Running Cost Tables
Your guide to the costs of running a car
Petrol cars
Diesel cars
Archive of running costs
How do we come to our conclusions? Our quick reference guide describes the different elements and the assumptions behind our basic guides.
The current figures are a guide to how much it's likely to cost the average private user to run a petrol or diesel car, based on buying the car new and replacing it after four years. Each year we take 60 top-selling models, representative of the UK market, and analyse their costings over this period. Of course, individual circumstances vary. For instance, the fuel consumption depends on the type of car and local traffic conditions, while the cost of repairs needed can be unpredictable. However, the aim is to show a representative cost that reflects all the important items, so you can see how it all adds up.
What exactly are running costs?
We classify the costs of motoring under two headings: 'Standing Charges' which you have to pay whether you use the car or not, and 'Running Costs' which are the actual costs of using the car.
Standing charges
These are the basic costs incurred just keeping the vehicle ready for use on the road. They include annual road tax, insurance, the cost of capital used for the vehicle, the loss of value of the vehicle (depreciation) plus AA Breakdown Cover. Depreciation, which is affected by mileage is usually the biggest single cost factor, though it's easy to lose sight of it in terms of a day-to-day expense.
Running costs
The running costs are those that depend directly on using the vehicle – primarily fuel, but also including parking and tolls, tyres, servicing and repair costs. On average, every mile run adds this amount to the annual bill and every mile saved cuts the cost by this amount.
Vehicle groups
Cars are put into groups depending on their price when new. Take the car's list price when it was first bought, plus the main options (eg automatic gearbox, air conditioning etc) supplied with the car. This gives a better guide to what it costs to operate a car than the engine size, for example. If in doubt, used-car price guides will give the original list prices.
'The sample of vehicles used for the 2008 figures reflects those that were best sellers four years ago. The changes to the VED bands according to levels of carbon dioxide emissions were beginning to have an influence on buying habits, but the smallest best selling cars still fell into bands C for petrol and B for diesel cars. We expect the market share of lower emitting vehicles to continue to grow and to be reflected in future editions of these costs.
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Other products & services
In previous years, tables have been produced for motorbikes and scooters but since 2004 only petrol and diesel tables have been available.