Thoughts on Gas Mileage

My little new Honda Rebel rolled the 1200 mile marker. No champagne or party favors or loud noises. Just her, the road and I.

This mileage milestone sparked a thought; just how much money am I saving by commuting with my motorcycle rather than my truck. So, I whip out the calculator and do some calculating...

For simplicity's sake, I made a few assumptions.

1. My motorcycle gets an average of 60 MPG. In all reality, it is closer to 70 or even 80 or better on a good day. This is not a calculated or advertised MPG, but measured.
2. My Chevy S10 pickup gets an average of 15 MPG. That's on a good day!
3. I drive or ride a monthly total of 1200 miles.
4. Gas costs $3.10 Yes, that is perhaps an average or approximation, but close enough.

So, if I ride 1200 miles on my Honda, I will be using 20 gallons of gas per month. That's $62 in gas per month. Extend out a year, and thats 14,400 miles using 240 gallons of gas, costing $774.

Now, what if I apply the same number of miles to my truck. 1200 miles in my Chevy would use 80 gallons of gas. That's $248 per month! On gas for my pickup! Extend it out a year and it will consume 960 gallons, costing $2,976!

That's a savings of... Drum roll please... $2,202! Just the gas savings alone could pay off my motorcycle in a little over two years.

Here's to a great year of fun riding and gas savings to all!