Suzuki Van Van annual commuting costs

[MarkF]

Some might recall I sold my electric bike and bought a 125cc motorbike for commuting, well, I've done a year on it. The only maintenance I've done is to top up the oil and clean, adjust and lube the chain. I've suffered no mechanical issues. The low fuel light comes on at about 105 miles, I fill up at about 125 but have gone passed 130. To fill her up costs about £6, this last 2 weeks (ish).

I don't believe I have suffered any depreciation so the total annual cost to commute including tax, insurance, MOT, fuel, chain lube and ACF protection for the bike came to £277!

 

[Deafie]

[QUOTE 5049248, member: 45"]Don't forget the costs for the speed awareness course...[/QUOTE]
You have to be aware of speed on a Van Van?

 

[Drago]

Blimey Mark, didn't know that you were a Black Widow.

 

[Cycleops]

And the annual cost for the e bike?

 

[spen666]

Some might recall I sold my electric bike and bought a 125cc motorbike for commuting, well, I've done a year on it. The only maintenance I've done is to top up the oil and clean, adjust and lube the chain. I've suffered no mechanical issues. The low fuel light comes on at about 105 miles, I fill up at about 125 but have gone passed 130. To fill her up costs about £6, this last 2 weeks (ish).

I don't believe I suffered any depreciation so the total annual cost to commute including tax, insurance, MOT, fuel, chain lube and ACF protection for the bike came to £277!

View attachment 384073

How did you manage to avoid any depreciation?


What about the purchase cost? Even without depreciation, there is the cost of money ie interest on borrowing or lost interest on the monies no longer in your bank account.

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

How did you manage to avoid any depreciation?


What about the purchase cost? Even without depreciation, there is the cost of money ie interest on borrowing or lost interest on the monies no longer in your bank account.

Interest on monies in bank accounts is almost non existent these days

 

[MarkF]

[QUOTE 5049248, member: 45"]Don't forget the costs for the speed awareness course...[/QUOTE]
That was filed under "Other incidentals"...........

How did you manage to avoid any depreciation?


What about the purchase cost? Even without depreciation, there is the cost of money ie interest on borrowing or lost interest on the monies no longer in your bank account.

Van Van's are a bit of a cult bike and residuals are rock solid once the initial depreciation has gone. I took my time and bought the right bike, the owner already had his new bike, I like that situation...........I paid about £1200 for a bike that had done just 4kmiles, any interest lost in not having the money in an account is of no consequence. Looking at prices, I think it's actually worth more than I paid. It's depreciation that makes a Van Van less costly than an e-bike and it's about a million times more useful.

And the annual cost for the e bike?

I bought a 4 year old e-bike with it's original (from memory) £650 receipt, I paid £50 for it as it was a "non-runner". I paid about £90 for new batteries before discovering the fault was a gunged up kick stand cut-out. It was still a pile of cack and I sold it on Ebay for £240 (ish).

 

[SpokeyDokey]

Interest on monies in bank accounts is almost non existent these days

Interest rates are low but actual interest depends on how much you have invested and in which bank accounts you invest in. We get a very tidy return each year from eg our ISA's and fixed rate bonds plus we use eg Santander 123 accounts for everyday savings.

 

[MarkF]

Interest rates are low but actual interest depends on how much you have invested and in which bank accounts you invest in. We get a very tidy return each year from eg our ISA's and fixed rate bonds plus we use eg Santander 123 accounts for everyday savings.

Fair enough, but I save £80 in fuel every month, leaving the £1200 in an account would not generate £960 of annual interest for me. The bike will have paid for itself in another 3 months too.

 

[SpokeyDokey]

Fair enough, but I save £80 in fuel every month, leaving the £1200 in an account would not generate £960 of annual interest for me. The bike will have paid for itself in another 3 months too.

@MarkF

I wasn't knocking your original post - at least I hope you don't think so. I was just replying to the 'interest' bit in the quoted post.

I think the bike is brilliant - I had toyed with the idea of a Quad bike myself as a cheap and practical way of pottering about and heading up into the mountains instead of using the car.

 

[Accy cyclist]

When i saw this thread my first thoughts were Suzuki cars. In my youth Suzuki meant motorbikes. lots of boys progressed from home made early versions of mountain bikes to 50cc "Suzis" and Kawasakis Now to me Suzuki means cars. Just thought i'd mention it.

 

[T.M.H.N.E.T]

My SV is offering frugality that a car cannot. No figures to hand but a tank of diesel upwards of 3x a month is waaay more than £15 ish per fill Im paying now. 600mi per month just commuting.

Insurance - £85yr instead of nearly £500 for car

"Road tax" is 3x what I was paying for the car £90 something

Consumables - I clean it lots so use a tin of chain cleaner every 2 months £10 - sponges are pennies and I get rags/polishing cloths from work gratis

Chain lube £10 - still using the tin I bought in July

Oil change (last week) cost me £18 £24 ish with a filter change

 

[Electric_Andy]

Yes, 125s are very cheap to run. I honestly believe motorbikes are the best forms of transport when you consider the size, fuel consumption etc. Of course you also have to account for helmet/gloves/jacket/trousers/boots. I tend to spend £200 on protective gear, knowing they usually last a couple years. Still pennies compared to a car, especially when my wife has to pay £50/month just for parking.

 

[T.M.H.N.E.T]

^True, I have two sets of textiles, 2 pairs of boots and decent gloves. Adding up the value is quite expensive but good kit doesn't have to be a fortune.

Army/Police style surplus boots are anywhere from £30 and so far I haven't had wet or cold feet, they're a revelation. Heated grips take care of hands, I haven't washed my gloves since new a few months ago, simply as no need.

I hate driving these days, nobody understands quite why

 

[jongooligan]

I really enjoy motorbike commuting, particularly the bit where I'm filtering through stationary traffic. I can get to work ten minutes quicker than by car. Don't get to stay in bed any longer though as it takes me ten minutes to get all my gear on.