Comments on The Easy Living Sherpa: Is renting a vehicle for a vacation worth the expe...

I noticed that and am looking for ways to fix this...

2009-07-05T18:36:37.117-07:00

I noticed that and am looking for ways to fix this. Any suggestions would be most welcome. I admit it looks bad. Any suggestions?

To the anon with the 10 yr old van: The ad applic...

2009-07-05T18:32:18.914-07:00

To the anon with the 10 yr old van:

The ad applications pick up main ideas from the content of the blog and display ads to match.

Blog on Easy Living!!

The comparison depends upon the age and value of t...

2009-06-20T20:23:48.663-07:00

The comparison depends upon the age and value of the vehicle that you own and would be driving if not renting. If you compare renting to driving a new or nearly-new vehicle of similar class to the rental then rental can be less. On the other hand, something like my trusty 10 year old van will depreciate only about $500 this year under normal conditions - being driven about 18,000 miles over the year. Driving it more or less will have next to no impact on resale value. One extra oil-change would be needed on a 2400 mile trip - so maybe $20 extra for that would need to be in the budget. Wear-and-tear is likely to be minimal on a highway trip but instead of renting I can save the extra $400+ in rental fees in the bank and have the money if needed for any repairs. If I get lucky and no repairs are needed then I am at least $400 richer for having not rented. Was this article is in any way sponsored by car rental companies or something? There are currently at least 6 advertisements for car rental compaies on this page and it would just be really appropriate to provide a more balanced and unbiased comparison.

Hi Valerie, Age is indeed a major factor in automo...

2009-06-14T18:28:15.110-07:00

Hi Valerie,
Age is indeed a major factor in automobile depreciation, but mileage plays an equally important role as well. Checking the NADA (Orange book) guide you can see for yourself how car value depreciates faster with a given age when coupled with higher mileage.Todays vehicles are built much better than they were 20-30 years ago, so a car today with 70,000 miles on the odometer can be considered fairly low in the mileage department.As well some cars do appreciate with age (A Corvette for example)but overall the average vehicle does lose much of its value the moment the tire hits the pavement

I disagree with your theory. Age is the main fac...

2009-06-13T19:38:44.248-07:00

I disagree with your theory.

Age is the main factor in automobile depreciation, not mileage. Your car still depreciates sitting in your driveway. And depreciation doesn't COST you anything... it's NOT AN EXPENSE, it's an accounting valuation and is meaningless outside of taking a DEDUCTION for tax purposes, and only if you can legitimately write it off.

And 2400 miles on a car isn't going to make one iota of difference in resale value.

Maintenance expenses are reasonable to account for, but that alone doesn't make it a better financial choice, except maybe for car rental companies.

Thank you once again. Math table is now accurate.

2009-06-12T11:13:29.243-07:00

Thank you once again. Math table is now accurate.

I'm going to have to do this in a month or two, an...

2009-06-12T09:32:50.281-07:00

I'm going to have to do this in a month or two, and I'm not looking forward to it. We're going to drive from Pensacola, FL to Wake Forest, NC...12 hour drive if traffic is great. So far the estimate I've gotten is around $450 for 6 days. Eeek!

You corrected the math in "first" but you did not ...

2009-06-12T05:28:15.558-07:00

You corrected the math in "first" but you did not change it in "let's do our math."

You still have to buy gas for the rental as well a...

2009-06-12T05:24:01.032-07:00

You still have to buy gas for the rental as well and I don't see that calculation in your post.

Thank you for pointing out my miscalculation. It h...

2009-06-11T20:53:10.036-07:00

Thank you for pointing out my miscalculation.
It has since been corrected.

Your "First" math is off -- it should be around $1...

2009-06-11T19:09:04.978-07:00

Your "First" math is off -- it should be around $125, not $450.