# Decisions, Desisions. Which will kill my car faster? **URL:** \ **Category:** General Discussion\ **Created:** [July 7, 2013, 7:53am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/decisions-desisions-which-will-kill-my-car-faster/80214 "2013-07-07T07:53:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ROBKIMEV](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/35a633/32.png) [@ROBKIMEV](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ROBKIMEV)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 7:53am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/decisions-desisions-which-will-kill-my-car-faster/80214/1 "2013-07-07T07:53:46Z")
I have two choices in the route I commute to work. First is a fairly direct route thru town on city streets, about 15 miles that takes 30 miniutes. The other is the freeway belt route around the city, 29 miles, also a half hour. which way will wear out my car faster, fewer miles of city driving or more miles of hiway driving, the car running for a half an hour either way. My job involves driving a diesel tow truck on which the maintenance is performed based on the hours operated with no regard for miles driven during that time ---
**Author:** ![dagosa](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/dagosa/32/9837_2.png) [@dagosa](https://community.cartalk.com/u/dagosa)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 2:24pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/decisions-desisions-which-will-kill-my-car-faster/80214/2 "2013-07-07T14:24:46Z")
Each commute will wear systems differently. One thing is or sure, the fewer miles on the vehicle at trade in, the more it will be worth. Considering your use, maintenance by hours definitely makes more sense. Vary your routes and don’t worry though I think transmission and drive train in general would like the highway commute. 15 miles in 30 minutes hardly qualifies as in city driving as you average 30 miles per hour which is not particularly hard on a car either. ---
**Author:** ![UncleTurbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e9a140/32.png) [@UncleTurbo](https://community.cartalk.com/u/UncleTurbo)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 4:37pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/decisions-desisions-which-will-kill-my-car-faster/80214/3 "2013-07-07T16:37:21Z")
Both commutes are long enough to fully warm up the car, so same either way on that point. In general highway miles are easier on a car than “in town” miles. So, that gives advantage to the highway commute. The variable that is unknown is the number of starts from standstill, number of stops, and idling time waiting at stoplights. The more stops the more wear on the brakes, the more starts the more fuel used. Idling just wastes fuel period. So, I’d do some careful checks of mpg and go with the route that uses the least fuel to go from point a to point b. If the freeway is backed up, and/or has toll booths that will reduce mpg. Wear on the car is about the same, so perhaps you should took at total fuel used instead. The route that uses less fuel is also likely to be the easiest on the car too. ---
**Author:** ![WheresRick](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/wheresrick/32/2717_2.png) [@WheresRick](https://community.cartalk.com/u/WheresRick)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 8:29pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/decisions-desisions-which-will-kill-my-car-faster/80214/4 "2013-07-07T20:29:11Z")
So are you driving the tow truck or your personal vehicle? Your car right? I would say highway would be better overall if miles are not an issue. What sort of truck or car? It makes a difference sometimes. ---
**Author:** ![texases](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/texases/32/862_2.png) [@texases](https://community.cartalk.com/u/texases)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 8:33pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/decisions-desisions-which-will-kill-my-car-faster/80214/5 "2013-07-07T20:33:07Z")
Coin flip to me, which drive is less stressful? That would decide it for me. ---
**Author:** ![jtsanders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c2a13f/32.png) [@jtsanders](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jtsanders)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 9:28pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/decisions-desisions-which-will-kill-my-car-faster/80214/6 "2013-07-07T21:28:57Z")
If you don’t mind in town driving, I’d opt for fewer miles. Whichever route you choose, check the traffic before you leave to make sure the road is clear. ---
**Author:** ![Docnick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Docnick](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Docnick)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 9:42pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/decisions-desisions-which-will-kill-my-car-faster/80214/7 "2013-07-07T21:42:15Z")
When we have a choice between a longer drive with fewer stop lights, we’ll pick the longer. It often conflicts with what my GPS tells me. In any case less wear on the brakes, better MPG and less stress is worth it. ---
**Author:** ![bing](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/bing/32/4619_2.png) [@bing](https://community.cartalk.com/u/bing)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 9:57pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/decisions-desisions-which-will-kill-my-car-faster/80214/8 "2013-07-07T21:57:19Z")
I’d rather be on the freeway myself than using the brakes constantly and the transmission shifting every block. Depending on traffic though or if its snowing, its a toss up. ---
**Author:** ![pleasedodgevan2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ad7895/32.png) [@pleasedodgevan2](https://community.cartalk.com/u/pleasedodgevan2)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 9:57pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/decisions-desisions-which-will-kill-my-car-faster/80214/9 "2013-07-07T21:57:48Z")
I can only tell you one thing. Lies. I could go on all day about everything but I don’t like typing very much. Choose the safest route. Also, more miles means less resale value. Based on these “facts” you would be making your own decision. Those other comments are good. ---
**Author:** ![jtsanders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c2a13f/32.png) [@jtsanders](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jtsanders)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 11:53pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/decisions-desisions-which-will-kill-my-car-faster/80214/10 "2013-07-07T23:53:44Z")
My response was colored by my experiences. There are several ways to get to work from home. All involve the highway, but if I don’t get on the road before 6AM, several routes are bad choices. In the afternoon, almost all highway alternatives are bad choices. When I used to travel to LA on business I found that I could get almost anywhere faster if I used surface streets - especially at rush hour. ---
**Author:** ![meaneyedcatz](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/meaneyedcatz/32/692_2.png) [@meaneyedcatz](https://community.cartalk.com/u/meaneyedcatz)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2013, 5:56am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/decisions-desisions-which-will-kill-my-car-faster/80214/11 "2013-07-08T05:56:41Z")
I believe it’s as broad as it is tall. Less brake wear vs. more miles, etc. take the route that you feel any particular day. ---
**Author:** ![dagosa](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/dagosa/32/9837_2.png) [@dagosa](https://community.cartalk.com/u/dagosa)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2013, 7:52pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/decisions-desisions-which-will-kill-my-car-faster/80214/12 "2013-07-09T19:52:51Z")
The one thing that decides a route for me which you don’t have with your vehicle, is the ability to use cruise control. Noth’n like a good power nap on the way to work. ---
**Author:** ![Whitey](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/whitey/32/24680_2.png) [@Whitey](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Whitey)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2013, 5:27am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/decisions-desisions-which-will-kill-my-car-faster/80214/13 "2013-07-10T05:27:45Z")
I would drive each route for one week, see which one uses less gas, and take that route. What kind of car is it? If it’s a hybrid, I would probably end up taking the shorter route. I have a similar choice when I commute. When I take the car, I take the highway. When I take the motorcycle, I take the shorter stop-and-go route. Like a hybrid, my motorcycle gets better fuel economy in stop-and-go traffic.