I'm already laughing about it now. I went to Toyota's website and built a Prius with middle of the road options.

$27,000!!!! Figure in taxes and destination and that's a $30,000 car. Yeah, that's totally worth saving $15 at the pump every time you fill up.

 

Archer Daniels Midland, along with the environmental lobby, have successfully convinced the congress that we needed to do the gasohol mandate. The ethenol is supposed to reduce emissions.

 

Sure hope so. Many people have been calling this a bubble for over a year, since when $60/barrel oil seemed high. Obviously, enough other people still see it going up to continue to support the price.

I guess it will continue to go up until it doesn't, at which point it will actually be agreed that it was a bubble.

Like the Tech stocks in the late 90's. People could see that it was a bubble in the making, but didn't want to miss the ride while it was happening. The hope was that you would get out of it before it headed back down.

 

^ Very good point.... but i wish we didnt have to fill up in the process, but i guess it was like the 90's when a base computer was 3K and now a good computer only runs like 700 ish.....

Its a part of life, cut exp's somewhere, they say in business, whoever can last through this, will come out in great shape....

 

If you want a cheap way to get better fuel economy get something called Sea Foam. I put it in and saw about 1-2 mpg better. It isn't bad for the valve seals either as it is also a lubricator. You just put it in the gas tank but if you want the best result suck it up through the PCV valve.

 

How long have you been using the seafoam? I heard of it before but just never tried it. Did you calculate your mpg before and after putting the seaform in? I'm assuming your driving condition was the same for both calculations.

 

Well.. I don't see demand ebbing off - ever, and I don't see supplies radically changing soon either. In fact, in some areas of the world, supply (production) is actually reducing. Look at Mexico, one of the largest oil producers in the world. Their ****ty state-run oil company is so broke due to high taxes, that it can't afford to keep its equipment maintained, let alone explore for new oil fields. Their production peaked at ~2.8m barrels just a few years ago, is currently at ~2 IIRC, and is expected to fall to 1 in the next few years. Mexico doesn't want to allow foreign investment into the industry, and their national budget gets 40% of its gross income from oil revenue.

See the problem?

OPEC isn't going to increase production, even if they could. I personally think they could, but why would they increase production when they are literally making more money than they know what to do with? Look at Dubai... Good god.

I just don't see how prices can go down if the supply doesn't go up. You're right that the weak dollar is partly to blame (how long will that take to fix), and that speculation has driven prices up artificially - but it seems to me that without increased supply or reduced demand, we won't see huge price drops.

Hell, I'd be happy if it went below $3.50 a gallon. And this is the same guy that felt anally violated when prices were $2.25 a gallon. That's how cowed we all are.

~MiSfit

 

I've never heard of the benefits of sea foam outweighing the cons. Can't remember exactly what was happenning, but I know a LOT of people were VERY unhappy.

*sigh* I remember gas hitting $3 and freaking out then...

Now it's like $4.09 for premium...*GASP!*

 

consider yourself lucky. Regular is $4.09 here, as much as $4.17 some places, and premium is $4.39 most places

 

Where do you live? Must be southeast-ish. Georgia maybe?

 

24.4 MPG... my commute to work, about 60% fwy and 40% local. 35 miles one way.

 

California. I live in Santa Cruz, and commute up to Santa Clara for work. It's brutal.

 

Just filled up tonight at the local Chevron. Price for 93 gas is now at $4.01, and I just filled up 18 gallons. Feeling the pain already.

 

Where am I complaining??

 

Just over 20 miles per gallon over the last 2 tanks of gas on the highway with premium. Kind of proof that Premium doesn't give better overall gas mileage than lower grades on an 04 AT Sedan.