I’m sure the guy who bought our Ioniq EV who was previously spending $40/day on gas for his commute in a Jeep is relishing his decision. ~$35/day savings = $700/month in his pocket. And that’s only going to get bigger.
We are using a little bit more gas now having gone back to the second gen Volt but it’s a trade off for being able to use it as our tow pig this summer. Still averaging about 95% electric on every mile we’ve driven it since we bought it in October so no big complaints.
I’m heading off camping at Silent Lake this weekend to kick off the season so I’ll see how it fares mileage wise this time around. It wowed me last time for sure.
As for the bike, well, YOLO. Spending $100 for a day of riding is what it is, it’s not a financial deal breaker for us, but wow….looking back at when I was actively flying 12-15 years ago and spending easily $250/week on that, and having drifted away from aviation for that simple reason, well…..here we are again. Thankfully the financial picture is significantly different this time around, however my wife was getting a little bit testy with $1000 (+) a month in “me me me fun time” back then….
With the Goldwing a day outing would be a tankful, $30-$40. Not having to pay a criminal lawyer to defend me against a murder charge for strangling someone makes that a win. On a slow year my insurance would cost more.
On a long tour meals and motel would be more than the gas and I'm not seeing the accommodation prices I used to get. Meals are ??? The local diner used to have an early bird full breakfast and $10 covered the food, tax and a generous tip. Not any longer. A McCombo is $11.00 plus. Camp and cook in Ontario is insane for campsite prices.
Airplanes are great on fuel. What other means of transportation (Non EV) will legally get you 20 MPG at 120 MPH?
The problem is unless you are IFR, trips are too subject to weather. You can't pull over, put on your rain gear and carry on. Day trips involve $100 hamburgers because they do really taste better at another airport's greasy spoon.
One of the best vacations I had was doing the Trent / Rideau for three weeks. Buying a season's pass paid for the accommodation except for three nights. Gas was huge and that was just a little shy of today's prices, $1.40 / L, About $1500 in total IIRC. Food was a trip to the grocery store nearest the lock. My concern today would be crowding at the grey lines and locks.
The best part about the boat is having it moored in a good location. In our case a covered slip in Orillia. For two gallons of gas we could motor into town, buy food and drink at grocery store prices, motor over to a beach and enjoy the day with four or more people on board. I budgeted $5000 a year but probably closer to double that now. Again fuel wasn't the big cost.
Boat vs Airplane: They can have similar yearly costs and the airplane flies really well in winter air densities while the boat lies under a tarp. The boat has the advantage of being fun while moored at a beach or secluded cove, burning no fuel. The airplane is only interesting to most when making expensive holes in the air. On the ground only the aviation gear heads enjoy discussing propellers so after an hour or two you have to spend money on other diversions.
A friend figures $100 for gas to drive to the family cottage in Haliburton and return. The ski boat ate another $100 or $200 if things got serious. It wasn't worth it for a soggy weekend unless chores had to be done.
Pick your financial poison but the only option that could overall put money in your pocket is the cottage when you sell it, subject to market fluctuations.
ier or Steve
