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lakerfan94
Posts: 143
Posted 21:53 Jan 25, 2014 |

Is the main task just to calculate the total cost of one hybrid car over a 5 year span or compare the costs of two hybrid cars over 5 years?

rabbott
Posts: 1649
Posted 22:33 Jan 25, 2014 |

Write the program so that on a single run you can enter data for both a hybrid car and a comparable quality non-hybrid car. At the end of the run you should have costs for both cars.

Run the program twice, once for new cars and once for used cars. In all you will be comparing two new cars to each other and two used cars to each  other. It may turn out that it's worth it to buy a used hybrid but a new non-hybrid -- or vice versa.

lakerfan94
Posts: 143
Posted 22:41 Jan 25, 2014 |

So you just calculate the costs and that's it or do you have to return the car that offers the better price? Or do you return a string that says something like "choose car 1" that means to choose car 1 because it has a lower cost than car 2?

lakerfan94
Posts: 143
Posted 23:01 Jan 25, 2014 |

Also, when you ask the "estimated gas price," do you mean the price per gallon or total gas cost for a year?

lakerfan94
Posts: 143
Posted 23:06 Jan 25, 2014 |

I apologize for not asking this question in a previous reply but how is the resale value to be used when comparing the two cars? I can already see how to calculate the total cost which would involve the total cost of gas plus the cost of the car. I just don't know how the resale value is to be used when comparing two  cars. 

rabbott
Posts: 1649
Posted 23:20 Jan 25, 2014 |

Please see the revised statement of the homework.

lakerfan94
Posts: 143
Posted 11:20 Jan 26, 2014 |

I'm still confused about how we are going to use the resale value as a way of comparing the costs for two cars. How does it work? The car with the smallest difference between the initial cost and resale value is the car you should choose or should you go with the opposite? How do the years also factor into this? I understand how to calculate the total gas cost, which is part of the total cost of the car, but I'm lost on how the resale value and the years factor into this.

rabbott
Posts: 1649
Posted 12:09 Jan 26, 2014 |

The total cost of ownership is the capital cost plus the operational cost.

  • You can assume that at the end of the period the car will be sold for the resale value.  So the capital cost is what was paid initially less what was recovered when the car was sold.
  • The operational cost is the gas cost, based on miles driven, fuel efficiency, and gas price.
Last edited by rabbott at 12:37 Jan 26, 2014.
lakerfan94
Posts: 143
Posted 12:46 Jan 26, 2014 |

Thank you.