calculator
Car Affordability Calculator
Shows the real monthly cost of a car, not just the instalment, including insurance, fuel, maintenance and licence, and warns about balloon payments.
R4 458 instalment · about R7 258 a month all in
Including an estimate for insurance, fuel and maintenance, the car would take about 37% of your take-home pay. A common guide is to stay under 20%.
Want help interpreting this? Talk to a person
What you will need
- Car price (R)
- Deposit (R)
- Your take-home pay each month (R)
- Interest rate per year (%)
- Loan term (months)
- Balloon (residual) payment, % of price (%)
- Car insurance per month (R)
- Kilometres per month (km)
- Fuel use (litres per 100 km) (L)
- Fuel price per litre (R): Use this month's price.
- Maintenance, services and tyres per month (R): If unknown, use a guide of R800 to R1 500 for a small car, more when out of motor plan.
- Licence disc renewal per year (R): Fees differ by province and vehicle mass.
- Tracker, parking, tolls, car wash per month (R)
How it works
P = price - deposit; B = price * balloon_pct/100; r = annual_rate/100/12; n = term_months. instalment = (P - B/(1+r)^n) * r / (1 - (1+r)^(-n)) (if r==0: (P - B)/n). fuel_monthly = km_per_month/100 * fuel_l_per_100km * fuel_price. licence_monthly = licence_annual/12. tco_monthly = instalment + insurance_monthly + fuel_monthly + maintenance_monthly + licence_monthly + tracking_parking_tolls. tco_pct = tco_monthly / take_home * 100. total_paid_on_loan = instalment*n + B; finance_cost = total_paid_on_loan - P. Guide: total car costs under about 20% of take-home pay is comfortable; above 25% is heavy (guide only). BALLOON WARNING (if B > 0): 'A balloon lowers the monthly instalment, but you will owe R{B} in one lump sum at the end, and you pay interest on that amount for the whole term. Many people cannot pay it and have to refinance or trade in, often owing more than the car is worth.' Also show the instalment WITHOUT a balloon for comparison.
What you get
- Monthly instalment
- True monthly cost of owning this car
- Car costs as % of take-home pay
- Interest and finance cost over the loan
- Balloon due at the end
- Instalment with no balloon
What it means
- This car looks affordable for your income, as long as your other costs are covered.
- This car will stretch your budget; a cheaper car or bigger deposit would give you breathing room.
- This car would take a large share of your pay; consider a less expensive option.
- You will need a plan for the balloon payment before you sign.
Next step: Want help interpreting this? Talk to a money coach before you sign a vehicle finance agreement.
Runs on the device. Nothing is saved unless the member chooses.