Recently I purchased a used vehicle and on paper it looks like a very foolish choice. My youngest son is also thinking about his vehicle and wondering if he can save up and get something better. With that in mind I wanted to write a little bit about purchasing a vehicle and why I bought what I bought.
If you look above you can see the vehicle I purchased. It is a 2012 Mitsubishi i-MIEV. One of the worst selling, most poorly rated cars ever built.
To put things in perspective it sold about 100 units per year in Canada. Typical vehicle sales in Canada are around 2 Million vehicles per year.
A little math : If my math is right that means about 0.005% of the vehicle market. In total only about 600 were sold in Canada. Right now there are 26,000,000 vehicles registered in Canada. 600 or less are i-MIEV. There aren't many out there.
On Paper It's a Terrible Vehicle
Listing the downsides of this vehicle is easy!
- It's unattractive. I mean just look at the image above
- It's small. Seats 4 people max and not very spacious for four
- It can't carry much cargo
- It can only drive 80km on a full tank
- It is very slow in reaching highway speed
- It's interior feels cheap with lots of plastic
- It doesn't have any "modern" amenities like cruise control, nav system, bluetooth, infotainment unit and so on.
Again, Why buy something that sounds so bad?
First thing to consider:
When buying a vehicle buy the least expensive vehicle that fits your NEEDS
Second thing to consider:
The cost of the vehicle is made up of three costs: Purchase price, Fuel Price, and Maintenance cost
Third thing to consider:
When I was younger my Dad told me:
Son. Something you should always remember about a vehicle. It is NOT an extension of your personality OR a symbol of your status and worth. It IS a tool to get you where you need to go. If you remember this it will save you a lot of money in the future
My Rationale for buying an i-MIEV
I've wanted the i-MIEV for a very long time.
- However when it came out it was $35,000. Way too expensive.
- With government rebates it was about $21,000. Way too expensive.
- During the initial stages of COVID the price dropped to $10,000 (used) and I was seriously tempted
- After COVID gas prices spiked from 0.70/liter to $2.00/liter. i-MIEV prices spiked to $18,000. Almost the price of new for a 10yr old vehicle
- Last week I found this i-MIEV for $7100. Purchased with little thought
One of the benefits of watching a vehicle for a long time. I knew a fair price and that I wanted it so the decision was easy.
But WHY did I want it?
Quick answer?
It has dirt cheap operating costs!
But lets look at the operating costs:
Fuel Price : Nothing
- My city has free basic charging stations so I can fill up free of charge.
Regular Maintenance: Almost nothing
- The recommended maintenance is a yearly safety check. Cost $60
Yes tires and brakes wear out over time. However, its tires are small/cheap. It's brakes last a long time because it uses regenerative braking most of the time.
Let's compare to a regular gasoline powered vehicle
Gasoline currently costs $2.10/liter in Canada
Average fuel efficiency of a Canadian vehicle 9L/100km.
Typical maintenance service in Canada $100-$300/service
Number of services required : 3-4 per year depending on amount driven.
Average km driven by Canadian driver : 15,000km/year.
How much would that cost in fuel and maintenance?
3 services @ $200/service =>$ 600
15,000km * 6L / 100km ==> 900L @ 2.10/L ==>$1,890
Gasoline vehicle : $2,790
i-MIEV : $60
Based solely on operating expenses the i-MIEV will pay for itself in only two and a half years
But just for fun ... another comparison.
the i-MIEV uses 1000 Watts of power to drive 10km (roughly)
....Our power is 9.6 cents for those 1000 watts
....So the car can go 10Km for 9.6 cents of car food (electricity)
If I were to walk 10km I would need 450 calories of food.
....The cheapest food is bread at 99c/lb or 23 cents for 450 calories
....Sugar would be slightly cheaper at 15 cents for the same 450 calories
For those Nigerian readers...The vehicle costs about 1.7 Naira to travel 1km so 17 Naira to travel 10Km. I believe that's much cheaper than a Keke Napep (sorry if I get the name wrong).
Plus the Car is fun...sort of
Now I never thought I would say this of a slow car. It is actually fun to drive. I learned that while is has a low horsepower it has a high torque.
What does that mean?
It means that it takes forever to get to highway speed but it accelerates to city speed very quickly. It's small size make it easy to park. It has great visibility. It is snappy to pick up speed from stop signs.
Overall its a great car for what I need it for. Pick up groceries. Get to work. Do errands around town. Go to the park with the dog and so on.
Sure, I'll never take it on a long road trip
Sure, there are drives I just can't do in it
However, if I save 2,700 a year on regular vehicle expenses?
How can I say not to that?
Perhaps it will end up being a foolish decision but for now...I'm enjoying my ugly little vehicle and get a smile everytime I pass a gas station and a bigger smile when I get to charge up for free.
Thanks for reading
and as always, I love getting comments.