I've already posted real data on how much it costs to run a car, or to be more precise, the costs based on a statistical sample of 1 car, motoring_costs.htm now lets see how much it costs to run a mountain bike. I bought a new bike for commuting exactly 12 months ago and I've logged every journey made and every penny spent on it. I therefore have very good data on how much it costs to run a bike.
| The bike is a Giant Terrago hard tail mountain bike. Why a mountain bike? Firstly its 10 miles from home to where I work by road, but by going partly (about a third) cross country I can get that down to 9 miles. Unfortunately, one of the cross country sections is Greenham Common and the surface is hard packed gravel. There are lots of tiny little flints that absolutely eat tyres. A road bike tyre would be shredded in minutes. The only tyres that last any sort of time are reinforced semi-slicks and these only come in 26" size - hence a mountain bike as they have 26" wheels. |
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Cost per mile
Data is presented on the basis of actual cost and depreciated cost. The actual cost is simply the sum of everything I spent. This is OK over a long time but if you were to spend £400 today on a bike, ride it back 1 mile from the bike shop, the cost would be £400/mile, i.e. it doesn't take into account the life of the component. I therefore assigned a life to non-consumables and the depreciated cost is the fraction of the purchase cost based upon its current age. If a component cost £300 and I assigned a life expectancy of 3 years then the depreciated cost would be £0 on day 1, £100 after 1 year, and £300 after three or more years.
So here are the data after 12 months and also after 4 years
| after 12 months | after 4 years | |
| Actual cost | £1502 | £2616 |
| Depreciated cost | £731 | £2616 |
| miles | 3114 | 12037 |
| cost per pile actual basis | 48.25 pence/mile | 21.73 pence per mile |
| cost per mile depreciated basis | 23.47 pence per mile | 21.73 pence per mile |
So, after 12 months use it cost me 23.47 p/mile to run a mountain bike over a 12 month period and covering 3114 miles. If a meteorite was to hit the bike and destroy it, then the cost would increase to 48 p/mile. After 4 years and 12000 miles, the cost of the bike had been written off (about the only original bits left were the frame and handlebars), it had cost a total of £2616 which worked out at 21.7 p/mile.
I know this is not a politically correct thing to say, but it can be cheaper to run a car (~20p/mile) than it is to run a mountain bike. That's not based on any assumptions or anything, its based on my own actual data.
Cost breakdown
Here is a breakdown of the costs and the assigned life of components.
| depr | ||||
| date | item | cost (£) | years | cost (£) |
| 05/04/2007 | bike | 470 | 3 | 470.00 |
| 09/04/2007 | mud guard | 13 | 0 | 13.00 |
| 09/04/2007 | wedge | 22 | 0 | 22.00 |
| 17/04/2007 | 2x inner tubes | 8 | 0 | 8.00 |
| 17/04/2007 | shoes | 54 | 1 | 54.00 |
| 03/05/2007 | 2x inner tubes | 9 | 0 | 9.00 |
| 14/07/2007 | heart rate monitor | 20 | 0 | 20.00 |
| 23/07/2007 | GoreTex jacket | 96 | 3 | 96.00 |
| 23/07/2007 | GoreTex trousers | 104 | 3 | 104.00 |
| 23/07/2007 | overshoes | 20 | 0 | 20.00 |
| 27/07/2007 | chain lube | 7 | 0 | 7.00 |
| 01/08/2007 | wheel bearing | 4 | 0 | 4.00 |
| 28/08/2007 | mud guard | 7 | 0 | 7.00 |
| 28/08/2007 | 2 pairs gloves | 28 | 0 | 28.00 |
| 09/09/2007 | Suspension seat post | 112 | 1 | 112.00 |
| 10/09/2007 | lights | 35 | 0 | 35.00 |
| 26/09/2007 | Scotchlite tape | 7 | 0 | 7.00 |
| 06/10/2007 | bottom bracket & cranks | 99 | 1 | 99.00 |
| 11/10/2007 | reflective light band | 13 | 0 | 13.00 |
| 24/10/2007 | chain | 20 | 0 | 20.00 |
| 24/10/2007 | rear cassette | 35 | 0 | 35.00 |
| 01/11/2007 | rear tyre | 15 | 0 | 15.00 |
| 17/11/2007 | cycling undershorts | 15 | 0 | 15.00 |
| 28/11/2007 | Freehub body | 16 | 0 | 16.00 |
| 10/12/2007 | Front mech | 23 | 0 | 23.00 |
| 10/12/2007 | Winter shoes | 99 | 3 | 99.00 |
| 10/12/2007 | SPD cleats | 10 | 3 | 10.00 |
| 02/02/2008 | tracksuit bottoms | 17 | 0 | 17.00 |
| 01/03/2008 | inner tube | 4.5 | 0 | 4.50 |
| 30/03/2008 | degreaser | 10 | 0 | 10.00 |
| 30/03/2008 | helmet | 110 | 2 | 110.00 |
| 15/05/2008 | chain (SRAM PC951) | 15 | 0 | 15.00 |
| 15/05/2008 | cassette | 45 | 0 | 45.00 |
| 15/05/2008 | big chain ring | 36 | 0 | 36.00 |
| 15/05/2008 | middle chain ring | 16 | 0 | 16.00 |
| 18/05/2008 | headset bearings | 3 | 0 | 3.00 |
| 14/06/2008 | WD40 | 3 | 0 | 3.00 |
| 13/07/2008 | front mud guard | 14 | 0 | 14.00 |
| 16/07/2008 | ergonomic lock on grips | 20 | 0 | 20.00 |
| 23/07/2008 | front tyre | 15 | 0 | 15.00 |
| 25/08/2008 | 1x rear brake pad | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| 05/09/2008 | headset bearings | 80 | 2 | 80.00 |
| 02/10/2008 | rear tyre | 15 | 0 | 15.00 |
| 21/11/2008 | bottom bracket bearings | 27 | 27.00 | |
| 21/11/2008 | front mudguard | 13 | 13.00 | |
| 21/11/2008 | WD40 | 2 | 2.00 | |
| 29/11/2008 | 2x slimed inner tubes | 16 | 16.00 | |
| 01/12/2008 | chain (SRAM PC951) | 15 | 15.00 | |
| 01/12/2008 | cassette | 40 | 40.00 | |
| 01/12/2008 | big chain ring | 40 | 40.00 | |
| 01/12/2008 | middle chain ring | 15 | 15.00 | |
| 23/02/2009 | chainring bolts (pack of 4) | 8 | 8.00 | |
| 30/03/2009 | rear wheel bearing | 2.5 | 0 | 2.50 |
| 08/05/2009 | degreaser | 2.5 | 2.50 | |
| 18/05/2009 | bottom bracket bearings | 28 | 28.00 | |
| 18/05/2009 | 2x jockey wheels | 22 | 22.00 | |
| 18/05/2009 | chain | 17 | 17.00 | |
| 18/05/2009 | middle chain ring | 13 | 13.00 | |
| 18/05/2009 | outer chain ring | 26 | 26.00 | |
| 18/05/2009 | cassette | 20 | 20.00 | |
| 27/07/2009 | pedals | 0 | 0.00 | |
| 02/08/2009 | WD40 | 2.2 | 2.20 | |
| 09/08/2009 | rear tyre | 15 | 15.00 | |
| 05/09/2009 | front tyre | 21 | 21.00 | |
| 05/09/2009 | pedals | 30 | 30.00 | |
| 13/11/2009 | forks | 100 | 1 | 100.00 |
| 13/11/2009 | front brake pads | 15 | 15.00 | |
| 13/11/2009 | mud guard front | 14 | 14.00 | |
| 02/12/2009 | neoguard mud guard | 14 | 14.00 | |
| 12/12/2009 | oil, degreaser, WD40 | 13 | 13.00 | |
| 12/12/2009 | chain rings, chain, cassette | 68 | 68.00 | |
| 09/01/2010 | gloves | 13 | 13.00 | |
| 09/01/2010 | hi hiz leg bands | 7 | 7.00 | |
| 09/01/2010 | hi viz polo shirt | 12 | 12.00 | |
| 07/02/2010 | front brake pads (Hope sinter | 12 | 12.00 | |
| 12/03/2010 | 2x inner tubes | 10 | 10.00 | |
| 31/03/2010 | new rear brake pads (Hope si | 13 | 13.00 | |
| 01/04/2010 | new front brake pads (asima | 15 | 15.00 | |
| 28/07/2010 | front tyre | 30 | 30.00 | |
| 28/07/2010 | rear tyre | 30 | 30.00 | |
| 30/07/2010 | cassette | 20 | 20.00 | |
| 30/07/2010 | chain PC951 | 15 | 15.00 | |
| 30/07/2010 | Chainset, inc cranks and BB | 60 | 60.00 | |
| 12/11/2010 | front brake pads (hope sinter | 13 | 13.00 | |
| 23/11/2010 | Wd40 | 2 | 2.00 |
You might think that £110 for a helmet is excessive but I do like light weight and comfort. This is in any case balanced by what's not in the list: tools, existing clothing, existing lubricants and service items. Also, I had a really nice set of wheels from my old bike which I transferred to this bike, no cost appears for this (nor does a credit for the cheap and nasty wheels the bike came with). You'll also see quite a few service items in there, chains, sprockets, bearings etc. take quite a hammering, I fully expect to have to buy another new set of chains and sprockets in the next month or so.
The costs are further reduced as I do all my own maintenance. This is a non-trivial task. The chain needs stripping off the bike, degreasing and re-lubricating preferably every week but as a minimum every two weeks - mud, sand and oil make an excellent grinding paste.
Cost versus miles
