I didn’t hesitate to give up my car for two wheels and a basket of rear racks.
Of course, it arguably wouldn’t be everyone’s first choice, but trading in my dusty gray 2015 Ford Focus for a cherry-red Buddy 125 scooter was the most productive monetary resolution I could have made last year.
My car was already paid off, but maintenance, insurance, and fuel were adding to my car debt credits. Today, I save more than $4,000 a year.
A moped is not compatible with all lifestyles. It just so happens to work well for my life in Austin, Texas. Now I’m paying a fraction of what I used to pay for transportation. The average monthly charge for owning and operating a new car in 2023 is more than $1,000, up 13% from last year.
Swapping my car for a moped wasn’t a difficult decision. My mother abandoned her car 10 years ago after a transmission failure and came home with a sky blue moped. Six months later, my father arrived with a matching model. I guess I could just say it’s a family affair.
Ever since I had my car, I intended to drive it until my tires fell off. However, after a serious twist of fate in 2018, the lifespan of my Ford Focus was in jeopardy. The insurance company sought to repair my car, but I ended up fixing it. Once it covered 55,000 miles, it began to fail like clockwork.
After the engine failed last July, Ford said maintenance would charge me about $9,000. The broker presented me with $50, so I sold it to a junkyard for $2,000.
A week later I bought my moped.
As I learned the hard way, car expenses add up fast. And since the average monthly payment for a new car is $726, the charge is even higher if you still want to pay for your vehicle.
Before switching to a moped last year, I paid more than $5,000 in unforeseen repairs, bringing my total annual charge to more than $10,000 after factoring in regime maintenance, insurance, and gas. When the engine needed to be replaced last summer, buying a new vehicle wasn’t an option.
I bought a slightly used Buddy 125 at a scooter shop in Austin for $2,800. I intend to replace the oil every 1,500 miles, so instead of paying a store $50 to do it, I can do it myself for about $15. My Buddy’s fuel capacity is about 1. 6 gallons, so with the average Texas fuel value of $3. 20 per gallon, I pay about $5 to fill up my moped.
When I did the math, I found that I save about $4,721 each year. This total does not include a monthly car payment, incidentals, or costly repairs. The savings would be even greater if you drive longer distances or continue to finance your vehicle, which can go up to more than $8,000 a year, according to Bankrate data.
Here’s how they’re distributed:
I knew that getting a moped would have its pros and cons, but I was excited to be more minimalist. Aside from the load savings, here’s what finally convinced me when switching from the car to the moped:
Austin is scooter-friendly if you live within the city limits and don’t want to go far to go painting. I live about 20 blocks from downtown, so I’m comfortable traveling about 10 miles in either direction with my moped. Since I paint remotely anyway, I rarely pass by that branch. It’s also easy to park your moped anywhere in Austin, which is a big plus.
Unlike motorcycles, which require a Class M driver’s license, in Texas you only need a valid driver’s license to drive a moped. However, I highly recommend taking a protection course if you don’t know how to ride a moped or don’t want to get acquainted. before diving.
What happens if it rains? Well, yes, it’s going to happen and it’s going to suck. But that’s what waterproof clothing is for. I’m not going to lie, riding a scooter can be frustrating on a hot day. But with sunscreen and a pair of smart pair of sunglasses, the sun hasn’t stopped me yet.
A moped may not make sense for everyone. As a healthy, dependent-free user, I make sure a moped fits my lifestyle. But it’s not a practical choice if you’re risk-averse, commuting, or having kids.
If you want to conserve your car while also reducing transportation costs, here are some steps you can take to save money:
Talk to your colleagues or friends and try carpooling to work or school. It’s a great way to percentage your fuel expenditure or reduce the amount of time you spend behind the wheel.
If you live in an area with public transportation, you can save a lot of money by exercising or taking the bus. Of course, the lack of available public transportation makes this happen to many people: Nearly 45% of Americans don’t have public transportation services at all, according to the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy.
If you live within a moderate motorcycle commute from work, buy a motorcycle or electric scooter. You’ll want to factor in the physical restrictions, the distance you have to travel, the weight you’re carrying, and the terrain (an electric scooter ride). In the mountains, it doesn’t sound very practical – or appealing). Joseph Kaminski, CNET’s senior associate editor for generation and an electric scooter enthusiast, brings an electric scooter to the New York workplace and saves more than $132 a month by ditching his subway card.
Gas costs are rising this spring, so take advantage of fuel credit cards that offer rewards for what you spend at the pump or qualify your electric vehicle. Fuel credit cards offer up to 5% cash back on purchases at fuel stations or EV charging, and some cards will even offer rewards in categories other than fuel.
Keeping a car in giant metropolitan spaces like New York City can cause serious headaches, which is why many other people don’t own a car at all. In fact, New York has the lowest percentage of families owning a vehicle in the country, according to TitleMax. If you’re paying to stick with a car you only use occasionally, check out the budget for an occasional rental car. And you possibly won’t have to worry about moving your car on the street or on snow-clearing days. It’s a win – to win.
To learn more about how I save money, find out how I get compound interest benefits, how I spend money on vacations, and how I balance saving and paying off debt.
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