$2.60 for Diesel in N. Idaho! Try $78 to fill the tank!
Member
$2.60 for Diesel in N. Idaho! Try $78 to fill the tank!
Go Big, or Go Home...He who has the gold, makes the rules
Member
its all ridiculous.. yeah yeah some countires pay this and that... the stock of gasoline and oil is at its highest all year and prices are going up.. kinda throws out the supply and demand argument...
WE are paying at the discount gas stations $2.01 and up.. premium 2.24 and up... I guess this is my generations turn to get hammered by the oil prices... arghhh. I remember the late seventies when it was doubling in price to 90+ cents... lol... oh the good old days..
Chris
"I have worked myself up from nothing to extreme poverty." Groucho Marx
http://www.youtube.com/user/TheChrisPineWorkshop
Member
We pay $2.10 here in vermont for regular, today its about as high as its ever been. My wife took a new job and she will be comuting 90 miles per day. She is looking at a Hybrid Escape...but it still doesn't seem to make sense to by a Hybrid. Too many stories of the MPG ratings being grossly over stated still. I drive my Tundra to work, but I go through the woods so as not to draw John's Ire
Member
Seattle area has $2.27 for regular, $2.57 for premium and $2.78 for diesel.
I like the prices most of you are paying.
Member
Off heand, it really is not SUVs that are causing the current problem. In fact, it is more directly linked to the increased demand from a combination of (1) emerging nations (China) (2) a new market risk known as "terrorism", (3) the situation in Iraq, (4) the devaluation of the US Dollar as compared with the rest of the world currencies (5) clean air regulations (very much responsible for about .25 cents of the price of gas in Chicago and Wisconsin) (6) OPEC limiting production (7) failure to invest in real energy alternatives (8) failure to drill american oil (very much linked to the US dollar problem) and way down at the end of the line is (9) SUV gas consumption versus cars, etc. In fact, if you take a look at the so called "green" cars that are gas and electric, these cars are no more "efficient" in buring gas than any other car. What they do is use a battery, powered by the alternator, to run the car's "systems" while sitting at rest, etc. As for our driving patterns, we might all be well served to car pool - consider in that case that some SUVs can carry 6 or 8 people. Then, that lower MPG (which I believe is a bit negligable and is a way that the left and the media play a game of class warfare of haves and have nots) might actually be a better MPG per passenger.
The worst part of the above is the declining dollar. If it costs $50 for a barrel of light sweet crude today and the dollar loses 10% of its value, then it that exact same barrel will cost $55 without the "price of oil" increasing on the exporter's side of the ledger. It is just that the currency the buyer is using is worth less.
By the way, gas by me is 1.98 this weekend. Trouble is brewing in the future of the USA boys.
Last edited by RichMagnone; 03-20-2005 at 8:53 PM.
Contributor
Seems like it jumps a nickle or more each week. I paid 1.97 yesterday. I got a whopping 13.67 mpg! I'm surprised my 3/4 ton extended cargo van gets better mileage than some of you guys with pickups. The prices are making me a little more concious about keeping the cruise control at 60. Jim.
Moderator
About two bucks for regular here, depending on where you "shop"...about 15-18 cents less in NJ which I always try to take advantage of when I can!! I'm glad I don't drive a lot for business anymore (only have 43K miles on my Tundra over four and a half years...) and that Dr. SWMBO drives a Prius hybrid since she does 23 miles one way to her office.
--
The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...
Member
1.989 here for reg.
Member
Not true. My hybrid turns off at rest and often at under 20 mph and that's not the principal that has allowed me to average 52.5 mpg over the first 50,000 miles. I just put in 12 gallons at 2.07. It will probably cost more when I stop for gas 600-650 miles down the road.Originally Posted by RichMagnone
Member
My hybrid turns off at rest and often at under 20 mph but that's not the mechanism that has allowed me to average 52.5 mpg over the first 50,000 miles.
I just put in 12 gallons at 2.07. It will probably cost more when I stop for gas 600-650 miles down the road.
Member
Sounds like you are one of the lucky few. Without getting too political, here are a few articles on the topic (discrepancies between real and claimed MPG, how hybrid works, etc.) that I cite as a small reference. I'll leave it at that as my real point is that there are lots more factors driving gas prices than SUVs (and including SUVs).
http://www.wired.com/news/autotech/0...ory_page_prev2
http://automobiles.allinfoabout.com/.../05-02-13.html
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/...in620265.shtml
http://www.heartland.org/Article.cfm?artId=15259
http://www.carlist.com/newcars/2005/ncr_312.html
http://info.detnews.com/autosconsume...x.cfm?id=18112
Member
It's been 2.01 here for over ten days
Chad
Better to keep silent and be thought a fool, then to open your mouth and remove all doubt.
Member
The main thing I read about lower than advertised MPG in hybrids, including jim's Prius...is that when the A/c is on high, or the defroster is on at all, then that wil lock out the "hybrid" part and force the car to use only gas. It has to do with the engine doing the heating and cooling of the fluids needed in those operations. We in vermont use our defrosters quite a bit in the winter and our A/C in the summer.
Member
Tim,
Not true in the Honda, can't speak about the Prius. They are designed differently. When the defroster or ac is on, the auto-stop feature is disabled (the defroster uses the ac) but the electric motor still assists the gas engine. When running the ac in the summer I see about a ten percent drop in milage. I see a bigger decrease in the winter when the cold and snow on the road affect the car and the defroster runs continuously.
You can, EASILY, get poorer milage with a hybrid or improve your SUV's milage. Seems everyone complains about the price of gas yet there they are blowing by me on the highway. I can get around 60 mpg on the highway at 55 mpg. For every mph over that the mpg goes down one. Acceleration really kills milage. If I don't use the cruise control my milage goes down. If I make extra stops it goes down. All those things they have been telling us for years, combine trips, slow down, do as much for milage/consumption as the technology. One of the biggest factors is tire pressure. The car uses LRR (low rolling resistance) tires. If a tire is low your milage can drop ten percent or more. What would happen if you put those tires on a regular car?
At the time I bought mine I was driving 50,000 miles a year, all highway. A hybrid and Honda's design made sense for me. If you drive less, the extra cost of the car can easily offset any fuel savings.
What really concerns me is what happens if they start selling millions of these? What happens to the millions of big, fancy batteries when they die someday?
I have a friend who had a Honda civic and bought the civic hybrid. He drives in Boston with a ski rack on the car! He typically gets about 38 mpg with the hybrid. This is about ten percent more than his old conventional civic got under the same conditions. I expect this is a fair, realistic comparison. He might well do better with the Toyota which was designed for Tokyo traffic but so much has to do with the driving you do and how you drive.
Dave
Last edited by David Fried; 03-21-2005 at 7:59 AM.
Member
Rich,
Your right!
I bought the right car for the long highway commute I had at the time. At the same time I read about people cruising at 75+ mph wondering why their milage is poor!
These cars are a collection of tweaks: special tires, zero weight oil, cylinders that turn off, computers, streamlining, battery/electric motor, etc. If any of these systems isn't 100% your milage suffers!
It still seems strange to be in fifth gear with the cruise control at 40 mph. I may never get used to the car turning off at red lights!!
Dave
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote