It was fun while it lasted...

Ian F wrote:

Don49 wrote: Part the reason diesel prices didn't drop as much is that we don't refine enough in this country. We actually have to import diesel.

I've read the exact opposite, we export refined diesel since we make more than we can use. A barrel of oil generates rough quantities of various distillates, gasoline and diesel being certain percentages. The refineries have gotten better at producing more of one specific type, but the rough ratios still remain. Diesel is more popular in the rest of the world, so we sell it and that keeps our prices higher - the wonders of living in a global economy. Also, in the winter, the increase in home heating oil (diesel) and the additional winterizing additives tend to keep the price higher as it relates to gasoline. Owning a diesel car since 2003, I've read a lot about this subject. It comes up every Winter on the TDI forum with "Why is diesel so much more expensive in the Winter???" cries from the diesel newbies. The only time since I bought my car in 2003 that diesel was any substantial amount cheaper the gas was right after Katrina when the shut down of coastal refineries sent the gasoline commodities market sky-rocketing, but not for diesel.

this isn't something that I've researched … just my cynical feelings about our government (both state and federal)

years ago diesel was pretty much the same price as gasoline … then the government realized that truckers, trains, and planes used most of it .. and realized they could tax the E36 M3 out of it and the extra cost would just be passed on … most folk wouldn't realize why the price of goods had increased

now as more folk have diesel powered automobiles this policy isn't quite as hidden as it once was … in the past I never really noticed the price of diesel, now as I've contemplated the purchase of a diesel powered car … different story

spitfirebill wrote: And yet the price of crude dropped $4 a barrel yesterday.

but the previous 4 days it had increased … that's probably what generated the price swing at the pump … and we all know that the price will go up WAY quicker than it will come down

http://www.nasdaq.com/markets/crude-oil.aspx

OHSCrifle wrote: In reply to t25torx: Nicely done. Being home rather than in a car to/from work is just icing on the cake. And this seems relevant..

Http://www.exxonmobilperspectives.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/API-US-Map.jpg

Whomever made this graphic never passed high school math classes. There isn't a single unit on this map! YAH Wisconsin is 51.30. Don't know what of but we are! If low is better; suck it Michigan! But if high is better, Eat our dust Minnesota!

RossD wrote:

OHSCrifle wrote: In reply to t25torx: Nicely done. Being home rather than in a car to/from work is just icing on the cake. And this seems relevant..

Http://www.exxonmobilperspectives.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/API-US-Map.jpg

Whomever made this graphic never passed high school math classes. There isn't a single unit on this map! YAH Wisconsin is 51.30. Don't know what of but we are! If low is better; suck it Michigan! But if high is better, Eat our dust Minnesota!

Adding to that I've got a feeling whatever it's about is meant to be presented in a biased manor. If the average is 49.7 why are the ranges less than 40, 40 to 49.5 and greater than 49.5. Would a better set of ranges be less than 45, 45 to 55 and over 55? Still no idea what it's on about though.

EDIT RANT For berkeleys sake, this forum software sucks. I tried using the symbols < and >, they appear fine on preview but they end up going missing along with most of the numbers when you post. So even the supposed preview screen isn't worth E36 M3.

That map graphic is the sort of thing the PR folks at Exxon Mobil put out to show that local and state governments make more money per gallon of gas sold than Exxon Mobil does. They like to say that their profit is only $0.05/gallon while the state and federal government take 10x that amount. The units are cents per gallon on the map.

Boost_Crazy wrote: In reply to Vigo:

The american consumer has more or less proven that low auto fuel prices just cause them to make stupendously shortsighted decisions. The only good thing about this price lull is that people are actually talking about gas taxes again, which is a nice break from the toll road talk that's been going on around me. I am WILLING to pay for infrastructure that supports my #1 hobby (driving). I already have 50mpg cars. All i want at this point is actual road construction and LOTS of it. Since 2000 my city has grown probably 50% in population and 10% in road infrastructure. That means i enjoy life less! BUILD MORE ROADS. TAX US TO DO IT. It's better than traffic and better than toll roads.

There is a little box on your tax form where you are welcome to donate whatever you want for the greater good. But I'd appreciate it if you'd keep your hands out of my pockets. Besides, there is very little corelation between what you pay in taxes and the level of service you receive from the government. I should know, I live in the Republic of California. Just recently it was discovered that Cal Trans, our highway department, purposely cut back on road maintenance. Not due to lack of finding. There was an initiative on the ballot to raise taxes for road repair. They figured it had a better chance of passing if they stopped fixing the roads with the money they already had. The sad thing was when they were caught, very few were shocked or surprised. Just prior they got caught buying hundreds of new vehicles- everything from Priuses to six figure trucks and equipment. Only to let them sit on lots for years unused. Many were years old, still without plates. And they kept buying more. Because they had to use up their budget so they could increase it the next year. Here is how the government works... 1) Spend the money on things the people don't want or need. 2) Cut the budget on things people do want or need (roads, education) 3) Tell the people the crappy roads and poor educational system is their fault because they don't pay enough taxes. 4) Raise taxes 5) Spend the money on something else 6) Wait until people forget (doesn't take long). 7) Repeat.

Quoted for so much truth.

T.J. wrote: That map graphic is the sort of thing the PR folks at Exxon Mobil put out to show that local and state governments make more money per gallon of gas sold than Exxon Mobil does. They like to say that their profit is only $0.05/gallon while the state and federal government take 10x that amount. The units are cents per gallon on the map.

Then the data has been filtered through a deep layer of B.S. According to that map Michigan and Illinois should have the same price gas and Indiana should be a skooch cheaper. That's simply false. Indiana is often $0.05-0.10 cheaper than Michigan and Illinois is normally $01.0 more expensive than Mi.

And here I am considering a job that will have a 2hr 15min commute, each way

You may remember when the overbearing nasty meddling gubment made the sweet innocent oil companies take the sulfur out of diesel, that the oil companies said to was going to cost a lot more to manufacture diesel, right? Apparently they kept to their word.

spitfirebill wrote: You may remember when the overbearing nasty meddling gubment made the sweet innocent oil companies take the sulfur out of diesel, that the oil companies said to was going to cost a lot more to manufacture diesel, right? Apparently they kept to their word.

My lungs have no issue with that. I'll be happy when diesel hits $100 a gal and the infernal things are off the road for good.

Nick_Comstock wrote: And here I am considering a job that will have a 2hr 15min commute, each way

Oh man, I couldn't do that. I could barely tolerate an hour, tops. At least now while we don't have kids, I'd much rather just move than live with that.

Having just moved from the Boston area to the Binghamton, NY area, I can only say in my opinion a 20 minute round trip is worth a hell of a lot compared to a 2 hour round trip commute in stop and go traffic. In Boston my wife was paying about $50 a week in gas (in a small 4 cylinder car) to get to and from work. I didn't even want to calculate what I was spending. Here we -maybe- spend $50 a month between the both of us, and that includes my gas guzzling van and rotary car. There may not be many jobs here and the seafood sucks, but I'll take fewer miles to work and no stop and go traffic any day.

Come to think of it, I haven't needed to gas up the van since gas dropped below $4... I guess I better enjoy those miles, they really cost me!

spitfirebill wrote: You may remember when the overbearing nasty meddling gubment made the sweet innocent oil companies take the sulfur out of diesel, that the oil companies said to was going to cost a lot more to manufacture diesel, right? Apparently they kept to their word.

And all we got to show for it were the manufacturers getting an easier job of making diesels run more efficiently and cleanly, so they could sell better products at a lower cost once the high-sulfur fuels were out of the picture.

Yeah, that's a real horrible thing. Next tell me how having to spend $20 for DEF every 10k miles is a terrible hardship to someone who buys a $70k truck that gets 15mpg ($2000 in fuel every 10k at $3/gallon)

Gearheadotaku wrote: I've been saving $20-$30 a week. Thats huge for low income folks...

i've been saving $50 a tank for the avalanche. at a tank per week plus taking the truck on a 2400 mile round trip, i've saved well over $500 since the gas plummeted.

There was an initiative on the ballot to raise taxes for road repair. They figured it had a better chance of passing if they stopped fixing the roads with the money they already had. The sad thing was when they were caught, very few were shocked or surprised.

Ok sure, and in Texas our DOT was caught spending our road-infrastructure dollars buying billboards lobbying the public to accept toll roads in lieu of them actually spending the money we were already giving them to build the roads we paid for. There's at least one major highway interchange in my city that had construction set back by a full decade while government was busy trying to sell us out to toll operators, which thankfully eventually failed in that instance.

Im with you on one thing. Car enthusiasts who live in California are crazy. Government is out of control there. Texas is too far in the other direction, in my opinion. I talk to my representatives, you talk to yours, and if at the end of the day the gas tax DOES go up, you could always move to Texas where your cost of living would be so much lower vs income that the gas tax would be a drop in the bucket of your newfound financial freedom.

patgizz wrote:

Gearheadotaku wrote: I've been saving $20-$30 a week. Thats huge for low income folks...

i've been saving $50 a tank for the avalanche. at a tank per week plus taking the truck on a 2400 mile round trip, i've saved well over $500 since the gas plummeted.

Cost savings for me would be substantial.

A tank a day x 5 per week in the Elantra.

2 tanks a week for our college student's 330xi.

2 tanks a week for the wife's 11 5.0 F150

Then add in the fun vehicles, ClifFord, Sampson (diesel), RX5.0, Zombiechero, E150 van, and a smattering of others. I am definitely thousands in the black after this.

I also purchased shares so that when it all goes back to normal they will increase in value, win, win..

In reply to Vigo:

I wish California was run like Texas. According to the chart above, our gas tax is almost twice that of Texas. Everything may be bigger in Texas, but it sure is more expensive in California. We also get the hidden environmental tax in the form of special gasoline blends that further drive up the price. Our Governor already made has cash grab, claiming that the state was losing tax revenue due to the lower gas prices. I'm sure he knows that the tax per gallon is fixed. Meanwhile, your governer is wooing away California compaines, by pointing out the obvious. Want to trade?

I've saved $1000s just on the work vans. We burn 60+ gallons a week in them. It's been a nice bonus.

As far as the commute, I used to commute an hour each way, and honestly loved it 80% of the time. I enjoy driving, I enjoy the time to think, listen to music, chill. Right now my commute is about 15 minutes and as soon as my last child is out of HS, I'm headed back to the country. I'd much rather not have neighbors and drive an hour+ to work.

I also find it interesting that SC has a fairly low highway tax and I very seldom can complain about the roads.

I've purchased 32.1 gallons of gas this year. Cost savings isn't very significant.

Some of you guys use a ton of fuel. I can't imagine how much of your life you've wasted standing at a gas pump.

Well at least as a car enthusiast in california I get to Autocross 10 months out of the year and have 4-5 race tracks within 3-4 hrs of me?

That's some sort of semblance of a trade right? right?

I don't mind commuting if it wasn't in traffic and I didn't have little kids at home and mom needs help with bed time, I am about at 350 a month in commuting fuel at current prices. I am hoping the new volt pricing comes out and pushes existing new older models down or something I can take advantage of

ProDarwin wrote: I've purchased 32.1 gallons of gas this year. Cost savings isn't very significant. Some of you guys use a ton of fuel. I can't imagine how much of your life you've wasted standing at a gas pump.

I'd estimate that between myself and my wife we've purchased 230-250 gallons so far this year and we're about to drive to Florida for a weeks vacation plus driving around while we are down there. The main family hauler is less than six months old and has over 17K miles on it already. That's a huge savings for us and I don't even consider $4 a gal expensive.