Gas Prices

[player]

This is pretty neat.
Just enter your zip code in the site below, and it tells you which gas stations have the cheapest prices (and the highest) on gas in your zip code area. It's updated every evening.

http://autos.msn.com/everyday/gasstations.aspx?zip=&src=Netx

Be a good neighbor and pass this along.I consider it passed in a big way via the forum.heh heh :)

[Spudman]

That's pretty cool....but I save a bundle with this chunk of garden hose.:D

[just strum]

I clicked on it and it gave me guitar prices. Must be customized to the forum needs.

[abraxas]

What's the average price for premium gas in the US? (in liters please, we don't use gallons in Europe). :D

[Bloozcat]

The listings are missing the two cheapest stations near where I work, Walmart and Racetrack...:confused:

[Katastrophe]

What's the average price for premium gas in the US? (in liters please, we don't use gallons in Europe). :D

Well... let's see... one gallon = 3.79 liters.

I paid 3.50 per gallon this morning, or $3.50 for every 3.79 liters.

3.79/3.50 = approximately $1.08 per liter, if I did the math right. Converting to Greek Drachma it comes out to 238.04 GRD. In Euro it would be approximately .70 EUR per liter.

Of course, if my math was wrong then this could all be a bunch of hooey.:D

[ZMAN]

We are paying 1.20 Can. for a litre. We use the Imperial Gallon at 4.5 litres.
Todays exchange rate is .99335 U.S.
Oh yea and the Oil companies have just annouced record profits. But our Politicians are saying they are not gouging.
The thing about records is that they are anounced Quartely and every time for the last 5 years they have been just that a record breaker. ie: going up!
So it can't be the price of a barrel of oil that is causing it. Just sheer greed!

[abraxas]

Katastrophe, there is no Greek Drachma for 9 years now. :D

Wow, you pay ~0.7-1 Euro per litre and complain about it??

Prices in Europe are frequently above 1.5 euro per litre!!

It may look mean saying this, and please forgive me. But I think that "artificially" low gas prices, for all those years in the US (mainly), along with those american... ehm... "cars" of yours :D (with engines like those we in Europe use on heavy trucks), certainly contributed on the US being the foremost air polluter in the world.

http://maps.grida.no/go/graphic/national_carbon_dioxide_co2_emissions_per_capita

The above graph is per capita!!!.

Hint: buy European and Japanese/Korean cars. They are more economical, faster, far safer and more confortable than yours. This is a subject where, being patriotic, is utterly foolish. ;)

[ZMAN]

I think being in Greece you are miising the grand scale of things in Canada and the US. It is nothing to drive 60 miles one way to work, This is a large expanse of land over here and you need to be able to drive. I will admit we have done nothing to make the engines more effiecient, and Honda, Toyota, and the smaller cars are making a huge comeback. Up until 2 years ago we were paying from1.50 to 2.00 per gallon. And the oil companies were making again record profits. I would say if you want to complain about pulluters just look to the east. The sleeping giant is awakening and it will be 10 times worse than North America.
We are working towards becoming energy self sufficient, the only problem is that we are 35 years too late. We should have done it in the 70s.

[abraxas]

I think being in Greece you are miising the grand scale of things in Canada and the US. It is nothing to drive 60 miles one way to work, This is a large expanse of land over here and you need to be able to drive. I will admit we have done nothing to make the engines more effiecient, and Honda, Toyota, and the smaller cars are making a huge comeback. Up until 2 years ago we were paying from1.50 to 2.00 per gallon. And the oil companies were making again record profits. I would say if you want to complain about pulluters just look to the east. The sleeping giant is awakening and it will be 10 times worse than North America.
We are working towards becoming energy self sufficient, the only problem is that we are 35 years too late. We should have done it in the 70s.

Thank you ZMAN

In no way I'm saying that citizens of the US or Canada are to be blamed. Except, perhaps, for not having developed a deeper ecological conscience; but the State has the main responsibility in that matter. Having said that, things are no better in Greece, in this regard. :confused:

Great distances can be covered much much more efficiently with high speed trains, like in Japan and other countries. Also, I would expect from the US government to mobilize critical R&D resources towards "clean" technologies, like Hydrogen (Japan does, btw, there are already experimental hydrogen cars from Honda).

With regards to China (and India, I'd have to add), please note that the graph I posted was per capita. China already pollutes a bit more than the US, but it has nearly 4 times the population.

Sorry again if this looks politically aggressive (which it isn't; it rather emphasizes my frustration on the matter), but if the US starts to spend even a 10% of it's military expenses for environmental R&D, the world will be a much better place to live in a few years. BTW, did you know that, operation alone of the US armed forces themselves, accounts for a very large percentage of the total US contribution to the World's pollution problem?

Don't want to make this any more political so I'll say only this: all us citizens of the World should make our priority, to put pressure on our governments, before it's too late for the world our children shall inherit.

[player]

That's pretty cool....but I save a bundle with this chunk of garden hose.:D
Ah yes the old West Virginia gas pump trick,or how to get shot easy with prices today.

Stum it works here and other forums too so I don't know.not one guitar or gear price came up:confused:

[Katastrophe]

Katastrophe, there is no Greek Drachma for 9 years now. :D

Wow, you pay ~0.7-1 Euro per litre and complain about it??

Prices in Europe are frequently above 1.5 euro per litre!!

It may look mean saying this, and please forgive me. But I think that "artificially" low gas prices, for all those years in the US (mainly), along with those american... ehm... "cars" of yours :D (with engines like those we in Europe use on heavy trucks), certainly contributed on the US being the foremost air polluter in the world.

http://maps.grida.no/go/graphic/national_carbon_dioxide_co2_emissions_per_capita

The above graph is per capita!!!.

Hint: buy European and Japanese/Korean cars. They are more economical, faster, far safer and more confortable than yours. This is a subject where, being patriotic, is utterly foolish. ;)

Oops! Pardon my ignorance...That's what I get for using the Internet to find a currency conversion program!:D Does Greece use the euro for its main currency? I must admit that I am completely clueless when it comes to world currency...

Just to let you know, we have two cars, one Korean and one Japanese. Both are relatively fuel efficient, and my wife carpools to work with 3 other coworkers to cut down on gas use. We started doing this long before the latest round of price hikes.

[abraxas]

Oops! Pardon my ignorance... Does Greece use the euro for its main currency? I must admit that I am completely clueless when it comes to world currency...

Just to let you know, we have two cars, one Korean and one Japanese. Both are relatively fuel efficient, and my wife carpools to work with 3 other coworkers to cut down on gas use. We started doing this long before the latest round of price hikes.

Yes, Greece was one of the first countries in the EU to embrace the Euro, with some rather nasty side effects, but that's a totally different story.:whatever:

I honestly congratulate you on you ecological conscience! I truly do! This is the spirit we ALL must subscribe to, I believe. Apart from all the current hype about ecology, which I sometimes find ridiculous, our responsibility as citizens and members of the human race is the only thing we've got left. My hat's off to you my friend! :master:

[ZMAN]

Abraxas: Don't sweat it. You are right on the money. We need to take a step back and take a look at our lifestyle. I personally have gone from 2 to 1 vehicles and my next move will be to a hybrid or 4 cylinder. You are not politically aggressive, we realize we are killing the planet but you have to realize that we have been programmed to see vast distances as minutes at 70 mph. We as a continent will have to rethink our whole lifestyle. But that is where I think we will excell. You have to realize our whole economy revolves around the automobile, and that will take many years to get away from.
We will do it though.

[sumitomo]

Hey I drive a little ol honda and she gets about 6 miles to the gallon,and I dont use the speedo I drive using the radar detector.Come on down for a ride but dont forget your depends.Sumi :D

[just strum]

yesterday I paid $3.89 a gallon in NY. In Canada today it was $1.20 per liter and today in Ohio I paid $3.48.

I drove 640 miles in a 24 hour period US to Canada and back, so I am the cause for this problem.


abraxas, us Americans don't like to be criticized about our driving habits and Hummers - we've dispatched fighter jets to Greece just to drop a few warning bombs:D

[sumitomo]

Forgot to tell ya race gas is 9 bucks a gallon.Sumi :D

[just strum]

I work in aerospace, think about all the fuel that's being used by those flying machines above your head. Boating season is starting in the north, they are really going to be crying.

[tot_Ou_tard]

T
Great distances can be covered much much more efficiently with high speed trains, like in Japan and other countries. Also, I would expect from the US government to mobilize critical R&D resources towards "clean" technologies, like Hydrogen (Japan does, btw, there are already experimental hydrogen cars from Honda).
Europeans really don't understand the scale of North America. High-speed trains only make economic & ecological sense if there are large numbers of people moving from point A to point B. It's waaaayy big over here.

I agree that the US should be at the cutting edge of green technology. We are a weird mix of fat lazy greedy dumb-asses & free-thinking change makers. Lately the greedy dumb-asses have been in control.

[peachhead]

I read an article today where a company in California (I think) named Tesla is taking orders for their electric roadster. Cool looking car- 0-60 in 4 seconds and goes 200 miles on a charge. Of course it costs $109,000.....
They apparently have orders for 600 so far.

Neat, but I don't think I'll be running out getting one anytime soon.

[Childbride]

Europeans really don't understand the scale of North America. High-speed trains only make economic & ecological sense if there are large numbers of people moving from point A to point B. It's waaaayy big over here.

I agree that the US should be at the cutting edge of green technology. We are a weird mix of fat lazy greedy dumb-asses & free-thinking change makers. Lately the greedy dumb-asses have been in control.


for example... tomorrow, i will get up at 5 am and drive 2 hours to court out of county. there is no public transport there, just farm to market/highways [in fact, this is a county so small, that when i first went there 10 years ago, people rode to court on horseback]. that's one way. i do that at least four times a month; the shortest distance being 45 minutes [one way]. texas is HUGE. but when shiner and i are in town, we walk to court, we walk downtown... we recycle... the distances are just an issue that currently cannot be overcome, b/c there is no infrastructure to support such.

[wingsdad]

.... You have to realize our whole economy revolves around the automobile, and that will take many years to get away from.
We will do it though.
Perhaps, Z, but here in sunny Southern California, cars are worshipped because they don't rust or rot, threatened only by sandstorms that can blast the paint off the nose of the hood or pit a windshield into a blinding, prismatic Comprehensive Insurance Claim served by auto glass repair companies with fleets of vans that come to your home or job to replace it in an hour or less.

In the 60's, the Beach Boys gave the world Little Deuce Coupe, Shut Down, 409 and Fun, Fun, Fun while other California guitar bands piped up with Little GTO, Little Cobra, and so on.

Public Rapid Trasit is a threat to car worshippers; the only people riding our bus systems do so because they can't afford to own a car, not to save the planet. So Public Trans runs in the red, taking muggers, tweakers and hookers from point A to Point B.

Yesterday, I filled my 4-cylinder with 91-Octane Premium Unleaded at $4.20/gallon for $42. A year ago, it was around $3/gal. Yikes. :thwap: I use 91 instead of mid-grade 89 that costs about 5% less per gallon because I get 10% better gas mileage, so not only is it actually cheaper, but the fuel burns more efficiently and ultimately cleaner, saving my EFI system from headaches, and with lower emissions. Regular 87 makes my engine ping & knock, warning me that it will probably cost me more than what I'd save on gas to repair or maintain, maybe even a new engine in the long haul.

[abraxas]

Just for clarification, I'm an avid car fan. I have owned several of the (European) "hot-hatch" cars as well as "vintage sport" cars (Alfa Romeos to be exact). We mainly use to drive them within an inch of their lives, on twisty mountain and country roads. I also watch car races (Rallies, F1, Circuit racing, Hillclimbs, etc) since I was perhaps 10. I love cars.

We use either 95 or 98 octane gas in Europe. There is also 101-103 octane gas, useful for high performance engines. I doubt there is one modern engine in existence here that can operate with less than 93 octane (in the event of sensing low octane fuel, it's ECU would shut it down to prevent damage). What's the catch with such low quality fuel in America?

[Robert]

I bike everywhere I can. Or run. I want to get a hybrid vehicle next.

<start rant>
I wouldn't mind if gasoline cost 5 times as much. Then maybe we would get better public transportation systems. Here in Alberta, that's mostly a joke.

It makes me mad when I see people around here take their huge pickup trucks to drive a couple of blocks to buy a newspaper, and they leave it running too - in summer weather! Arrghh!

(Many municipalities in Sweden have passed a by-law prohibiting car drivers to leave their vehicle idling for longer than one minute.)
<end rant>

[player]

for one.low quality decision makers in America.don't even want to say much more being this is a music forum.:thwap:

[abraxas]

I bike everywhere I can. Or run. I want to get a hybrid vehicle next.


Wish Athens was more friendly to bikes Robert... Ask elavd about bikes, he's got a new one! :D



It makes me mad when I see people around here take their huge pickup trucks to drive a couple of blocks to buy a newspaper, and they leave it running too - in summer weather! Arrghh!

(Many municipalities in Sweden have passed a by-law prohibiting car drivers to leave their vehicle idling for longer than one minute.)
<end rant>

Believe me when I say I see similar things here in Greece... what in the name of the gods are they thinking???? A 2.5 tone, tank-like vehicle trying to move through city streets.... :whatever:

[SuperSwede]

We decided against getting a second car, mainly because of the cost of gas here around 2 usd for a litre (!!!)...

I bought a scooter instead! Easy to park and it doesnt use much gas either.

[Robert]

My friend bought a Smart Car. Pretty cool little thing. It actually has lots of room for 2 people.

[marnold]

Mods, feel free to nuke this if you think it's too political. I've just been thinking about this a lot.

I just was having a discussion with someone about this today. There are a couple of factors. Right now, speculation is driving the cost of oil through the roof. A very small percentage of oil goes through the commodities markets, but the price is used for everyone. As I understand it, oil is the only commodity only traded in the U.S. dollar. The dollar is so incredibly weak the price is being artificially inflated.

Another thing is that the U.S. is still on top of the largest, mostly untapped source of oil in the world in Alaska but people will have a fit if you drill there. We also can't build more refineries so if there is a problem (the one in Illinois seems to "catch fire" every spring), the price of gas skyrockets. Add to that the gouging that normally comes as Memorial Day approaches and here we are. I'm not saying that people who are against drilling up there or building refineries are idiots, far from it. I don't want every city to have the air quality of Gary, Indiana, either. But just realize that there are consequences to those decisions.

I've heard people talk about how the Model T got 25 miles to the gallon and many cars get no better today. I won't get into whether that figure is actually correct or not, but what people don't remember is that there was virtually no emissions control on a Model T. There were no impact bars in the doors to keep the cabin from collapsing. If you removed the emissions controls, gas mileage on every car would shoot up. Of course, we'd probably asphyxiate too. You can't have it both ways. People talk about electric cars being the future. How we will charge them with our grid already overloaded and no one wanting a new powerplant in their backyard is beyond me.

Having said that, I had to laugh in a very sad way when I watched the news last year. They showed a woman wearing an expensive sweater at a gas station filling up this SUV monstrosity and complaining about the price of gas. It seems like I see an awful lot of great big vehicles being driven by very tiny women. Not sure what's up with that.

As far as the U.S. goes anyway, my crystal ball foretells ethanol becoming a bigger thing. Different grasses produce much more ethanol than corn will without stripping the soil. Yes, ethanol is more costly to produce right now, but that can be answered with a little technology and economies of scale. Since vast quantities of land in the U.S. are still wide open, we can grow crops like nobody's business. Heck, if we paid the farmers to grow ethanol crops instead of growing nothing we'd come out ahead. It might just save a family farm or two. More crops also mean more CO2 being consumed from the atmosphere.

Whatever the solution is, someone will find it. I don't say that because I have tremendous faith in humanity. I have tremendous faith in greed. Whoever comes up with a viable alternative will become fantastically wealthy.

Here's a neat trivia question for you. Do you know what country is the #1 supplier of oil to the U.S.? Canada! #3 is Mexico.

[SuperSwede]

Whatever the solution is, someone will find it. I don't say that because I have tremendous faith in humanity. I have tremendous faith in greed. Whoever comes up with a viable alternative will become fantastically wealthy.


You are absolutely correct. And imagine the market boom when everyone will want to replace their thirsty gasoline cars with new <"insert future fuel here">

In Sweden the percentage of new cars that is branded as "green cars" was 30% last year. We also have lower taxes for "green cars" and in most cities you can park for free.

[WackyT]

I just wish politicians weren't allowed to kill a renewable energy program (wind farm) just because it'll be seen while they're on their yacht dumping their diesel-contaminated bilge water into the ocean, then turn around and claim they're all for renewable energy sources.

Another one that gets my goat is someone taking a private jet halfway around the world to tell people they aren't doing enough to halt global warming.

[ZMAN]

Wingsdad: I will tell you a little story. The name Z man came from my collection of Camaro Z/28s. I have owned 3 of them all 1969 models. I currently own a 68 Camaro that I take to cruise nights. My last Z was a 1969 Garnet red with red deluxe interior and black Z stripes that had only 30,000 miles. I won best unrestored original Camaro at the Canadian Camaro Nationals
There is nobody on this forum who worships the car more I do. I realize what we are up against in trying to free ourselves from oil but I am sure there will be some pretty fast, cool looking personal vehicles in our future, without oil.

[abraxas]

I realize what we are up against in trying to free ourselves from oil but I am sure there will be some pretty fast, cool looking personal vehicles in our future, without oil.

Amen to that! :AOK:

[peachhead]

.

Here's a neat trivia question for you. Do you know what country is the #1 supplier of oil to the U.S.? Canada! #3 is Mexico.

I found that out today- my sister sent me some spam about not using companies who got their oil from the gulf, etc. etc. etc. Being the spam hater I am, I looked it up and pointed out the inaccuracies of her email to her- and discovered that in the process.

Anyway, my own rant: after reading the major oil companies response to their record profits (we're just making up for the slow years, and putting more money into research), gas prices are all crap. Supply and demand- that's all it is. Gotta have it, so I buy it. Don't mean I gotta like it, though.

I'd get a scooter but I have a fear of pavement. Luckily I car pool with my neighbor so that helps somewhat.