Stolen Fuel ...

There are certainly other ways to look at it.

Here is what I don't understand from your reply or where our situations differed:

- You did not specify any fuel savings differences from the earlier post, but those are the most substantial part of the post. Saving $2000 a year is substantial in my book.
- The value of your pickup might stay higher if it has less miles on it, depending on the age and condition of the truck
- I get an insurance discount because I hardly ever drive my car anymore and my insurance company adjusts the rate for that.
- I do not change my oil every 3 months, or every 3000 miles in my car ... if it looks and smells clean, I keep running it.
- I already have all the motorcycle gear, so that was no extra cost to me
- I pay $147 per year for full coverage on the Majesty, $12.25 per month
- Depreciation on the scoot is tiny compared to a car because the initial value is so low
- Depreciation on safety gear??? Isn't that like depreciation on Kleenex?
- How often have you replaced the tires and what did it cost? I have 7k miles on mine and they still look great.

I will be the first to admit that my calculations are for me and my situation. Everyone else's may vary!

To answer your questions:

1. I calculated the fuel savings based on the mileage I have put on the Majesty (and interpolated out to a full year), figuring that is the mileage I did not put on my truck.

2. Yes, your right. The depreciation on my truck might be less with less mileage. It is hard to predict. I decided it was minimal though.

3. I still need to drive my truck to work. Weather and other obligations prevent me from taking the scooter to work everyday (as much as I would like to). I usually drive the pickup to work at least once or twice during the week. Because of this, I cannot "reduce" the insurance on the pickup. Of course, because of my accident two months ago, I have not been able to ride the scooter at all (but that is not in the calculations).

4. Oil changes are not a big expense. I like to get new oil in every 3-4 months. If nothing else, condensation can degrade the oil, in my opinion.

5. My calculations were based on not having the motorcyle at all. Therefore, I have to include all of my motorcycle safety gear in my calculations.

6. Your insurance is a lot cheaper than mine. I pay about $400 a year for the scooter. Guess I should look into that.

7. Your right, the depreciation of the scooter is low. But there is depreciation.

8. It is recommended that helmets be replaced every five years. I expect 7-10 years of use on my Aerostich. Shoes and gloves need to be replaced periodically. This is why I included safety gear/clothing depreciation!

9. I have not had to replace the tires yet. For my calculations, I assumed 10,000 miles and $120 in cost.

Like all things, everything is a guestimate. However, the scales are tipped to not saving any money by getting into motorcycling (scooter) for me. However, since I consider riding to also be a "hobby" of sorts, its worth it. As I stated earlier, take away those fixed costs for the scooter, and the savings is quite a bit.

What I take from my calculations is that if someone is thinking of getting a scooter solely to save money, they might want to think again. Getting it to have fun is another story.

Dave

It occurs to me that if you have an older vehicle that is already depreciated about all it can, like me, then making that car last another 10 or 20 years by riding a scoot for most of my travels makes really good sense. Consider a new car is 25k or thereabouts, and lets say you buy one every 10 years, if you assume that you amortize the cost over a 10 year period, then it costs 2500/yr to own that car just in terms of the purchase cost, then add all the other goodies to actually keep it legal and running. Compare to a bike that you ride 75% of the time instead of the car...the car now lasts 20 or 30 years and you get to buy a new bike every 10 years. The bike is 5500 to buy and the purchase cost spread over 10 years is 550/year. You have saved 2000/yr just in purchase cost alone without taking into account the cost of insurance and fuel being way cheaper than your car. On a cost/benefit basis, the bike is the champ...gives way more pleasure for less money...now if I could get my wife on one....but she likes letting me drive.