Gas Price Talk Radio

[JDoors]

Yeah, regular's been down as far as $2.50, it's inching back up to ~$2.80 here.

A friend of mine is one of those, "OMIGOD GAS IS TOO HIGH THE GOVERNMENT SHOULD FORCE THE OIL COMPANIES TO LOWER PRICES" guys. Right ... he travels all over the country, in an SUV, hauling up to three ATVs, for recreation , then he and his kids drive the ATVs hundreds of miles. Yeah buddy, it's not your recreational choice that's costing you a ton of money, it's the greedy oil companies (there are local places he could use).

Me? Prices higher than I like? I drive less and try to maximize my MPG. In other words, instead of complaining, I use less.

[Bubba Bob]

Me? Prices higher than I like? I drive less and try to maximize my MPG. In other words, instead of complaining, I use less.

No, it doesnt work that way. We CAN"T help our selves. The government HAS to do it for us.

[Honda_Boy]

It's always the people with the huge SUV's that complain too. "It cost me X amount to fill up the Suburban and I have to fill up every 5 days cause I drive to (Insert Town 45 min to an hour 1/2 away)". Ummmm, My car requires premium, has insanely short gears, and I don't drove all that economically and I still spend less than you on gas. Fill up every week and a half to 2 weeks and I still only spend $22-30 on gas on a fill-up.

I hate to hear SUV drivers complain (mainly just full size V8-V10 SUV's). You picked that monster out from the lot, deal with it.

[bobbynichols]

Best is $3.099 here in my section of Cali for regular ($3.179 at my closest location here on the hill).

My wife and I only drive when we have to... consolidating errands for ourselves and family as best we can.

On a similiar note, I'm actually grateful that our electric heater/air conditioner died a number of years ago. We heat with a wood stove. My daughter just made the move from propane heating to a wood burning stove this year that will save her beaucoup$. Out here residents are told to expect propane prices to go up another 20% this winter over last year (which was high)... and I doubt that's where it will end.

Where's "Mr. Fusion" when you need him? (reference to the power plant in "Back to the Future"'s DeLorean).

[JDoors]

... I hate to hear SUV drivers complain (mainly just full size V8-V10 SUV's). You picked that monster out from the lot, deal with it.

I'm on the fence on that one. See, I also hate to hear people complain about how tough it is to drive in the Winter. "Get four wheel drive idjiot!" Yeah, there are Subarus and such with FWD or AWD that get decent mileage, but if you need space for lots of stuff or tow anything bigger than a breadbox (now there's an old man saying -- have some of you ever SEEN a "breadbox" -- that is, a place to store bread rather than the electronics one), well, SUV's have their place. And while a Subaru will get you around quite well in most conditions, it's not as good as an SUV during a blizzard (or flood), that SUV could, possibly, save your life (my 4X4 pickup did just that during a flood, and both that and the Explorer have gotten me through many blizzards -- who knows how that would have turned out had I still had a less-capable vehicle, no matter how high its mileage).

On a related note, it does bother me when people use the expression "It cost me X amount of dollars to fill up" as a way of expressing outrage at the cost of gasoline. I only get ~17 mpg and it's rarely cost me more than twenty bucks to fill up. Why? Because I never wait 'til the tank's near-empty. I still eventually spend the same amount on gas however I choose to fill 'er up, but when someone claims a huge amount for a single fillup it bugs me. "Why wait that long if you're just gonna complain about it?"

Not to mention gas takes a smaller portion of our income than it used to, gas prices aren't that much higher when adjusted for inflation, many people drive like mpg is the last thing on their minds, etc.

So the choice of vehicles isn't my main gripe.

[Bubba Bob]

I get 12 MPG. However, what can i do? Get a seocnd vehicle? The price+upkeep+insurance would eat any gas saving. I could get a car, but try putting 4 air tanks + the rest of the scuba gear in the trunk. HA! IF I did manage to fit everything it the car would be resting near the bump stops.

The "everyone should drive an economy car and gas would go down" mindset just doesn't work. I wish it did, but it doesnt

Edited October 23, 2007 by Bubba Bob

[Honda_Boy]

well my gripe about the SUV thing is cause I live in Tennessee where mom's have these monsters cause they think they need the space or safety when they don't then they complain when they fill it up. And with towing. We've towed an old tractor on a trailer hooked up to our 28 MPG 4cyl 5-spd Toyota Tacoma.

I think my mom is a little entitled to gripe. She doesn't gripe so much about the cost of a fill-up but rather the god-awful fuel mileage that her 03 PT Cruiser gets........ 22 City, 24 Hwy. My dad's Tacoma pulls off about 24 City, 28 Hwy.

[Bubba Bob]

Wow, give Chrysler a star...

[Honda_Boy]

get this both the Tacoma and the Cruiser have about the same power (140HP 160TQ) but the truck weighs about 1200lbs more and still gets better mileage. Even the ratings on the auto versions are better.

It still amazes me though that I own the "sport" vehicle that requires premium and has a close ratio sport transmission and yet I still get better fuel mileage than any car that anyone in my family owns. This includes both the Cruiser and the Tacoma, a 98 4Runner Special Edition 4Cyl Auto, 03 Cavalier LS Sport Auto (sport my @$$, I get 0 feeling of sport from this piece of crap), 08 (I think) Impala LT, and a 96 LeSabre. It even beats the Cavalier. Cavlier 24 City, 33 Hwy, my hatch 29-30 City, 33-35 Hwy. Yeah, so there's actually a huge difference between the City and Hwy on the Cavalier while there is little on mine. That's where the close ratio tranny hurts. My RPM needle in the neighborhood only drops 500rpm between many shifts. I'm turning over 4 grand on the interstate.

[JDoors]

Another corollary to the "I can't really get bothered by ... " aspect is comparing different types of vehicles to one another. Yeah, a Civic sport gets better mileage than a PT Cruiser, so, fold the seats down on that Honda and stick a fridge in there. I did that with a Cruiser, I know that fridge wouldn't have fit in the Civic (no way it would've fit through the hatch -- MAYBE if it didn't have such a high liftover ...). Or stick four people and their luggage in the Tacoma and take it on a long trip (without getting the luggage wet when it rains). Though I know you hate the PT Cruiser and cannot bring yourself to admit it has any good qualities whatsoever, it's still got a better ride than a pickup truck (at least any designed in the same era, newer trucks are far more car-like -- and far more expensive as a result).

It's similar to Europeans dissin' American cars. No, the Mustang isn't a race car like the Lotus and yes, the Lotus gets better mileage (I believe), but the 'Stang is far cheaper, far more comfortable, has space for four people and their luggage, it's a different animal altogether (I've seen an actual comparison between those two in the European press -- I couldn't believe it).

A common commute in America might be far enough to get you into a different Country in Europe, so, yes, some of us prefer different vehicles. Duh. Don't know why they can't, or refuse to, see that.

On topic: Gas has hit $2.80+ here.

[Honda_Boy]

Actually we've fit some hella big stuff in the back of my hatch but still, the PT Cruiser with what it is should have far better mileage. Now newer models have better mileage but still a 3200lb car vs. a 4400lb truck, you'd think the Cruiser would get close to the same mileage but instead it gets Minivan mileage. A honda accord is an overall larger vehicle but weighs about the same and gets better mileage too. Same size engine even with same torque rating but higher 160HP rating. I'm still trying to figure out exactly why that car has such terrible mileage. Really i think it's the ECU. It already had one problem so maybe it's a crappy fuel map or something. Maybe if it were chipped and tuned, it'd get better mileage.

All in all though the PT Cruiser is still a crappy car. We've had unbelievable trouble out of ours. Too many problems. My dad has sworn to never get a Chrysler ever again. He says he's figured out what the PT means. He says it means Piece of Trash. he says their car is going to be one of the following. Honda Fit, 4-Dr Civic, Odyssey, Toyota Yaris, Scion XD, Nissan Altima, Versa, or Chevrolet Impala (my brother's Impala is a fleet vehicle for Farm Bureau and the fleet vehicles get sold off every year and they get new ones. My dad is thinking of buying my brother's Impala when FB gives my brother another).

[JDoors]

Back when the PT Cruiser was designed American manufacturers (and consumers) weren't obsessed with high mileage while "foreign" makes have to sell their cars in countries where mileage is FAR more important (five dollar plus gas will do that), but ya have to wonder why, when it's based on the Neon architecture, it doesn't do better than it does. It surely has to do with American manufacturers dumb obsession with undercutting the cost of "foreign" makes. "Yeah, see, ours is just as good but cost a thousand bucks less!" But they're not fooling anyone, they're not "just as good," they're a thousand bucks worse. Just put the darn money into the car, will ya? Yeah, efficiency costs money, yeah better interior design costs money, yeah better panel fit costs money, and yeah, foreign makes are taking your market share because they spend that money.

Heh-heh, I could fix all the world's problems, just make me King.

[Honda_Boy]

I'd almost support that.

What was retarded though was it was an $18,000 BASE model car too. For the same cash my parents dropped on this base model PT Cruiser, they could have had a fully loaded Civic EX 4 door (top model just under the sport model 3 door Si) which would have had more features, better fuel economy, and it would have been more reliable. I have to say thugh that particular style Civic (01-03) were about as ugly as homemade sin though, particularly the 4 doors. Now they weren't near as ugly as an Element, they were just ugly in comparison to pretty much any other style of Civic. The 3Dr Si's looked better though cause they were a completely different body and chassis (regular DX/LX/EX/GX/HX/Hybrid Civics were EM2/ES1/ES2/ES9 chassis while the Si's were EP3 chassis)

[Bubba Bob]

Now they weren't near as ugly as an Element,

Ha! That figures. The ONE Honda i actually like "HondaBoy" doesnt...

Ya can't really compare the price of an Econo-Box to a PT Cruiser. Even the element, which sits on a suped up car platform starts at around $20k.

EDIT

Oh, $2.69 here for the quality gas. Also, I filled up today and got 12.5mpg. That's .5mpg more than i usally get. So happy...

Edited October 26, 2007 by Bubba Bob

[Honda_Boy]

Well, the EX is not the econo box model. Really they don't make econobox civics anymore. 2000 was it for them and I mean the hatches cause they were the cheapest, lightest, most fuel efficient models. The EX is the top end fully loaded model (like my old coupe, only missing features were 4-wheel Disc ABS and a wing) excluding the Si sport models. PT Cruisers have come down in price now so they are kinda similarly priced but still for what my parents payed they could have gotten an infinitely better vehicle and a reliable mechanic. My mechanic is a Honda specialist. He only works on Honda/Acura......and his Corvette . He's also got a Supercharged B18C1 swapped (1.8L DOHC VTEC) 94 Civic Coupe.

Not sure of the gas prices right now. I don't think I've been driving as much recently. I have cut one commute to school out since I dropped Accounting (if I had stayed in it would hurt my GPA and kept me from getting my scholarship back) but it only totals like 6-7 miles there and back.

[JDoors]

......and his Corvette ...

According to your logic he should'a got an NSX, better mileage and more reliable.

(But it ain't a 'Vette , and ... IT AIN'T AROUND ANY MORE! )

Gotta admit Honda fixed that ugly car syndrome with the Civic, even the four doors look much better (but weren't they smaller than the Neon/PT Cruiser back then?). However, boy, did they ever hit the Accord with an ugly stick. That front end! Put a bag over it already! (Yeah, I know it's supposed to be due to European pedestrian safety regulations, but don't we get an entirely different car than they do? So ... Why did we get that pug?). From the side I keep confusing it with a 5 series BMW, and that's not entirely a compliment.

Uh-oh, gas is creeping up s'more, and they say a barrel of oil is at "record" prices (IF you ignore inflation for the last thirty years) so look for gas to go even higher. yay.

[Honda_Boy]

It's a classic Corvette. Late 60's early 70's or something. You talkin about the newest Accords. The side of the sedans are pretty lame lookin but I think the front looks OK. Kinda looks toyotaish but not that's alright. I think the front of the coupe with the factory lip kit looks pretty awesome. Lip kits always make the difference. I thought the newest Camry was kinda bleh looking but the ones with the factory lip kit look mean.

[Bubba Bob]

Oil has dropped a little over $6 in the past two days. Hopefully itll continue and gas prices will follow. Hopefully...

[Honda_Boy]

Geez, $3.33 a gallon for 93 Octane. $3.09 for the cheap crap. Only got 27 MPG on the last tank. Mostly city drivin (work + school) with about 90 miles of Interstate driving.

[JDoors]

Gas had crept up to just over three bucks, but it's on its way back down again (read somewhere oil prices have plummeted). Glad I don't have to buy premium, it's still up there.

The Explorer's getting dismal mileage, don't know if it's from my recent aggressive driving or from a mechanical fault. Just had some maintenance done and I think I'm over that brief period of aggression, so we'll see on the next tank.

[Bubba Bob]

Gas had crept up to just over three bucks, but it's on its way back down again (read somewhere oil prices have plummeted). Glad I don't have to buy premium, it's still up there.

The Explorer's getting dismal mileage, don't know if it's from my recent aggressive driving or from a mechanical fault. Just had some maintenance done and I think I'm over that brief period of aggression, so we'll see on the next tank.

Check oil prices here:

http://www.bloomberg.com/markets/commoditi...ergyprices.html

It went back up a dollar today. So oil is about $5 down from it's crest.

[bozodog]

It stinks, we will never see $2 gas again.

[blim]

It stinks, we will never see $2 gas again.

Probably about the time we see $3 cans of coffee again!

It's been bouncing up and down like crazy up here--on Monday it went up from $3.02-$3.25 and now is slowly coming down. Today it was $3.08 I think....

Liz

[JDoors]

It stinks, we will never see $2 gas again.

... and I hope I don't drop back down to what I was getting paid when gas was two dollars. I'm happy with a higher wage and paying more for gas. I come out ahead.

Funny I recently said I'm glad I don't have to get premium .... because I just filled up with half a tank of premium (@$3.25 per). Why, when it's not "needed?" For some reason, a long time ago, I got it into my head they put "premium" additives in "premium" gas, that's it not JUST about octane. More detergents for example. So once a month I get premium, thinking, right or wrong though I may be, that that touch of premium does something good for the engine. Since it's only half a tank (I always fill up at the half-mark) once a month (that's about one in four or five fillups) my habit isn't costing me THAT much more, so unless you convince me otherwise I'm keeping that delusion.

[TheTerrorist_75]

This new job has me running all over the county, but I only went through a full tank in two weeks. $105 to fill up ($3.29/gal., 87 octane). I getting over 560 miles on a tank.