Gas prices and you
 

Ok, so some areas of the US has seen EXTREME gas prices come in to affect. I heard Indianapolis is now charging $4+ for a gallon of 87 grade. Do you think this will affect the way you drive? How much is gas in the areas where you live?

(For Firefox users, get the Gasbuddy extension, it helped me predict this spike in prices.)

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I don't think it is going to affect the way I drive (pedal to the metal baby!) but it will kind of inhale audibly since in about a month I will be drving 75 miles a day 5 days a week and getting only ~15mpg.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I don't drive. :)

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Columbia has some of the cheaper gas in the country--around $2.50 last I checked.

It still inhales audibly, since I'm relying on savings to get through the year. I have started parking about as far away from my room on campus as you can get, since it's a pretty straight shot from (and to) the interstate.

It had better not reach $3 a gallon here, though--if so, I'll probably have to cut back on FIRST driving more than I'd like. And that would inhale very audibly.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I just paid $2.48 for gas a few mins ago, and with prices still going up I have backed off the pedal just a little. . .

Re: Gas prices and you
 

This is the part where I get to laugh at everybody for making fun of my car (1992 Geo Metro) as they put in lots of money into their gas tanks. With about 45 miles to the gallon and a small gas tank (10 gallon), I only have to put in about $5-10 in gas a week. So all you people making fun of the Metro just a short time ago, HA! :)

Not my car, but the exact same thing

Re: Gas prices and you
 

With Hurricane Katrina shutting down 10% of the nation's domestic supply of oil, I've heard prices may go up anywhere between 20 and 50 cents (for Michigan, at least). We're definitely cutting down on the driving over here.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I'm getting a little tired of people complaining about gas prices. They aren't that high. There's a small spike right now, but it's not that bad. (There's also a storm interupting gas production at the moment...) People are failing to take inflation into account. Didn't anyone ever wonder why you could buy a new car for less than $500 in the early part of the 1900's? Inflation my friends. People right now are so happy that their retirement funds may make it over $1 million by the time they need it. But you know what? That's nothing. A few decades from now, a $250k house will be over $1m.

Back to my point about gas:
http://inflationdata.com/Inflation/I..._Inflation.asp
The price of gasoline in the US has been about the same since 1986 when taking inflation into account. The only reason people complain about gas as opposed to the rising bread prices is because gas fluctuates more. Gas stays at a reasonable average, but it has temporary highs and lows. Didn't you notice that people start complaining every few months, then a little while after, the prices start to fall again and people stop complaining? Most other things are still affected by inflation and increase in price, but they are more of a stable increase.

But to answer your question more directly, I think I'll ease up on the pedal a little while the prices are up. In the San Jose area, it looks like gas is around $2.75 at the moment.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

On a somewhat related note, I was reading a report the other day in which the growth of gas prices and household incomes were compared. The thing that surprised me a bit was the fact that both prices and incomes were growing at a very similar rate.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I disagree. It was only like two summers ago when gas was below $1 per gallon and that was in California. Okay, that may have been just a short dip but it was constantly around maybe $1.50.

For whatever reason, as soon as we started the war in Iraq, the gas prices went over $2 and never came back down and they never will.

I don't disagree that the fact that inflation is occurring but I think gas prices are increasing at a much accelerated rate, and most of it I believe to be artificial.

Gas prices are raising far more quickly than salaries, and with how many products depend on gasoline and diesel transportation to dispurse them, their costs are going up too.

However when you do think about it. Gas isn't all that expensive. It just seems like it because we use so much of it.

So look at it this way, where else can you get THAT MUCH combustible energy for less than $3? Actually, the only thing I can think of that you can get for less than $3 per gallon is water and maybe milk (not a grocery shopper so I don't know exactly) and neither of those even have any combustible energy (unless you use some more energy to separate the hydrogen out of the water).

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I drive almost 30 miles one way to work so there's not much I can do. No public transportation where I am and with my hours constantly changing carpooling is out of the question. The only thing I've been doing though is using my 4cyl Camry more. I used to rotate at times with my retired eveyday driver, a Caprice Classic wagon.

The Mustang is only a show vehicle and with the amount it's driven (once a week if that) the gas prices aren't really an issue with it.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Last week, gas was $2.85 around Brookfield, WI.

Right now, it's $2.65 around Houghton. Should be going up again soon, though.

Rising gas prices affect me, because I live 6 hours away from home. Without a job, I don't know that I'll even be able to make it home for Thanksgiving, if prices keep going up. :(

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Just today, I was getting gas for my mom's car and the price was $3.05 :ahh: at a 76, and across the street, at a Mobil, $2.95.:ahh: Sanddrag is right about the price of oil rising after our involvement in Iraq started.

I'm just wondering though, who technically owns the oil that is exported from Iraq? Iraq, the United Nations, or the US?

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I just found an article on Yahoo news that prices have dipped slightly but may go back up due to Katrina. It also brings up the point of inflation like sciguy 125 mentioned. Here's the article.

One thing I've noticed is that at several stations near me diesel costs more than gas but gas is refined more...........go figure. :rolleyes:

Re: Gas prices and you
 

around here i've seen 2.61... up to 2.69... hmm i don't drive so yeah... doesn't affect me much...

walk everywhere on campus or take the bus...yeah... fun stuff...

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Why is that anyway? Deisel here is like 6 cents more per gallon than premium gas. It used to be cheaper than regular. What happened?

Re: Gas prices and you
 

My guess is that it's supply and demand. I have a feeling that with increased oil prices, more oil has to be refined into gasoline to keep the gasoline price down. But that means less diesel, which drives the price up.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Why diesel is more expensive: http://www.fuelwatch.wa.gov.au/misc/dsp_faq.cfm#21

I believe it's the same general idea for the US; correct me if I am wrong, though.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Not sure where you heard the $4+ because I haven't seen any of that here in Indy. Yesterday I paid $2.63 at bp. Just a couple of weeks ago I sold my 26 gallon tank 1994 GMC Sierra pickup and purchased a 16 gallon tank 2005 Pontiac G6 GT. I was paying upwards of $65 - $75 per fillup which was about every week and a half. Now I am spending $35 - $40 per tank every week. I'm averaging about 23.6 miles per gallon in the city and 30.3 miles per gallon on the interstate.


I used to get upset about the price of gas, but I really don't care about it anymore. I have to have my car to get to work, school, and elsewhere. Biking, walking or using public transportation is not an option where I live.

I don't shop around for gas either. I buy ALL of my gas from bp. bp has the most competitive prices and a high quality of gasoline. Plus, they also power all of the bp Connect stations by solar panels on the top of the roof.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Sorry David, at the time of my first post it was a big rumor at school that some teacher got an email from a teacher from Indy so, obviously it's not true.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

We were in Brookfield last Thursday for a tennis tournament and one of the gals on the bus pointed out a sign for $2.92 for gas in Brookfield. Oconomowoc keeps flopping like a ....(ahem).... dead fish from $2.50-2.90 per gallon. Luckily, my car can still be filled on $20 because, like Nick, I have a small (12 gallon) tank that "empties" at about 7 gallons.

And I can still totally whomp those gigantic pickup trucks and SUVs that everyone and their cousin have decided that they must drive to navigate the rough terrain of the grocery store parking lot.

Whee!

Re: Gas prices and you
 

The circuitrunners drive down to Georgia Tech everyday from our school during FIRST season. Most of us live out of district from our own school. So basicallly, during FIRST season, I will be driving 90 miles a day. My car gets about 35 MPG. and lets ee, 90/35=2.57. That is how many gallons a day I will be using. Times that by how much gas costs lets say $3 by then. I will be spending about $7.71 a day. This is going to be fun. Especially whn we work like 5-6 days a wek for 6 weeks. 7.71*5*6=$231 for gas during build. Good thing we car pool.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Dead fish don't flop...

Re: Gas prices and you
 

My little '90 miata costs me about $10 a week to drive.

I could probably cut that down if I didn't have to hit the limiter at least once a day. But, even at 2.50 a gallon, I can still enjoy a bit of fun.

The Cadillac is another story. It has a massive tank, and a pretty useless gauge so I have to keep it topped off. It's hard to say just how much it costs to run. I do know however that it manages 18mpg on the highway, which is is pretty good for a 20 year old v8. It also handles better in the snow then most 4 wheel drive trucks, which is the only reason I have it. So I'm happy enough.

4 dollars a gallon? Bring it on.

-Andy A.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I hope you mean rev limiter not the speed limiter. :D I'm afraid to take it up to the speed limiter in my truck but I've hit the rev limiter quite a few times.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I have recorded everytime i have fueled my car up since 2001 in a spreadsheet.

Take a peak at it, there are some interesting trends in the price per gallon... It is interesting how it rises and falls (see the graph on the Price of Gas tab)

For those who are curious-- the car all of this gas was for is a 2001 Ford Escape v6.

Tom

PS-- this has to be considered geeky :)

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Meh.

Hasn't bothered my foot. Still burn/peel out time and time agian - and also travel around 80+MPH on the freeway...

All in my 1987 5.0 EFI Lincoln Town Car. (Now with True Dual Exhaust!! :D)

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Early Miatas didn't come with a speed limiter. You can go as fast as you the engine will let you. On a stock miata, thats around 120. Over that and you need to start adding some down force, or the car will fly.

The fastest I've ever gone in mine is 110, and it would have been difficult to go much faster. Things were getting a little scary.

And yes, I mean rev limiter (around 7200 rpm).

-Andy A.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

The gas prices here in Delaware are at 2.58-2.69 a gallon for regular. It is going to have a huge effect on me because I have to drive about 55 miles 2 days a week to go to Medic school so thats 220 miles just for that one class. then I have to drive to work and my regular school and that will be about 15 miles per day. And my girlfriend lives about 20 miles away so I have alot of driving to do with my 1992 Subaru legacy.
I am looking into buying a 2002 Dodge truck, its a sport model I cant remember exactly which one at the moment.
I am going into the Coast Guard soon and I hope to be stationed in the south and I will be able to take my personal vehicle with me and I have always wanted a truck so I guess I wont have a right to be upset about the gas prices then when I choose to have a more expensive vehicle to fill up.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

south = cheaper from what i've been hearing... =/...

low today when i drove from CT to RI was 2.60... high was 2.79... ugh...

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Gas here in Mukwonago, WI went from 2.67 at 8:00 A.M. to 2.93 at Noon. Let me do the math . . . . That is a 25 cent increase in 4 hours

Re: Gas prices and you
 

When I drove into school today, the price of the gas at the station across from my school was $2.55, which is about average for where I live. By the time that I got out of school, the gas was $2.71.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Dakota? That's the only Dodge truck I know that has a 'sport' model. I don't think they offer it with the full size Ram.

Just remember ALL petroleum products are going up. I just refilled a 20# propane barbeque tank for $12. Last year it cost me $8.50 at the same place! Now that winter will be coming in a few months and I'll start using my Reddy Heater in the garage I can't wait to see what the price of kerosene has gone up to.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I just paid $2.85 here in Worcester, MA... a bit ridiculous if you ask me!

Re: Gas prices and you
 

gas went up $0.30 in less than 24 hours here. I think it was last hovering around $3

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Well this is what I'm predicting (and is) happening because of the Crude Oil cut off in the Gulf.

Your Local Gas stations that usually have lower gas prices will now have higher gas prices than gas stations that usually have Lower gas prices. Why? Simple, the usually cheaper gas, was taken out of the ground closer here than gas thats taken out of the ground in the North Sea and Persian Gulf. If its closer, than its cheaper to transport. Now that a bulk of the gas is coming from further away, that will be cheaper, since theres more of it.

Some Exceptions to this: Gas stations with high local taxes

Also, if the government's reserve is used now, as it should, it should balance out.

Oh I saw a 2.49 and a 2.79 across the street from each other.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Gas just jumped from around $2.63 to $2.75 and it will probably be even more in the morning.

I get around 22 MPG in my 2000 Mercury Sable, it is not as good as want it to be, but it is certainly not too bad of gas mileage.

Another reason why gas is going up is because of Labor Day.

Maybe I should buy a motorcycle, not exactly sure how it would handle in the snow though. :confused:

Perhaps one of these http://www.rokon.com/products/scout.htm

Also here is an article on How Gas Prices Work:

http://money.howstuffworks.com/gas-price.htm

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I use a tank of gas a week (It's 17 miles each way to and from work). It's a part of life. You learn to deal with it. Better than getting fired for not showing up to work I'll tell you that.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Run a chain to the front wheel (don't forget some sort of differential/clutch). Then put on spikes and/or tire chains. Or you could attach skis to the sides and replace the front wheel with a ski. You'll have effectively converted it to a snowmobile.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Check the link out I posted ;)

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Just a reminder-

The Hurricane in the gulf shut down a lot of oil production in the gulf of Mexico. That means that one of the few oil sources that we have control over just shut down.

That's the reason for the sudden huge increase in prices over the past few days. The people who are in charge of buying oil got really worried that supply would be disrupted, and started buying oil from places that wouldn't be affected. That drove the price of oil way up, and we see that at the pumps. Hopefully, prices will drop back down as the mess gets cleaned up. It won't drop much though.

The annoying thing is that the gas we a pumping today was probably distilled a while ago, when oil was a bit cheaper.

Curse this supply and demand thing.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Alright...
Snowcycle
Solid state air conditioner
carbonated ice cream
carbonated fruit
FIRST software repository
solar powered hotspot
and the list goes on...

I need to start implimenting my ideas before someone else does... If you'll excuse me, I have some work to do...right after Gilmore Girls...

Re: Gas prices and you
 

well the price of gas is now over $3 out in canton/potsdam. it's crazy and I'm sure i will use at least 2 tanks this weekend. i have 5.5 hours to drive to go home then camping then another 5.5 to get back to college. it's crazy for the gas but hey i will just have to suck it up and pay that ungodly price for petrol.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Gas in Kokomo is offically $3.19 a gallon for unleaded, on Dixon Rd. I heard a place on Lincoln Rd. has it for only $3.09! Some deal huh?

Re: Gas prices and you
 

...my quarter-tank will last 'till Tuesday....my quarter-tank will last 'till Tuesday....my quarter-tank will last 'till Tuesday...

Perhaps now is a good time to throw away my backpack, violin, and sports equipment and just start biking everywhere?

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Doesn't what the refineries buy not reach market for about a month? If that's true then shouldn't the effects of the storm not affect us for a few weeks instead of jumping right now?

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Well I have just drove all over Kokomo looking for a locking gas cap for a 97 S-10...I never knew something so readily available a month ago is now scarce...its a good investment I think, considering my car sits out.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

gah its easy for you
petrol is about double that over here.
(nearly £1/Litre, which is $1.803 /litre which is about $6.825 / US gallon)

you mean cars don't require a key to get to the petrol inlet bit over there?!

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Typically, most cars don't require a key at all to get to the gas tank. Some require one to push a button inside the car, for the cap to pop opne but it'd be very easy to pry it off, if you really wanted to get inside. My car doesn't have either - the gas tank cover just flips open, and you unscrew the gas cap to fill up. No keys or button-pushing required!

And, I realize gas is much more expensive in other parts of the world, but when it was $1.88 a year ago, and is $3.29 now ... when I'm at home, I drive about 20 miles each way to get to work (basically using a gallon of gas each way) - I haven't gotten a raise to help compensate for the jump in gas prices. So every time I work, it costs me over an hours worth of pay just for transportation. No, there isn't any better form of transportation I could take to get to work. The only other option is to call a cab and, well, that would be evern more expensive! My boss gets angry when she asks me to come in for a two or three hour shift and I say no ... really, it's just not worth it.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Today was horrible. Driving home from school, people were lined up around blocks trying to get into the gas stations. Som gas stations were closing at 5 PM here in Gorgia. Our main gas pipe line for transport is having some issues because of Katrina, but luckily most of our gas apparently comes from ports. People were driving like maniacs cutting each other off to get to the stations because everyone thinks that Georgia wont hav any gas soon,. And the fact that they are lining up outside of gas stations doesn't help prices much. Gas jumped $0.25 from befor school started this morning to after school. This is ridiculous.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

At this time, thousands of people could be dead in New Orleans. I could give a hoot about gas prices. We need to figure out how we can help the people of the Crescent City instead of worrying how much gas costs affect us.

Think. Pray. This is a dire time.

Andy B.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

It appears now that things are about to get ugly in South Carolina (home of some of the cheapest gas in the country). I was out today getting things, and one station had mid-grade going for over $3 per gallon. (Another sign on the grounds of the station was getting changed, and displayed lower numbers. I can't tell which was the case.)

These are the sorts of times I wish 1293 had more college student mentors--being able to split the cost of gas two or more ways would be heavenly!

Re: Gas prices and you
 

^^^^^ that was yesterday.
Today it jumped to 3.37. 70 cents in 48 hours.
They are saying on the news that it is going to stop at 3.50 a gallon.
Not sure what the law is in other states but in Wisconsin they can only raise gas prices once every 24 hours.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Gas here in Delaware this morning on my way to work at 7am was around $2.57 -$2.62 as I was driving home at 5:30 gas was from $2.85 to $3.19 and I believe that it will rise even farther tomorrow and maybe for the next few days or weeks since Delaware isn't one of the lucky states that has capped its gas prices the stations and there owners can kill us now. YaY for Americas dependence on foreign oil!

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Andy, I can fully appreciate where you're coming from with your concerns. However, what is it that we can do to help those in Louisiana? Contribute money towards rescue and repair efforts. Whether you wish it or not, money is the backbone of any macro-level effort.

To say that gas prices are irrelevant when compared to the suffering of those in New Orleans is discounting the effect of money as a means to help those that are suffering. You know that any rescue effort is going to need gas to work. So these rescue efforts now cost twice as much as they would've before. Guess what that means... any money going towards help is only generating half the effect as it would've with the initial gas price. Not to mention Americans as a whole are going to be less inclined to give their money to others when it's taking such a blow from inflated gas prices.

I agree that those needing help in Louisiana and Mississippi are more important than any issue of gas. However, I also know that the issue of gas has an extremely heavy impact on those same people.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

what? $2.50/gal? where? i gotta fill up there! lol. i saw 3.15s today when i was out running. jeeeeez. its insane. you get 18mpg from a v8? whats the displacement? im getting high 16mpgs in my s10. and im driving incredibly smoothly. VERRY conseratively. well. 4300cc is big but still. its a small truck. no 4wd. only 2wd. bleh. i need a raise. or additional moeny for gas.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I'm really confused. Is this a good thing at the moment or is it a bad. I can't tell until I realized we just lost the domestic supply.Actually, these two situations bear no relation. In fact the only relation that exists is the large lines because some of the gas stations are cheeper.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Half of the gas stations in my town still have today's price of $2.99, the other half are up to $3.24 already. And no, this is no geographical half and half. Along the two main streets, every other station is posting $3.24 for 87 unleaded.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Ideally you don't want to depend on anyone except yourself when it comes to resources.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I could deal with prices below $3.00 but when it goes above that is when i start conserving. Now if it goes above $5.00 thats when i start walking most places. I only work Part time maybe every Saturday and my pay check isn't um too big.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Well I suppose I am wrong then. This is just what I heard in AP ES.
After $3.50 I will once again ride the bus. Then my team would most definetly have to do a carwash to help pay for the FIRST build team to get down to GT and back eveyday for 6 weeks.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

You know... i don't know what time my bus comes or where it picks up at lol. I have been driving to long. Yes it will be expensive to travel to regionals. sigh.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

The last time I filled my tank in the Upper valley region of New Hampshire, gas at most stations was 2.49 for regular. That was about a week ago, shortly before Katrina was projected to take out a lot of the Gulf.

The Cadillac has a 4.8 liter pushrod v8 (its a GM mak- I am not sure what other cars may use it). The interesting thing is that it is transversely mounted and front wheel drive. Thus the great handling in snow. The tranny is a 4 speed with overdrive, and it's a tall last gear. I believe the listed rating of the engine is 200 hp and 275 lb feet of torque. Thats enough to move the cars 3900 lbs pretty well. It will easy squeak the wheels from a dead stop, and shifts down ont he high way smooth for easy passes. It's actually a lot of fun to drive after driving the miata all summer. All those nice things like power steering and cruise control make driving a bit easier on the long hauls.

I've heard of getting up to 20-25 mpg on the highway with some of the newer northstars being put into caddies. For me, 18 mpg on the highway and 12-15 in town is pretty good for such an old engine thats never had a overhaul. And, I have the luxury of a mpg meter right in the dash! I question it's accuracy, but it's gotta be close.

Just goes to show what regular oil changes and plenty of warm up time can do for a car.

-Andy A.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

My car gets 24mpg City and 34mpg highway. Its a 1996 Saturn SL2. Yes keeping your car tuned up does help a ton in gas mileage. Just a note.. most Saturns get great gas mileage.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

<3 Saturn.

I just traded in my '93 SL2 and bought a 2002 VUE. The milage on the SL2 was about 22/32 mpg (city/highway) ... the VUE gets about 18/28 - not too bad for an SUV!!

(see reason for buying a bigger vehicle - rather than a small car - here , if you haven't read it already)

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Agreed, Andy. Gas prices are incredibly trivial compared to what's happening in the affected states. After extensively watching coverage of the damage tonight, and the rescue teams searching for the trapped/dead, I have never seen more sobering sights other than 9/11. The scale of complete destruction is unimagineably large. The area is in chaos. People have no food or water. Stores are being looted right and left, with the police able to do little to nothing about it. People have no idea if their relatives made it through the storm or are dead. Those who lived are left with nothing except their lives--which are now forever changed.

--And we're complaining about how much a gallon of gas for the cars we can still drive, in our damage free cities costs.

Puts things in perspective, doesn't it?

Re: Gas prices and you
 

$4 per gallon? I wish petrol were that cheap over this side of the pond.

OK, my conversion ratios may be a little out but i think 1 US Gallon costs the equivelant of $6.30 over here. We tend to do petrol costs per litre though (~95p, £1 = $1.80)

The $1.11 mentioned above is well below UK prices, as the exchange rate shows.

Diesel prices and you
 

The EPA. Diesel gas used to have a much higher sulfur content. Beginning this summer, the EPA mandated low sulfur diesel. Reducing the sulfur content adds to the production costs, but significantly reduces particulate output of sulfur dioxide.
On a side note, I noticed today that diesel is again cheaper then regular gas.

Wetzel

Re: Gas prices and you
 

This is a dire time Andy. Gas prices affect how much I can help. When the gas station I usually stop at between home and school jumps the price of regular gas more than $1.30 from Sunday night to this afternoon, it costs me an extra $15 dollars of gas every week and a half. That is $530 a year increase in my cost of living that happened in the past four days.

With my funds already limited, this increase makes it such that I can't afford to help financially. :-/
But I do donate blood regularly.

Wetzel

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I just got back from the gas station on the naval base. they just ran out of low and mid grade gas. Low grade was at $2.89 and premium is at $3.09. and that is cheapest around here. I waited in line for 30 mins or so to fill up my jeep, it is just plain crazy at all the gas stations here in southern maryland.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

3.25 for regular here in the Detroit area.

Just wait. I've been told from a few good sources that it will hit over 4.00/gallon in the US...

(Some of the places down in the south-eastern states are alreayd charging +$5/gallon for the shortage that happened...)

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I don't drive yet :( BUT I wished i did :D if I did better watch out :p


WAIT it does effect me.... My parents buy more gas then buy me stuff!

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I don't have a car, but it means my parents will let me borrow it even less than I do now!

Re: Gas prices and you
 

http://news.yahoo.com/photo/050901/480/gagb10209010023&g=events/ts/080304tropicalweathe;_ylt=Ah106mVWyL8zTFhh2VipgQdv 24cA;_ylu=X3oDMTA3bGk2OHYzBHNlYwN0bXA-

There is the Yahoo! story for gas at 5.87/Gal... (That's for regular)

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Didn't see this in the forum and I searched sorry if it's already posted :/
http://money.howstuffworks.com/gas-price.htm It helped me out :)

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Hmmm... gas prices. How have they affected me? Well, I'm intensifying the search for a job so that I can afford to drive more, and hopefully I'll get one close to home (biking distance possibly???). Until the deep freeze arrives for the fall/winter/early spring my sister and I are bikeriding to school and pretty much everywhere we want to go within a reasonable distance. Takes about 10 minutes instead of 5 in the car.

Even though the car I have available to me sips gas (2002 Pontiac Sunfire), sipping gas costs money, and I want to make the tank last for a good long while. Emergency and good reasons only in order to drive, that's my rule, not the one my parents have made for me.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Actually in Georgia. I have heard people in our club seing gas at up to $8.15 after the major pipeline for oil got brokn from Louisiana to Georgia the other day. It how ever is much lower now. I think it was that high because it was one of the few gas stations in that area and it was running low on gas. Many gas stations in my area no longer have gas left. Many also only have premium.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

The increase in gas prices is going to affect us more than what we know it.

Besides filling up you're car it is going to increase the prices of consumer goods, such as food, who knows probably the price of stamps will probably go up!

The cost of the recovery effort is going to be much higher due to the increase of fuel.

Like others said, people are going to give less, if at all, for the recovery efforts because they will be spending more money on daily living expenses.

Not to mention the Billions of tax dollars that will need to be replaced...

I agree that there are more important things that we should be talking about right now other than gas prices, but many people who do not make much money will struggle to live on the salary that they currently earn if gas gets much higher.

I worked at Burger King just a few years ago and I know what it was like to pay for gas back then just making a little above minimum wage.

Most people with low wage part time jobs must travel several miles to get to work. Most of them probably only work a few hours a day so it would hardly be worth the cost of driving to work if the price to get there costs them an hour or more of pay.

I feel sorry for all that has happened to all the people from Katrina, but there is not much I can do other than give money. Even then I really do not know where my money will go to or what it would be used for.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

This is true, but individual contributions are going to be a drop in the pot. Current rescue operations are burning up cash at a rate of half a billion dollars per day. Congress is expected to approve a 10+ billion dollar emergency aid package. This is only to cover the next week or two.

So yes--we should help by donating what we can to whatever avenue of aid we see fit, but realistically that money isn't going to do much at all.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I stopped at the Citgo near my house on the way home and it was $3.25 for 87 octane, $3.35 for 89, and $3.45 for 93. I put $30 worth of 87 in my car and that's the first time that I couldn't fill the tank on my Camry for $30.

This gave me reason to stop at the hardware store and buy kerosene for my heater this winter. Kerosene doesn't seem to be affected yet as I paid $4.99 a gallon for grade K-1, about the same I paid last year.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

About a mile from my house gas is 3.65 a gallon for regular, I guess I should post this in the team numbers in odd places fourm.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Welp, the last cheap place in Kokomo ran totally out of gas today. The Casey General Stores here in Kokomo dont even have Super Unleaded anymore...so we are forced to pay $2.99-3.19 still...it doesn't help that a 2 million gallon tanker on the Mississippi supposedly has a leak...:(

Re: Gas prices and you
 

my dad made 3 great points today,
1.) He's not gonna complain about Gas prices until it passes $4.80 a gallon, thats how much we used to pay in England, so deal with it, they've been paying higher prices than all of us for a LONG time
2.) Live in Louisiana and loose a house or pay high gas prices? I'll take the high gas prices thank you.
3.) This is what we get for an Oil Dependant Economy

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Quit yer whining! :) I am in Germany right now, and the going price for gas works out to nearly $8 per gallon. Filling up my tiny little POS rental commuter car cost over $100! I didn't think that I would ever say this, but after going through this I will look at $4/gallon for gas back in the States as a bargain.

-dave

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The gas prices in Canada are insane at the moment. I can't even drive yet but I know they are really high. Driving past some gas stations they have to use a different sign because the digits in the main sign didn't go up that high. On Thursday the gas prices were at $1.35 (Canadian) per litre when i was at the cottage and it cost us $78 (Canadian) just to fill up the boat! It's crazyness...

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Yeah, European gas prices are much higher, I was talking about that with some friends... I don't think us U.S. citizens will have a right to complain until it reaches European standards. Though I passed a gas station last night and it was up to $3.79...YIKES!

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I'm not trying to contradict you or anything, I've made it clear that I don't like complaining about gas prices. However, doesn't Europe have higher taxes on their gas? I always thought that was the reason their prices are high. My understanding is that they tax gas to pay for the roads. Here, everyone pays for road work.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Yes the taxes are extremely high... however... none of the money goes to the road, just to the governments pocket... something like 70% is tax

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Last i checked gas was somewhere in the 3.20 of unleaded area in Suffield/Windsor Locks CT. Technically i dont worry about driving yet because i dont have my lisence, but i will be getting it in sept and i dont think i'll be doing alot of driving if gas prices keep rising! I did see somewhere it was 4+ for unleaded an 7+ for super. That is crazy! :ahh:

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As Denman said, $3.20 per gallon won't even cover the tax on Unleaded Petrol over here...

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I wonder what Bill Gates pays for gas.... OR does he use a electric car?

Re: Gas prices and you
 

Sit down with a calculator and figure out how much your car costs you a month.

If you bought your car new start with the sticker price and sales tax, and figure it will last you 120,000 miles

add in yearly registration, your yearly insurance, oil and maintenance costs, tires, batteries

figure out how long you will own the car - then divide it out and see how much it cost to drive per mile?

then take your gas milage and figure out how much more it cost with the present price of gas?

even at $5 a gallon, the gasoline is only a small percentage of what it costs to drive a car.

for example, if you get 30mpg then at $3 a gallon your fuel cost is 10 cents a mile - but I think you will find all the other costs of owning a car are around 30 to 35 cents a mile

even at $5, the fuel cost is only 17 cents a mile. Thats still very cheap compared to the cost of the car itself.

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if its electric you reckon it runs windows ? :P

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but even at 30 mpg it will cost you $20000 for petrol over the time. depends how quickly you use it ... if your doing a few hundred a day it will be expensive as you will need a new card sooners
however some cars are better such as the renault megane will do around 45 miles per gallon

Re: Gas prices and you
 

I suspect Linux. It wouldn't get very far otherwise. Back in the day, I found myself rebooting my Windows computer every other day or so. My Linux record is 47 days...my desire to improve my video card overwhelmed my desire to improve my uptime.

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yeah itll effect me terribly lol cuz i haveta pay for gas and insurance and all that...i think im just gunna stop driving period lol its way too much....why is it so much??? its like 3.29ish here...its moving up to 4.00 here soon...ayee :ahh:

Re: Gas prices and you
 

It is simple supply and demand. When supply is down, demand goes up. Merchants all along the supply line realize this and raise their prices. Once the prices go up and people start thinking "im just gunna stop driving period", then these same merchants think twice about raising their prices.

Also, when the cost to supply raises, the prices raise.

In this case, before Katrina, we already have the price for crude oil over $60 per barrell. Combine this with the fact that 10 oil refineries had their supply cut off due to the hurricane AND many drilling rigs in the Gulf are non-functioning, gas prices are going to remain high for quite a while.

Once the supply recovers and catches up with the level of demand, then prices will recede.

At this time, if governments capped gas prices (like they did in '73), then people would continue to buy gas at the same rate they have in the past and not change any of their habits. This would lead to a continued demand and an ever-decreasing supply. That situation would be scary since the supply side of the situation would not have a chance to catch up with demand. It is good that people like Courtney are thinking about "not driving period"... that helps the process much more than government control. This change of habit decreases demand and allows supply to recover.

A big fan of Adam Smith,
Andy B.

Re: Gas prices and you
 

another way to look at this - if you have a car and a job, figure out the total cost of driving your car (per mile)

and figure out how many hours you have to work for each hour you drive your car

then you can calcuate your real 'speed' when you drive

for example: lets say you drive one hour a day to and from work, at 65mph

speed = 65 miles / 1 hour = 65mph

but your car is costing you 40 cents a mile to drive (total cost like I mentioned previously), then to go 65 miles costs you $26.

if you make $7 an hour at work, then for each hour you drive you are working $26 / 7 = 3.7 hrs

add that back into the speed equation. To drive your car 65 miles takes an hour + you must work 3.7 hrs for each hour you drive:

65 miles / (1 + 3.7) = 13.8 mph (real speed)

Ironically, the more expensive your car is (ie, Mustang, Lexus...) the lower your real speed will be!

I have to point out, a healthy young adult can easily average 15mph on a 27" ten speed bicycle (and you can usually find them at garage sales for $25).

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Wow, Ken, I don't know where you shop! :) A Mustang an "expensive car" in the same price class as a Lexus??? I got my first Mustang for $25 - the price of a garage sale bicycle!

-dave

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The computer in my car calculates all this stuff for me. :] My average speed seems to be around 26mph and my gas milage seems to be running at about 28-30mpg right now.

I've been experimenting with my driving habbits between tanks of fuel and I have noticed a real difference. If I am easy on the pedal: not trying to launch off, using the brakes all the time, doing a lot of coasting, and using cruise controll on the interstate; it makes a heck of a difference (21mpg).


Adjusting your driving habbits can do wonders for managing fuel consumption and extending the life of your car.


I lub my new Pontiac G6 GT. :p