Spinning wheels guzzle gas and dollars

This year escalating digits on gas-station price boards have reminded drivers of the very real costs of owning an automobile.

An analysis by Runzheimer International reveals that 19 cents of every dollar spent on a vehicle goes toward gasoline - an all-time high for that category.

Pump costs are dwarfed, however, by costs associated with depreciation and auto loans. Even so, this percentage has fallen to its lowest rate ever, thanks to the leveling off of new -ar prices. The good news for consumers is that insurance makes up a smaller percentage of overall costs than ever before.

(c) Copyright 2000. The Christian Science Publishing Society