.
Even if the price of diesel rose to £2 a litre the trip would have cost us less than £500.
If prices stay roughly where they are now, we’re looking at spending just over £300. That’s a cheap holiday if you ask me.
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