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Automotive News & Views How does gas at $4 and higher impact you?
2183 messages, Last post on Nov 21, 2009 at 5:13 PM
You are in the Automotive News & Views Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & claires
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Replying to: steve_ (Nov 01, 2008 5:38 pm) it makes fuelt mileage/cost less of a budget factor.
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Replying to: boaz47 (Nov 01, 2008 5:25 pm) No, I don't think that is what people are worrying about. It is rather the ADVANCEMENT of hybrid-electric technologies, especially around batteries, that some fear might slow down substantially now that it doesn't seem as urgent any more because the gas price is lower. Me, I see no reason this summer's prices couldn't be repeated at any random future time, and I think the advancement of alternative technologies is just as urgent as ever. Plus, I'm kinda hoping that whether it's McCain or Obama, that they will take a reduction in foreign energy dependence as a matter of policy seriously in the next four years. |
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Replying to: explorerx4 (Nov 01, 2008 6:03 pm) I know I haven't been driving that long. I know that when I'm grown up I'll be saying that I remember when gas was $2.00 and that will probably blow my kids', when I have some, minds. Or they won't even know what gasoline was or was used for. I always get the when I stated driving gas was $0.50 or something like that. My parents are both 50ish.
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Replying to: tankbeans (Nov 01, 2008 6:31 pm) I got my license in early 1987, and I remember gas being as cheap as 85-90 cents per gallon. That seems so long ago now, but for a brief period in late 2001/early 2002, it was back down to around 95 cents-$1.00 per gallon. I guess that won't be happening again anytime soon, though. 
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Replying to: andre1969 (Nov 01, 2008 6:40 pm) I also remember buying Bugs in the 70's and the mid-20ish mpg was a factor. Some stuff, like lead acid car batteries, haven't seemed to change much at all. Cars sure run a lot better, but the average mpg doesn't seem to have made great strides. |
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Replying to: andre1969 (Nov 01, 2008 6:40 pm)
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Replying to: fintail (Nov 01, 2008 7:06 pm)
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Replying to: tankbeans (Nov 01, 2008 7:11 pm) The small car became the second car in the 70s when we were told gas was about to run out. People bought econo boxes to get to work and kept there cruiser for family weekends. But the tree huggers convinced the government to that they should force people into small cars, "for our own good, and the good of the nation." They more or less forced the family station wagon and full sized sedan out of the market. Surely people would flock to sub compacts was the reasoning. But one thing eletists and tree huggers never count on is what the people want. What does the consumer want to go to all those soccer games? How will they get the mandated car seats the government says they have to have in a Sub Compact? They can't and so first the Mini-Van and then the SUV drive right through the loop hole the government left open. SUVs are not bad by themselves. Sub compacts aren't good by themselves. Even commuting in a SUV at $1.50 a gallon gas isn't bad. In some cases the SUV turned out to be the only family car some people had so yes they commuted with it. Forgive me if I rant a bit here. What is bad is being lied to about how much gas "should" cost. Gas should cost what we are willing to pay for it and not a dime more. Gold is worth what people will pay for it and only investors complain when gold prices fall. In other words only people with an agenda or vested interest would insist that higher priced fuel is good for the consumer and lower priced fuel is bad for that same consumer. If that had any credibility places like Wal-mart would never have become successful and the discount malls wouldn't be packed every weekend. If people were truly concerned with saving fuel more people would be riding small motorcycles getting 125 to 175 miles to the gallon. But they don't because they draw the line with 4 wheels and an inclosed compartment with a heater. But if anyone draws the line higher than they do, lets say at a full sized car then the self righteous sub compact drivers call them wasteful. Notice you hardly ever hear the same complaints about Sports cars that get low fuel mileage? But still I personally am much happier when gas is less than $3.00 and not so happy when it is $4.00. If fuel is indeed in short supply then alternatives will be invented because people simply aren't ready to go back to riding horses or even bicycles. If fuel goes back up too quickly and I have to pay $4.00 again I will not be happy. But the truth is there is "nothing" in the pipeline to make life easier for us, the consumer, if fuel does go back up. Just look up the history of CAFE and see how well driving smaller has done. As the compact and sub compact became mainstream see how much better the fuel average has become in the US. Then when someone wags their finger at SUVs and tells you how much better things would be without them, you can tell what their opinion is worth without smelling it.  Remember these same people told you 6 months ago we would "never' see $2.00 gas again. Now they want you to believe it would be better if it never did.
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Replying to: tankbeans (Nov 01, 2008 3:06 pm) Wow, what are they putting in your gas? I get almost that mileage in my Eclipse which has a similar weight but a big 3.8L 6-cyl. Is that the newer 4-cyl with 190 hp? If it's a high performance engine that could drop the mpg a bit. Still, at $2.03 who cares?
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Replying to: tankbeans (Nov 01, 2008 6:31 pm) I remember making the statement back in '73 that "if gas ever goes above 40 cents a gallon, I'm going to stop driving". Funny how I can remember that very clearly but now I can't recall where I left my car keys. 
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