MORE FOR YOUR
Money
You don’t need higher consciousness
to cut your car costs. You do need a
little creativity—and these clever tricks
Zen and the Art
of Driving Cheap
Road Rules
BY JOE EATON PHOTOGRAPHS BY DAN SAELINGER
Americans love driving—and pay dearly for it.
In 2010 it cost more than $8,500 to drive a midsize
sedan 15,000 miles, according to the American
Automobile Association, which factored in gasoline,
maintenance, insurance, and depreciation. Car
expenses run second only to housing costs in the
United States, and they are getting no cheaper:
Compact used cars sell for almost 17 percent more
than they did in summer 2010, reveals the Manheim
used-car price index.
