From time to time I get a few questions about diesel pump prices.  I haven't talked about diesel prices in a while, so before you VW drivers storm my office (a Jetta Vendetta?), let me share with you a good article by Tyler Hamilton of the Toronto Star.  As much as I like his last name, there is no known relation.

Photo Credit: futurowoman

The Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) has released it's latest Driving Costs brochure to help you understand how much it costs to operate a vehicle every year.  While we often focus on the most direct costs - fuel and maintenance, it's interesting to see the total cost break down per kilometre for other things such as insurance, license fees and depereciation. 

Not surprisingly, the total cost of driving a car, according to CAA research, has almost doubled in the last 23 years from 20.1 cents per kilometre driven in 1985 to 38.5 cents per kilometre in 2008.  What's behind that change? Should my wife have kept that sassy late-80's burgundy K-Car she drove while at University?  Answers to all this and more below...