Math Rookie needs help please with a real-life application

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TheyCallMeDave

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Hello. Thanks in advance for your knowledge in helping me.

Im trying to choose between 2 cars to buy ........ one is a Toyota Prius and the other is a KIA Rio . Need to know how long it will take to get my money back considering gas mileage and the higher cost of the Prius. Info to consider :

PRIUS cost is $29,000
KIA cost is $14,000
Gasoline by me runs $2.30 per gallon
Prius gets 50 mpg
Kia gets 33 mpg
I drive 25,000 miles per year

Question is: How fast is the payback in gasoline savings with the Prius over the Kia ?

Many thanks, Dave.
 
TheyCallMeDave said:
Im trying to choose between 2 cars to buy.... Need to know how long it will take to get my money back considering gas mileage and the higher cost of the Prius. Info to consider:

PRIUS cost is $29,000
KIA cost is $14,000
Gasoline by me runs $2.30 per gallon
Prius gets 50 mpg
Kia gets 33 mpg
I drive 25,000 miles per year

Question is: How fast is the payback in gasoline savings with the Prius over the Kia ?
Click to expand...
I will assume that this exercise has been massively simplified by not asking you to account for comparative maintenance and repair costs, or taxes. But does this exercise also specify that you are not to consider the cost of the electricity (which is the cost which replaces the cost of gasoline for the Prius and allows for the so-called "mpg" of fifty)? Also, are you not to consider the cost of a replacement set of batteries for the Prius?

When you reply, please provide a clear listing of your thoughts and efforts so far. Thank you! ;)
 
Off the top ...

TheyCallMeDave said:
Hello. Thanks in advance for your knowledge in helping me.

Im trying to choose between 2 cars to buy ........ one is a Toyota Prius and the other is a KIA Rio . Need to know how long it will take to get my money back considering gas mileage and the higher cost of the Prius. Info to consider :

PRIUS cost is $29,000
KIA cost is $14,000
Gasoline by me runs $2.30 per gallon
Prius gets 50 mpg
Kia gets 33 mpg
I drive 25,000 miles per year

Question is: How fast is the payback in gasoline savings with the Prius over the Kia ?

Many thanks, Dave.
Click to expand...

So you are saying it costs $2.30 to travel 50 miles in the Prius, and $2.30 to travel 33 miles in the the KIA.

Or. driving the Prius costs $2.30/50 = 4.6 cents each mile you drive,

the KIA costs $2.30/33 = $2.30/33 = 6.969696969 cents each mile you drive.

Correspondingly,each year you would spend $.046(25,000) = $1,150.00 on gas driving the Prius, and

6.969696969(25,000) = $1,742.424242 per year driving the KIA.

This means that you save $1,742.424242 - $1,150.00 = $592.4242419 per year driving the Prius.

$29,000 - $14,000 = $15,000 so it will take $15,000/$592.4242419 = 25.31969311 years to recover your cost, all other things being equal (maintenance fees?) and neglecting the monies that might have accrued had you invested the $15, 000 difference from the beginning.

But really, what about driving pleasure, and most important, the loss in status? :(

(One thing I am not sure about is when one should round off to two significant figures (gas price), at the beginning or the end, or after each step.)
 
stapel said:
I will assume that this exercise has been massively simplified by not asking you to account for comparative maintenance and repair costs, or taxes. But does this exercise also specify that you are not to consider the cost of the electricity (which is the cost which replaces the cost of gasoline for the Prius and allows for the so-called "mpg" of fifty)? Also, are you not to consider the cost of a replacement set of batteries for the Prius?

When you reply, please provide a clear listing of your thoughts and efforts so far. Thank you! ;)
Click to expand...

Im not taking into account taxes,insurance,etc..... Further, there is 'no electyrical cost' as the gasoline engine recharges the battery.
 
Dale10101 said:
So you are saying it costs $2.30 to travel 50 miles in the Prius, and $2.30 to travel 33 miles in the the KIA.

Or. driving the Prius costs $2.30/50 = 4.6 cents each mile you drive,

the KIA costs $2.30/33 = $2.30/33 = 6.969696969 cents each mile you drive.

Correspondingly,each year you would spend $.046(25,000) = $1,150.00 on gas driving the Prius, and

6.969696969(25,000) = $1,742.424242 per year driving the KIA.

This means that you save $1,742.424242 - $1,150.00 = $592.4242419 per year driving the Prius.

$29,000 - $14,000 = $15,000 so it will take $15,000/$592.4242419 = 25.31969311 years to recover your cost, all other things being equal (maintenance fees?) and neglecting the monies that might have accrued had you invested the $15, 000 difference from the beginning.

But really, what about driving pleasure, and most important, the loss in status? :(

(One thing I am not sure about is when one should round off to two significant figures (gas price), at the beginning or the end, or after each step.)
Click to expand...

Excellent . Thanks. Dave . PS I don't care about status ; I don't live to please others . Each drive about the same to me.
 
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