Have higher fuel prices affect how you drive?

Ricardo

hearingimpared wrote: »

Well Ric first off I don't know which Larry you are referrring to and if there was a problem I'm not aware of it. I've been away for 2 1/2 months and just got back on the forum.

I sent you a PM buddy.

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=112556

billbillw

These are the same prices we saw in 2008, before the oil bubble burst. The cycle will come around again when the market realizes this is not an accurate value for oil.

reeltrouble1

hearingimpared wrote: »

Well Ric first off I don't know which Larry you are referrring to and if there was a problem I'm not aware of it. I've been away for 2 1/2 months and just got back on the forum.

I sent you a PM buddy.

The one you owe money to. No PM necessary buddy.

RT1

TECHNOKID

reeltrouble1 wrote: »

The one you owe money to. No PM necessary buddy.

RT1

Little off thread subject, right? Wasn't there enough crushing while he was away from CP? Wouldn't you think it be just fair that the involved parties do try to resolve through PMs before any lynching starts again? I tought you had some respect for the men....

Going back to fuel pricing, we are hostage and the only way to free our selve from such is to seek alternatives such as the electric car however let's face it oil companies always had strong hold on this technology and thus the reason why it is so slowly and poorly happening not because it is not feasible.

Some examples are the EV1 and closer to home, Hydro Quebec had developped a successfull electric powertrain and were ordered out of the blues to trash the project. When governments themselves are pulling negative strings against technology advances, we really have to wonder what is going on...

Have higher fuel prices affect how you drive?

Lately I have been seriously asking my self questions about my costs versus my earnings. I am seriously rethinking my present job. Extensive daily commute from and to work along with some travelling to meet clients during working hours.

tonyb

Uh...because governments are...broke. You claim we are a hostage to oil, maybe to some extent, but if we indeed are, then why not go after our own oil ? Why not proceed in coal,or nuclear ? We need a basket of energy sources, and to purposely get rid of one for another just makes you hostage to different owners, with a nice little spin on it like saving the planet or some other B.S.

TECHNOKID

Uh...because governments are...broke.

My government example is way back before the recession. Hydro Quebec is making huge revenues as a crown corporation. Electricity is a natural and renewable source of energy. I can see some concerns for many countries which have to use coal and fossil fuels to generate electricity but in Quebec specific situation there are no excuses, we have surplusses.

but if we indeed are, then why not go after our own oil ? Why not proceed in coal,or nuclear ? We need a basket of energy sources, and to purposely get rid of one for another just makes you hostage to different owners, with a nice little spin on it like saving the planet or some other B.S.

IMHO oil and coal are passe as energy sources, the only reason they still exist is $$$ and it is worth while for the producers to keep it alive while crushing other alternative energies. Nuclear plants are time bombs and we don't need to go too far in history for an example, right?

I am a firm believer of electricity as energy source and furthermore, we should move toward personal generating as this will allow us to free our selves from being hostage of the large corporations that use them to clean us out of our hard earnings. Again, a good reason for making technology to self produce so expensive that most people will get discourage of looking at the option. Look at cost of making electric powertrain versus fuel guzling powertrains. IMO, it is much cheaper to produce electric powertrain than gaz powertrain but buying them is a totally different story if you get my drift.

F1nut

reeltrouble1 wrote: »

The one you owe money to. No PM necessary buddy.

RT1

Oh snap!

madmax

I calculated the difference in price and how much it costs me weekly. Over the past two years I've averaged $20 a week. (thanks discover spending charts). With the increased price at the pumps I will now be spending $25. Not enough to worry about, I'm keeping the pedal to the metal!

tonyb

Not to re hash, but saw an interesting article today. Since the highway fund depends largely on the gas tax, and since you may buy less gas because of prices, or you turned to electric cars, there's going to be a money crunch. So to remedy the situation....

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/03/25/uncle-sam-considers-taxing-motorists-miles-driven/

treitz3

Great. Another BS tax....as if it would actually go to highway maintenance. I'm sure the trucking industry would enjoy this one....

fatchowmein

With the recent recession and suppose recovery, many folks are taking whatever jobs or the best jobs they can find meaning we don't have the luxury of worrying about long commute times when deciding job offers (if any). Taxing by mileage would be a slap in the face.

tonyb

treitz3 wrote: »

Great. Another BS tax....as if it would actually go to highway maintenance. I'm sure the trucking industry would enjoy this one....

Damn, didn't think of those poor dudes. Heck, it would destroy them. Or they'd just pass the added costs on to the end consumer, like you and I.

Jstas

Ummm...so nobody is concerned about a government mandated and administered tracking device being placed in every vehicle in America under the already heinous guise of tax collection and protected by federal laws concerning tax evasion?

Yeah, write your senators and congressmen and tell them how screwed up you think this is. I already did.

Add to that the fact that we are already taxed per gallon of gas sold based on the average number of miles drive per gallon of gas.

Then add on top of that the fact to actually implement enforce and levy just the technology alone on the hundreds of millions of vehicles in this country would negate the revenue benefit alone. Forget about the added cost of actually collecting the taxes and issuing refunds and penalties. They'd probably want you to PAY for the tracking device that they are going to use to tax you with too.

And if Americans are buying less gas, and they are worried about revenue dropping because of that then adding a mileage tracker is just going to show that people are buying less gas because they are driving less miles to begin with.

What I find insane is that so many people are against stuff like the "Patriot Act" but this, something seemingly clipped right from the pages of "1984", is even considered at all.

tonyb

I wasn't going to go there John, but glad you did and not me for once. Agreed.

treitz3

I'm more worried about the US losing it's status with the reserve dollar, but that's for another thread not allowed on this forum. You think driving and gas is expensive now or even after these proposed tax hikes/regulations?

Whoa.

cnh

Personally, I'm more concerned about what gas hikes will do to truckers, etc. The way we move/transport goods across the U.S. The last hikes weren't kind there. As for me, we drive the wife's Prius more and we live in a small town so we don't really put on a lot of miles.

Also, I just got back from Europe where gas was about $8.50/gallon! So it's hard for me to complain, yet?

cnh

tonyb

treitz3 wrote: »

I'm more worried about the US losing it's status with the reserve dollar, but that's for another thread not allowed on this forum. You think driving and gas is expensive now or even after these proposed tax hikes/regulations?

Whoa.

Having some experience in the currency markets, I have brought up the dollar as the worlds reserve before. If you recall, there was,and still is talk of useing a basket of currency as the worlds reserve, with the dollar not being one of them. This would almost overnight plunge us into deep depression the likes we have never seen before.

treitz3

Why do you think I'm more worried about that, then proposed BS taxes?

Glad to see someone is paying attention.

gdb

I'm on the lookout for a nice,classic,gas guzzling land yacht to have for a Sunday driver. When gas prices rise, people practically give em away !

Tour2ma

I want my roads...
I want them pothole free...
I want the snow cleared off of them in winter...
Just don't you dare ask me to pay for them.

... and for all I know that so called mileage device that's tracking me might interfere with my OnStar... cell phone... Garmin...

This thread is getting popcorn worthy...

janmike

I drive the same as before - no change.

tonyb

C'mon Bruce, I was kinda wishing for "chili dog and brew" worthy, damn, now I'm hungry.

inspiredsports

The six of us go through about 150 gallons of gas which used to average about $2.75 per gallon and cost $400 per month.

Now that prices have reached $3.60 per gallon which would cost $540 for the same quantity, we are starting to share rides and cut out uneccessary trips in an effort to cut our consumption to 120 gallons and keep the cash outlay at the same $400 per month.

There are other major savings involved by driving less in terms of wear and tear and maintenance so we are currently saving even more than the annual $1,680 we would have incurred if prices stay the same and we continued to burn 150 gallons per month.

If push comes to shove, we can probably cut another 15 gallons per month as prices continue to rise.

It's fun to be glib and respond "What price increase?", but no matter what you earn, it's still money out of your pocket that you now can't save or use for other things (like audio gear) so we've made a concerted effort to keep those dollars "in house".

With higher food prices, we'll also have a much larger garden this year.

I moved lots of my equity positions into mining and such about 7 years ago and that's helping to ease the pain also.

tonyb

Good on you to take steps to.... keep more of your coin "in house". What a concept. Unfortunately, your not buying enough gas, thus taking money away from the fund that supplies union jobs. That money will have to be made up somewhere.
Thats why I say when enough people get on the electric car bandwaggon, you'll see prices soar and you will soon find yourself in the same boat, money wise, as gasoline.

Jstas

Tour2ma wrote: »

I want my roads...
I want them pothole free...
I want the snow cleared off of them in winter...
Just don't you dare ask me to pay for them.

... and for all I know that so called mileage device that's tracking me might interfere with my OnStar... cell phone... Garmin...

This thread is getting popcorn worthy...

No one said anything about not having to pay for roads. But if you want to let the government track your whereabouts then you deserve whatever you have coming to you. There are different ways to fund infrastructure projects. Installing tracking devices in all vehicles on the road is just about an asinine and idea as your post.

xj4094dg

mantis wrote: »

I'm so sick and tired of the gas pump game. No reason to have to pay so much for a gallon of gas. My next vehicle will be less dependent on fossil fuel.

They get richer and I get poorer.

I agree. In a time when every F#(K!NG politician in the world is asking for everybody to sacrifice to get the economy back on track, the oil asshats are making record profits and not being asked to sacrifice ANY profits.

If the remote possibility of not making record profits appears, they just raise the end-cost to the consumer. Its a good gig if you can get it: NEVER A LOSS, ALWAYS RECORD PROFITS.

Besides, the oil companies know the consumers are idiots. We can't stop buying their product, indeed we waste it with **** driving habits and a penchant for gas-guzzling, fun-to-drive cars. I guess I'm an idiot too, I love driving fast cars. What can I say? I'm addicted and the oil companies are my dealer.

Know where I can score some cheap gas?

treitz3

Yeah, just hop on over to Venezuela.

tonyb

treitz3 wrote: »

Yeah, just hop on over to Venezuela.

Or Brazil, seeing we just commited 2 billion for oil drilling, OVER THERE !

treitz3

Good lord, why? When are they gonna start drilling here?

*bangs head*

All I foresee is job opportunities and $$$ staying in America. Kind of a win-win situation, so WTF is the problem?

inspiredsports

tonyb wrote: »

Good on you to take steps to.... keep more of your coin "in house". What a concept. Unfortunately, your not buying enough gas, thus taking money away from the fund that supplies union jobs. That money will have to be made up somewhere.
Thats why I say when enough people get on the electric car bandwaggon, you'll see prices soar and you will soon find yourself in the same boat, money wise, as gasoline.

Absolutely. The other problem is that currently, getting the same amount of electrical energy into a vehicle as petroleum energy cost more and creates more pollution.