25,000 miles per year. Does mileage or age or both affect depreciation?

Question

I'm trying to plan for true cost of ownership of my next car. I'm starting to drive a lot farther than before and am coming up with around 25,000 miles per year. I understand that to be about double what is average and is about double what I have been driving too.

Anyhow, I understand that since I'll be driving mostly highway distances I'll be getting a little better fuel mileage so that should be a bit less money per mile. Some maintenance schedules also seem to be less often when dealing with highway driving vs. city driving, which in turn should also lower the cost per mile. I'm guessing the same would go for repairs on average. Right?

But what about depreciation? I understand that mileage will affect depreciation, but by how much? It seems depreciation is always measured by years, not miles. Does that mean that age causes more depreciation than miles do? Or would a car with 100,000 miles have depreciated the same regardless if it were 4 or 8 years old?

Thanks!

Answer 1

Both. A very high mileage car can be worth 40% less than one with normal mileage. 25k per year is above avg. Thus extra depreciation. Particularly if you continue to drive that many miles.



The warranty runs out sooner too. My car had a 5 year, 60k mile power train warranty. 5 years came first. At 25k a year, your warranty is gone in less than 2 and a half years.

Answer 2

Try thinking about it for even just a few seconds and you'll get the answer. *rolls eyes*

Answer 3

Because of the excessive mileage your car will depreciate much faster than normal. Other than true collector cars, vehicles are constantly depreciating. I wouldn't worry too much about it.

Answer 4

BOTH

Answer 5

Hi so high mileage over the 12k miles per year means you must lose on a trade in.

Answer 6

Both mileage and age effect depreciation on any motor vehicle. However, mechanical integrity does as well. As far as resale or trade a vehicle which has been fully and properly serviced and maintained will retain a higher value, even with high mileage. However, the mileage you are racking up is your worst enemy as far as depreciation, regardless of how well you maintain your vehicle.

Answer 7

Mileage, age, mechanical condition and cosmetic condition ALL affect the depreciation. 25,000 miles per year is huge, since the national average is less than 15,000, so you're going to take a big hit. There are plenty of true-cost-of-ownership calculators online: https://www.google.com/search?q=car+true+cost+of+ownership