South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1920-01-04
T. +. HALIOCE.
Copyright. 1879

me so rnuchi" and let 10 20 az that |
But do YOU really know what -
costs you % operate your car True /
enough. the cost Is not so much
balanced against the service the car
renders you and the recreation 10 |
affords you. Il Is mere trife II
is interesting 10 note. however that
scarcely one motOrlst tn one hum
dred has any idea OF the exact cost
OF operating HIS car.
IL IS also interesting 10 note that
given cars or the same make and
model. and granting also that fuel
and oil prices are the same per gal
lon, one car Will cost a great deal
more 20 operate than the other. AS
60 general rule IT'S more or less a
case OF individual care. attention 20
detail and judgment I'm driving and
handling the car which brings the
cost OF operation down And IL is
"a fact that nothing breeds this ne
cessary care quite as rapidly nor
puite as well as the practice OF
carefully checking mp on operating
Expenditures.
FIXED Charges.
The items which tell heavily on
operating costs are the fixed
charges depreciation. insurance.
and license fees. These arc termed
liked charges" because they remain
the same regardless OF the amount
~ use the car is put to. TO is Gus
tOmary, for instance 20 write off 90
PEE cent on the cost OF the car for
Zach year OF service. To stands 10
reason that a car which has been
900 miles in one season will be in
better shape AZ the end OF that time
than one that has been driven
double that amount I'm the same in
terval both cars being considered
90 have been driven with equal care
and to have had equally good at
tention Yet the difference i'm
prices which they viii bring on re-
sale viii not be appreciable except
Iu unusual cases This is more true
tOday than &c was q few years back.
because dealers the country over
ore fixing used car values on a ra-
tioual depreciation basis which has
zone long way toward bringing
about this result
other Items 10 Re Considered.
The other items which must be
considered and which are dependent
ou the amount Of mileage covered
are for fuel. gasoline. oil tires
supplies and repairs. There is one
other important charge which
have neglected Go mention. because
10 does not enter into consideration
with a large number Of car owners
especially those from the country
snd smaller towns-that is garaging
Because OF the difference between
the operating costs between one
car and another similar one driven
0y different persons as pointed out
above, &c is scarcely wise to take
another mans figures and base your
cost of operation on them. Where
YOU have results from "a large num-
Ter Of individual owners and driv-
srs Of any one make and model.
however, and balance them all to-
lether Won strike some averages
which become more and more re-
liable as the number of eases enter
ing into the fual determination arc
increased so that idIosyucracies
found iu one MANS figures are bal
snced ANA cancelled ont by diverg-
ing results iu someone else's t3bula-
t.ou.
When we come for instance. 20
'erages struck FROM the figures
opt by dozeu or more ordinary
car owners. each OF whom has kept
.iiable tabs on his operating costs
we get figures which. TO resort "a
the 1dage never lie" Bearing this
iu mind. the following figures have
, cen carefully collected coIlatcd and
rabulsted over the past couple OF
Years from the actual diaries of q
large number Of car owners. and can
Re relied upon as being as nearly
authentic as can Doe attained.
Ny first figures bear on the cost
81 operating the Ford car and ar,
taken from figures averaged from
the results obtained 10y rs differen,
Ford owners under varying condl.
lions. Depreciation and insurance
average Si31.26. the cost ranging
between SOS. the maximum. dovrr
20 $50. the minimum Cararine
averaged $40 obviously low. due tc
the fact that most OF the owner,
lived i'm the country and entailed nc
garaging expense. The mileage GOV.
cred during the season averaged 8.
605.5 miles. ranging between 49,.
42s FOR the highest down 20 e.13-
miles for the lowest
Comparative Mileage.
On the average these Is owner.
spent Ss3.63 In a year for gasoline
getting 15.5 miles 20 The gallon @,
fuel The most economical driv
ers got as high as 17.5 miles 10 N,
sallon. whereas one obtained onI,
J. miles 20 the gallon. They sper
S6o.s7 for tires during the wear OF
the average. tho highest cost bein,
$3.50. encountered. quite natural
~. on The car which Travelled III,
greatest distance The average cos
OF OIL was only Sill for the wear
cost OF supplies. Sass: repairs
s53.ie-the highest repair costs be
Ing borne by the car which travele,
the greatest distance and amounte,
20 S126.s5
10 IS Interesting 90 note that IN,
cost Of operating these ears per mill
averaged 1872 cents and chat fhl