re: Why the hell would anyone drive for Uber or Lyft?

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Your logic is flawed.

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Did not see car payments in your calculations. Nor insurance.

Let's say your car payments for 4 years/100,000 miles was $20,000. 4 years of car insurance at 4,000. Twenty oil changes at 60 bucks. Two or three sets of tires. Couple brake jobs. Handful of air fresheners. Car washes...


Your 46 grand gets quickly eaten up. Oh wait, we completely forgot about profit.

A lot of old people who have retired do it because they get to interact with a lot of people because they are lonely

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I don't see the appeal. From what I understand driving for Uber/Lyft is pretty much taking out a home equity line of credit but on your car. You are simply borrowing against the equity in your car - which you will have to pay back later in terms of repairs, maintenance, tires, etc. No way does Uber/Lyft pay enough to where you come out ahead in the long run.

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Uhhhhh .... I don’t think you are dealing with people who have vary many options and need cash ASAP

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lot of old people who have retired do it because they get to interact with a lot of people because they are lone

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The beauty of it is you work when you want. Who gives a shite if you make $8-10/ hour net. You work for 2 hours to pay for your bar tab. Or 4.5 hours and then go watch a football game.

The people that do it full time know how to hustle. A lot of people sit at home with their app on and wait for a good ride then go work for 75 minutes and call it a night.

You watch wrasslin so STFU

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Loved it cause second job w no boss. Made enough to pay his note and insurance.

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Ive ran into this too. They lease a nice vehicle and uber a handful of nights of nights a month for like 10-15 hours a month to just pay their lease expense. They don’t plan on keeping the vehicle and hey it may be dumb, but if it allows them to drive something nice then whatever.

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Your 46 grand gets quickly eaten up. Oh wait, we completely forgot about profit.

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My post was not about profit but how the expenses were wrong. The OP’s theory said it would be $58k in expenses to drive 100k miles which isn’t accurate. If you want to talk profit, if the going rate is 0.68 a mile, the OP would make 68k driving 100k miles. 20k in car payments but you still have it as an asset albeit a depreciating asset. That and $4k in insurance brings you down to $44k. Take 12k for gas and you are at $32k with expenses. $5k on repairs and maintenance brings you down to $27k.


Lots of assumptions if you want to talk profit but the expenses would not be as much as the OP said which was my point. Even with you bringing up profit, minus a major repair or issue, the person driving still make it ahead.

Let’s assume the average speed is 45mph, to drive 100k miles would be 2,222 hours or the equivalent of 55 full work weeks spread over 4 years or about 14 work weeks a year (560 hours a year). At $27k in profit over 4 years, it is $6750 a year extra. At 14 work weeks, t is $482 a week or $12.05 an hour of pure profit. Not a bad side gig for someone trying to make some cash on their own terms.