Gas Price Talk Radio

[macmarauder]

tell me tell me tell me. release your anger about the gas prices. guess i'll start today with a little something.

ok is it just me or are things kinda weird with the gas prices. i know that gas prices are not going to be the same across the nation or even down the street. but they are usually pretty close, with in a few cents or so. but lately here in colorado you can see prices as low as $1.96 Gal. by my house all the way up to $2.26 Gal. i drove all over town getting some chores done the past week and noticed this and it's not just higher prices on one side of town and lower on another. they are staggered pretty good. just 3 blocks down from the $2.26 was $2.12. what is going on? is this a sign that oil prices are going through a big change? are the prices dropping or going up? were are higher and lower than what we were before.

another thing i noticed is that all the arabian owned (no stereo typing intended) places have the lowest prices. do they have a good hook up for oil or what?

why OOO why is gas price such a big deal here when most of the rest of the world is paying way more than us anyways? are we just spoiled? come on you know it's true.

Ok lets take a call. hello caller your on the air. why don't start out by telling us the gas price by your home.

[handplane]

Today, it's $1.89 at Racetrack.

[blim]

In the past 3 days it's been $2.08, $2.14 and today (Friday) $2.07. Montague is in a tourist area and it used to go up on Thursday or Friday and down on Tuesday afternoon. Made it easy to fill up on Wednesday. But the past 2 weekends, its gone down. About a year or 2 ago, MI's govenor was investigating gas price fixing and that made our nice little schedule a royal mess--prices would go up and down 3 times in a day--never knew when to put gas in the car--sure hope she's not investigating again!!

Not stereotyping here, either, but sure wish we had an Arabian gas station just for the competition! In my area (Montague only has 1 gas station) there are 5 Wescos, 1 Admiral and 1 Shell. Wesco controls the prices because there are so many more of them and the rest follow suit.

Liz

[echobay]

Hi mac...

i'd like Um to request a song...Um could you play...Oh opps ...Gas Prices?

It's Friday i don't have time to talk i have to go gas up for the weekend before the prices go up again! Averaging $2.05 around here. That's East of the Mid West!

[murtu52]

Wow....here in LA we are averging at $2.32....something needs to be done....

[Bubba Bob]

I was paying $1.70 in Texas, I drive to Alabama and holy crap! $2.10!!

My guess is, it's the usual summer price increases.

Wow....here in LA we are averging at $2.32....something needs to be done....

Yeah, startin with fixen your highways. I bounced my ass off

[robroy]

Tuesday $1.99, Wednesday $2.14, Friday $2.03 Mid Atlantic area

[macmarauder]

woooooh! 6 callers in a row. we're on a roll now. alright callers here's the question for the day.

how has the rise and fall of gas prices affected you? now be honest folks. did you stop driving you tank to work every day or what?

come on i need to know this stuff.

[Bubba Bob]

I live in a one horse town, and have to drive 20 miles to the nearest city to buy groceries and other supplies. I try to limit my trips to once a week. Also, I no longer drive above 65 MPH (unless passing old people, log trucks, and blondes)

[bearskin]

southeastern oklahoma...$1.99..we have to drive 50 miles one way to walmart, lumber yard, denny's, radio shack, movie theatre, dog's vet, etc.....100 miles round trip at the minimum.

[blim]

Wow, Bubbabob and Bearskin! I live in a "one horse town", too, barely a village, but I am lucky to have a grocery store within walking distance (but with teenagers, I can't carry my load o' food) and the bank, post office, dollar store, goodwill and dog's vet about 5 miles away. Walmart, Lowes, Staples/OfficeMax and Recycling Center are 25 miles away, I have always tried to limit those trips to about once a month and make a day of it.

I play the "buy gas on Wednesday game" and we have always driven cars, not gas guzzling SUVs or Vans, but until recently, its been for the pollution factor. And I've also always believed that accelerating and braking slowly is better for the engine and probably saves gas. Also, in Michigan, I never use the AC, which uses more gas, just roll down those windows--besides, AC gives me a headache.

I'm with Echobay, how about some U2 or Coldplay inbetween callers

Liz

[murtu52]

I was paying $1.70 in Texas, I drive to Alabama and holy crap! $2.10!!

My guess is, it's the usual summer price increases.

Wow....here in LA we are averging at $2.32....something needs to be done....

Yeah, startin with fixen your highways. I bounced my ass off

well, we fix them, right when we finish another earthquake hits and we start over again

[bozodog]

We are about average around here, $2.19 last time I filled the work van. A large bill when you have a 30 gal. tank And haul all this everyday.

No light touch on the brake or gas trying to get the express mail off on time, that's for sure.

Now my chevy pup, the great dane hauler, wants mid- premium gas but we drive very little miles because everything's so close to us. A fill up can last 2 weeks or more. (would probably be longer but I always seem to be in *express* mode) Must be that rock n roll in my soul. Spin off some Eagles, will ya Mac? In honor of their TV concert the other nite.

[macmarauder]

that was "Vertigo" by U2

lets get back to our callers shall we.

first of all sorry Bubba Bob and bearskin , your defiantly good candidates for one of the many gas mileage geared vehicles. think of it this way, since you live out in the boonies if you ever decide to kill anyone you wont' be bothered by annoying things like neighbors or driving for hours to hide the body. you gota love the size of that backyard.

yeah bozodog, that's the price we pay for work vehicles. hmmmmmm........ hey what year, make, model, which motor, and what state are you in. i might actually have a good suggestion for ya.

OK for now it's time for the tip of the day with Greasy Joe Greasy?

if you live in a high altitude area bump your engine timing by 2 degrees. it will allow the engine to breath better in the thinner air. wether to bump it up by 2 or down by 2 will depend on your particular engine so you'll have to play with it.

thank you Greasy. i think he was a little nervous folks but he did alright

now it's some "Hotel California" by the eagles

Edited June 4, 2005 by macmarauder

[bozodog]

Mac, I drive for Welsh aviation, subcontracted to DHL express, my van is a '97 ford 250 with a one ton upgrade to the tires and brakes. (8 bolt wheels) It's the big 6 cyl. fuel injected, overdrive. I have never clocked the milage because it's used by me and the nite shift. The bugger has just shy of 300,000 miles on her. We are based in SW Michigan. (Kalamazoo) Home office is in Heron MI.

Now my GMC Safari is a '94 with a 4.3 L fuel injection. Maybe you can help me with a problem I am having... Seems the ERG cannister has a fault, carbon bits from the intake manifold sticks in the valve as it's closing and really mucks up low idle and vaccume assist. (including braking)

My shop said to drive the pi$$ outta it. (love that!) Even hook up a trailer and work the crap outta it, highway speed for about 100 miles.(which I did for about 50 miles and the dang thing went into bleh mode for weeks) Or I can get a new chip that stops the valve from closing on deceleration. (err, $200???)

I have been using fuel additives and (of course) driving the pi$$ outta her. But I'm not sure all the carbon deposits are cleared. She is running fine right now....

Any ideas???

[rv56]

Hello......hello...!!!!.....hello....um...am I on the air????

Hello Mac....(bangs phone on wall).....

Oh hi Mac...ya well here the gas is 88.9 cents per litre....+ or - a point through out the city. I did drive about 30 miles to work a couple of years ago.....then decided to move to the city. I cut my gas bill in half.....

[macmarauder]

Mac, I drive for Welsh aviation, subcontracted to DHL express, my van is a '97 ford 250 with a one ton upgrade to the tires and brakes. (8 bolt wheels) It's the big 6 cyl. fuel injected, overdrive. I have never clocked the milage because it's used by me and the nite shift. The bugger has just shy of 300,000 miles on her. We are based in SW Michigan. (Kalamazoo) Home office is in Heron MI.

Now my GMC Safari is a '94 with a 4.3 L fuel injection. Maybe you can help me with a problem I am having... Seems the ERG cannister has a fault, carbon bits from the intake manifold sticks in the valve as it's closing and really mucks up low idle and vaccume assist. (including braking)

My shop said to drive the pi$$ outta it. (love that!) Even hook up a trailer and work the crap outta it, highway speed for about 100 miles.(which I did for about 50 miles and the dang thing went into bleh mode for weeks) Or I can get a new chip that stops the valve from closing on deceleration. (err, $200???)

I have been using fuel additives and (of course) driving the pi$$ outta her. But I'm not sure all the carbon deposits are cleared. She is running fine right now....

Any ideas???

i love those ford 300 6's. the best towing motor ford made for a really long time. so incredibly durable with the right maintenance.

anyways just a little question so that i know which EGR system you have. which 4.3L do you have? just like every other chevy truck of that year range you had the choice of 3 different 4.3L V6's.

------ a throttle body fuel injection 4.3L

------ a single port fuel injection Vortek

------ a multiport fuel injection Vortek

all with different EGR systems. the multiport is very well known for injector and EGR problems. now that i think of it i don't think that has an EGR canister. the closest thing is the air pump canister but you can't get carbon build up in there. most likely you mean the EGR Valve, which is common with those. there is a relay that controls the EGR delay but you will most likely go through 300,000 miles before that goes out. to be honest there is no fancy trick to get rid of carbon build up on the EGR valve. i always just pull the EGR Valve and scrap it out. it's pretty easy to get to and there's only two bolts that hold it in on that safari. takes me about 15 minutes to do on most cars and that safari is the same as all others. i can PM you with pictures and step by step instructions on how to do it. i stopped by my dads car lot since he has a safari like yours and took a look to make sure.

[macmarauder]

Hello......hello...!!!!.....hello....um...am I on the air????

Hello Mac....(bangs phone on wall).....

Oh hi Mac...ya well here the gas is 88.9 cents per litre....+ or - a point through out the city. I did drive about 30 miles to work a couple of years ago.....then decided to move to the city. I cut my gas bill in half.....

AHHHHHH easy on the phone there caller

Get that note pad ready cause it's information hour

you've herd me say it before and you've probably herd it elsewhere. the easiest way to get a little better gas mileage with out modifying anything on your car is to get a good tune-up. well you know what. have you ever been confused as to why and no one has the answer. well now it's time to know.

Tune-Up Stuff

Distributor Cap and Rotor

Spark Plug Wires

Spark Plugs

Air Filter

LOF (Lube Oil Filter) translation ------ change the Oil, Oil Filter, and add Additives if Needed

First off the distributor is what distributes the electrical power used for the burning of gas or fuel inside the engine. it has a long geared shaft inside that spins. the cap is a plastic cover that has metal pins through the top that connect to the spark plug wires. the rotor is attached to the top of the shaft inside the distributor and has a electric current run through it. as it spins around it makes contact with the pins in the cap sending and electric spark to the top of the cap. getting higher quality Cap and Rotor allows more current to be passed during it's contact.

the Plug Wires are like large insulated wires that send the spark to the Spark Plugs. the better the wire the less resistance the more spark is allowed to pass through it. i tested the resistance of the low end brand, the middle end brand, and the high end brand at auto zone. the resistance of the middle end brand was half as much as the low one. the high end brand was less that half of the middle one. so i could send far more spark more easily through the higher quality one.

now here comes the good part. the spark plug is like the inside of a light bulb, two metal contacts spread apart so that the spark has to jump from one end to the other, which lights the gas. since we've got more spark going to the spark plugs now we use spark plugs that burn hotter, burning more of the gas. which means more efficiency. you see not all of the gas inside the chamber (cylinder) gets burned. the EGR system takes some of the exhaust and puts it back into the engine to be reburned giving you better emissions. but robbing you of fresher air.

which brings us to the air filter. the air filter is literally what it sounds like. just a filtering screen that allows air to flow into the engine while keeping the gunk out. well it gets clogged and filled up alot. a high quality one like..... ummmm the highest quality one that i know off for regular vehicles is the K&N air filters. it has a liquid chemical that releases basically oxygen into the air as it passes into the engine. the air we breath isn't pure oxygen, it's a mixture of gases. so what this does is make it a little more pure and thins out the mixture of air and gas inside the engine.

which brings us to the last ones. i highly recommend using a good quality synthetic oil on all modern cars. basically when the gas combusts it expands rapidly and pushes a piston (a large metal cylinder shaped object) down inside of a metal chamber. the oil is in between them and soaks up the heat produced from the friction. when any metal heats up it and cools down it expands and contracts. the metal is designed to work best at a given temperature. the better the oil the more easily it can soak up the heat the more freely the parts can move so the less of power is needed to move the parts around.

and this brings me to the last point. a powerful engine doesn't mean less gas mileage. when you go up a hill the less an engine has to work to get up the hill the less you have to put your foot into it to get the bugger up the hill.

well there you go, and sorry for over explaining it for most of you. i hope that this you learned something for this Young Old Fool.

this is macmarauder signing out for the night to the sounds of Santana wailing guitar version of the hit song "Low Rider"

Edited June 5, 2005 by macmarauder

[bozodog]

Hey Mac. Thanx for taking some time with me. (and the kewl jams!)

My book says I have a 4.3L V6 CPI I know about the erg valve, but my mechanic says it's a valve in the cannister... (I trust him, and he deserves the hourly rate he gets) The van had the problem when my friendly neighborhood used car dealer first got it. I gave it a test drive and told him I would buy it if he fixed the low idle roughness...

He took it the the same shop I use and got the same diagnosis. Was fixed, I drove it for another 10 or so miles and it burped again. He returned it and I took ownership. A week or so later it burped again... talked to the dealer, and took it back to the shop. That's when he explaned to me the problem, and fixed it again for free. He is the one that said a new chip, or some hard work driving would fix the problem.

So far, it's running fine. I have been using a fuel injector cleaner and I *am* a lead foot. At this point I may have blown out the carbon build up, so it's a waiting game. I have the feeling the van was babied and never got a good long distance burn... (no problem here for that)

Nice tutorial there... I have always replaced spark plug wires yearly, even when I didn't need or do a tuneup. They sure make a big difference in winter cold starts and when it's damp or rainy.

I'm not sure using the new oils is worth it in an older car, but I *RELIGIOUSLY* change the oil every 3-3500 miles. (same with our work vans) Keeping the engine clean really helps with heat problems.. A can of engine degreaser is soo cheap.

I'm going to try that air filter trick, sure makes sense.

[macmarauder]

so the EGR valve it's self might not be opening and closing at the right times. i'm sorry to say that if that's the case then i don't know any easy fix for it.

How many miles are on it? you may be on to something with it being babied. i have seen before with shift modules where the truck got used to shifting at certain points. i had and old ford truck that the detent (connects to the throttle and determines how much throttle your giving it so that it can shift the gears accordingly) cable broke and the guy fixed it by just pulling the cable out and tying it together in a knot. which shortened the cable. then he just drove it like that for years. i replaced the cable but since he had driven it so long like that the shift module wanted to shift at the wrong times.

as far as older cars running synthetic oil, most of the time it's just not worth it. if you have an old big block that burns a lot of oil for example it's not worth it. fortunately some old cars like the ones that my dad have are it perfect running order and i have noticed a big difference in oil pressure.

alright folks now it's time for a little gas history from Old Man.....well..... Old Man

i remember when you pulled up to a gas station.............. auuuuuuushoooooooo.....

AAAAA ohhhh yeah. i remember when you pulled up to a gas station you would drive over a cord that rang a bell and there'd be a team of kids that would check all the fluids, wash your windows, and filler up too. and gas wasn't an arm and a leg neither. yep! thems were the days 99. a gal.

[blim]

Hi All!

Well, our nifty little weekend high, weekday low schedule is definitely goofed up--today (tuesday) gas jumped from $2.07-$2.20.

I used the "full service" stations till they closed the last full service pump down. It was only 2 cents more a gallon and it was worth it for the "checkup" on my old clunkers. And of course, if I went into the gas station for a soda or something, I was compelled to jump up and down on the "dingding" cord! My "formerly scrawny rear" had to jump really hard, though....Heh, Macmarauder, I remember 39 cent (where or where is cent key on a keyboard?!?) gasoline. $5 filled a tank. And the prices stayed the same forever, none of this up and down stuff.

How about that cowboy song by Kid Rock? (who is merely Bob from Michigan)

Liz

[WiredMonkey]

Mac...you're nuts.

That said, love your show!

Back to gas prices and all...one of your earlier callers said gas was $1.70 and then he left for Alabama (? don't shoot me, I can't remember) and it was up over two bucks. Well, he'd been out of the state for a bit. Here in Dallas, the prices were about $1.70 over the winter months...but a couple months ago they shot up to about $2.20/gal. We've now settled back down near the $2 mark.

I'm a big fan of Racetrac...got gas last night for $1.97/gal. Didn't think I'd be happy about paying almost $2/gal. when just 5 years ago I remember they were at .79/gal here in the Lone Star State. *sigh*

[bozodog]

*$2.29* !???!! &*$(#!((#!($)!* Fer cryin' out loud! 21 1/2 gals $44 and change. I just spent more to fill my car then I did at Ernie the Butchers for a weeks meat.

Ohhhh well... In the UK it's something like $6.50 a gal. USD

[macmarauder]

alright i've trying to avoid this but i guess it's time. here's some ideas and tips for better gas mileage that will cost you for now but will save in the end.

a better flowing exhaust is does more that just make it sound better. for example shorty headers to larger pipes and instead of running both headers to a Y pipe to your Cat and mufflers to the exhaust tip. run what's called dual exhaust. instead you run the pipes straight back after the headers and use a set on each pipe. it cost more but it allows the engine to push out twice the air in the same amount of time.

if you've still got a carbureted motor like me, one of the most unknown tricks is that you can replace the jets with smaller ones. (the jets are the little spray nosiles for the fuel inside the carburetor. especially for larger motors like the chevy 454, ford 460, dodge 440, bigblocks.

the best trick of coarse on old carbureted motors is to take it to an old veteran to adjust it just right. starting, running, performance, there is a massive difference between tweaking the air fuel mixture between a newer mechanic who's used to these computer cars and someone who really knows that particular type of motors. for example my father is knows his way around fine tuning old fords and chevys but lacks in the dodge department.

so the best tips that will cost you a pretty penny on those types of motors is to just spend the $1,500 on Holleys Throttley Body kit. it means a lot less that is controled by the vacum lines and siloniods just plain old parts. now they will be controlled by a computer system.

hmmm maybe a little something for newer cars. well if you live in an area that has very loose or no emission laws. you can cheat a bit. :D :D ok for example down south of here pueblo colorado has no emission laws. so there are alot of things on your car that rob you of better performance and gas mileage for better emissions. for this i do not recomend doing on your own at all. you will need someone who knows what you need, what you don't, and how to bypass others. also on certian vehicle you must truely know what you are doing or you will have to put it back on and ask for help as to what it really does and how it affects the rest of the car. for example on my bronco, ford uses a ton of vacum lines for emisions perposes and i had to trackdown which ones were what. after removing most of them i had to piece togather a whole new system but i gained a lot more vacum preasure and vacum respnce time. which is a big difference on that motor since so much of it is controlled by it. almost all american vehicles are not nearley as bad as mine. ford really over did it with this one.

something that all manual transmition cars and truck can use is a better clutch plate. the clutch plate is a large spinning disc that transfers the power from your engine to trany. just putting in a stronger better disc will allow more of the power to get through which means less power is needed to get up to speed.

i have to run now but i'll have more to list at the end of the day or when ever i get back.

this is macmarauder signing off for now but leaving you with a little iron maiden

[echobay]

Hey mac...

Excellent thread...

Wow the tutorials and tips are just priceless!

A chance to vent and hear great tunes too.

Gas went up here again! East...2.20

i found this while i was surfing around ...

Brake Fluid: 12 oz $3.15 or $33.60 per gallon

Evian water: 9 oz $1.49 or $21.19 per gallon

Gatorade: 20 oz $1.59 or $10.17 per gallon

Snapple: 16 oz $1.29 or $10.32 per gallon

Lipton Iced Tea: 16 oz $1.19 or $9.52 per gallon

Ocean Spray: 16 oz $1.25 or $10.00 per gallon

Pepto Bismol: 4 oz $3.85 or $123.20 per gallon

Scope: 1.5 oz $0.99 or $84.48 per gallon

Vick's Nyquil: 6 oz $8.35 or $178.13 per gallon

Whiteout: 7 oz $1.39 or $25.42 per gallon

The next time we're at the pump, be glad our cars don't run on Evian,Scope, Whiteout, or Thank God... Vick's Nyquil!

i was looking for a brightside...Hmm ..i'd like to hear Mr.Brightside.. What do ya say mac!