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Automotive News & Views Are gas prices fueling your pain? 
10042 messages, Last post on Jul 12, 2008 at 3:07 PM
You are in the Automotive News & Views Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & claires
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Replying to: lemko (Jun 02, 2008 8:59 am)  My DeSoto might get around 12-14 around town, maybe 16-17 on the highway. Which isn't bad for a 50 year old two-ton beast with 341 cubic inches, no overdrive, and a fairly aggressive rear end. Interestingly, it's actually faster, yet gets better fuel economy than my '76 LeMans, midsized car! But then, the LeMans really isn't much lighter. I think the DeSoto's about 4,000 lb, but I'm sure the LeMans is at least 3800. And it actually has more displacement...350 versus 341 CID. And the taller gearing might actually work against the LeMans, as it's going to be more likely to downshift, and I'm sure the secondaries on its 4-bbl carb are only too willing to open up. The DeSoto just has a 2-bbl. I'm probably just going to bring the 5th Ave to the Mopar show. I hate to say it, but I'm still a little leery of my other one. It's been better behaved since I rebuilt the carb, but I want to see how it acts once the weather gets really hot. That was when it would always leave me stranded in the past. |
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Replying to: gagrice (Jun 02, 2008 9:08 am) How did she sink to this low point? Both of them were not only trying to keep up with the Jones, but the Rockefellers as well. They live in a wealthy area of Connecticut that is very much unaffordable to ordinary middle class people. Who the heck are they trying to impress? My girlfriend and I? We think they are super-stupid! The wealthy people where they live? Those folks can easily see these two are poseurs. |
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Replying to: andre1969 (May 31, 2008 3:34 am) The big oil companies make you an 'independant' reseller of their product and have complete control over what you can earn. They basically let you have control over running the snack shack. As for gas, they are ruthless and will squeeze everyone who gets in their way. They really don't have competition. |
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I just don't feel sorry for people who run out of gas. A little prior planning and understanding how long your vehicle can run on "E" is all it takes. I went a lot of years barely scraping by on living expenses - but I never ran out of gas. ( And carry an empty plastic gas can with you if you are stupid enough to let it run out. )
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Replying to: larsb (Jun 02, 2008 11:41 am)
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Replying to: larsb (Jun 02, 2008 11:41 am) |
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...even with the gas gauge on "E" newer cars have a low-fuel warning light. I would most definately fill the car when that light comes on. I think at that point you only have about 2-3 gallons left.
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Replying to: bumpy (Jun 02, 2008 11:54 am) Regards, OW |
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Replying to: lemko (Jun 02, 2008 11:57 am) The one we had the adventures with was a 54 Mercedes. We actually had to replace the instrument cluster. Nothing in it worked. We got one from a junk yard - it was metric! In the early 70s a friend's dad had a new Mercedes that had no fewer than three fuel warning lights. One cam on with a few gallons still in there; another when you were getting seriously low and, my favorite, the last one came when you actually ran out of gas! Talk about an idiot light! |
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as my friend put $80 worth of regular unleaded in his minivan yesterday, and the low fuel light had only just come on! My own fills in my tiny car are up close to $40 now, which FAR exceeds the $15 or so I needed to fill it back when I bought it. As far as lots of individual decisions to reduce useage adding up to society-wide change, I noted with interest on today's morning news that the speculators see a softening market for oil, as a result of very significant downward trends in consumption that have occurred recently, and the futures price of a barrel of oil fell almost $10 from its peak last week to around $126. I have not followed the news during the day today so I don't know if it has shot right back up, but clearly normal economic forces do apply to some extent even in this superheated segment of the market. Good work everyone, keep it up! 
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