what would make you give up your car
Discussion
was wondering what it would take to decide to give up your car,
for example
if petrol or diesal went to nearly £2 a litre (£1.45 in todays paper in london)
road tax £1000 pound for every year you own the car regardless of car ( new showroom tax just introduced at £900 or £950 on new cars for the 1st year at the moment on most big cars)
at £80 approx a tank in the c63 with a heavy right foot im lucky if i get 200 miles, if it got to £2 a litre it would cost me nearly £130 a tank (66ltr).
i think if it did go that way a lot a big engined cars would become very rare on the roads.
for example
if petrol or diesal went to nearly £2 a litre (£1.45 in todays paper in london)
road tax £1000 pound for every year you own the car regardless of car ( new showroom tax just introduced at £900 or £950 on new cars for the 1st year at the moment on most big cars)
at £80 approx a tank in the c63 with a heavy right foot im lucky if i get 200 miles, if it got to £2 a litre it would cost me nearly £130 a tank (66ltr).
i think if it did go that way a lot a big engined cars would become very rare on the roads.
Thats the thing though, they do it slowly and we just put up with it and crack on trying to get by.
If ten years ago somebody told you what motoring would cost today it would have scared the living bejesus out of you.
We're just like frogs sitting in a pan of water slowly coming to the boil.
If ten years ago somebody told you what motoring would cost today it would have scared the living bejesus out of you.
We're just like frogs sitting in a pan of water slowly coming to the boil.
If costs forced me out of the car, i would no longer be able to get to work (there is no public transport alternative). Moving closer would be even more expensive.
It would probably all end in taking the family to a different country.
£2/litre wouldn't be the end of the world though, and it would probably knock 10 minutes off the commute, which is worth an extra £30/week
It would probably all end in taking the family to a different country.
£2/litre wouldn't be the end of the world though, and it would probably knock 10 minutes off the commute, which is worth an extra £30/week
musclecarmad said:
if i moved abroad i prob wouldn't feel the need to have one
yup - thats what did it for me: don't need one here (Ukraine) - 10 minute walk to the office, otherwise company provides transport, at home, no point (almost cruel) to keep a car that is not used for weeks/months and then have the gamble of it starting without problems when you try to use it.Just hire cars when I go back to UK - will buy car(s) again when back home though
thole of a country we have atm...Vidal Baboon said:
Bikes. Oh wait, that already happened!
Only something like a Caterfield could tempt me back to having a fun car.
Not enough space at the moment and other commitments put paid to that idea. I'll have one at some point, but the bikes are here to stay!
Yup...what he said. There's the old car for a slow potter, anything else can be accomplished using the occasional hire car if 2 wheels wont cut it. Only something like a Caterfield could tempt me back to having a fun car.
Not enough space at the moment and other commitments put paid to that idea. I'll have one at some point, but the bikes are here to stay!
pilchardthecat said:
If costs forced me out of the car, i would no longer be able to get to work (there is no public transport alternative). Moving closer would be even more expensive.
That's a problem for me, too. And I work at different locations so if I move close to one, I'd be far from another. 
Does the recent history of fuel tax and advertising not remind anyone else of whats happened to cigarettes and smokers in the past decade or so?
Smokers:
A campaign telling everyone why smoking is bad for your personal health. A campaign telling everyone why smoking is bad for everyone elses health. Alienation of smokers by stopping them smoking in doors. Increased costs to smoke... Ultimately less smokers.
Cars:
A campaign telling everyone why fossil fuel usage is bad for our health. A campaign telling everyone why fossil fuels is bad for the planets health. Alienation of drivers by suggesting we are all evil. Increased costs to own and drive a car... Ultimately less drivers.
It seems like an own goal - the goverment rake money in from one group of people to the point where people change their ways and therefore revenues decrease. They then turn their attention to another group and repeat the cycle.
Taxes aren't going to decrease, we'll simply end up priced out of our own personal transport and end up staying locally to where we live (which will please so many powers-that-be). Then, to follow the cycle, other areas of our life will become heavily taxed - whats the next thing thats gaining popularity thats not really heavily taxed yet? I'm going out on a limb and say it'll be the Internet / computing / home entertainment next.
Smokers:
A campaign telling everyone why smoking is bad for your personal health. A campaign telling everyone why smoking is bad for everyone elses health. Alienation of smokers by stopping them smoking in doors. Increased costs to smoke... Ultimately less smokers.
Cars:
A campaign telling everyone why fossil fuel usage is bad for our health. A campaign telling everyone why fossil fuels is bad for the planets health. Alienation of drivers by suggesting we are all evil. Increased costs to own and drive a car... Ultimately less drivers.
It seems like an own goal - the goverment rake money in from one group of people to the point where people change their ways and therefore revenues decrease. They then turn their attention to another group and repeat the cycle.
Taxes aren't going to decrease, we'll simply end up priced out of our own personal transport and end up staying locally to where we live (which will please so many powers-that-be). Then, to follow the cycle, other areas of our life will become heavily taxed - whats the next thing thats gaining popularity thats not really heavily taxed yet? I'm going out on a limb and say it'll be the Internet / computing / home entertainment next.
I live in a rural area where public transport is poor, taxis are hideously expensive and journeys long.
I'd buy some eco-box for practicality, and plan the downfall of the government every time I drove it. And keep the gas guzzler for fun, while also planning the downfall of the government, etc.
I'd buy some eco-box for practicality, and plan the downfall of the government every time I drove it. And keep the gas guzzler for fun, while also planning the downfall of the government, etc.
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