What are you paying for fuel? **NOT AN AMERICA HAS CHEAP FUEL THREAD**

[Joey D]

What are you kidding? Think about it, gas was 1.30 three years ago, it's 3.00 now, that's a 200% increase. Plus two years ago there was no talk of gas ever being this high, I didn't take a risk, I bought what was feasable for the day. And I'm not the only one who did that. Also gas had never made that drastic of a jump in my life time, when you've grown up with like a 10-20% increase a year and then all of a sudden you get 100% increase it takes you by surprised.

And I can't help that the European government screw their own people with taxes. That's not my concern since I'm not European.

I would like to buy a more effiecent car, but that's not very effiecent to do. Paying 20 grand for a new car right now isn't exactly the smartest thing to get into considering in 5 more years I probably won't even be able to afford a gallon of gas because it will be over 8 or 9 bucks. If GM would instate more E85 cars I would buy one or if Honda would start putting their fuel cells into production I'd buy one of those. But I'm not buying a hybrid or really any gas powered car when I know in a few years it won't do me any good.

Plus if I'm spending all my money on gas and not saving much, I don't have the cash to shell out for a car.

 

[Kylehnat]

...two years ago there was no talk of gas ever being this high, I didn't take a risk, I bought what was feasable for the day.

Oh, really? I remember hearing threats of $2-$3 gasoline as early as 2000, when I got my license. You're right, it didn't seem possible then, but there was certainly no reason to ignore it completely.

At that time, the U.S. was in a booming economy, with tons of available credit, and dirt-cheap gasoline. And so the SUV age was born. Even my white-trash, welfare-suckling cousins were given a loan for a new Suburban. People didn't plan for the future at all. After half a decade, and millions upon millions of SUV miles driven, Americans are asking "where did all the oil go?" and "why is the price of gas so high?"

The answer to both questions is the same. It saddens me that people can't seem to put the pieces together. There is more than enough blame to go around for the high gas prices, but more than one finger should be pointed squarely at us, the American motorists.

 

[Joey D]

Oh, really? I remember hearing threats of $2-$3 gasoline as early as 2000, when I got my license. You're right, it didn't seem possible then, but there was certainly no reason to ignore it completely.

At that time, the U.S. was in a booming economy, with tons of available credit, and dirt-cheap gasoline. And so the SUV age was born. Even my white-trash, welfare-suckling cousins were given a loan for a new Suburban. People didn't plan for the future at all. After half a decade, and millions upon millions of SUV miles driven, Americans are asking "where did all the oil go?" and "why is the price of gas so high?"

The answer to both questions is the same. It saddens me that people can't seem to put the pieces together. There is more than enough blame to go around for the high gas prices, but more than one finger should be pointed squarely at us, the American motorists.

I never heard that when I bought my truck in 2003, and if gas was 2 bucks a gallon I could somewhat stomach it to fil up, but the higher it gets the harder it is for me to do everything. I've cut out a lot of un-needed driving, like weekly cruises and car shows.

And the SUV wasn't the cause of the gas going away, cars from the 70's got far worst mileage (not to mention were much worse on the environment) and just about everyone had a poor gas mileage car. Plus the SUV was born in the 1920's when the first Suburban came to be. The cause of the gas going away was a major increase in population and greater access to cars.

The price went up because OPEC feels the need to raise the prices, crude oil affects 60% of the prices at the pump and the second reason is taxes, which takes up about 20% of the price.

Source:http://www.conocophillips.com/newsroom/other_resources/energyanswers/oil_profits.htm

 

[Kylehnat]

Do you really trust ConocoPhillips to tell you why gas prices are high? Of course they'll blame OPEC.

OPEC is the "some Puerto Rican guy" of the petroleum world.

(if you don't get that, watch more South Park)

 

[Appie]

my dad is paying for his diesel engine like €0,95 per liter

 

[puricele7e]

my dad is paying for his diesel engine like €0,95 per liter

WHAT? Near Munich the diesel's up to € 1.12

 

[Firebird]

C$1.095/L, or US$3.64/US gal.

 

[Joey D]

3.14 today

 

[Poverty]

I doubt it, the reason for high gas prices is

- OPEC's constant screwing all non-OPEC nations
- Oil companies making insane profits off of everyone who isn't part of an oil company.

I highly highly doubt that the US government has anything to do with gas prices in the US, let alone in the world.


But it's over 3 bucks here, on my way home tonight when I filled up it was 3.05 a gallon and I got into a bit of a fuss with the gas station attendent. I told him his company was pretty much screwing the working man (shell oil) and he told me he didn't care (in half broken english)...other people in the station joined my side and one guy ripped the attendent a new a-hole. It was pretty funny because that guy got served.



It's still fairly cheap there though.

1. You are wrong. Read this:

OIL: SCARONI, PRICES COULD RISE FURTHER DUE TO IRAN
(AGI) - Brussels, 20 April - "If there were an 'escalation' in the international situation linked to Iran, oil prices could rise further", confirmed the managing director of Eni Paolo Scaroni in Brussels, where he attended a hearing at the European Parliament. "Certainly there is a risk that Iran", replied Scaroni to journalists, "if it comes to sanctions or to more incisive actions, the price of crude oil could go up further". The Eni managing director explained that the recent explosion of oil prices from 60 to 73 dollars is in any case steered by "financial speculation"

2. How can you start giving a gas station attendent a hard time over something he has no power to change. He's probably on minium wage or just above that for gods sake. If you started telling me that I would have just told you to shutup and been on my way.

Well lets just say I'm a little short of pissed when it cost me over 50 bucks to fill up my truck...which I purchased when gas was 1.30 a gallon. It's stupid that I'm spending a good half of my paycheck a week on gas. When I'm trying to pay for insurence, school, phone bill, etc. and trying to keep money in my savings account and put money into the market. It's bull that I have to scrafice everything in order drive to and from work.

💡 Heres a solution... How about you use public transport!

What are you kidding? Think about it, gas was 1.30 three years ago, it's 3.00 now, that's a 200% increase. Plus two years ago there was no talk of gas ever being this high, I didn't take a risk, I bought what was feasable for the day.

I take it you were asleep during 9/11 and the war in Afghanistan.

I would like to buy a more effiecent car, but that's not very effiecent to do. Paying 20 grand for a new car right now isn't exactly the smartest thing to get into considering in 5 more years I probably won't even be able to afford a gallon of gas because it will be over 8 or 9 bucks.

Why dont you just trade it in for something a bit more pocket friendly? Or will you only drive new cars?

I never heard that when I bought my truck in 2003,

Dont tell me you were alseep during the Invasion of Iraq too

 

[Freddie]

3.14 today

Ouch. That's a rapid increase in price.

To keep it on subject, today it was:
95 Octane: €1,47/litre
Diesel: €1,35/litre

 

[livemusic]

Here gas costs around U$1,00 per litre. Is that high? I don't know how many litres is a gallon.

 

[the Interceptor]

1 US liquid gallon = 3,785411784 litres

 

[Kylehnat]

Whatever 1 liter costs, multiply that by 4 to get a rough estimate (1 gallon is 3.78 liters)

 

[livemusic]

So we pay more than you do over there... Damn taxes!

 

[Joey D]

2. How can you start giving a gas station attendent a hard time over something he has no power to change. He's probably on minium wage or just above that for gods sake. If you started telling me that I would have just told you to shutup and been on my way.

You posted something by news? Is it so hard to provide a web link?

But yes they do have the power to change it because most stations around me are family owned and operated. The owner (more then likely the father) could easily voice his concern over fuel cost to the main office, if more people did this then maybe the oil companies would do something.

Heres a solution... How about you use public transport!

I can I use something that does exsist? The only form of "public" transportation anywher near me are these things called Metro Cars, which is an expensive taxi. We have buses, but the Michigan government doesn't fund them so they never work and are not used. If we had reliable ways to get around other then a car I would use them. But when places I want to go are 5-10 miles away, I'm not going to hop on a bike or walk there...a mile or two then sure.

I take it you were asleep during 9/11 and the war in Afghanistan.

And that had what to do with it? 9/11 happened in 2001, I bought my truck in 2003, two years after the fact and prices were 1.30.

Why dont you just trade it in for something a bit more pocket friendly? Or will you only drive new cars?

Do you understand economics? Trading in a vehicle is the worst thing you can do because you get no money for it and new cars, even used cars are expensive. But paying for school, insurence, GAS, bills, etc. is taking away from my hey lets buy a new car fund. I can get 7 grand for my 3 year old truck, what will that buy me? Nothing I want to drive, that's for sure.

If Honda would hurry up and get the Fit here, I would go look at it. But for the most part I will only drive new cars, or certified pre-owned with a warrenty longer then 90 days.

 

[Poverty]

So your car is worth 7 grand, cant you get like a decent civic for that? You also said your family was wealthy so cant you just show them to help you get a more economical car to save money in the long run? Seriously you have bills to pay? Dont you live at home?

And that had what to do with it? 9/11 happened in 2001, I bought my truck in 2003, two years after the fact and prices were 1.30.

In 2001 the peak price for fuel in the US was $1.954.

In 2003 it was $2.145.

You had fair warning that your truck could potentially be very expensive to run.

 

[Joey D]

So your car is worth 7 grand, cant you get like a decent civic for that? You also said your family was wealthy so cant you just show them to help you get a more economical car to save money in the long run? Seriously you have bills to pay? Dont you live at home?

I refuse to ask my parents for money, I have a wealthy family but I don't expect them to just give me money...thats being a little spoiled bastard.

I could get a decent Civic with a lot of miles on it and the possibilty of something breaking. I'd rather only have a 1 or 2 year old vehicle.

And yes I have bills like a cell phone, car insurence, tution, and my credit card...which I don't use often. But still I have bills, not as many as someone with their own house but I have them.

And the gas hike in 2001 was the day of 9/11 and the week following, then it went down and stayed around 1.40 or lower. In 2003 the gas hike was for some stupid reason, lasted a few weeks and dropped back down.

 

[Poverty]

I refuse to ask my parents for money, I have a wealthy family but I don't expect them to just give me money...thats being a little spoiled bastard.

I could get a decent Civic with a lot of miles on it and the possibilty of something breaking. I'd rather only have a 1 or 2 year old vehicle.

And yes I have bills like a cell phone, car insurence, tution, and my credit card...which I don't use often. But still I have bills, not as many as someone with their own house but I have them.

And the gas hike in 2001 was the day of 9/11 and the week following, then it went down and stayed around 1.40 or lower. In 2003 the gas hike was for some stupid reason, lasted a few weeks and dropped back down.

See so you admit that the 2001 gas hike was because of 9/11 that should have taught you that things like 9/11 can affect fuel prices for a whole country. I think even us brits had to pay a little more because of it.

In 2003 the gas hike was in direct relation to the inavsion of Iraq. Didnt your parents give you money for your first car though?

You know blazing, your first and second paragraph kind of conflict and contradict each other.

 

[Joey D]

It went up for a week at the most, and there isn't going to be another 9/11 that I know of.

The 2003 gas hike may have been from Iraq, but that's no a certian. Gas goes up all the time with little reason.

My parents gave me money yes, but I had to pay them back from what I borrowed from them.

 

[Max_DC]

7,20 Dollar per gallon for premium gas at the moment... yippieayyea says the STi driver....

 

[Poverty]

Yeah its funny that, when Iraq got invaded the oil prices just took a sharp rise for no reason :roleyes:

Gas does go up and down all the time, which can be for a number of things, but when it skyrockets its usually because of international diplomatic tension between nations or natural disasters.

 

[Danoff]

Yeah its funny that, when Iraq got invaded the oil prices just took a sharp rise for no reason :roleyes:

Gas does go up and down all the time, which can be for a number of things, but when it skyrockets its usually because of international diplomatic tension between nations or natural disasters.

To add to that just a bit...

Gas prices are largely the result of speculation in the commodities market (not, as most people believe, the result of big oil companies soaking us for profits). The traders on the commodities market typically over-react to "international diplomatic tensions" or threats from hurricanes etc. etc.

 

[Poverty]

To add to that just a bit...

Gas prices are largely the result of speculation in the commodities market (not, as most people believe, the result of big oil companies soaking us for profits). The traders on the commodities market typically over-react to "international diplomatic tensions" or threats from hurricanes etc. etc.

Absolutely spot on.

 

[Joey D]

To add to that just a bit...

Gas prices are largely the result of speculation in the commodities market (not, as most people believe, the result of big oil companies soaking us for profits). The traders on the commodities market typically over-react to "international diplomatic tensions" or threats from hurricanes etc. etc.

Then why do oil companies post record profits while the rest of the world suffers?

 

[Dave A]

Because there's more car's on the roads than ever before for one.

 

[Danoff]

Then why do oil companies post record profits while the rest of the world suffers?

Because speculators are expecting oil to get more scarce (Iran), so they invest heavily in oil driving the price of oil up - the oil companies then sell the same oil for more money. But it isn't like the oil companies are holding back supply. I read one quote that from an oil exec that said something to the effect of "you'd have to be an idiot not to be selling all of your oil supplies in THIS market".

The biggest price driver (and the reason it fluctuates) is because people are investing in oil speculating on future price increases. The oil companies benefit when the prices go up and suffer when they go down, but they don't control it much at all. The guys who do the best at controlling the oil prices by withholding supply are the OPEC folks - who operate outside of US law. And they don't let us in on exactly what they're up to, so we don't even really know how much they're witholding supplies.

It's not as straight forward as everything thinks. Folks like Jay Leno joke about oil execs making these huge profits an prices going up, and implies that the president should take some kind of action - but you shouldn't listen to celebrities for your economic information. It's not at all as cut and dry as most people think.

 

[Joey D]

I don't rely on celebrities. I look at the earnings by oil companies, then I look at the price of gas, then I make a conclusion.

 

[Poverty]

A wrong one at that.

 

[Dave A]

I'd think that, that'd be most peoples conclusion from looking at the profits and the prices.

 

[Danoff]

I don't rely on celebrities. I look at the earnings by oil companies, then I look at the price of gas, then I make a conclusion.

As Live says it's an understandable conclusion, but as Poverty says it's incorrect.

(I guess that makes this post useless huh? )