Something we all fear

[erw38]

What will we do if/when the price of gas jumps up almost 30 cents?

Read about it here.

[stevensolds]

i will be f'ed if that happens. premium unleaded -- ouch

[Isnibs]

Quote from article "It could go higher as increased warm-weather driving in another two months pushes up demand"

What doesn't push up gas prices?

I hear a guy left the lid of a can of three-in-one oil. Whoosh up they went.
Evaporation costs.

[stevensolds]

yeah all the time these truckers fill up their small diesel trucks, you always see a ton of diesel fuel spilled on the ground, then the sun hits it and on the way back its all gone. a shame.

[scottydl]

No kidding, the other day I forgot to replace the toilet paper roll when I used the last bit... guess what happened? Whoosh before I knew it gas prices had sky-rocketed.

It is pretty ridiculous anymore. It's sad that $1.75 is a huge bargain nowadays, when $1.55 was outrageously high a couple years ago.

What will happen is that everyone will complain, but the prices will still get paid and will probably continue to go up.

[Isnibs]

My problem is that I do very little pleasure driving, most is to work and back and take the wife shopping etc.
So I basically cant cut back on my gas usage.
It would be nice if my wages went up as fast.

[Letitroll98]

Gasoline, cigarettes, liquor, all example of inelastic demand. There is eventualy a top price that they will reach when the demand responds to price, but with gasoline in the US we aren't even close, supply rules here.

They are at that point in the EU, where middle class people look at you as crazy if you don't drive a diesel. Not sure, but I think gasoline is around $5-7 USD per gallon, at least this is the price point that drove alternative searches when I was more associated with EU business.

Funny, but that's about the same price point that cigarettes are seeing price modify demand. Above $5 per unit for stable goods is maybe what middle class US residents see as a decision point?

That 265 hp Accord Hybrid looking pretty good about now, eh?

[JimW]

Thats why I'm glad my new condo is less then 1.5 miles from my work. I will not be driving to work this summer, the car will be saved for night/weekend driving. This will probably stop a lot of people from making road trips this summer as well.

In Ontario, over 35% of our gas is taxed. Last night I gassed up over 50L for $0.89 /L (US Gallon = 3.8x0.89=$3.38/G)

Even after CAD to USD conversion, you guys still have gas at bargain basment prices. It would be nice to see some gas tax relief to balance the price per barrel cost, but thats NEVER gonna happen.

I really dont want to drive a 4 banger

[Aurora40]

Letitroll98 said:

That 265 hp Accord Hybrid looking pretty good about now, eh?

Actually, it has acceleration that is bested by the regular Accord, and fuel economy that could easily be bested by a 3800 V6.

[stevensolds]

Jim thats good, you dont have to drive to work. If you did that would put a lot of extra wear and tear on your motor too, all them short trips. ;D

[erw38]

Geez, I remember that in my olden days gas was at most 99 cents a gallon. I thought that price was outrageous. Now with it approaching upwards of $2 a gallon, I might have to create a long profitable relationship with my bike (not motorcycle).

[Letitroll98]

erw38 said:

Geez, I remember that in my olden days gas was at most 99 cents a gallon. I thought that price was outrageous. Now with it approaching upwards of $2 a gallon, I might have to create a long profitable relationship with my bike (not motorcycle).

I remember it at 23 cents a gallon when I was driving. As a kid in California I believe it was around 10-12 cents and three guys came out to service your car, checking oil level, tire pressure, and washing your windows. I wonder if this type of service would draw any extra business, even at the higher prices you'd have to charge. Maybe in upscale neighborhoods used to paying extra for top service.

[erw38]

Letitroll98 said:

I remember it at 23 cents a gallon when I was driving.

Clearly, my olden day do not equal your olden days.

[Custom88]

The gas prices really do stink. I usually drive upwards of 400 miles a week so I'm really feeling it. One positive though is that with the Riviera I had to put 93 octane in it, and I got around 21 MPG. now I am running 89 octane with the Aurora and am getting almost 26 MPG. This is roughly a savings of $13 a week in gas for me!

[scottydl]

Custom88 said:

One positive though is that with the Riviera I had to put 93 octane in it, and I got around 21 MPG. now I am running 89 octane with the Aurora and am getting almost 26 MPG. This is roughly a savings of $13 a week in gas for me!

That's a nice side effect! Stick that $13/week ($55-60/month) in an investment account starting now, and you can retire on it!

[SupaStealth]

hmm, yeah, when i started driving i remember when the price was less than the amount of gallons, and i'm only 19, so 3 years ago, the price already almost doubled! rediculus..., but i still drive because the price of gas is still cheaper than medication for depression.

[scottydl]

I managed to get a price of $1.91 yesterday (for 89 octane, a bit below the 90 I like to use ), and man I filled that tank to the RIM. By now I think every place around here is $2.04 or higher for 87, so at least I saved a little bit...

[Rocketv8]

unfortunately, i drive a classic 4.0 so i have to use the premium stuff, now over $2.00 a gallon...luckily my job is only 3 miles from home, so i dont do alot of driving....however, mileage is bad with short trip city driving, so i guess it all equals the same problem....but, as jim said, i will not drive a 4 banger

[SupaStealth]

I just paid $2.41 In milwaukee

[Letitroll98]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The average price U.S. consumers pay to fill their cars with gasoline climbed to the second highest level ever, and is less than a penny from the all-time record, the government said on Monday.

The national pump price for regular unleaded gasoline increased 5.7 cents over the last week to an average $2.056 a gallon, up 33 cents from a year ago, according to a survey of service stations by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

The current record gasoline price is $2.064 a gallon set last May. The EIA has forecast the pump price will rise above $2.15 a gallon later this spring. When adjusted for inflation, gasoline cost the most in March 1981 at $3.08 a gallon, according to the agency.

High crude oil costs are helping to push up pump prices. The price for oil on Monday at the New York Mercantile Exchange settled up 52 cents at $54.95 a barrel.

The West Coast had the most expensive regular unleaded gasoline, with the price up 5.4 cents to $2.228 a gallon. Los Angeles topped the EIA's survey of cities, with the price of gasoline up 4.9 cents to $2.329 a gallon.

The Gulf Coast states had the cheapest fuel, with the price up 6.8 cents to $1.968 per gallon. Among major U.S. cities, Houston had the lowest pump price, with fuel up 7.1 cents to $1.91 a gallon.

The weekly report also showed gasoline prices were up 7.4 cents to $2.132 in Seattle, up 8.4 cents to $2.124 in Miami, up 4.3 cents to $2.121 in Chicago, up 2.5 cents to $2.095 in Cleveland, up 7.1 cents to $2.054 in Denver and up 4.7 cents to $1.973 in New York City.