Our drastic decision to cut our fuel costs

12 years ago

So we looked at our cost for gas as we were contemplating our summer vacation to Utah. A few years ago we spent close to $800 using our Ram 1500. Then we used a bit less using our Jeep Wrangler towing our pop up trailer. Then we traded our Ram for a Pathfinder because I needed a vehicle to drive kids around and possibly female coworkers/friends and the truck was simply too big. The miles per gallon was even although I did get a few better with the pathfinder on the hiway. Still averaged 14.6.

DH has got back into kayaking at least twice a week. This is adding to our fuel budget. I am driving to the gym now and am the one who runs all the errands. I always make most of my driving but it is adding up.

So last year we looked at trading in my dh's mustang (faron, yes, this was dh's idea) because it was a 2005, had barely 20,000 miles and is a really cool luxury that is not very practical. Plus he has his jeep for his man-card. We looked at a Prius, almost bought it but they would not give us much for the mustang.

We started really thinking again and dh started researching. He loves to research things. He spent the next two months figuring out the cost of gas, cost of vehicle, etc. We test drove all sorts of cars. We looked at resale of the mustang and pathfinder if we ever got desparate. Who is going to want these vehicles if gas gets to $5?

We discovered the Honda Insight. I was leaning towards the Fit until we literally pulled them next to each other and compared them. It just made more sense to go for the Insight. We decided on the base model because it was $1500 to the next level for cruise, vanity mirror, center console, fancy radio. The only thing we really want is the better radio and we can put in our own, actually better, system for around $700. The car only has 2 speakers but has two blanks in back so we can add 2 more.

We managed to get the local dealer to get us two base models. Mine is white and dh's is charcoal. They did not charge us the usual fee to find us our choices and they matched an online price we found on a cool car pricing site. They gave us a good deal on the mustang and I actually made some money on the pathfinder. We decided to do a lease (I know that sounds scary but it really worked out for the best) because with changing technology we may not want to keep these cars. We did buy up the mileage to 15,000 just to be safe. We have locked in the purchase price of the cars if we decide to keep them, maybe give one to our dd when she is 17. We take good care of our cars and they came with insurance that if they get totalled they are paid for. Leases can be tricky but this worked out better. We are actually leasing both cars for 1/3 less than our two car payments. The extra we got for the trades actually paid off our jeep. I tripled my gas savings and dh more than doubled his. And the best thing of all is that his 9' kayak actually fits in the car with seats down so he does not have to take jeep kayaking. We took my car snowboarding. We folded down one seat and all 4 boards and all our gear neatly fit inside. Yes, kids had to sit next to each other but at $14 in gas for the trip vs $30 it was the price they had to pay. If it snows we can always take the jeep.

Today we sit with one vehicle paid for, huge savings on our monthly gas bill, all our vehicles now fit in the garage (pathfinder and mustang barely fit as they are large vehicles), dh still has his man-card, we can still tow the pop up (although we may be selling that and going back to tenting, but that is for another post). We really feel good about our choice. Yes, I kinda miss my pathy but after reading about the safety features in my new car I feel safe on the road. Dh kinda misses his mustang- it was really, really cool model- but we came up with an important phrase...

It is not necessarily HOW you get there but WHAT you do when you get there. And when you have extra dough to do it that makes it even better.

Comments (16)

golddust
12 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Yay!! I test drove the Insight before buying our Prius. I went with the Prius because it's bigger and we have two other trouble free Prii in the family - but you will love the Insight!! (My Prius is white too!) Our gasoline bill went down about $350. per month and it's gone even higher since we bought our car in April.

I guess we'll certainly have a much better chance running into each other looking for dishes than at the gas station now, huh? LOL!

Congratulations! We bought ours but leases are far easier on the pocketbook initially... I don't think you will be sorry.
golddust
12 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
It's not only fuel you are saving. You can feel good about driving an ecobox that is good for the earth as well!
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DLM2000-GW
12 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I would love to do that - but we need 4 wheel drive to even get out of our driveway in the winter. Someday though....

Big thumbs up to you.
golddust
12 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
We still have our BMW X5. We severely limit our driving with it and are lucky that we only need one 4WD. There will be times when the Prius is homebound in the winter. Luckily it isn't that often.
Faron79
12 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Shannon-
Wow! I feel good being noted in one of your posts!

I sincerely admire those efforts to save fuel! You're a better person than me for sure....!

I'm not a Jeep or Mustang fan at all. I'm all "GM". I grew up with Camaro's & Firebird Tran-Ams around. Had a 1981 Turbo-T/A. JEEZZZZ I miss that beast! It was VERY hard to let that T/A go...

We're getting a different car this early summer sometime I hope! We gonna trade DW's 2006 white GP-GT, since it's worth more than my '01 Jimmy 4WD. I can't get into the damn GP!!! The roof-line is so damn low! Good power and speed, but if ya can't see the stoplights....

I'm pushing hard for a 2008 Cadillac CTS.
Since getting hooked on these in Maui, HI in '09, it's all I can imagine driving!
There's no logic here...just LUST. I'll admit that!

Even the standard CTS engine makes me grin! The AWD versions stick like GLUE. I was goin' on a rural paved road near Fargo on a test-drive, looked down, and I was goin' 92MPH!!!! ALSO realized I was grinning like a schoolboy...

Couldn't afford the CTS-V version anyway....I would be in JAIL with that beast...a well-dressed beast though!!

(...sadly....you guys can "probably" tell that mileage isn't a word I use often. I apologize for that. Right or wrong, I'm just wired differently...)

Faron
barb5
12 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Shannon, sounds like you made some good choices. I hope you are laughing all the way to the bank!
Faron79
12 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I think she did too! Honestly I do.

Others, like me....aren't as smart as Her.

I fall for ads like this all the time...
Kate Walsh's 2008 CTS ad:

Faron

Here is a link that might be useful: Kate Walsh in 2008 CTS ad...
Shannon01
Original Author
12 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Golddust- We just have waaaay too much in common. I will watch for you on the road. I don't see too many Insights out there, Prius is everwhere. I think they are just more wellknown. I am amazed at just how similar the two are, really similar. We did think the Prius has a bit more umph but when you are in a hybrid it is not how fast you get there but how well you drove getting there. It was just the extra dollars that swayed us. We were really worried that both cars would shoot up in price because of Japan's earthquake and the gas prices going up. We just figured it was the right time.

Actually Faron I mentioned you because I knew you were a car enthusiest and did not want you to think my poor dh lost his man card.

My dh loves jeeps. Loves, loves, loves. He got his 4door wrangler a few years ago when they were offering a lifetime warranty. Yes, lifetime. Jeep realized they made a huge mistake and have lost several lawsuits where they tried to deny warranty work. So a precident has been set. DH will never part with that baby. Besides, he has too much invested in it.

Years ago dh purchsed a 1972 Cutlas Supreme convertible with a factory hurst. I believe only a few hundred were made that year. He got it from a little old lady on Valentines Day. He cleaned it up and drove it while we dated and were first married. While living in an apartment waiting for our house to be built we had it parked in the apt lot. One day it was gone. Someone had flatbed towed it as we had drained fluids and such so it could not be driven. It was found a few months later in a vacant lot with grass growing in trunk and an old tv in it. The thieves literally picked her clean. They even scraped out the deteriorated weatherstripping! The only thing left was the 8track player. Looked like a pirannah picked her clean. DH was so sad, he loved that car. I can still hear that engine purrr.

So when he saw the mustang on the lot I told him to take it for a drive. It was lowered with fancy rims, really hunky looking. The dealer had a specialty shop do this work. DH told me "looking leads to lusting, lusting leads to touching". He looked, lusted, touched and drove her home. We have never regretted the purchase and enjoyed all the rides, just time for someone else to enjoy her.

But there came a time after my cancer diagnosis when we started looking at things so much differently. We could do so much more together with the money. And we already have the jeep for 4xing, snow, towing. Having 3 cars is certainly a luxury so we thought having the other 2 be hybrids made us feel more responsible.

So next year we will go to Moab in the jeep and not worry so much about the cost of gas because we saved so much in the meantime.
golddust
12 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I know, Shannon! We NEED to meet for lunch sometime soon! That would be so much fun. You are right. There are so many more Prii out there. Insights are newer and rarer - though DH can't tell them apart so I suspect many others can't either.

Look for me in the white Prius with the bigger wheels and small profile tires. The particular model I bought is pretty rare. I have seen only one other and it was silver. I didn't think it would be easy to tell the difference until I saw the other one. The wheels certainly stand out.

We really should meet for lunch sometime. We sold our BMW for the Prius and haven't looked back. You are soo right. It's all about priorities. I don't have to consider driving anymore at 50+ MPG. With the gas money savings, we can get away for the weekend and pay for a motel with the gas savings. Guilt-free.
lee676
12 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Although not quite as fuel-efficient as a Prius or Insight, I opted for a small VW Rabbit (a.k.a. Golf) with a stick shift. I'd strongly consider their excellent TDI diesel if I was buying now, but it wasn't available a few years ago when I bought (temporaily off the market while they redesigned it for cleaner exhaust). In highway driving, it gets over 45 mpg. It's less manly as a Jeep, but more so than a Bug convertible.

I also avoided AWD/4WD. I've made it up steep, icy and snowy hills, even from a standstill, with just front drive, and if I needed more traction I'd instead opt for a set of winter tires. Considerably less expensive than paying $2,000 more and getting about 2 mpg less with AWD, and in many conditions out-grips an AWD car with all-season tires. I thought differently 20 years ago, but today's improved tires, traction-control, stability control, and anti-lock brakes mean that even 2WD cars and trucks can deal with winter conditions just fine. I'm never afraid I'll get stuck in the snow, just that other cars driven at ridiculous speeds will go careening into mine.

Although far too impractical (and expensive) for me, the 2011 Mustangs are sweet - even the basic V6, but especially the new Boss 302.

So Faron, since you're a GM guy, what do you think of the Chevy Volt? (like most people living in apartments, I have no place to plug in. Why is this never discussed when reading about electric cars?)
lee676
12 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
*than* a Jeep, not as a Jeep....

This forum needs an "edit" button...
Faron79
12 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I doubt I could get IN a Volt!!!

I like the idea though, and hope the "infrastructure" needed for these cars catches-up with City-dwellers, apartment/condo-type buildings, older-home wiring, etc.

My immediate "car-universe" tho is occupied by Kate Walsh and her 2008 Caddy CTS ads!! My "next car" sights are very narrow now! Still tryin' to sway DW....She'll be drivin' it 90% of the time anyway!
(I'm being the Gentleman and letting Her have the "New" car....hopefully a BLACK CTS....again....)

Faron
Shannon01
Original Author
12 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Faron, that is a really nice car. I also think that ad is very effective, not just for me, but to also show that women can have a car like this and still be feminine.

Lee676- Dh kept threatening to put in a supercharger or whatever in that pony. Then the new ones came out and he was so bummed. The V8 was great but the new V6 is just as powerful as our old V8. Oh well, now that it is gone he is on to threatening to put a Hemi in the wrangler. He is so funny.

He just got back from business trip to Vegas. It was super windy and he was blowing all over in the Insight. But I noticed that my pathfinder blew around on the highway almost as much as my Insight. And it was really scary rounding corners as it was 4x4 with big tires. It was not meant for zipping around like I do. The Insight, although gutless, does corner well.

Car technology is hard to keep up with sometimes. My bro has been on list to get the Leaf. All the electric stuff is so cool but like you said not everyone has access to plug it in. Makes it hard to be economical or environmentally sound. Kinda like solar on the house. We would love to do it but it will take years to pay for itself. And since our houses aren't worth a dime anymore why would I fork out that much money on something I will never get back?
Faron79
12 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Shannon & Co....

I'm gettin' a kick out of this thread!

Yes...Mustangs are "evil" to a T/A & Camaro fan like myself!

BUT...yes, the newest "Boss" versions do look kinda cool! The more muscular look with a REAL engine under the hood has some appeal.
The BEAST of a Camaro comin' this fall makes me drool, like I mentioned in an earlier thread. 550???hp....O-M-G...I'm drooling again....half of the story/video about it was tire-smoke...Oh HELL yeah!
Did your DH hear about that one?!

I have NOTHING against the Leaf, Prius, Volt, etc.

I probably SHOULD be driving one...
WILL I??....Uhhh...No.

I like the smell of tire-smoke in the morning...!
;-)

Faron
Shannon01
Original Author
12 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Like I said, we still have the Jeep. That thing is so lifted my dh needs a ladder to get in it! It may not peel out or go from 0-60 in a flash but it can climb over my Insight, or should I say my Insight could drive under it!? Every time I look at it I remember helping him do something to it. Even while on chemo I managed to hold up the bumper while he installed it or paint the diff covers for him because my hand is more steady. He is one of those guys who figures if you want the job done right you have to learn to do it yourself. He did pay a guy to regear it but he did some heavy research before picking the guy to do it. Guy knows his stuff that is for sure. What is so funny is that my dh was spending so much time at the 4x store they started calling out his name when he walked in, like Norm on Cheers!
golddust
12 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
After this explanation, my hat is off to him for going with an Insight. I was at The Fountains today with DH and Isabelle, having lunch outside. Saw a gray Insight driving around the fountain and wondered if it was you before remembering you took the white one. The gray is your DH's car.

So whose idea was getting the Insights?

Our drastic decision to cut our fuel costs

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