Top 5 Hidden Costs for Maintaining a Car in Florida?
Hi, Neighbors!
We have many new friends interested in moving to Florida, and vehicle maintenance, insurance, and registration may be a topic of discussion as you think and plan for what the budget may look like on the southern side of your move. Obviously, I’m not a mechanic or an insurance agent, but I am a consumer and there were a few things that I wish I would have known before we moved. It would not have change our decision to move here, but it might have changed how we prepared for our move or how we managed the dollars in our start up funds.
Here are 5 things I wish I would have know about the differences in maintaining an automobile here in Florida.
1) Extreme Heat is even more harsh on Car Batteries than cold.
As a person that needs moderate temperatures without direct sunlight, winters here are decent by most standards, but I struggle with the summers here as they can be very brutal with heat and direct sun exposure. Coming from the Midwest, I was used to the concept of winterizing the car when it was time to pull out the sweaters and also preparing it for the summer heat as the Indy Car race season got underway in May, but it never occurred to me that the extreme heat doesn’t just post a challenge for me - the gal with a grinchy heart and vampire skin - these high temps can also offer challenges to other things that Florida’s newcomers may not be aware.
Florida is named the Sunshine State for a reason.
We are the hottest state for year round temps! (See more notes on that here). Extreme temperatures can take a toll on the life of car batteries, tires and even windshield wipers. When we first moved here we were surprised to learn that car batteries last an average of a year less in Florida and steer more toward the 3 years replacement rather than the full 5 years in the 3-5 year life cycle. This article from Firestone offers some tips to keep your car battery in heat-fighing shape and what symptoms/signs to look for before your battery may leave you stranded.
STEF’S PRO TIP: Always have a case of water, snacks and jumper cables in the car.
2) Florida Roads Burn Rubber Tires!
Florida’s extreme heat and brutal sun can affects road temperatures. This wears tires faster than in other climates and it can exacerbate existing problems in tires and make for unsafe driving conditions is drivers aren’t aware. High road temps can increase tire pressure or make your tires worp and wear unevenly.
“For every 10-degree increase in air temperature, your tire pressure increases by 1 PSI. In hot, sunny weather, the PSI of your tires can increase by as much as 5 PSI within the first 20 minutes of driving.” (Source).
Water expelling tread is essential…
on tires here because in the summer months we can drive in so much rain. While Florida focuses on aiming for water solutions to drain roads, sometimes the rain is just too much and deep puddles are likely. Unaware or unfocused drivers who are going to fast or do not have proper tires can hydroplane and cause accidents.
Since tires wear faster here, products rated for 50,000 miles plus may need to be replaced by 40,000 or earlier.
STEF’S PRO TIP: Always have a 4-way tire iron and a jack specific to your car and ALWAYS have a tire gauge in the glove box (a real one, not one with fancy batteries…see #1) and teach everyone in the family how to use it.
3) Direct Sun Affects Windshield Wipers.
When we think of car maintenance it is easy to forget to consider windshield wipers because it seems like such a small expense. It’s true, even I forget them…until I’m driving in the rain and I can’t see anything. lol. There are a couple things to consider about them that is work discussing.
1) They are made of rubber and are often in the sun even more than tires. So if tires have a reduced life, so do windshield wipers.
2) We have rain and we have bugs…so many bugs. So while we don’t have to worry about scraping the snow and ice off windshields, we definitely have to worry about driving through bug slime.
STEF’S PRO TIP: I’ve always been a fan of Rain-X, but then they made this. I can’t recommend this product enough. (not a sponsor) We keep gallons of this in the garage and occasionally I put it on Subscribe and Save. Seriously. We use this year round.
4) Bugs Damages Exterior Paint.
Vehicle owners from the north will notice that rust and corrosion will start under the car with the wet winters and endless driving through the salt from the roads. We thought when we moved here: Woohoo! No more salt means Less Car Washes! Then we noticed that vehicles here are more prone to rust and corrosion starting from the top down because of the so much direct sun and ALL OF THE BUGS! WE HAVE BUGS, BUGS & LOVE BUGS!
It’s best to keep your car in a garage or carport to protect it from the sun. Some websites I found while researching suggest that it may need a weekly wash, especially if shelter isn’t an option. In the midwest, Mike’s Car Wash is a very popular place all year round. While we don’t have those here, we do have many local car wash places and you can expect to pay anywhere from $15-30 per wash. They have several options for levels of care regarding type of wash, wax and add-on services.
STEF’S PRO TIP: While we definitely don’t wash our cars weekly, I can tell you that we find the wax option helpful in preventing damage from the bugs. We also like to keep dryer sheets in the garage (any kind will do). Why? because they help wipe the bug spots off the paint between washes.
5) Florida is the second highest state for Car Insurance rates. WHY?
There are a number of factors here and while I’m not an insurance agent, I am a consumer and I was surprised at some of these facts. According to bankrate.com, Florida drivers pay an average of $3900+ for full coverage. They offer the explanation of high accident rates, high uninsured motorist rates and high population density as some factors. All of which, I can believe to be accurate.
Another thing to consider is that our MINIMUM COVERAGES for fully insured motorists are also some of the LOWEST in the country! Florida only requires 10/20/10 to be fully insured. The fact that we are a no-fault state plays into that. If you get into an accident the first $10K of Personal Injury Protection coverage comes from your own policy, regardless of which party is at fault. However, if you are seriously injured in an accident, this doesn’t go very far and may not cover everything you need to return to your previous quality of life. Surgeries, hospital stays and extended recovery costs may be left up a health insurance provider.
I recently reviewed our own auto policies and found that we were WAY under insured. I’m sure at some point we did that in efforts to save costs, but with our high accident and uninsured rates here, this isn’t always advisable. I love the methodology that bankrate.com used to calculate their averages, too. These limits are what many would consider standard in the way of coverage for liability, bodily injury and deductible.
Something my insurance agent said when we reviewed our coverage surprised me and I had to look it up to share. While people moving to Orlando know that traffic can be a consideration, they may not know that Florida is #3 in Deaths Per Hundred Million Vehicle Miles Traveled. We have nearly just as many single car accidents as multi-car accidents.
Floridians live a very active lifestyle year round…
and about 45 percent of accidents involve a motorcycle, a bicycle or a pedestrian. It probably won’t surprise you though that the majority of accidents occur in urban settings.
Like I said at the beginning, knowing these things wouldn’t have changed our mind about moving to Central Florida, but it might have helped us better discuss, budget and prepare for our next steps…and great insurance coverage is a really big deal here.
STEF’S PRO TIP: DON’T SKIMP ON COVERAGE OPTIONS when it comes to car insurance. Make sure you shop around to get price quotes and also look for reviews on the claims departments. While no one plans to get into an accident, it can happen and you want to get “back to normal” as quickly as possible, having a great claims department is part of that experience.
Sources:
https://www.firestonecompleteautocare.com/blog/batteries/does-heat-drain-car-batteries/
https://www.bankrate.com/insurance/car/states/
https://www.iihs.org/topics/fatality-statistics/detail/state-by-state
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