Being robbed

[John451]

Originally Posted by ZonaMan

Americans have some problem with "wagons". I would drive a station wagon over a minivan anyday.

A shame too with so many good ones around, went from a 7 seat SUV to a Mazda 6 Wagon a few years ago, amazing how much more entertaining just the act of driving is in a car that is not only much cheaper to fill but dynamically brilliant.

In the US why everyone isn't driving a C300 Hemi wagon is beyond me, they rock to look at yet are still better than SUV's for Gas milage.

[Scorpio65]

Someone said something about not buying gas for a week, thats not going to hurt anybody but us. To make up for the lost money the gas companys will just raise prices again. What NEEDS to happen is everyone needs to stop buying gas from just one company, say Exon/Mobil. Stop buying from them, buy your gas from some other station. When they start losing money from poor sales, they will have no choise but to bring their prices down. Investers don't like losing money!!! When their prices come down we start buying from them again and not from anyone else. The rest will lower their prices so on and so forth. People do have the power to change things, we just got spoiled and lazy !!! It won't change until we as a country get off our A$$es and make it change.

[Adam Woods]

You guys moaning about fuel (sorry gas) at $4 a gallon. I filled up yesterday and on straight forward gas it was £0.959 per litre and the Premium stuff was just over £1.04 per litre - I really am not cnvinced it makes any difference, so the staight forward stuff went in.

For those of you that don't know there are around 5 litres to 1 gallon.
The £ = about $2

So that made my fill up cost £17.37 or just short of $40!!!

That is the bike sorted, when I fill up the car (a VW estate) it costs around £70 ...... or $140.

To my mind that is expensive, and we get loads of oil out of the ground just off the UK coast.

I somehow get the feeling that it is going to get more expensive, rather than less in the coming years - enjoy the cheap fuel while it lasts guys.

[John451]

Originally Posted by Adam Woods

For those of you that don't know there are around 5 litres to 1 gallon.

That would be to an Imperial Gallon, the US Gallon is 3.8 litres, still bad just not quite by as much.

[dskelton]

I keep hearing that most of what the rest of the world pays for gas is taxes, any truth to this?

[Adam Woods]

Yes - certainly this side of the world it is taxes - designed t make money for the government, and make us think abut using public transport (where it exists) more. Inmy opinion these will only go up - now because of global warming and reducing emissions

[Adam Woods]

Thanks John.... I thought there were 2 types of gallon , but also knew you would be out there to correct me!!!

[Bubba Zanetti]

Originally Posted by PorscheBob

Bubba, I didn't spend 8 years of service in the Marine Corps to sit back and let someone call me names....so I suggest you back off on the name calling.
I've been around twice as long as you and I have seen how other industries have held back prices. For instance, here in northern California we have the Pacific Gas & Electric Co. held accountable to the Public Utilities Commission (PUC).
Why?....because it is a necessary energy source! And...so is fuel oil and gasoline. Any price changes have to be approved by the PUC. Why not have a similar program for gas stations and oil refineries? Years ago when I was in college and working part time in a gas station we use to have gas wars. Our station posted prices for regular at....$0.18 ! That is not a misprint. My question to this esteemed audience is this....how much higher must the price go before we tell the oil companies, and the politicians that are in their pocket,...enough is enough! If anything, we need laws that make the oil profits more transparent. I want to see and be able to follow-the-money and and know who the politicians are that need to be booted out of office. My 2 cents.

Porshebob:

Just engaging in a fun debate with you brother and the name calling is in jest.

BZ

[John451]

Originally Posted by Adam Woods

:I thought there were 2 types of gallons , but also knew you would be out there to correct me!!!

Why sorry about that Old chap, just keeping things on an even keel what what.

[Adam Woods]

no probs mate

[John451]

Originally Posted by dskelton

I keep hearing that most of what the rest of the world pays for gas is taxes, any truth to this?

In the case of Australia yes and no. Where we refine all our own gas locally from local fields of sweet light crude about 38cents of the USD$1.05 per litre pump price is tax the rest of the cost is due to paying the global rates per barrel to the oil companies as set on the Singapore market.

The reasoning being if the Australian Government were to step in dictating to the oil companies what they were allowed to charge domestically the Oil companies are currently free to sell all their Australian oil reserves overseas on the open market causing severe Gasoline shortages at home.

[chesthing]

Originally Posted by Bubba Zanetti

Nationalize the oil companies?!

PorsheBob, what the hell type of socialist thinking is that ?

Man, I am reading along your post and POW! that hits me like when big brother gives me another shot to the junk.

You are right, "We do need to do something..." Its called change your own lifestyle. Regulating the oil companies is a recipe for disaster PoscheCastro. The problem is not the oil companies...

IT's US! The rebellious American who says: "I know I don't need an SUV, but piss off, I'll do what I want" OK Pal, keep that attitude and when you are paying 3 to 5 bucks a gallon, I'll be laughing.

Truely the blame is on Americans NOT the oil companies. They are providing a legal product to a public that just sucks it up. They should be making record profits off our fat asses.

I got some ideas if I was President:

"Hey Americans quit wasting so much and learn a great word called "Conserve"

"Hey Americans, quit buying vehicles that suck on gas milege and turn around and blame oil companies"

"Hey Americans, You want to rebel? Well rebel against your own fat asses and dump the lifestyle habits that suck resources dry just so you can look cool"

"Hey Americans, regardless of what your T.V. or your scumbag attorney says, you do not have a constitutional right to drive a gas hog. Go back to civics class and quit blaspheming the constitution".

I get so worked up about this because it is the classic example of the thinking that shows America has forgot the term "personal accountibility".

We are the problem, no one else.

A little logic and reason can go a long way. Example:

I don't know about the rest of you, but the one thing in my 32 years of living that has consistently gone up in price every year is gasoline. So when it came to buy my first vehicle out of college it was a 4 cylinder Nissan Frontier. The year was 1997 and although I could afford a 'bigger' vehicle:1 bigger vehicles got crap gas milage and 2, the payment was more, so I would be paying more for a vehicle that would cost more to fill up each year. Gas was $1.15 a gallon in Waldorf, Maryland at the time. I had the Nissan for 7 years and it got 35 miles to the gallon. The whole time I owned that vehicle gas prices kept going up, up, up! And people whined and cried and I smiled because they only had themselves to blame.

We are getting exactly what we have coming to us! Change yourself and wash your hands of the blame!

However, like you PorsheBob, I hate to see the poor get hosed on this, and in my area I have seen the pinch on people. But that is another topic!

BZ

It's funny how people's memories change facts. According to this your Frontier got about 22 mph. http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/findacar.htm

[Bubba Zanetti]

Originally Posted by chesthing

It's funny how people's memories change facts. According to this your Frontier got about 22 mph. http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/findacar.htm

That's what "I" got with my Frontier on the highway.
I did everything short of an exhaust system to get the best gas milage I could.

BZ

[Jaymz]

Originally Posted by Spike

Born and raised in CT, lived in RI and Ma for a while. Frequent trips to VT, NH and Maine to ski. Never had a truck. Never had a problem driving because of it. Lived in a small town in CT, plowing was sporadic at best. Never said no one needs a truck, certainly some do. But when you go to FL and half the vehicles are trucks and SUVs, that says something. There are also a ton of cars out there availible in AWD, with a good set of snow tires, you can get thru near anything. As for with kids, you have to get an SUV, that is kind of hard when a Honda Odessey or Toyota Sienna have the same interior volume as a suburban; but -- get better mileage, easier for kids, dogs, the elderly to get in and out of, less likely to tip over, drive better, are safer in an accident, cheaper to mait, and because of their handling attributes are less likely to be in an accident. And the Sienna has an AWD version availible

ok First off have you ever gotten 2+ feet of snow and had to get to work or back home from work at 5AM with an AWD car? I've owned a subaru and toyotas and when it comes to that amount of snow you need something called ground clearance to make it through. also I would like to see someone put an 8' plow on anything with a 4cylinder or even a 6 and plow a storm with wet snow.

I should have also mentioned that I work at a car dealer and couldn't really pass up the deal that I got.
Also you don't see a whole lot of used mini vans for sale in Maine. Probably because they are useless in a big snow storm. And believe it or not not all the roads in maine are paved and we have this thing called mud season. It's not fun.

[Adam Woods]

There have been several rebellians in the UK re the price at the pump. They all achieved zero.
The most effective one was everyone should avoid buying gas on a particular day of the week, every week for as long as it could be kept going. Once it got onto the news networks it began to really gather steam, but did it make a difference......you guessed, it didn't make a damn of difference, the prices just kept on going up.

[dlman]

Bubba,
I missed it where you called him a name and I have read your post many times. However, if he is talking about socialism like its the only thing to save us from ourselves than I can see where he deserves the moniker of liberal. But conservation to socialist mindsets only comes into play when they are talking about the less equal animal then themselves. And to save the forests from human interaction like removing the fuel so one little spark will light up a whole forest. And stopping hunting deer because its more humane to let them over populate and starve since there is no other predators around. If you was calling him a liberal then you should be ashamed its not their fault. Liberals feel they owe a great debt to their fellow man, a debt they plan to repay with your money. They didn't think about if their feel good ideas would work in the real world. It just looked good to them at the time. Give people with government jobs power over something and they will do as little as they can stretching their muscles ever chance they get. Don't believe me go to the DMV sometime. They are bastards.

[chesthing]

Originally Posted by Bubba Zanetti

That's what "I" got with my Frontier on the highway.
I did everything short of an exhaust system to get the best gas milage I could.

BZ

I owned a 1996 4cyl ranger. Standard shift, no ac, cruise, power steering or nothin. I averaged about 22 mpg, just like the website I provided said. Sorry, ain't buying for a sec you got anywhere near 30 mpg unless your talking about coasting downhill...
I decided after a year and half and 40k that small 4cyl trucks make absolutely no sense whatsoever when a comfy larger truck with air, auto and power steering gets avg of 4mpg less. (talking about a 6 cyl chev or dodge1500 or F150). My back still hurts after selling that POS 5 years ago.

[Kevin_70]

Originally Posted by chesthing

I owned a 1996 4cyl ranger. Standard shift, no ac, cruise, power steering or nothin. I averaged about 22 mpg, just like the website I provided said. Sorry, ain't buying for a sec you got anywhere near 30 mpg unless your talking about coasting downhill...
I decided after a year and half and 40k that small 4cyl trucks make absolutely no sense whatsoever when a comfy larger truck with air, auto and power steering gets avg of 4mpg less. (talking about a 6 cyl chev or dodge1500 or F150). My back still hurts after selling that POS 5 years ago.

I've got a "beater" truck, mechanically fine just ugly on the outside. It's an 86 Nissan 4cyl single cab, short bed. No air, stick shift. I've had it since 1994 and I never have gotten anything