Fuel is the cost you see every week. It is rarely the largest line over a year.
Typical categories people forget until they sell the car or apply for a raise:
– Insurance and tax
– Parking and tolls
– Tyres and alignment
– Servicing and unexpected repairs
– Washes, AdBlue, parking tickets
– Depreciation (optional, but honest)
You do not need perfect bookkeeping. You need one list with categories and a date. At the end of the month: total ÷ days × 30. That is your real “car subscription”.
A useful comparison: cost per kilometre, not only per month. A cheap-looking month with 400 km driven can be more expensive per km than a high fuel month with a long trip.
Two numbers worth watching:
1. Fuel share — if fuel is 90% of logged costs, you are probably missing insurance and parking.
2. Repair spikes — one clutch or DPF job can equal months of fuel. Logging it once prevents the “my car is cheap” illusion.
In Car Reminder, log fill-ups as fuel and everything else as expenses (insurance, parking, workshop). Reports then show the month and the year — the same view you want before a holiday or before deciding to keep the car.
