I have search several times over the last few yrs. for just a quick answer , just how much does it cost to drive my truck .
And almost always see the doggy dew arguments about haulers getting all up tight about what ever , and almost never giving an answer , besides all the defensive aptitude , not sure , but might as well tackle 2 subjects at the same time , 2nd one is about what this country is / was / should be , all screwed up by lawyers / free market place .
1st - I just sat down and did some simple detail / math , you change what you need to make your details work .
Fuel
A good average per mile
$2.00 per gal @ 15mpg .13 - used for total
$4.00 .27
Oil & filter
I use Amsoil , with reg. more changes average about same for # of miles
$100 per 20,000 miles .01
Fuel filter
$25 @ 10,000 .01
Ins. maybe single biggest variable
Mine about $650 yr .04
Tires
$650 @ 40,000 .02
ATF & filter
At 20,000 miles .01
Truck
I go by what I do , never buy new and prefer 12v .
$10,000 @ 400,000 .05
total .29 per mile

Add subtract as needed , some of the .01s were less that .01 add fudge factor .
I think this would be a good average for all to start with , weather you just drive or haul for $$ - haulers will have to add all the stuff us divers don't ,
I've looked into hauling a little , most commercial situations want less than 4 yr old truck , $40,000 @ 400,000 = .10 mile .
Commercial ins. almost impossible to guess $3,000-12,000 yr then how miles per yr ? 1,000,000 , .006 per mile
Even harder Lic. many lic.s drivers , hauling ect .
This is part of my rant , look and see who's getting all the money , the same people we are bailing out , dealers , politicians , ins. co.

 

In the mud hole we call the Gas Patch, 4x4 vehicle expenses will avg. $2-$3 per mile if your lucky enough to get 100K on the odometer before it hits the chop shop..

 

I do a lot of empty running in mine and I'm paid the IRS rate (currently 55 cents a mile). I don't know if I'm getting ripped off or not. I average about 17 mpg and change my oil every 5,000 miles. I don't mind the long trips so much, but the short trips around town are a real pain in a 1 ton dually with a 6 speed. I have to option of getting a free company truck, but haven't figured out which way is better for me.

 

Wow, 400,000 on the clock and you are only changing oil, filters, and tires that must be a very reliable truck you have. If you can drive for $0.29/mile and the government is allowing $0.55/mile for personal vehicle used for business then maybe you should go into a hotshot service and make $0.26/mile. Sounds like a pretty good return on your money in today's economy.

L8r,.........dogger

 

When I was on the road I only counted the actual rolling expenses. Fuel/oil maint. etc. + motels. I treated the truck payment/ins as fixed costs because I paid them wether the wheels were turning or not. It was .35/mi at $1.50 fuel prices.

 

With the trailer hooked to the truck I avg about 10mpg, so here goes.

Fuel- .20
Oil- .006
Tires- .0125
Ins- .05 (based on 8000 miles month)
Truck- .16 (based on $40k and 250,000 miles)
Other Maint- .03 (This is a guess, who really knows)
Registration-.0075

For a total of just under 47 cents a mile.

But there is also the cost for the trailer in tow too. Mostly cost of trailer, brakes, and tires.

Trailer is about 6 cents a mile based on $10k purchase and a life span of 250k also.

I have been figuring 60 cents total to be safe.

 

thats about what i figure on my equipment

 

Aren't you guys figuring depreciation? That is the worst of all expenses. How about finance costs? That isn't free money either, as it can't be put to work elsewhere.

EDMUNDS "True Cost of Ownership" is a good site to see how they come up with expenses. Most new HD diesel pickups are running 85 to over 1.00/cpm. This is a good place to work backwards from.

http://www.edmunds.com/new/2009/dodg...=78411&vdp=off

I don't see how anyone can leave the house at a cost less than .90/cpm for a sensible business plan. And this is without figuring driver health, life and retirement insurance.

And, where will the money come from to buy the next truck? Profit has to be figured somehow.

I paid cash for mine, so no finance charge. I bought it at under current market value, so depreciation has been minimal. I wrote off quite a few miles in the interim, so all costs have been minimized.

Note: Even if you do not finance your vehicle, the inclusion of financing cost in determining True Cost to OwnSM is still appropriate because it reflects the "opportunity cost" of the return you could have made if you had invested the Purchase Price elsewhere.

Even with this, even figuring in a bare-bones maintenance program and doing some repairs myself I'm still at 57/cpm, bare-bones-turn-the-key. The IRS number just barely covers me.

And mine is a 2wd, w/o the maintenance and shorter life of 4wd components.

The trailer ain't cheap either, depends more on what type -- and if it is making money -- so I throw in 25/cpm.

The driver is a cost NOT separate from the truck. Daily sleep, safe operating parameters, daily meals and misc. costs.

$1.25/mile is about as cheap as it gets.

I was not surprised to have had this quote for a loaded-mile tow from an RV transporter of this amount two weeks ago. I don't see how they're making money . . . except by shorting safe operation and living on bologna & cheese.

I was not surprised due to what the RV economy has gone through the past six months.

Anything to keep the truck rolling

 

sorry but financing is in the payment so thats wrong. cost for fuel is a variable. most drivers dont get more then .45 per mile if that much in a big truck

 

Just remember if you are running legit, a hotshotter can not take the mileage deduction... expenses only.

 

Just remember if you are running legit, a hotshotter can not take the mileage deduction... expenses only...

Not sure who told you this information but I run legit AND have been taking mileage dedustion for 9 yrs. A hot shot Co is no diff then any other trucking Co other then the Eq. used. Think you need a diff tax preparer.

BTW for 08 I am going actual expenses vs. mileage due to the mid year change and the cost of fuel in 08. If ya start with mileage deduction then change to actual, you can change back to mileage, but not if you start with actual and switch to mileage.
Anyone looking to get into the biz ahould consult a qualified tax person first that is knowledgeable in the trucking industry.

 

from http://www.irs.gov/instructions/i104...02.html#d0e582

Line 9
You must use actual expenses if you used your vehicle for hire

Doesn't get much plainer than that. Perhaps you need to be consulting a qualified tax person

To the OP. I spreadsheet my expenses. Fuel, oil, filters, parts and maintenance came to 34 cpm last year. That DOES NOT include insurance, permits, lodging, etc., etc. 2007 was 28.6 cpm. That was for 150,932 total miles (both years added together) so it included a set of tires and a rebuilt transmission.

 

All of the costs can vary greatly depending upon truck, trailer, load, climate and terrain, how one drives, what one owes, etc.

Another variable is what one's hourly time is worth. Not only driving time, but loading time, off time, away-from-home time.

Say you get 2.00 loaded mile. You have a 800 mile R/T, loaded one way.
That is $2 x 400 miles = $800

Say you estimate your costs for the vehicle (equipment, fuel, maint, insurance IE: overhead) is .60 per mile. 800 miles R/T cost you $480.00. So your gross "profit" looks to be $320.

Say you drive an average of 60 MPH. Say it takes you 3 hours to load and unload. You have 13.33 hrs of driving and 3 hrs load/unload = 16 hrs (rounded).

You have an overnight - but you bunk it - no add'l cost. But you have tied up two days with the 16 hrs and one night away from home for $320. The straight 16hrs = an hourly rate-of-pay @ $20 per hour. If you worked two 8hr days at a job, would your pre-tax gross be $20 per hour ? Your actual cash net, after taxes depending upon your rate, might be closer to around $14.50hr in your pocket. So say you're grinding away and you seem to do around 4,000 miles-per-week - do the math. There are a lot of variables.

The cost of running your truck is never just the operational costs of the truck, it is also the cost of your time, and what the value of that time might be in another available occupation, for those who need a regular income.

But now suppose you add a few more hours load time, but you have a load both ways - your hourly rate looks pretty sweet.

It pays to do your homework !

 

2.00 loaded mile your cheap, and i dont count overnite time because its the same as at home, plus i would try to head back since i have about 5hrs driving time left on my log or to go and p/u another load

 

Lets say you have a 650.00/month payment on truck. Lets say you burn 100.00/month for gas. Lets say you pay 50.00/month insurance. Lets say you pay 20.oo/month for maintenance.

=820/30(month)= 27.00 per day.

Now lets say the total driving time for the 100 dollars in gas is 5hrs/month of actual driving.

820/5= 164.00 per hour to drive.

This just applies to a person who does not own a business and is not driving all the time. You know the average person who owns one.

It would be alot cheaper to rent one. is this not true