Running a car is not a cheap business with drivers paying out an average of £5,000 a year - or £14 a day - for the basics, a new study has claimed.

The RAC's cost of motoring index found that those who drive a Toyota Yaris 1.0 VVT-I T2 can expect to pay out just over £3,000 in running costs but the bill can soar to £19,000 for a Porsche Cayenne Turbo five-door.

Those with a 4x4 have to fork out twice as much as those with an ordinary family car with a Land Rover Discovery coming in at £8,203 a year whilst a VW Golf works out at £4,500.

The RAC looked at 17 different models of car and found that the average car goes through £1,154 worth of petrol a year, £389 in insurance, £124 in tax and £271 in general maintenance.

But drivers who go for environmentally friendly models are actually putting themselves out of pocket. The hybrid petrol and battery-powered Toyota Prius, costs £5,500 a year to keep on the road, double that of a Citroën C2.

Overall, the survey found that driving is getting cheaper with the average cost of insurance falling from £405 to £389 over the past six months. Average maintenance costs also decreased from £292 to £271.

David Bizley, the RAC's technical director, said: "These new figures mean that many motorists will be waking up with a New Year headache.

"The UK has the cheapest pre-tax fuel in the EU, but among the highest pump prices, so the chancellor's decision to freeze fuel duty will be welcome news for motorists, particularly as the cost of motoring continues to rise."