Let's have a complain about gas prices thread -- $4.19 here in WI today

[Connonym]

I paid 3.95 at my last fill up. I'm not going to be able to afford to drive anywhere even for a day trip this summer :(

[NJmaverick]

1. I hear you. I don't know if this will help, but here are some things to ease the pain

Walk or Ride a bike where practical. Take mass transportation or car pool. Get a scooter or motorcycle. Make sure your next car gets good economy. Takes steps to improve the fuel efficiency of your current vehicle.

1) Make sure your tires are properly inflated. Under inflated tires can be a significant drag on your fuel economy.

2) Empty that trunk- All that extra weight costs you at the pump

3) Try to use the brakes less- In other words roll to stops, rather than braking when you get to them

4) Slow down- Wind resistance goes up exponentially, so the faster you go on the highway the lower the economy

5) In the warmer months open the windows when you first get in the car, to let the hot air out. Then let close them and let the AC cool the car down. This will take some of the load off the AC (which drains your fuel economy). On the highway though, it's better to use the AC than to leave the windows open (despite what you might has seen on myth busters, unfortunately in that challenge their lack of an engineering background showed).

6) You can get a roughly 5% boost in you efficiency if you use the oil additive Tufoil http://www.tufoil.com / . I have been using the stuff for decades. It's the only additive that uses Teflon (this is hard stuff to work with, which is why others don't use it). I first started using it after a college professor talked about it, he knew the guy that invented the stuff. It's also good for extending the life of your engine.

7) Consider a hybrid for your next vehicle purchase (especially if you do a lot of city driving).

8) Don't idle- If you are going to idle for more than 2 minutes, shut off the car

9) Try to bunch your errands together- A warmed up engine is more efficient than a cold one. So try and do your driving errands all together so that you maximize the amount of time you are driving with a fully warmed up engine.


10) Consider walking, public transportation, motorcycle or bicycle where possible. All are more efficient alternatives. The more each of us save, the better off we all are.

11) Easy on the gas peddle. The faster you accelerate the more fuel you consume.

[mike_c]

2. $4.35 and climbing in norcal....

:grr:

[Oeditpus Rex]

5. Heebus, dude! Where do you live?

I saw $4.07 at three stations in Santa Cruz the other day and I thought that was bad. :crazy:

[mike_c]

7. northern humboldt county....

$4.35 in Eureka yesterday.

[auntAgonist]

3. 4.19 in Michigan where I live. 3.99 about 35 miles East of here

No road trips for us anytime soon.

:hi:

aA

[flvegan]

4. $4.19 for premium, here yesterday.

[MANative]

6. Regular at $4.29 here in Danbury CT

Thieves.

[DarkTirade]

8. We're only at 3.99-4.07 here last I checked.

'only', I say. Pfft. :\

[old mark]

9. Our VW Passat uses premium - $4.099 - $4.159

here in SE Pennsylvania. Filled it Thursday at $3.959, prices went up by Friday morning-holiday travel weekend gouge.

mark

[Midlodemocrat]

10. I paid $4.19 the other day. $74.89 to fill up my van.

I was headed to Kroger, but got sidetracked trying to find BabyMidlo and the light came on. I don't like to drive the car with the fuel light on, so I pulled into a spot that was a bit more expensive than Kroger.

Kroger gives you $.10 off a gallon if you buy groceries there, and I almost always shop there.

Fortunately, I work from home, so I don't have to commute. I'm very lucky that way. The only car of ours that is even driven daily is TM's, back and forth to school.

[OmahaBlueDog]

11. 3.79 for E-10 here in Omaha yesterday

3.89 for regular. The paper said premium is over $4 in Lincoln.

[undeterred]

12. And yet there are some people who remain unscathed...

Yesterday I was at the dog park and got into a conversation with someone who just had her golden retriever groomed for $60- but the groomer didn't do a proper job so she took it somewhere else and paid that much again. (I am my dog's groomer, and my studio is the bathtub. Generic baby shampoo.) I said I thought a lot of people would be cutting things like grooming out because of the economy- and she looked at me like she had NO IDEA WHAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT.

And she told me that she just spent $150 at the hairdresser- she does this every 5 weeks. Cost cutters is my hairdresser- and its been years since I had a hairstyle that required maintenance every few weeks.

Then I remembered getting into an argument with her husband a couple of years ago at the dog park when Hurricane Katrina happened. He defended President Bush and blamed the stupid people of New Orleans for their plight.

So I guess this is what its like to be rich- you don't have to cut back on anything. You look at the people around you in befuddlement because they are complaining and you're not feeling any pain. They must not be living right.

$150 for a haircut and $120 to groom the dog. $5 gas will not hurt much.

[Initech]

13. Paid $4.09 yesterday for REGULAR.

:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

[AlCzervik]

14. $4.16 today for regular.

[yellowdogintexas]

15. $3.89 to $3.69 in North Texas ..nt

[fizzgig]

16. the cheapest i've found in n. colorado is $3.68 for regular

i don't do a lot of driving, so i'm not feeling the pinch just yet, but i'm trying to cut down on my driving anyway.

[Sacajawea]

17. $4.11 for regular here on eastern Long Island, NY, today. nt