Fuel Consumption Economics...???

[redyaris]

There seem to be so many ways to look at the economics of better fuel consumption. the most commone is raturn on investment, which argues that if you spend $250/yr to get a $25/yr saveings on fuel the 10yr return on investment is not very good.
I prefer to look at what the average North American spends on fuel, which is aprox $4000/yr and compare that to what I spend on fuel per year, which is Aprox $1000/yr. The way I look at it I can spend $3000/yr on reducing my fuel consumption by $25/yr and still be no worse off than the average person. What say You...?

[busypaws]

I approach it a little different:
If I invest $150 on new shocks/struts that lower my car by a 1/2 inch. This saves me (just guessing) 1/2 MPG - saving me 10 dollars in gas a year. Then my your right my payback period is 15 years which is not a good investment. (Longer then the remaining life of the car).
However, If I perform A-B-A tests, document my results, post them here then hundreds of other people will learn from me and I'll make the world a better place. That is worth the $150 investment.
If my shocks/struts need replacing anyway and I just happen to buy ones that are 1/2 inch shorter, and they cost the same as the factory replacments, then they are "FREE" because I would have to buy them anyway.

[gone-ot]

...depends upon WHOM you're "comparing" results against:

1) YOURSELF -- comparing your own progress is best because you can incrementally see what you've improved.

2) OTHERS -- comparing your progress against others (which are typically really "average" others), leaves you static...because the "average" moves VERY little, both up & down, due to the isolation resulting from being "...one of many..."

...YMMV, but I've always preferred "self" over "others"--all three of us--me, myself and I--(wink,wink)!

[jamesqf]

It's not the money. It's like performance mods, which might cost hundreds or thousands to gain a few mph or shave a few tenths of a second off 0-60 times. Now is the time saved in travelling worth the cost, by any rational argument?

[cfg83]

redyaris -

I don't do it for the money, but I think it pays for itself :



Based on the above, in about 34 months I have saved $2400, aka about $70 per month or about $840 per year.

From my POV that means I could spend $70 per month on mods and not "lose" any money.

The real "spend" for me has not been money as much as it has been *effort*. If I add that to the equation, then it's probably not worth it. But that's where the hobby part comes in.

CarloSW2

[320touring]

i'm fairly new to hypermiling, and as such i'm still trying to figure out how to quantify the savings..

My current approach is to log:

additional mileage OVER the official figures
Saved running costs VS official figures
Total cost per mile (for the saab only) including purchase price and taxing/servicing
Cost per mile for fuel and servicing for the clio

I feel these give me an idea of the fiscal advantages..

I may also consider working out the miles i offset by providing a car share with my colleague.

I have not yet started modifying any of the vehicles
-when i do, i'll try to keep a cost log to allow others to figure out the cost of each mod

[roflwaffle]

Originally Posted by jamesqf

It's not the money. It's like performance mods, which might cost hundreds or thousands to gain a few mph or shave a few tenths of a second off 0-60 times. Now is the time saved in travelling worth the cost, by any rational argument?

Lets say I get ~20mpg (50/50 city highway) by going ~30 mph city and ~70mph highway (50mph average speed), and that I get ~30mpg by going ~25mph city and ~55mph highway (~40mph average speed). If I drive 15000 miles/year at the higher speeds then I'll spend ~75 hours less in the car and pay ~$750 more for gas, which is a marginal rate of ~$10/hour more to drive faster. This is ignoring any additional wear and tear from going faster, increased risk of getting in an accident from higher speeds, tickets, or higher insurance premiums from the last two, that will all add to the marginal cost

Now that we have figured out the minimum it costs to drive faster, in order to determine if it's worth it, we need to ask ourselves how much do we value work versus driving. If we like driving twice as much as work then it only makes sense to drive faster if we net $20+/hour or more. If we like work twice as much, then we have to net $5+/hour at work. It all depends on the actual difference in mileage/time given different driving behavior and personal preference. Understanding marginal cost versus personal preference gives us a good idea about what is worth doing financially and personally.

[Lazarus]

Originally Posted by cfg83

redyaris -

I don't do it for the money, but I think it pays for itself :



Based on the above, in about 34 months I have saved $2400, aka about $70 per month or about $840 per year.

From my POV that means I could spend $70 per month on mods and not "lose" any money.

The real "spend" for me has not been money as much as it has been *effort*. If I add that to the equation, then it's probably not worth it. But that's where the hobby part comes in.

CarloSW2

CarlosSW2,
Were you at EPA values when you started getting into the fuel game? Most are not so your numbers are probably better than that I know you don't so it for the money just using you for an example.

[dcb]

Also the gains are much broader than personal or monetary, we gain skills and knowledge in the attempts. and if people are willing to experiment and document well what works and what doesn't, then we all gain.

[Patrick]

We also gain a smaller carbon footprint and less dependence on foreign oil.