IRS' new mileage numbers underscore mpg craze

June 30, 2008

The IRS has new numbers on mileage standards that are up to just under 60 cents/mile. Clark has traditionally said that it costs you around 50 cents a mile to operate a vehicle, but now that's obviously changing.

Fuel is only a part of the cost. But we've become so myopic by only focusing on the mpg ratings. In fact, people are making emotional auto-buying decisions based on those mpg ratings.

CLARK'S TIP TOPICS Consumer Tips Managing Money Banks & Credit Cards Technology Health & Healthcare Car Costs Homes Phones & Utilities Small Business Travel & Leisure Find more consumer advice in Clark Howard's book, "Get Clark Smart"

Clark's Dash unit has added a feature that lists nearby gas stations and their prices. That goes to show our fixation on gas prices. Likewise, comparison sites like GasBuddy.com and others are booming.

But Clark encourages you to step back and think about the big picture. Even with $4/gallon gas, it's the overall cost of a vehicle that matters: Depreciation, insurance, the cost of your loan, maintenance, repairs, etc.

If you go from a gas guzzler that's paid for to a new vehicle with a 5-year loan, think about the cost of that loan every single month. Not to mention that dumping your gas guzzler will probably get you awful trade-in value.

You may need to reconsider that choice.

Driver monitoring devices yield big savings on auto insurance

June 30, 2008

Clark felt like a lone wolf in the late '90s when he got excited about an experiment Progressive was running in Texas to track how, when and where you drove. Once they had this data, they were able to give a highly targeted auto insurance rate.

There's a certain creep-out factor in being monitored this way. Listeners at the time felt Clark was advocating Big Brother. But he rebutted by saying this is voluntary; you choose to let the insurer monitor you for a potential savings.

The Wall Street Journal reports other insurers such as GMAC, Hartford and Uniguard are also offering this type of monitoring and pricing in a number of states. Progressive had been operating this model under the TripSense moniker and will soon rechristen it as MyRate.

Insurers are looking for patterns of jackrabbit starts and hard braking, which both suggest that a driver does not keep a safe following distance. If your driving passes muster, you could enjoy rates that are up to 60% cheaper.

For example, one GMAC customer had been paying $2,000/year for 2 high-end luxury cars. When the system tracked the man and his wife in their daily driving routines, their insurance dropped to $866/year.

Insurers have found that people drive more carefully when they're being monitored. Clark originally predicted most drivers would start out safe and then soon forget. But that's not been the case. We do actually change the way we drive over time.

The 10 cheapest cars to own and operate

June 27, 2008

While the price of oil has our attention, there's a renewed focus on finding cars that have the best fuel economy. Yet such vehicles are not necessarily the cheapest to own and operate. ... More

Big 3 automakers rolling out great incentives and rebates

June 25, 2008

The car market continues to take a beating, with the latest blow coming from a horrible sales month in June. Fitch Ratings, meanwhile, has downgraded Chrysler and GM -- citing weak sales and rising fuel costs, among other things. ... More

Are gas rebate credit cards a deal?

June 12, 2008

Gas rebate credit cards are hot right now. Is that any surprise? We're all shell-shocked by prices at the pump and the promise of HUGE rebates sounds great. But beware that these offers may only be good for a couple of weeks or months. ... More

More recent Car Cost Tips from Clark:

• Clark's used car buying tips 
• Are gas additives for real? 
• Scooters and bus commuters all the rage 
• Compact vehicles may be a better deal than sub-compacts 
• Getting out of a car lease 
• Honda to launch affordable line of hybrids in 2009 
• Teens lax in buckling up; small cars becoming safer 
• Dissecting Chrysler's gas gimmick 
• Auto insurance rates may decline 
• Norway's TH!NK City electric car coming to the United States 

Complete list of Clark's Car Cost Tips