Remember when self serve was the exception, not the norm, and that woman wrote a book entitled "Real Women Don't Pump Gas"? Are there any more full serves anymore, and what is the price differential?

There are still full serve stations. This is the law in New Jersey ... but gas is still cheaper than on my side of the bridge because the state taxes on the fuel aren't as high. I am not close enough to the border, nor am I willing to be disarmed to take 'advantage' of this, especially since what I might save per gallon I would lose in highway tolls and expended fuel for the round trip.

Self-Serve started at about the time I was learning to drive, so I learned that too. It's actually kind of strange to buy gas at a place where they do the work for you, and still check your oil and swab the dead bugs off your windshield (which they would do at the Shell Station up the street from me if I wanted them too). I don't know how much the surcharge for having them do the work is, though. If I remember to do so I'll walk around and check the full serve pump price, as it's not posted on the sign.

When I used to travel upstate there was a full serve station, or rather a station where they pumped the gas for you. No check the oil or wash the windshield unless you asked for it, though.

I'm no economist, but I just don't remember being outraged and near-bankrupted by fuel prices back then. I wonder if I'm just making that much less money now than I was then...when adjusted for inflation?

In the 80's, filling up my car didn't make me sick to my stomach like it does now. I have to put about $250.00 per month into my two functional cars on average for my normal use requirements...and I *really* go very few places that aren't work except for band practice once a week.

That $250.00 represents about 9% of our take-home pay, and that's just for gas. No other vehicle expenses.

Does anyone else pay that high of a percentage for fuel out of their take home wages?

Since I only buy gas on the card, It's pretty easy to keep track of what I'm spending each month ... I have a car that gets pretty crappy milage (i.e., under 18 mpg) and since the prices went up, am usually spending around $75-95/month on gas.

Last school year I was spending about 20 dollars a week getting to my day job waaay across town.

I know that gas is high but somehow it's been linked to the price of sugar and soda pop. I know you might think I am having a pheobe moment but really, Next time you go to buy a liter bottle at 1.69 plus deposit we'll have to assume it's shipped in from where? Hawaii?? It's been more painful to buy that stuff because unlike gasoline we don't really NEED it.

I was wondering the same. I don't want my oil checked but somethings would be nice to have the workers do.
I sure don't want to get my hands dirty before work if I have to use those little air pumps with the short little cord and about 2 minutes to get air into your tires before it shuts itself off. That is about as full service as it gets around here.

Hee, hee! Paid 2.32/gal yesterday! Tra-la!

Were gasoline prices high? Emotions said yes (in polls). Reality is completely different. One month this summer set a new record for gasoline consumption. Sales of GM's gas guzzlers reported this last quarter were at record high volume. Ford's F-150 sales, although down from last years record high levels, are still selling at numbers that are higher than most previous years.

Gasoline at $3+ per gallon was not expensive. SUV sales are still strong. With inflation, price of gasoline is same as gasoline prices in early and mid 1970s. That same history says gasoline must rise to somethng like $6 or $7 per gallon before consumers really consider gasoline expensive.

State gasoline tax is PA 45.1, NJ 32.9 and Ohio 40.4.

Don't be upset with Bush and Big Oil colluding to raise prices. After all, they're doing it for your own good. Their benefiting at historic levels, is just collateral damage. :right:

Southern California gas prices are finally easing below three a gallon, with most places selling regular unleaded in the 2.90 to 2.99 range.

Ah, now we can subsidise terror without the wallet pain.

Maybe if we were allowed to use our own supplies (wouldn't want to hurt a few caribou) and stopped tanking incentives for broadening ethinol production we wouldn't have to be funding terrorism. I'm sure I'm mentioned how that area of the world has no value except as an oil well, once that's no longer important they won't have the funds to maintain a TV network much less a terrorism network.

Why did the worlds largest supply of oil have be sitting under the asses of a bunch of psychotic nomads??? It's like a sick joke or something. Someone call global eminent domain on their asses and admit them to a nice psych ward, we'll tell the candy stripers to cover their arms to show we're meeting them partway.

Nurse Ratched could fix Bin Laden right fine.

Two reasons:
-1)There isn't as much oil up there that's as cheaply accessible at the same quality as shipping it from the Mideast.
-2)Ethanol isn't all that great. It takes a tremendous amount of power to produce, even if it does burn cleaner in autos. I'm pretty sure (though I can't remember where you actually have a net loss of CO2 when making and burning ehtanol fuel.

Gas is more expensive in LA than in the suburbs becasue LA adds a city tax, and a county tax.

I thought this was interesting:

http://www.losangelesgasprices.com/tax_info.aspx

It's a list of state taxes on fuel