Daily driver

[Merkwier]

Hey guys, I drive anywhere between 120 and 160 miles every day for work in my 5.0 f150. The price of gas is killingme, not to mention the value I'm taking off my truck by racking up the miles. Do you guys have a secondary vehicle for your EDD, or are your overland rigs your only vehicle? If you do have a second car,what ado you drive?

 

[Smileyshaun]

I live super close to work so I only have a 5 mile commute but back when i had a longer drive to work I had a 88 Camry that I picked up for a couple hundred bucks , it was also fantastic for hiking and backpacking because I had no real fears or worries about leaving it at a trailhead for a couple days because who's gonna steal a all red interior 88 Camry lol .

 

[spoonible]

my daily driver is a chevy volt. gets 56 miles on electric so I plug it in when i get home. I put gas into it about once every two months. sure beats 12 miles a gallon!

 

[Lee Mims]

I was looking into this but decided to simply move closer to my new work. However, when factoring in a commuter vehicle, don't forget insurance, space it uses up, and maintenance. It's probably cheaper to not change it. However, tires usually make a big difference in MPG, maybe you can get some extra sets for HWY miles and take some gear off to help it be more friendly until you're ready to explore?

 

[Steve]

Here are some previous threads on this very topic for you to peruse:

https://overlandbound.com/forums/threads/daily-driver.8952/

https://overlandbound.com/forums/threads/daily-drivers.479/

https://overlandbound.com/forums/threads/when-your-daily-driver-is-your-overland-rig.3345/

 

[Merkwier]

my daily driver is a chevy volt. gets 56 miles on electric so I plug it in when i get home. I put gas into it about once every two months. sure beats 12 miles a gallon!

56 sounds amazing!

 

[Merkwier]

I was looking into this but decided to simply move closer to my new work. However, when factoring in a commuter vehicle, don't forget insurance, space it uses up, and maintenance. It's probably cheaper to not change it. However, tires usually make a big difference in MPG, maybe you can get some extra sets for HWY miles and take some gear off to help it be more friendly until you're ready to explore?

I just took my stock wheels off and replaces them with larger, AT tires. I go out nearly every weekend so swapping isn't really convienent for me. But yes, the cost of having a second vehicle, even if it's a cheap one adds up quickly

 

[Lee Mims]

I just took my stock wheels off and replaces them with larger, AT tires. I go out nearly every weekend so swapping isn't really convienent for me. But yes, the cost of having a second vehicle, even if it's a cheap one adds up quickly

I'm with you. I don't like having two sets because I unexpectedly use my tires, if you gather my meaning.

In your case find a fun little car like a Toyota 86, or a Miata (Or a Fiero j/k), and have some fun commuting again :)

 

[Lindenwood]

Right now, I live 2 miles from work and am deployed 5 months out of the year. I put 6k miles on my 4Runner in the last 15 months, heh. Even when I was commuting 16 miles each way, though, I was still only doing about 700-800 miles per month.

I had been considering a prius as a DD if my commute distance goes back up. However, even if I got up to 10,000 miles per year with a vehicle that got 55 mpg, it would take something like 20 years to make up the difference in saved fuel (saving about $1400/yr in gas after the extra insurance is taken out, amortized over a $25,000 car, plus interest).

Of course, if you buy a beater for $1000 and are lucky enough that it stays reliable for any extended period of time without maintenance (and for many, like me, getting stranded is unacceptable), it might pay for itself in a year or so (assuming an old $1000 car gets 35mpg versus 15 in the offroad toy). But, I would not want to be saddled with such a cheap car without a lot of preventative maintenance, which means either a lot of additional time or money (which are basically the same...).

Honestly, Id suggest anyone looking to buy a 2nd vehicle purely for fuel savings should crunch the numbers for their situation to see if it is really worth it. Of course, buying a fun car like a miata, or a practical car like a small minivan, has its own benefits. I have been seriously considering buying myself a motorcycle; of course it does offer some modest fuel savings over my 4Runner, but I also just kinda want another motorcycle :P .

 

[4WLO]

I've been thinking about this too. Getting a new DD keeps coming up. Gas is killing me all around. Fun truck is 99 T4R, DD is a 08 Tundra(dbl cab with shell). Gas mileage is not my friend, lol.

 

[MEB77]

I used to have an 05 Mazda tribute as a daily drive. It got better mileage then my 96 Bronco however it was not great for gas millage when I compared it to other cars. However after 250000 miles its front axle broke along with several other issues and its on its way to a pick and pull. It was nice not putting all the miles on my bronco and even though it was not the best mpg in the world it did help save some gas money. however its not cheap having 2 cars it adds a lot to your insurance and that should be something you think about before investing in a 2nd car.

 

[craigR]

Sounds like you need a company car. If the idea is to "save money" on gas/wear & tear, then you can't buy something too expensive or unreliable, since both of those are contrary to saving money. I'd look for a well maintained Civic or Corolla from a private seller.

 

[Haminacan]

I could have done better If I was looking for pure savings, but I went with the Fiat 500 Abarth. You can get them with low miles cheap and major parts like engines are much cheaper used than other small (performance) gas savers. It is a very fun car to drive for what it costs.

 

[PCO6]

When I retired 5 years ago I had to turn in my company vehicle. I can't believe they wouldn't let me keep it! I don't drive nearly as much as I used to. I didn't want a new car so I bought an old Jeep ... then 3 more. I drive them daily but I don't think I've driven all of them on the same day ... yet.

 

[Square Foot]

Wow that's alot of driving. Between gas, depreciation, & maintenance it must be costing you at least $0.50 a mile, probably more with your truck. I would think by just doubling your mpg that would be enough to justify the cost of a used car, let alone the savings from depreciation and maintenance costs. I would check out the forums that Lyft/Uber drivers go on. I'm sure there is a lot of discussions on best vehicles for high mileage driving.

 

[Haminacan]

When I retired 5 years ago I had to turn in my company vehicle. I can't believe they wouldn't let me keep it! I don't drive nearly as much as I used to. I didn't want a new car so I bought an old Jeep ... then 3 more. I drive them daily but I don't think I've driven all of them on the same day ... yet.

Yes!, someday, I will have all the Jeeps... Keep at it.

 

[Haminacan]

Wow that's alot of driving. Between gas, depreciation, & maintenance it must be costing you at least $0.50 a mile, probably more with your truck. I would think by just doubling your mpg that would be enough to justify the cost of a used car, let alone the savings from depreciation and maintenance costs. I would check out the forums that Lyft/Uber drivers go on. I'm sure there is a lot of discussions on best vehicles for high mileage driving.

The larger town I commute to has 1 Uber driver...That is the legend the younger folk I work with tell me.