Cheapest Way To Run 2 Cars

getmore4less

I used to cycle to work all year round, it was suprising how few days I got wet.

Climate change in 30 years though might have changed this.

if you search the web you might be suprised how few days it rains.
can get very cold.

If going down this route make surey you have the correct clothing.

Tish_P

Plenty of people including kids occasionally have to walk in the rain, it's hardly a tragedy! It's sweet that you're so concerned, but be realistic. An umbrella and some warm raincoats will solve the problem.

Fliss_M

Half hour walk for kids small enough for play school, I doubt they would have the energy to play once there let alone walk back

I sent my hubby on a 50cc scooter 35-40 mile round trip to work 5 days a week. He did that for 1 year. So I have a few tips that we learnt.
1) know your local scooter garage, they will be servicing it, alot.
2) dont skimp on design or engine. We should have spent 1500 on a used 125cc, we didnt and got a new 800 VClic 50cc. It was shocking. Always cutting out when it was wet, breaking in all sorts of ways. And 50cc was not powerfull enough for that kind of mileage
3) Make sure you get all the protective kit. You may think its a scooter a helmet will do but after being an !!!!, dh agreed to the trousers to go with the jacket after coming off and hurting his leg for the upteenth time.
4) You prob will come off. Not from your driving but theres diesel on the roads, ice and its so easy to go on 2 wheels.
5) You would be cold too. More at the mercy of the elements and other motorists then you will be used too

BUT he did it. Time and time again. And still would if he had a 125cc I think. I think it was an excellent option for saving money. His new job required a car so we couldnt do it again (plus he goes to unknown places so he needs a sat nav)

If you had your licence before 01.02.2001 you can ride a 50cc scooter. Higher or after that you need a CBT which needs renewing every 2 years (or you take your exams/tests and then you can ride a motorbike) Its about £100 and takes 1 day. And you would need to try hard to fail.

Kilty_2

Fliss_M wrote: »

If you had your licence before 01.02.2001 you can ride a 50cc scooter. Higher or after that you need a CBT which needs renewing every 2 years (or you take your exams/tests and then you can ride a motorbike) Its about £100 and takes 1 day. And you would need to try hard to fail.

IIRC if you have a full car licence after that date you only need to do the CBT once for full moped (50cc) entitlement - only need to renew it to ride a 125 provisionally.

rugbyleague

Interesting thread....

I too run 2 cars and I do similar mileages apart from using our big car for transporting push bikes to races in the uk and abroad.

Would 1 car and a motorbike be significantly cheaper than 2 cars?

Thinking keep 1 big car....

BillScarab

Depends on the motorbike. A lot of big motorbikes are not especially economical and cost a fair bit to maintain.

However if you get a 125 they cost £15 a year to tax and most will do 100mpg. Taking your test costs a fair bit because of the training required but if you stick to a 125 you can just renew your CBT every two years but you will always be on L Plates.

Scooters are generally have better weather protection and more storage space, they also tend to be automatic so are very easy to ride.

Obviously you need gear as well although you don't have to go mad buying expensive stuff. A helmet is a legal requirement but personally I think you'd be mad not to have a proper jacket, trousers, boots and gloves.

If you are over 21 you can do whats called Direct Access which once you've passed means you can ride any motorcycle and no more L Plates. If you're uner 21 you do a similar test but are then restricted to 33 BHP for two years.

The only other thing I would say is stick to well knwo brands, therer are lots of dirt cheap bikes and scooters around from China that look good but there's no spares backup and the quality is shocking. You can actuall ybuy a brand new 125cc motorcycle for £750 or so but unless you're lucky it will spend most of it's time off the road. There are some Chinese brands that are OK but usually you're better off with a second hand Japanese machine.

Unfortuantely due to the strength of the Yen Japanese machines have shot up in price over the last couple of years.

As to whether 1 car and 1 bike is cheaper than 2 cars it all depends on the cars and bikes in question. Running a BMX X5 and a Yamaha V-Max will cost a fortune. Running a Picasso and a Kawasai ER-6N will be relatively cheap.

spiro

DNA_628 wrote: »

I can ask my work to get me a small company car with my own insurance but I have to pay for it out of my wages plus tax. I don't do many company mileages so I don't think is worth it, right?

But that could seriously increase your income tax bill.

bigjl

You might be able to save a bit with an Admiral multicar policy.

The wife and I have run 2 cars for about 7 years, and there is no cheap way to do it, both cars have running costs, other than by getting a car that uses less fuel and has cheaper road tax there are limited ways to progress.


My wife is starting a small care compney and the company cars (well 2 cars!)are going to be under 100g/km, more than likely the new Fiat 500 Twinair, free roadtax, decent fuel consumption and free London CC, and the rentals can be offset against corporation tax so even better from a financial point of view.

In your position you don't need to family sized cars like you do now, as a mini MPV is a family sized car.

If your wife can manage with a supermini then go for that, a Fiat 500 can be bought cheaply and holds it's value well at the moment, though there are many little superminis that have cheap or free roadtax, the wifes Clio DCi is only £30 odd a year.

The simply fact is your wife does 5000 miles a year, which isn't insignificant so you may actually need two cars to run your home life properly.

It is definately worth only having one vehicle that can take the whole family in comfort, for example my wife and I have a Mondeo and a Clio, when we all go somewhere we go in the Mondeo.

Though most small cars are actually quite at home on the motorway, and any extra baggage issues can be dealt with by using a roofbox when you need to carry extra stuff, so you could both manage with small cars.

The actual amount of extra room in an car based MPV and the car it is based on is sometimes not much. Look at the Astra estate and the Zafira. or look at a Focus Estate and a C Max even the Megane hatch and a Scenic.

The wife looked at a Modus when she bought the Clio, and the extra room in the Modus was not much, plus the Clio was better looking and for the same price we could go for both diesel and low miles.

DNA_628

Fliss_M wrote: »

Half hour walk for kids small enough for play school, I doubt they would have the energy to play once there let alone walk back

I sent my hubby on a 50cc scooter 35-40 mile round trip to work 5 days a week. He did that for 1 year. So I have a few tips that we learnt.
1) know your local scooter garage, they will be servicing it, alot.
2) dont skimp on design or engine. We should have spent 1500 on a used 125cc, we didnt and got a new 800 VClic 50cc. It was shocking. Always cutting out when it was wet, breaking in all sorts of ways. And 50cc was not powerfull enough for that kind of mileage
3) Make sure you get all the protective kit. You may think its a scooter a helmet will do but after being an !!!!, dh agreed to the trousers to go with the jacket after coming off and hurting his leg for the upteenth time.
4) You prob will come off. Not from your driving but theres diesel on the roads, ice and its so easy to go on 2 wheels.
5) You would be cold too. More at the mercy of the elements and other motorists then you will be used too

BUT he did it. Time and time again. And still would if he had a 125cc I think. I think it was an excellent option for saving money. His new job required a car so we couldnt do it again (plus he goes to unknown places so he needs a sat nav)

If you had your licence before 01.02.2001 you can ride a 50cc scooter. Higher or after that you need a CBT which needs renewing every 2 years (or you take your exams/tests and then you can ride a motorbike) Its about £100 and takes 1 day. And you would need to try hard to fail.

Thank you so much for all your tips. I'm looking into electric bike at the moment. Only cost 10p to charge plus I don't need to pay any fuel and insurance. The only expensive item is the battery (£400 appx.) and need to changes every 3-4 years which is not bad I think. I'm going to hire it for a week and give it a try before buy. :rotfl:

DNA_628

spiro wrote: »

But that could seriously increase your income tax bill.

Even the most Greenest cars like smart fortwo with emissions from a tiny 86g/km of CO2 or SEAT Ibiza 1.2 TDi Ecomotive with 92g/km of CO2
Will these cars still cost me lot in my income tax bill??