You’re forking out $9,000 a year to own your car
Forget, for a moment, the environmental costs of driving a car. The financial costs alone should be enough to shock you into walking, biking, busing, and sharing.
The average owner of a sedan has to shell out nearly $10,000 a year to own and operate that car, according to auto club AAA.
A new AAA report shows, on average, the cost of driving 15,000 miles a year rose 1.17 cents to 60.8 cents per mile, or $9,122 per year. Overall, that’s a roughly 2% increase on the cost of operating a car last year.
The costs vary a lot according to the type and size of vehicle, though. It costs about $7,000 a year to own a small car in the United States but about $11,600 to own a four-wheel-drive SUV, according to AAA.
The study factored in costs such as fuel, maintenance, insurance, tires and depreciation.
As we pointed out a couple of years ago, owning a car is basically like having a second mortgage. OK, a second mortgage on a small house in a cheap area. But still!
Transit pass, anyone?
Lisa Hymas is senior editor at Grist. You can follow her on
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