OWNING a car will set the typical motorist back more than lb206,625 throughout their lifetime on the highway, based on research.
A study of 2,000 drivers revealed just how much they are able to expect to spend on repairs, petrol and parking, in addition to insurance and car tax.
It revealed car maintenance sets the typical owner back lb439 per year as they fork out for essential upkeep and repairs – adding up to lb27,716 on the lifetime behind the wheel.
The biggest expense is fuel, with typically an incredible lb54,341 pumped to their vehicle.
It also emerged the average adult will own five cars, worth a total of lb41,976 in value, or lb8,395.20 each.
A spokesman for leading online lender MYJAR, which commissioned the research, said: “Running an automobile is a necessity for most people in the united kingdom, but our survey found that the costs of owning a car run beyond the initial payment of purchasing one.
"Such things as fuel and maintenance costs can quickly sneak in.
“And most of the smaller costs of car ownership – like spending money for it to become cleaned, or buying accessories – are not as likely to become budgeted for by many people consumers.”
The study also found the average cost of annual car insurance is lb342 while another lb181 per year is allocated to cleaning costs.
That puts an automobile owner's lifetime cleaning bill in a huge lb11,460.
And even when they are not within their motor, drivers are now being hit by expenses – using the average motorist spending an incredible lb20,409 on parking through the years.
Tax and insurance combined will even hit drivers for lb6,943 and lb21,595 respectively.
But the research also found Brits tend to buy more expensive cars as they get older – using their first costing typically lb1,717, and their most recent lb6,845.
Just one in 10 motorists think they could get by easily without their car, with more than half saying their life utterly depends upon it.
It's not every outgoings though – Brits think they can expect to find some weight in loose change lying around in their car each year, accumulated to a cool lb145 over a lifetime.
To cover the staggering expenses of owning a vehicle one fifth of respondents have taken out a loan, and 46 per cent have put them on charge cards.
The most common ways to use car-related use of loans and credit cards are purchasing a brand new or preowned vehicle, buying petrol or paying for unexpected repair bills.
MYJAR's spokesman added: “Our study discovered that four in 10 people have questioned whether they should keep their car, due to how much it was costing them.
“But many prefer to go without a lot of things before quitting their car – they're vital for thus many parts of life.
“Our advice to car owners is to try to put aside money each month specifically for future car maintenance emergencies – surprise bill can be devastating for saving plans.”