Ironically, the VX is the cheapest vehicle purchase I've ever made, yet the cost of ownership (including maintenance and stupid *** parking lot accidents) has been higher than any other car I've owned! Here's the list of cars that I've bought on my own:
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Car Cost Tax+Dep Interst Maint Accid Owned Cost/Month
1999 Mustang $17200P 4200 1500 100 0 15mo $386.66
2000 BMW M Cpe. $43600L 5078 1962 0 500 9mo $837.77
2000 F-150 H.D. $26500P 4000 0 0 0 5mo $800.00
2001 Honda S2K $32500L 9450 5850 600 0 36mo $441.66
2001 Isuzu VX $15700P 1500 628* 3500* 2850 8mo $1059.75
[/code]
LEGEND:
Cost = What I paid (P) or sticker price for leases (L)
Tax+Dep = Sales tax + depreciation.
Maint = Oil changes, service, new parts, etc.
Accid = Cost due to accidents
Owned = Length of ownership in months
* The $628 interest cost is equivalent to 6% assumed lost potential income due to having money tied up in the VX.
* The $3500 maintenance includes the cost of replacing shocks, wheels and tires, and other upgrades I've made (exhaust, intake, and hitch, etc.)
Despite the bad luck I've had backing up into other cars, the VX has still been very expensive to own, mostly because of the expense of replacing the shocks and wheels, which is maintenance that I haven't had on other vehicles - because I didn't own them long enough to need it! Anyhow, I'm hoping that the cost of ownership will come down the longer I own this thing, but right now, it's looking the other way around! LOL