The Price of Gasoline - How does (will) it affect you?

[another view]

However, I still refuse to shop there. It's gross and icky.

Agreed - the place drives me nuts.

The Whole Foods seafood counter is a thing of beauty. I really wish I had one locally. The store down the street has decent seafood for a "regular" grocery store but it's like fish sticks compared to Whole Foods. Sometime you're in downtown Chicago, check out Fox and Obel near Navy Pier. If you like olives and cheeses, you'll be very impressed even compared to WF. Outside of Harrod's market, it's the most expensive place to buy food I've been (just doesn't seem right to call it a grocery store). But it's worth it.

[Franglais]

Just to say that this thread has been very useful to me. Let me ramble on a bit..

It's Spring. As usual after the winter months in the city, I get the urge to go out and do some landscapes, what with there being 3 public holidays in May (= long weekend of 4 days). It would be nice to do some more with the 11-18mm Tamron I bought last year for the D200.

Obvious destination is Normandy/Picardy. Go to the photo exhibition in Honfleur then ramble along the north Normandy coast to Ault, an extraordinary seaside town perched on the cliffs discovered by the great Gabriele Basilico. But - gee whiz - I feel guilty about just going out and driving 300 miles. So I've been thinking and doing some preparation. My conclusions:

- the Normandy landscape is typically horizontal with cliffs and sea and it's not really suited to a wide-angle
- looking back at the photos i've done along that coast in the past - frankly they aren't that brilliant. (I'm really surprised at how bad some of my slide scans look now i'm used to the D200)
- I should really spend longer on the whole thing and stay a couple of nights to get better light at start and end of day
- I have really been having a lot of fun in Paris on the first two long weekends and the third one looks like being just as good. Why go off by myself in the car when I can be with some nice people?

I don't know what I'll do but this thread has made me think a bit more about what I'm doing.

Charles

[JSPhoto]

I don't know how fast you were driving or typically drive, but I've seen plenty of close calls when someone is driving easily 20 or maybe 30mph over the limit and another person pulls out in front of them. The speeder thinks the person pulling out is an idiot but the other driver can't always tell how fast they're going. While there might be enough room with the other vehicle at or close to the speed limit, there isn't enough room at 20-30mph over.

And at least around here, I've seen more cases of "isn't smart enough to drive" in large vehicles than small.

Learn to read.... it says I was driving the speed limit.... there was a cop behind me :thumbsup: And the moron was driving without a valid license, and illegally got insured using his brothers license.
In all the accidents I have had only one of them the other person had a license, and it was suspended following the accident for too many points.
BTW, my Jeep got hit at a school last night (while parked). Video showed the car that did it, and guess what, he had no license no insurance and fictitious plates! They found him after sending the picture to all the schools that were at the events. He claimed that his wife was driving but they have the video showing him behind the wheel
When they got him he was driving the car....from a buddies body shop. So now the Jeep gets a new door at his expense and he gets two more hits on his license for the hit and run and being a habitual traffic offender. He is now sitting in jail for unrelated warrants from two different counties.....another idiot.

Tonight coming home I saw 5 cops with a car stopped. Turned out he was in a hit and run and they were waiting for the tow truck to impound the car and the other department to pick up the driver. The guy wasn't too smart as he drove straight into a ditch as soon as the cops turned on their lights. Then there was the guy who decided to get off the interstate. Traffic at the ramp was stopping and he drove right into them, never touching his brakes, he went from 60 to 0. I saw it coming, but the guy next to me didn't and almost turned into me, but by then I was on the left shoulder so he missed me.
Then the final idiot of the day, guy driving too fast looses it and rolls the car in a field. He's unijured, but his 6 year old daughter is thrown from the car and has to be flown to the hospital because dad didn't put her in a car seat as the law requires. The dad was suspended too.
None of these people belong behind the wheel, think how much less we'ed all pay for not only gas but insurance if all the suspended drivers were off the road. There are 7.800 semi drivers running the roads of the US who are suspended, and over 2 million drivers on the road every day who are suspended, and as many as 150,000 who have never had a license at all.
You know, it's like the guy at FedEx who steals clothes from packages then wears the same clothes to work a week later....they just don't deserve to live....too damn stupid!

JS

[adina]

Just to say that this thread has been very useful to me. Let me ramble on a bit..

Obvious destination is Normandy/Picardy. -

Obvious destination, huh? You've got it rough.

[livin4lax09]

Did you ever consider that the momentum from your 6500 lb truck might have something to do with your inability to stop before you hit these "speedbumbs?" I've been driving for 15 years and never hit anyone. You've hit 6 people in one truck. I don't know anyone that has had that many accidents, let alone in one vehicle.

Your truck makes driving safer for you and more dangerous for everyone else.

Paul


Edit: I just realized that you acknowledged that your truck takes three times as long to slow down. I suppose you also realize that when you hit someone they are getting hit twice as hard as they would be if you were driving a more reasonably sized vehicle, at a given speed. Factor in the extra speed from your inability to slow down and it's probably more like 4 or 5 times as hard. So, when some old lady or some kid gets creamed by your truck they'll be getting what they deserve and you'll feel okay that they were sacrificed in the name of your safety? Nevermind the fact that the whole thing could have been avoided. I just can't understand why you're using this particular reasoning to justify your excessive use of fuel.

you make a very good point here and I think there are a lot of drivers out there that think the exact same way, which is really too bad. I only know one person who has been in 4 accidents, and they were probably the worst driver I've ever seen. and you don't have to be speeding to be a bad driver.

as far as gas goes, I am incredibly grateful to be at a college with a good transportation system. We can take buses to any of the neighboring areas for free with our student ID. When I am home I try to avoid driving when I can, but I really just need to start biking again. I do have a car that gets 30 MPG, but even so I hate to spend money on something I can avoid, and I certainly hate to see my money go to destroying the environment.

[Mr Yuck]

I've been considering riding my bike more places, but it's hard to carry a tripod on my bike.

So I drive my Volvo stationwagon, since gas prices are high, I short shift more, other than that, I havent really changed my driving habits, unless I know I'm sitting at a really long light (>1minute), I'll turn off the engine, and I coast down hills. (running, so I still have power everything :P)

Stationwagons better than SUVs. Plenty safe, plenty of room and comfort (more comfortable ride than an SUV because they're lower = less body roll) (safer for the same reason...if I had an SUV, I'd probably be dead because my driving skills...eh...nevermind.)

and I get 23-25mpg with the manual transmission.

[Franglais]

Obvious destination, huh? You've got it rough.

France - and Europe in general - is compact. In 10 hours driving I can get anywhere, or even to neighbouring countries like England, Belgium, Holland, Switzerland, Italy or Spain.

But who wants to drive for 10 hours? Driving long distances is really BORING. I'm a big fan of the TGV (high-speed train). City center to city center, takes half the time of what a car would take, you can walk about, read, sleep or just watch the landscape whiz by at 200mph. It's even planet-friendly - runs on electricity produced by nuclear reactors.

But - once on the spot I need to hire a car to get about so it doesn't make sense for Normandy.

Charles

[adina]

France - and Europe in general - is compact. In 10 hours driving I can get anywhere, or even to neighbouring countries like England, Belgium, Holland, Switzerland, Italy or Spain.

But who wants to drive for 10 hours? Driving long distances is really BORING. I'm a big fan of the TGV (high-speed train). City center to city center, takes half the time of what a car would take, you can walk about, read, sleep or just watch the landscape whiz by at 200mph. It's even planet-friendly - runs on electricity produced by nuclear reactors.

But - once on the spot I need to hire a car to get about so it doesn't make sense for Normandy.

Charles

dh works with a lot of people from Europe, and when they get here, they always talk about visiting all these different places. They they realize that our state is as big as their whole country, and reconsider.

One of the things he liked best about Europe, London in particular, was the public transportation.

[mjs1973]

I'm a big fan of Europes public transportation system. I spent a month backpacking around Europe after college. We took trains everywhere, a few busses, one or two cabs, a ferry, and a lot of walking. We never had a problem getting to a where we wanted to go.

I couldn't do that around here.

[Franglais]

dh works with a lot of people from Europe, and when they get here, they always talk about visiting all these different places. They they realize that our state is as big as their whole country, and reconsider.

One of the things he liked best about Europe, London in particular, was the public transportation.

I lived in London a long time ago, out in the suburbs. The distances were very long and it took ages to get anywhere. Public transport works well in high-density places like central Paris where there is a Metro station every 300 yards. I now live out in the country near Paris and I am absolutely dependent on my car to take me 5 miles or so to public transport going in the direction I want.

The high-speed train is great but the distances are too great in the States for it to work. Even in Europe if you want to go from one capital to another you usually take the plane. I did 10,000 air miles last year for my clients doing same-day return trips to visit country HQ's.

Charles

[adina]

He was definitely in a high density place. Not to far from the palace and all the other things you see in the movies. Walked the entire time he was there, then they took a train ( I think) to Amersham and stayed there for a few days.

[DaveLC2]

My good friend and I have been working on a project car of mine for the last 4yrs and I am itching to get it all buttoned up. I would work on it twice a week if the gas prices weren't so expensive. Every time I work on my car I have to drive 75 miles each way. So because of the gas prices I only go once a week. There are also plenty of spots along the way that I usually grab shots. I really want to go up to Mt. Lassen to do some shooting but I am thinking about the fuel costs. People around the Bay Area don't seem to bed bothered too much about the gas prices or at least that's the vibe I get when ALL makes and models blast past me at 80mph+ in the fast lane. Even Hybrids seeme to fly around here. Now there's a concept. Buy a Hybrid just for the HOV stickers so you (not you) can use the carpool lane and drive like Parnelli Jones :thumbsup:

Dave

[JSPhoto]

Gas jumped .20 cents a gallon over night....now at $3.39 a gallon, Indiana is now well above the national average. It's only $3.00 a gallon in Louisville KY....

JS

[Mr Yuck]

I'm gonna fix my odometer and make gas mileage a personal challenge, 1 mpg at a time.

I'll start tracking it, and when I can afford it, modify my car for fuel economy.

[Greg McCary]

I think the oil companies should be forced to build new refinaries with their record profits.

[JSPhoto]

I think the oil companies should be forced to build new refinaries with their record profits.

Unfortunately that won't help because they would hire idiots to work there and blow it up or pay someone to do it and then blame it on TERRORISTS. I just wonder how many of these recent (since 911) refinery fires and so on were actually the result of Chaney and his cronies at Haliburton just to drive prices up. Chaney has more spooks than the CIA working for Haliburton's military division.....the same group thats "helping" US forces in Iraq and making billions providing various services to the troops and doing assinations and so on.
Odd though that even with the discovery that Iraq has twice the oil than originally thought the price at the pumps keeps rising.

Another oddity, back in WWII the Allies bombed the crap out ofGerman oil facilities, yet Hitler and his scientists came up with synthetic oil and gas to run his war machine, why can't all these brilliant scientists we have now come up with something?

JS

[walterick]

The only thing better than running out of oil and jacking the price up to $3/gallon is having plenty of oil and jacking the price up to $3/gallon.

[SmartWombat]

It's affecting my pocket, but not my habits.
Now £0.949 per litre

[another view]

I'll start tracking it, and when I can afford it, modify my car for fuel economy.

Start with checking the tire pressure every week or two (guessing you already know this). There is a recommended tire pressure for your car on a label you'll see on the door frame as you open the driver's door. Don't trust the gauge, if there is one, on the hose at the gas station - buy one for about $5 and it will be reasonably accurate. Some people overinflate their tires (I'm one of them) which can lead to better mileage but you do have to be careful here. Depends on the vehicle, the tire used and how you drive. Too much overinflation can be unsafe and make the car handle unpredictably. I found the (was it 26/30? I'm at 36 now) VW recommendation to lead to really "squishy" handling. Do the research on it if you're interested but there may be a savings and a better - as in tighter - ride. YMMV... (literally!).

[Mr Yuck]

Start with checking the tire pressure every week or two (guessing you already know this). There is a recommended tire pressure for your car on a label you'll see on the door frame as you open the driver's door. Don't trust the gauge, if there is one, on the hose at the gas station - buy one for about $5 and it will be reasonably accurate. Some people overinflate their tires (I'm one of them) which can lead to better mileage but you do have to be careful here. Depends on the vehicle, the tire used and how you drive. Too much overinflation can be unsafe and make the car handle unpredictably. I found the (was it 26/30? I'm at 36 now) VW recommendation to lead to really "squishy" handling. Do the research on it if you're interested but there may be a savings and a better - as in tighter - ride. YMMV... (literally!).

Yeah, it's good, I dont overinflate them, because my wagon, with stiff suspension, gets a little tailhappy in the wet.

Currently, I'm still getting 0mpg, it's gonna be a bit before I'll be able to fix my odometer, it will involve a new little plastic gear to buy, removal of my instrument panel, dissassembly down to the speedometer, removal of the broken gear, replacement with new gear, JB weld to hold it in place, overnight, and then reassembly.

The gas mileage game can wait, as for now, I'm short shifting more, coasting the hills, parking it in the shade when possible, following further back, approaching red lights at a slow roll, minimizing stops, and using vents rather than windows when it's not too stinkin hot out, I keep the tire pressure healthy and have been spending more from the change in my ashtray to reduce weight

[another view]

following further back

That's a really good one too. In traffic I see people spending about equal time on the accelerator and brake pedals when I'm just coasting. All it does is chew up the brakes faster and lower your mileage. My engine actually shuts off with my foot off the pedal as long as it's above idle speed. It's a diesel with drive-by-wire so the pedal is really just an electronic controller. Hey, I paid for it, might as well take advantage of it! And at 72.5k, still on the original brakes.

[walterick]

That is a good one. I laugh at the folks accelerating hard in traffic, up to red lights, etc, when I coast up at an even speed and often never have to stop. You can iron out "bumps" in traffic doing this too, if you refuse to ride the bumper in front of you you can even out the flow of traffic a bit.

Speaking of windows, does everyone know it is more fuel efficient to have your windows down while in the city, but to have the A/C on while on the highway? The drag from the A/C compressor in the city decreases your mileage, but the drag from having your windows down on the highway sucks more gas than using your A/C does.

[mjs1973]

Speaking of windows, does everyone know it is more fuel efficient to have your windows down while in the city, but to have the A/C on while on the highway? The drag from the A/C compressor in the city decreases your mileage, but the drag from having your windows down on the highway sucks more gas than using your A/C does.

I think they tested this on mythbusters, but I don't remember what the outcome was.

[walterick]

Kokopelli told me they tested the myth that driving your pickup with the tailgate down decreases wind resistance and thereby increases mileage. Actually, what they apparently found was that having the tailgate down decreased gas mileage, as it somehow messed with the air turbulance behind the cab creating more drag... so drive on the highway with your tailgate up, who knew.

Just a little ot, I saw a mythbusters where they tested whether or not driving fast on bumpy roads made for a better ride. Turns out, yes, especially on washboard roads at higher speeds your tires just clip over the tops of the troughs creating a smoother ride. So, step on it next time you're on a washboarded country road!

[mjs1973]

I had heard that bout the tailgate! My speedopmeter/odometer stopped working this winter so I can't test it myself tho.