Originally Posted by
mcours2006
Living in the suburbs it's difficult to not have at least one car, especially if you have children. If I didn't already have two cars before I started bike commuting I'd probably just have the one car...if that even makes sense to anyone reading it.
What kind of insurance do you have to pay for the single car?
I have a $3000 2006 Mitsu sedan as my only car, and pay $800 a year in insurance. YMMV, as it depends on the number of miles you tell them you drive, your age and sex (55 yo man) and where you live. It's worth it to me, because the car is paid for, and my kids live 100 miles away.
FWIW, I use the IRS mileage rate as an estimate of what a car costs. The estimate will be higher than actual for me, because the car is paid for and my expenses (insurance and repairs esp.) are low. Still, when I drove 1000 miles a month, I mentally charged myself $440-$500 dollars, and was happy that I "only" saw expenses of about $300 (fuel, oil changes, and insurance). The other expenses were hidden - mostly depreciation and an occasional large repair. The annual $1000 repair only hurt for about 3 months!