24K Retirement "budgets"

Gayl,
You may be able to get 10 years out of your cars (if they are new or just a few years old when you buy them). Cars are better quality and longer lasting these days. Try to buy known reliable cars, at least a few years into their production cycles. That could save you some serious $ and help with those vacations!

ESRBob
 
I use MS Money. My last 12 months expenses were $25,600 for one person (me). I had a little dental work, but no other expenses that would be outside of what I might expect in any ordinary year.

I didn't take any trips, buy appliances, etc.

There is about $400 of interest in my total, but no loan principle payments.

I pay for health insurance, but my house is paid for. I also buy insurance for my house and car, but no LTC or other large insurance bill.

No cable or Dish.

I have cut down a lot on leisure spending over the past three months, and it is possible that next year will be a little lower in the leisure category. OTOH, I may get really tired of this cutback and it may be a bit higher.

I am near, but not quite at the $24,000 figure for a person per year. I could do it with luck, but I don't think I would like it much.

I feel that I am very cost conscious, but obviously would not be able to compete with truly frugal people. For example, my daily wine is Charles Shaw Cabernet, but if someone has a special event, I buy a decent bottle of Champagne to honor that. It is easier for me to be frugal with myself than with gifts or events that I am paying for.

I really don't like to be tight, although I prefer it to being pressed financially. And it seems that I prefer it to working, assuming that I could work at a decent wage.

I'll post the categories when I can figure out how to create tables.

Mikey
 
Mikey, I've been playing around with tables and figured out how to do a very basic one. Maybe you already know this, but for those who don't, I think this is right. Here's a sample table:

Car Insurance$115
House Insurance$75
Utilities$250


To get that I typed the following, except you'll need to add a bracket at both the very beginning, and the end (if I do, it posts as a table):


table]
Car Insurance$115
House Insurance$75
Utilities$250
[/table

Essentially, the code means this:

(table) = start of table - except replace (), with brackets [] - if I do, it tries to post as a table
= start of a row.
= start of a cell within a row
= end of a cell within a row
= end of a row
(/table) = end of a table - except replace (), with brackets []

Once you get one row like you want it, just use copy and paste and change your data - it goes pretty quickly after getting one right. Anyway, I think this is correct, but I'm sure there are others who know far more than I who will correct any errors I've made.
 
Thanks for the info on how to do tables, Bob. And I might be able to get more years out of a car .... it just seems that I go a little over 100k and they fall apart. My next one will be a Honda Civic thou, heard they last a long time. Longer than my Saturn :mad:. Last one made it to 80k before Saturn took it back and all loans that I rolled into it (dtr's car, son's truck, ect) for the current one. I'm at 80k now with only 20k more in the warranty, no probs but I'm not holding my breath.
 
Gayl,
If you are logging 100k miles in 5 years, then I retract my advice -- 10 years at that rate would be too much to hope for!  I drive 7.5k miles per year max and that obviously makes a huge difference. I agree it is not worth keeping the things when they start to fall apart -- either from an economic standpoint or from the hassle-factor.

ESRBob
 
Mikey, I've been playing around with tables and figured out how to do a very basic one.
Click to expand...
Bob, thanks for the method. I'll see if I can do it later today or tomorrow.

Mikey
 
And I might be able to get more years out of a car .... it just seems that I go a little over 100k and they fall apart. My next one will be a Honda Civic thou, heard they last a long time.
Click to expand...

My cars have always lasted a long time. I live where I have to drive 18,000 or so miles each year, and I have always done that since I first gave up on public tranport. With the exeption of known losers, almost any American or Japanese car will last well over 100,000 miles with proper care. A Toyota will often last at least 100,000 with very sloppy care.

I'm 63, and apart from some playtime cars, and a pickup, I have driven only 4 main vehicles my whole life. A 1966 Volvo 122S that I drove for 337,000. A 1978 Volkswagen Dasher that lasted 327,000. A 1996 Acura Integra that I drove for 96,000 then gave to my wife who still drives it at 147,000. And my current car which seems almost new, a 2001 Integra with about 60,000 miles. And my wife put 237,000 on a 1988 Ford Taurus.

None of these cars died. I sold every one of them, in the case of the Volvo for more than it cost me new.

A drivetrain will really last almost indefinitely, so if you keep the finish and rubber work nice, you can pretty much choose how long to keep a car.

Secrets:

Use Full synthetic motor oil and quality filters. Change at reasonable schedule-q 5000 miles is what I use.

Change gasoline and air filters more often than recommended.

Flush and change coolant q 2 years.

Ditto brake lines.

If manual trans, use synthetic gearoil in proper weight. Change q 2 years.

If auto trans, get a high quality tow capable trans fluid cooler. Have the trans serviced annually.

If you live where it is cold, use a heated garage or an engine block heater. Most of engine wear comes from cold starts, and the rest comes from contaminants in the oil.

If you do these things, likely you will get really tired of your car before you have any expensive problems.

Mikey
 
CARS:

We have our "Old Faithfull" car. 1988 Bronco II 4x4 with 130k on it. It lasts when all others have gone. It is our true second car, or should I say first? This includes the Lexus', Audi, Lotus, Ferrari, Acura, Infinity etc. (That was when I was working and writing them off)

Here goes:

I do not use synthetic oil

I have NEVER changed the fuel filter(s) period!

It has had 3 air filters,

3 sets of Brakes,

3 Sets of Tires,

1 clutch,

3 water pumps,

3 sets of rocker gaskets,

3 sets of fan belts.

That is all I can remember, and I did EVERY part of the corrective maintenance myself. The only thing I paid someone to do was oil changes as Jiffy Lube type places, every 7500 miles or so (Roughly, the longest I ever went was 12k)

My take on keeping a car forever is living in a warm dry climate and keeping it garaged all the time.

Our other car is currently a Merc. E300TD 1999 with 60k on it. I cannot remember the last time I changed the oil.

SWR
 
Shockwave,
Hope you change the oil in your diesel on the boat! I try to do it every hundred hours or so. Same with fuel filters. The Bronco may not care, but would you want to be out in the middle of the windwards with 35 knots kicking up all that gunk on the bottom of the tank and not have a new-ish fuel filter on board? :-[

Seriously, aren't you worried about the Merc's oil? I hear bad things are happening to the cars that don't change their oil -- may be urban myth but there does seem to be a movement afoot to never bother anymore and I am hearing that it's producing some engine losses/seizups.

Good luck on your six sane months in the Caribbean.

ESRBob
 
Yeah actually diesels require more frequent oil changes than gas engines due to the increased contaminants. 2000 miles is good, 3000 miles is about as far as I'd go. If memory serves (I owned a 300d some time ago), 5000 miles is the max factory recommendation.

Consumer reports' tests on various oil products supported that synthetics are in fact better than regular old oil, but not for the 3000-5000 mile oil changes many people do. Most of the regular oil they tested came out about the same even under duress. Turns out most oil comes from the same half dozen places and all must meet the "sg/sh" or whatever the latest classification is. I buy "wolfs head" at sams club for under a buck a quart, wolfs head is a very, very old brand that was bought out by pennzoil. I change the oil twice a year, although we barely turn 5000 miles per car per year.

Cheap oil filters are a bad idea. Even some well known brand names arent very good. Some engineer who had an oil filter come apart and screw up the motor in his mustang went out and bought one of each, took them all apart and put the photos and his commentary up on a web site. Many cheapos and even a lot of well known ones like "fram" had loose or stuck bypass valves out of the box, cheap springs that would leave the bypass open after a while, and a lot of them had a piece of twine or a rubber band thing holding the filter element together. He did identify a number of inexpensive filters that were decent. Motorcraft and Purolator (from memory) were two. This is why I avoid the "$15 oil change" places, because they use a noname filter. $5 worth of oil and $4 for a filter, plus about 10 minutes time gets me an oil change. I have this huge oil drain pan thing with a spout on it, pour the oil into old milk cartons and drop them off at the local auto parts store. Many AP stores take in used oil.

I also avoid Jiffy Lube and their ilk like the plague. My old Trooper started developing stiff steering after 40,000 miles. Dealer told me the 3 zerks in the front end had NEVER been lubed, from the looks of things. That truck had been into two different jiffy lubes 10 times in total. When I called them, they said the computer said there were no lubrication points in my truck. Hmm. I guess if the computer says there arent any, the oil change guy can ignore the 3 zerks staring him right in the face. My Expedition had its first 3 oi change/lubes there as well, and when I went to look it over myself for the first time I found ONE lousy zerk located on top, and that joint was similarly dry as a bone.

My learnings: use a good quality filter, use decent quality regular oil, change it yourself twice a year or every 4-5,000 miles if you drive a lot, and grease your own fittings. Or pay through the nose for the dealer to do it.
 
My learnings: use a good quality filter,
Click to expand...

TH,

What is the best filter you can get? - I use to change oil, but did not think that there was much diff. in filters. I do get the cheapie Oil Changes, because no way do I want to screw with this anymore.

But, I'm thinking I could buy my own filter and bring it to the cheapie place. We both make out. They wouldn't have to waste a filter and I'd make sure I got a good one.
 
Found that guys web page.

Here's his recommended/not recommended filters summary:

http://minimopar.knizefamily.net/oilfilters.html

As I remembered, purolators and motorcrafts were good...the motorcrafts look to be a rebadged purolator at a lower cost. I've been buying motorcrafts for my expedition and purolator premium plus's for my rav4. I think I was getting Fram Tough Guards for my infinity as not many filters were available for it.

The whole study, for the ingineeering inclined.
http://minimopar.knizefamily.net/oilfilterstudy.html

I noted that the ones to avoid - the fram, pennzoil and quaker state - are largely the ones you will find at the oil change farms. My wife had hers done at the local Midas for $15 and the filter, when I removed it, had no identifying marks at all on it, just a white can. I wasnt comfortable with that at all.

Bringing your own might work, or at least see what they're putting in there. They might withdraw their warranty or charge you extra for installing one that isnt theirs though.
 
Shockwave,
Hope you change the oil in your diesel on the boat! I try to do it every hundred hours or so. Same with fuel filters. The Bronco may not care, but would you want to be out in the middle of the windwards with 35 knots kicking up all that gunk on the bottom of the tank and not have a new-ish fuel filter on board?
Click to expand...

The boat is a different story completely. 2 50hp Yanmars. Get super service. I do it all myself and I do not even own the boat.

SWR
 
Shockwave,

Seriously, aren't you worried about the Merc's oil? I hear bad things are happening to the cars that don't change their oil -- may be urban myth but there does seem to be a movement afoot to never bother anymore and I am hearing that it's producing some engine losses/seizups.

Good luck on your six sane months in the Caribbean.

ESRBob
Click to expand...

I have only done about 500miles in the Merc. I think since the last Oil & Filter change. I was kidding a little (Tongue in Cheek) when I said I could not remember, as it was so long ago, but very low miles. It only does about 2-5k per year, and is in storage at the moment. Hence the forgetfull bit. It does need more TLC than old Faithfull. All Diesels do. I have never changed an oil filter though. I perhaps should when I get back.

SWR
 
Shock,
Much relieved to hear it!  I was cringing for your engine and was going to come out there and change the oil myself if need be!

TH, how do you know so much stuff!? I'm going to have a hard look at my oil filters going forward... thx.

ESRBob
 
Shock,
Much relieved to hear it! I was cringing for your engine and was going to come out there and change the oil myself if need be!

ESRBob
Click to expand...

ESRBob:
Thanks for your concern. :) I did spend 30 of my working years (WOW, you do not realize how long you actually worked?) as an Electronics & Mechanical Engineer, so I do have a little insight to how things work. BUT for some reason the Ol' 88 Bronco II just keeps going and going. It is BETTER than the Energizer Bunny! I think it is a Karma thing though. If I paint it, or perform too much unnessessary (SP) maintenance on it, I am sure it will fall to bits. I took it to the dealer for it's first service, they promptly overfilled the gearbox, and it blew the seals, after they finally repaired it, and cleaned up the mess, I swore I would do all the maintenance from then on. I never thought I would still own it after 17 years. For Example; I remember the Lotus continuously broke, even when I maintained it per the specs, and then some. I will be so sad when she "Old Faithfull" dies. She is worth more to me than any other car I have owned, and is by far the best car I have owned from a reliability perspective. She still has no rust. But I took her to Toronto from California last year, she is the Canada car now. Not long before she gets car cancer I am sure.

SWR
 
 But I took her to Toronto from California last year, she is the Canada car now. Not long before she gets car cancer I am sure.

SWR
Click to expand...

After 17 years of California living -- the old Bronc is in for a rough end now.

I figured that just about everybody here knows about car maintenance and engineering stuff -- seems to go with the territory? I was the poet in a house full of engineers but some of it obviously wore off.
 
The thing foremost on my mind about cars is my next purchase for myself, and my internel anguish. The frugal side of me is saying buy a new, but conservative base model corolla or something similar, and the aggressive, youthful, you-only-live once side of me is saying get a new Subaru WRX.

I'm about 50% frugal minded, and 50% you only live once minded. Its tortureous, and the best way to describe how i feel is the comic character "two-face".
 
Buy the Subaru. Its not like the choice is a Corolla or a Hummer. The Subaru is a reasonable vehicle and if it gives you pleasure and you can afford the small increase in costs go for it. There is a "living" in living below your means.

Yakers, who has a Subaru engine in his 1985 VW Westfalia.
 
want to protect her - so Money was not an object here.
Click to expand...

CutThroat IS that guy on the ad who screams on the plaza 'I LOVE this woman'

Show me the woman who doesn't melt at that commercial and I will will show you a 'encephalographically challenged woman'.

Judy
 
The thing foremost on my mind about cars is my next purchase for myself, and my internel anguish.  The frugal side of me is saying buy a new, but conservative base model corolla or something similar, and the aggressive, youthful, you-only-live once side of me is saying get a new Subaru WRX.

I'm about 50% frugal minded, and 50% you only live once minded.  Its tortureous, and the best way to describe how i feel is the comic character "two-face".
Click to expand...

You probably can't go wrong on either the Subaru or the
Corolla. I personally feel that the Corolla is one of the best buys on the road for value and longevity. I particularly like the fact that they usually sell at a discount to the Honda Civic, and that they are less likely
to be stolen(like the civic). Having owned 5 Toyotas over the last 15 years, I continue to be impressed with their durability and styling. Of course the Lexus would be
my dream sedan, they continue to rank at the top or near the top of any study out there.

My thanks to all who posted their budgets. Very interesting on how the 24K budgets break down.

gwix
 
Show me the woman who doesn't melt at that commercial and I will will show you a 'encephalographically challenged woman'.
Click to expand...

Now there is a $100 word! - I had to look it up and I think it means dead. - Not sure where it's roots are though. And I'm positive I can't pronounce it! :)
 
Now there is a $100 word! - I had to look it up and I think it means dead.  - Not sure where it's roots are though. And I'm positive I can't pronounce it! :)
Click to expand...

I doubt you really wanted to know, but it comes from cephalic which means pertaining to the head. I think that English word comes from latin, which comes from a Greek root kephalos.


Thus someone with his head up his a$$ could be said to be "cepahalo-colonically integrated".

Mikey
 
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