Question

Alma needs to rent a car while on vacation. The rental company charges $18.95, plus 18 cents for each mile driven. If Alma only has $50 to spend on the car rental, what is the maximum number of miles she can drive? miles

Answer 1

Alma can drive up to approximately 172 miles on a $50 budget, considering the rental company's fixed charge of $18.95 and per-mile charge of $0.18.

Step-by-step explanation:

The student's question involves calculating the maximum number of miles Alma can drive based on the car rental company's pricing structure. The company charges a fixed rate and a per mile rate, so we can use a simple algebraic equation to find the answer. First, we need to subtract the fixed rate from Alma's budget to see how much money is left for the per-mile charge.

Here's the breakdown:

1. Alma's total budget: $50
2. Fixed charge by the company: $18.95
3. Per-mile charge: $0.18

Now we calculate the remaining budget for the miles:

Remaining budget = Total budget - Fixed charge = $50 - $18.95

With the remaining budget, we divide by the per-mile charge to find the maximum number of miles Alma can drive:

Maximum miles = Remaining budget / Per-mile charge

By substituting the values, we find:

Maximum miles = ($50 - $18.95) / $0.18 ≈ 172.5 miles

Therefore, Alma can drive up to approximately 172 miles, as we usually round down to ensure she does not exceed her budget.