Hi Roland2rule,

We're told that a parking lot charges its rental in the following way- first three hour cost $5, every additional hour costs $3 until a total of eight hours and thereafter, every additional hour costs $4. Alternately, one can pay flat $20 beforehand for 12 hours, Kevin was not aware of the second option and parked his car for exactly 12 hours without making the upfront payment and thus, was charged the first way. We're asked for the number of dollars that could kevin have SAVED if he had been aware of the second option. While this question is wordy, it's based on basic arithmetic, so you just have to do the necessary math to get the answer:

Under the first rental plan, a 12 hour stay can be broken down into the following 'pieces':
$5 for the first 3 hours
$3/hour for the next 5 hours = $15
$4/hour for the last 4 hours = $16
Total = $5 + $15 + $16 = $36

Thus, the savings if Kevin had paid the flat rate would have been $36 - $20 = $16

Final Answer: D

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

BTGmoderatorRO wrote:a parking lot charges its rental in the following way- first three hour cost $5, every additional hour costs $3 until a total of eight hours and thereafter, every additional hour costs $4. Alternately, one can pay flat $20 beforehand for 12 hours, Kevin was not aware of the second option and parked his car for exactly 12 hours without making the upfront payment and thus, was charged the first way. How many dollars could kevin have saved if he had been aware of the second option?
A. 6
B. 10
C. 14
D. 16
E. 22

Kevin was charged the first way for 12 hours of parking, so he was charged:

5 + 5(3) + 4(4) = 5 + 15 + 16 = 36 dollars

Had he instead opted for the second way, he would have saved 36 - 20 = 16 dollars.

Answer: D