I currently have 1 vehicle, a paid for 2002 Dodge 1500 with the 4.7 l. and auto trans. Commuting 31 mi. each way to work, use the truck for firewood, lumber-hauling, carrying stone, getting manure, pulling equipment trailer. The question is, do I just get the best mileage that I can with her?.....get a used car for the work commute?....other options?
Keep the truck and get something like a Yaris or Cobalt as a commuter. Shoot a used one is gonna be less that $10k. What you save in gas will more than make the payments on the commuter. 31 miles each way days a week 200 days a year at 18 MPG or at 45 MPG ?
I had the same issue. I sold my 2005 Dodge quad cab for a prius. That left my family with an xterra. So to make up for the yard work/pulling stuff need I bought a 6X10 utility trailer for $800 that the xterra can pull. Problem solved. Yeah it sucks sometimes to have to pull the little trailer to do things I used to just throw in the back of the truck but man I've saved alot of money. I actually haven't crunched the numbers but i'm sure of it.
I was driving a '94 Dakota getting 16.5MPG. Gas started going up, truck needed repairs, 25mile commute (then). Sold the truck for $1600, bought a used civic for $10K. The gas savings are paying >75% of the car note. That was <$4/gal. You could sell the truck or just park it and get a used or stripper commuter while saving on gas as the price skyrockets.
What he said--if you don't have much ready cash (under $2k?) and are somewhat mechanically inclined Saturn SL's have been decent beater commuters for several people I've known. 90's Cavaliers are dirt cheap too. If you can find a used Manual on a dealer's lot usually they're ready to make a deal. If you have the truck as a backup vehicle, reliability doesn't have to be your main concern.
You sound like me! Except I only got $350 for my '94 Dakota Sport (the transmission had finally gone bad after 396,000 miles), and I bought an Aveo instead of a Civic. I move enough things around often enough that the cargo room in the Aveo is great, but there are times when I really wish I had a Civic instead, just for the crazy-high MPGs. But I'm hoping I'll start hitting 40 when my ScanGauge shows up this week.
