Glatt - You're right. I've measured gas consumption due to AC in the Insight at 0.13 gallon/hour. This should be fairly constant whenever the compressor is running. I've measured fuel consumption in the Insight at idle, without AC, to be about 0.1 gallon/hour, so this is a significant increase.

An SUV getting 20 mpg at 60 mph would use 3 gallon/hr, and if the AC was using an additional 0.2 gph the mileage would drop to about 19 mpg - which would be difficult to measure without some added instrumentation.

Unfortunately, they stopped making the Insight a few months ago (that wasn't very good timing, was it?). I could probably sell mine for what I paid for it in 2003.

Bummer. I'll take a Prius, then.

Seriously, I do look forward to getting a fuel efficient car in the future.

$2.98 today. Things are looking up. But I doubt it will last.

$3.25/gal this weekend

Still cheaper in Alaska.

$2.97 now.

Maybe all the fires have slowed the tourist trade.

$3.229 in SoCal. Slowly drifting down. The price curve on gasoline reminds me of the light curve of a Cepheid -- steep rise, slow drop.

We know what the refiners are doing. They are making a mint under that slow-descent curve.

Found this picture from the BBC of an American gas station:

I have never seen gas at 4.00 a gallon. Crazy.

Oh sure, pick the fattest, bowlegged, knuckle-dragging, glassy-eyed, sports-car-driving frat boy as a representative of an American at the gas pump. Thanks, BBC.

Notice that he is trying to supplement his gasoline with methane.

Down to $2.92 today. Lowest I have seen in a few weeks.

Some interesting comments by Thomas Sowell:

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/pri...obscene_p.html

You know this is another example of TheMercenary's political agenda. The title is "Real Clear Politics". Then it talks about liberals. Extremists need extremists. If necessary, extremist will invent their enemies.

Extremists will even let bin Laden run free only because it serves their political agenda - reality be damned. The only thing predictable is that TheMercenary has no interest in reality - such as why gas prices are higher. Reality would not promote a poltical agenda.

Bla, bla, bla. Why not address the article? You are more concerned that I am on here than you are about the substance of the discussion. What are you afraid of?

$3.15 yesterday.

1 place 2.86 - but most others 2.96

$2.99 at the Food n Fuel on Highway 12 in Milbank, South Dakota today.

$3.29 at the Short Stop Shell in Buffalo, Wyoming, at exit 299 on I-25.

$3.09 yesterday. Still > $50 to fillup.

About like that in Ventura County, too: $3.08.

Definitely time to do your commuting in a light, small vehicle. Definitely time to make telecommuting the general thing. "Make Millions Working From Home ;)"

Ah, my favorite evil-revealing prankster group has struck again!

Still down at 2.85 here. I heard a great rant by a financial planner the other day on the radio. Basically he said that buying a car or keeping a car that got a huge difference in gas milage really was not worth it unless you drove thounds of miles a month as part of your work. The cost to you personally was not worth making a big deal out of it. If you want a car with a huge gas milage savings of say 50mpg that is one thing, but the difference between owning a car that got 18mpg and 28 mpg really made no financial difference. If you do it because it makes you feel better about saving the world that is one thing, but unless all the trucks, cars, 18 wheelers, factories, and coal fired plants get on board at the same time you are not really having any effect on the world. Further people who drive 10 miles to save 5 cents per gallon are not really saving that much money. Some interesting thoughts....

If he said that it makes no sense to sell your current car and buy a new one just because the price of gas went up ten cents, then I agree with him.

However, if he said that when your old car dies, and it's time to buy a new car, you shouldn't consider fuel efficiency as part of the over-all decision, then he's a moron.

But if your car dies and you choose a gas miser to replace it, you won't get to use your share of the oil before it runs out. Someone else will be getting your rightful share with no compensation to you.... maybe even a foreigner.

I keep a lake of eternally-burning oil in my back yard.

You lie. In your backyard, it would have to be a lake of tar, or it would end up at the bottom of the mountain.

Now I know I've exposed myself too much in the Cellar.

Edit: responding to xoB, below: I suppose that wasn't the best wording, was it?

Is your name nightsong?

Not really a moron. Not if the new car you can afford is equal to the efficiency of the car you lost. I think his point was it really has more to do with what you do with your car than some group of idiots preaching to everyone about your need to get a expensive car that gets 10 more miles per gallon. Not really all that important from a personal financial standpoint. I would have to agree.

$2.95 / gal this weekend

Let's say you drive 15,000 miles per year and your old car gets 15 miles per gallon. If you replace it with a car that gets 30 mpg (still pretty modest) you'll save 500 gallons of gas per year. At the current gas price that's $1,500 per year. What else can you do to save so much so easily?

I thought the role of financial planners was to encourage you to save money.

Paid $2.889 a gallon today...it went up from $2.729 yesterday.

How do you save money if you sell a car you own, an older car, and buy a new car? Pick a number... either way you are now paying a car payment, what if it was only $200 per month {pretty damm low}, that is $2200 a year more in expense. If you can afford a really new car you would be paying more like $400 or $600 a year which would be $4800 or 7200 a year.

Sorry TM, I wasn't clear. This was for the case where you're ready to replace your car anyway.

Before I bought my Honda Insight, in 2003, I did the whole economic analysis and determined that the economics wouldn't be favorable unless gas went to $5/gallon. I bought the car anyway. Of course, after the car is paid off in a few months, I'll be saving quite a bit, compared to the Ford Ranger that used to be my primary vehicle.

HLJ, Got ya... But you do get my point. There are quite a number of emotionally motivated simpletons out there who think that by simply owning a car the gets better gas milage in someway saves them a ton of money. It might, it might not. There are quite a few factors that effect such a decision. Same for driving 10 miles to save $0.05 a gallon on gas. I have a boat with a 135 gal tank. I filled it with 100 gallons of gas the other day. The place near us sells gas for $2.90, the place in town, 10 miles away, for $2.85. I would have saved $5.00 in gas by driving to town. Towing the boat with my truck, getting about 12 mpg under towning conditions, would have cost me 2.00, I would have saved $3 by making the drive, not really worth it. People need to appy the same thought process to practical applications in buying a car. The bottom line is you are right, big differences are not going to happen till gas were to suddenly jump up to $5 or $6 a gallon.

TM,
In the last five years I've been involved in many renewable energy feasibility studies, probably 50 to 100, and I can only think of three that have resulted in hardware on the ground. This is almost always a decision based on economics.

I agree that most people buying fuel-efficient vehicles don't take economics into consideration in their car choices (or at least they don't do the math), but neither do people buying a Mustang or a Corvette or an Explorer. They might determine if they can afford the car payment, but probably don't give too much thought to the other operating expenses.

Good points. True, it goes both ways.

I've seen the passdown of the cost on our imported goods as well.

Fruits, sugar, soda pop.

.

$2.76? In New York?! When, I wonder. I live out in the 'burbs where it's a bit lower than in the city, and I'm lucky my local station's price just dropped from $3.21 to $3.17. I'm just glad to not have to pay European prices.

$2.849 at a fill-up today.

Finally dropped below $2.80 today. $2.79 today.

$2.76 today

$2.99 at the Maverik on West Franklin and Maple Gove in Boise, Idaho, today.

$2.699 at the local QT. I've found new routes to reduce the amount of miles I'm driving, while not wasting extra time. I'm down to just under 2 tanks of gas a week now.

It only cost me $102.65 to fill my truck today, yeah.

Holy crap! That must be a huge truck.

I put about $70 twice a week in my truck. Wife fills up one time a week, daughter more frequently, son more frequently.

I use about 11 gallons a month in the Insight.

Relevant cost is dollars per mile. For example, I see the naive lining up in the WaWa and Hess for cheaper gas that only costs them more money.

Just did my last tank that I expected to be a little better. Gas was $0.086 per mile. I was expecting more like $0.079 per mile. Gas mileage since ethanol has been noticeably lower compared to last year.

Amazing how people complain when gas is so cheap.

Don't forget to buy at cool night or morning, instead of during the hot day, when some kind of thermal expansion means you get less gas per each gallon you bought.

Amount of $ I make per mile
April: $1.80
May: $1.79
June: $1.82

Cost of gas per mile (estimate)
April: $0.225
May: $0.277
June: $0.242

sycamore -- are you only getting 13 mpg?

That's about right...keep in mind, I deliver pizzas in a city for a living.

You need one of these pizza delivery scooters.

Sorry, I don't know how to imbed a YouTube video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3awQoP-bMck

I've heard that, but believe it to be a bunch of hooey. Aren't the holding tanks well underground? I doubt that the temp at that depth changes much. I mean, most caves around here are a constant temp for that reason. (OK, the caves are closer to the Mississippi, but whatever)

Someone have any Snopey type info to back me up?



Oh, I forgot to add, gas last night on the way to the pool $2.85. On the way home 1.5 hrs later, $2.99. Hayzeus.

This past week, we in SoCal were pleased to see it going below three bucks the gallon. We are dealing with the special California blends, though, intended to reduce smog in the Los Angeles valley.

And ethanol doesn't make as energy-dense a fuel as gasoline anyway -- mileage will always slump.

Energy content of gasoline varies significantly just with different blends. Reynold number alone varies signficantly between winter and summer.

Problem with all these claims about colder or warmer gas - no numbers. Suggests junk science reasoning.

Prices vary even with season far more than the energy content in a gallon of gas due to temperature. If less energy in a summer gallon, well just another reason why that gallon costs a little less.

Meanwhile, how many people care? View the naive buying gas at discount stations (Sheets, Wawa, 7-11, Hess, etc) who therefore pay more for the gas - dollars per mile. Did they do the numbers? But again, so many just know; do not first do numbers. No numbers is how a junk scientist is created and promoted by the 'local gossip' (some call it the 5 o'clock news).

So where's the good shit at? And how do you know?

BTW, stuck at $2.61/gal for about a week in New Jersey, right across the bridge from Philadelphia.