If you’ve been within earshot of the news or even glimpsed a headline on a newsstand lately, you’ve been unable to avoid the phrase ‘cost of living crisis’. Things are getting more expensive, inflation is soaring, and fuel prices especially seem to be rocketing thanks to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
While for some of us, using a car is an unavoidable necessity thanks to the way the national infrastructure has been designed, we were curious to see how many tanks you have needed in order to afford certain bikes.
This week in the UK, the price of filling up the average car with petrol hit £ 100.00 for the first time, so what could you do if you want to ditch the car more in favor of a bike?
0 tanks of fuel
Have you already got a bike? Then you need to start replacing your car miles immediately. Sure, that fancy road bike isn’t ideal for commuting, but it will get you from A to B until you find something a little more utilitarian.
Maybe you’ve got the old MTB in the shed from the 90’s – that’s a start, and with a bit of TLC from a local bike shop you could easily get rolling for next to nothing. Maybe it’ll be clanky and a bit creaky, but every mile you ride it will be one less mile you have to fuel up your car, which will be money in your pocket.
More than just saving fuel, something given, you can buy a bike at any price point.
1 to 2 tanks of fuel
For between £ 100 and £ 200 you’re still at the very low end of budget bikes. You might be able to pick something up, but in our opinion, you’d be better served buying a used bike. Not only does it involve creating new items, but you’ll probably get a better bike if you know what to look for. Fortunately for you, we’ve got a guide on how to buy a used bike to help you if you’re unsure.
You can easily get a roadtrip again, but for a budget of £ 200, you can easily get a bike and have enough change to cover any replacement parts to get you going.
Alternatively, your city may have second-hand bikes that are already serviced, or bike charities like the Bristol Bike Project that specialize in providing usable bikes from donated frames and parts to people who need genuinely affordable transportation.
You can also grab the heavily reduced Vitus Dee DR, which features a large gearbox for easy maintenance in an urban environment.
3 to 5 tanks of fuel
At this price point we’re getting into the realm of new bikes, though still very much an excellent option here too. British retailer Halfords sells trade-in bikes at £ 300 and upwards, in both road and mountain bikes.
For utility, we’d avoid suspension, however tempting the extra comfort may be. Suspension forks, especially low-end ones, are heavy and prone to seizing up. Stick to a rigid and your bike will last longer. You’ll be looking at the Carerra range, and while they’re not going to set the world alight in terms of performance they’ll be perfectly capable of getting you from A to B. If you can squeeze another ¾ tank out of the hypothetical budget you can stretch the Boardman SLR 8.6, which features a better frameset and finishing kit. Have a read of our guide on what makes a good beginner road bike if you need some pointers.
For those of you who want to pick up some bargains if you’re a patient, or even amass parts and build your own bike on a tight budget.
At the very top of the budget too is the Tern Link B7, folding a bike that just allows you to switch up your commute altogether by mixing up riding and public transport rather than using the car.
Assuming the car would do 400 miles per tank, five tanks would cover 2000 miles. If you ditch the car and commute 10 miles per day, this does have the benefit of parking and servicing the car.
10 tanks of fuel
The £ 1000 mark is traditionally the mainstay of the best budget road bikes, and if you are looking to get into cycling in a more serious way. Many will have provisions for a pannier rack, and they will be more than capable commuters in that regard, though they are not necessarily designed with such a purpose in mind. I happily commuted for years on my Specialized Allez, so it’s definitely possible and good fun too, especially if you then use it for recreational riding.
The Kona Sutra SE is the most popular of all bikes, and you can find it in our list of best touring bikes. with the gear range to cope too.
Being able to pedal and bike comfortably for hours on end is a privilege. Once we hit the £ 1,000 price point, you can consider electric bikes too, which can open up riding and car replacement miles to many more riders. Be sure to check our list of best cheap electric bikes if this sounds interesting to you.
20 tanks of fuel
For £ 2,000 and above you can get yourself a serious road bike, but in reality the more you spend on a road bike the less useful it becomes day to day. Yes, you can commute on carbon wheels, but do you want to lock it up at the office, or carry heavy loads on it? With that in mind, we are going to continue to think of this in terms of car replacement, but at this point, you can begin to consider not just replacing some car miles with a bike, but can car miles, thanks to the often underappreciated world of cargo bikes. Yes, I mean ditch the car entirely.
A cargo bike, for those unfamiliar, is a bike designed to carry some really heavy, bulky stuff. Sofas, beer kegs, your family, or several other bikes. People who sell their cars and get by with a proper bike – have a browse of @truemarmalade on Instagram for inspiration. I’d wager if you can go car-free in Arizona, you probably can’t do it anywhere.
Not only will you be saving the cost of the fuel, but you will also be able to afford the bike itself, plus insurance and maintenance costs. According to Kwik-Fit (opens in new tab)the average UK household spends around £ 1,200 just on car maintenance annually, and while there’s no way you’re going to spend that much on the upkeep of even the most well-used steed.
Omnium, for example, makes five models of varying sizes starting at under £ 2,000, including electric versions too to help you with heavy cargo. The Danish ‘Bullitt’ from Larry vs Harry for a similar price point.
If you have the kids behind you then the Big Dummy longtail cargo bike from utilitarian brand Surly specially designed ‘Kid Corral’ rack.
In most of the developed world urban development has been designed with only the car in mind, and so swapping the car for a bike, whether it’s just a two-mile trip to the shops or for every single journey, can be daunting. It is one of the best ways to get better provision for cyclists; the more of us that ride instead of drive, the less traffic there will be, your journeys will be faster and more enjoyable, and you’ll save money too.