Modern Vespa

I'm not trying to state the obvious, especially if I'm incorrect but,

assuming gas sells for $4.00 a gal. (not currently I know, but it was and may do so again) and you have a vehicle that gets 25 mpg (again slightly higher mpg rating that most vehicles) the cost per mile would be $0.16, Now with a scooter rating 65 mpg the cost per mile would be $0.06(rounded). a net savings of $.10 per mile. So If I substitute my scooter for 2/3 of my miles (12k annual) I could save $800.00.

I've always been told if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is? could this be the case. Am I calculating this wrong?

Thanks
-Crispy

12,000 miles divided by 25 (mpg) is 480 gallons of fuel.

480 X $4 = $1,920

12,000 miles divided by 65 (mpg) is 184.61 gallons of fuel.

185 X $4 = $740

$1,920
- $740
---------
$1,180

$1,180 * .66 = $778.80


That's nearly $800, but you have to factor in other costs too, like:

already deducted that from my bottom line.

I thought my math might be a little off, it's been a while.

-Crispy

You are looking at costs of fuel only. That doesn't cover oil, maintenance, tires, brakes, general wear and tear and depreciation.

As of July of this year, the IRS allowance for business mileage expenses is $.585. At 12,000 miles per year, Uncle Sam says it costs you $7020 to operate your vehicle. If your scooter covered 2/3 of those miles, it would save you $4680. Actually, it would probably be more in savings since the Vespa should be cheaper overall to own and operate.

With that kind of savings, you could buy a new scooter every two years.

But fuel costs might not be directly comparable for everyone, as most cars take "regular" and Vespas are supposed to use "premium."

And it has been discussed before, but of course Vespas are not cheap to buy, nor maintain through a shop, so if your vespa is an added cost on TOP of your car to buy and run it will take years before the Vespa pays for itself on gas savings .

Of course, if you sold your car to buy the Vespa, or don't use premium, or so on and so forth...

But looking at gas costs/footprint alone - very nice

Motorbikes of any sort are Not Cheap to run. Those who buy them to escape some financial problem are doomed to be disappointed.

Let's see...

Case #1) Gas Costs Car Only
gas cost = 12000 miles / 25 miles/gal * $4.00/gal = $1920


Case #2) Gas Costs Combined Car & Scooter
auto gas cost = 12000 miles * 1 / 3 / 25 miles/gal * $4.00/gal = $640
scoot gas cost = 12000 miles * 2 / 3 / 65 miles/gal * $4.00/gal = $492.31
Total gas cost = 1132.31

Total gas savings = $1920.00-$1132.31 = $787.69

But wait, in 8000 miles you will have to change your CVT belts twice, replace your rear tire twice, and maybe set your valves. Total cost of all those services? At least $787.69 Unless you do your own service, it's a wash financially at best. And this little analysis totally ignores the extra cost of insuring a second vehicle, registering a second vehicle, property taxes on a second vehicle, and titling a second vehicle. If you add in those extra costs, you'll find that the real cost of owning that second vehicle is killing you. It's a lousy deal financially unless you get rid of the car. Period. Exclamation Point!

I've never really factored a financial gain into owning my scooters. I bought them for purely selfish reasons and I'm glad for it.

I happened to hear a couple talking about getting a scooter while in line at the local hardware store. He was playing the fuel savings angle pretty hard and I'm not sure she was buying it. This is what got me thinkin about the "Fuel Alone" savings of my Vespa and if it really amounts to anything significant. My gut feeling is that any savings realized would be lost in the "Extra" miles that I ride just for the fun of it.

-Crispy

Cars have maintenance costs also.

I am not on a Vespa to save money, but the savings in fuel costs ($200 a month, more or less) easily covers all of my Vespa-related bills.

So, I don't see it as saving money, I see it as getting a free Vespa.

And that's good.

P.

is it true Monkey Butt affects your mileage!!!!!

Well some will argue it is a loss of bulk thing, but my understanding is the changes in posture due to monkey butt increase the aerodynamics enough that you can actually see improvements yes