Rising fuel costs....

[Good Times]

How is this affecting all of you? If you think $4.00 is right around the corner, watch out as I suspect we'll be seeing higher rates in the summer as they always jack the prices up :(

Personally, I'm on the road visiting clients daily so I have to drive a lot and the recent explosion in gas prices are definitely killing me. I don't drive the 4runner (never intended to anyway) and even with my ultra reliable Honda Accord it's definitely taking a toll. I've always thought about picking up a Prius but the cost benefit didn't fit the bill and still does not. (buying a Prius and making payments vs a paid Accord... just doesn't add up). Maybe an old Mercedes Benz diesel w/ a bio conversion?

At any rate I'm already penny pinching and definitely trying to save as much money as I can in this rough economy and the daily living expenses are just getting painful. I'm just lucky that I don't have a large overhead (no family and all) but I know many of you are married with children so I'm really sure you guys are feeling more of the pain that me.

So how are you guys managing these rough times? It's only getting worse so I'm all ears. I know that this will eat into our trips/vacations but we all need to survive so what you guys doing to save a few here and there for the offset in the fuel prices?

[Seanz0rz]

im buying another car this weekend or very soon, i cant afford to commute with 16mpg, and i kinda want a new toy :D


it sucks. just finished up a report on the tesla roadster, makes me wish i had 90 grand now..

[xonetruthcrewx]

It sucks ass man. Single income, family, 2 gas guzzlers. Yeah, it sucks hard. What can you do though. Filled up the 4Runner yesterday, damn near 60 bucks for 200 miles. Ha! If work was closer and i didnt work as early as i do, i would ride my bicycle. Things are definitely getting out of hand.

[fustercluck]

I build in into my expenses and make the client pay for it....

[reggie 00]

I build in into my expenses and make the client pay for it....




x2

I go out i charge for the work plus a destination charge.

For the service center work i do, i bill for work, travel, and mileage.

Its the only way.

[arjan]

I also use my 4Runner for my business. Up here in Canada we've used to high gas prices for a while already. I haven't changed my driving habits or driving style whatsoever.
I guess you get used to it and then it becomes normal. Gas prices have doubled over the last 10 years here, the recent hike in oil prices has been offset by the increasing value of the Canadian dollar. It hasn't affected us that much sofar.

Paying $55 for a tank of gas has been normal for me for years. A couple of tanks a week isn't unusual either.

Trading a vehicle to safe a couple of bucks on gas isn't worth it. On an average vehicle trade through a dealer you'll a couple of thousand. It will take a fair bit of driving before you recover that in the difference in fuel usage.

[Bob98SR5]

Maybe an old Mercedes Benz diesel w/ a bio conversion?


Hmmm....now THAT sounds familiar! :D Lance, I can help you here if you're really interested we can chat. I only charge $225/hr for the advise ;)



So how are you guys managing these rough times? It's only getting worse so I'm all ears. I know that this will eat into our trips/vacations but we all need to survive so what you guys doing to save a few here and there for the offset in the fuel prices?


My wife says, after we pay all our mortgage and other related house expenses, 1/3 of our expenses are towards gasoline. Hopefully that will significantly decrease when the biodiesel Benz goes into operation. But I have not firmly committed to any trips this year precisely b/c of gas costs and my spending on the Benz. Thus, if i make a this year, it has to be one that the misses will enjoy and a new destination (vs usual ones like Pismo)

Bob

[AxleIke]

Bus/bike to work. Save my money for the weekends to wheel.

Don't run the heat excessively, and it keeps costs down.

Dunno. Filled up tonight, 2.96. Thats high for here, but not the highest. I'm not looking forward to the summer.

[neliconcept]

Bus/bike to work. Save my money for the weekends to wheel.

Don't run the heat excessively, and it keeps costs down.

Dunno. Filled up tonight, 2.96. Thats high for here, but not the highest. I'm not looking forward to the summer.

2.96? lowest in foco is 3.05

I havent been driving lately, im going to pick my bike up from Ric's house soon so i can start riding to the store and everything else, plus its gooood exercise.

[dropzone]

2.96, that would be nice....$3.37 when I filled up yesterday..still not going to buy a prius though...they won't tow much and have no ground clearance

[Seanz0rz]

id kill for 3.37, its 3.50 here, and im sure it will be 3.60 next week.

[neliconcept]

same in Anderson South Carolina, around 3 dollars a gallon according to gasbuddy.

odd coming from SC since its usually the cheapest and here in CO its supposdly more expensive

[calrockx]

I'm not a fan of the high prices, obviously.

I can't wait to get a new car...pry in 1-2 years. It'll definitely be a hybrid Toyota.

In the mean time, I haven't been driving as much/carpool/take the Metro when I can.

[TDiddy]

Luckily the Sequoia has been pretty decent on gas, almost as good as the 4RUnner was. I knew it would suck but we really needed a bigger vehicle with two toddlers.

When we went to the Alamo Bowl, we rented a Prius and was really surprised at how nice it was and how well it drove. And we didn't have to put a drop of gas in it the whole time - the gauge never moved over a good 40-50 miles.

[Intrepidyota]

I commute 60 miles a day in a v8 tundra...if I didn't drive it like an asshole I might gain a mpg or two. :( I have thought about picking up a cheap car, but spending that much time in the vehicle every day, I have to like it, or plain and simple, I just won't drive it. Gas prices being over $3 means that I will have a good excuse to convince the wife of why I need to buy a motorcycle. :D :D Over the course of a summer or two it will have paid for itself in gas. :D

[4runnerchevy]

$ 3.45 a gal out west. My little S-10 4.3 TBI gets aroun 12-14 mpg. Luckily my commute is 6 miles each way. I know its gonna get to $4.00 soon, but what can I do. I just gotta remember the Rubicon is gonna cost me an extra hundred is gas this year just getting there and back. Hopefully it will dip back down by Sept.

[bamachem]

~$3.10 a gallon here.

the wife drives the land cruiser to work - a whopping 1.8 miles each way. the runner gets ~18.5 MPG on my 50-mile/day commute, so it's costly (about $60/week maybe), but not killing me. i was only getting 20MPG in the acura legend, so there's no appreciable difference in my opinion comparing the sedan to the runner.

speaking of having families and costs associated with kids... UFFFFF!
on the other hand, i can't WAIT for my son to start kindergarten this fall. we're paying $540 a month for preschool, plus another $1k a month for an at-home nanny for our 8-month-old. once clayton gets in school, we'll have her pick him up in the afternoons and give her a slight raise, saving us over $400 a month. when aidan is about a year-and-a-half (half-way there! wooo hoo!) we'll have him in a preschool/daycare and only have after-school for clayton. that will save us another ~$400-ish a month. once they're both in school, then we'll save ANOTHER $400/month and still have after-school care until the wife gets home at ~4pm.

~$250/month in gas hurts (but in reality it's only $100/month more than if gas was $1.80/gal - way back in the good ole days :D ), but $1500+ a month for child care hurts worse (especially since we can't deduct it due to income restrictions!)

[4runnerchevy]

Your wife works, wow. She should talk to my wife. If my wife worked, I would be a rich man. She is a stay at home mom, but really doesn't need to be. She could definitly make more than daycare/preschool. My daughter is 3 and starts school soon.

[bamachem]

yeah, she's an RN with some pretty killer experience. she makes *almost* as much as i do as an engineer.

and here's something i just saw that i thought i would pass along - most of it is common sense, but here it is none-the-less...

http://finance.yahoo.com/insurance/article/104523/Save-Money-on-Transportation

Save Money on Transportation
Saturday, March 1, 2008
provided by

The average cost of owning and driving a car 15,000 miles a year is $7,830 according to AAA. SUVs are even more costly, at $9,990 per year. That includes all costs of ownership, such as gas, insurance, maintenance, registration, taxes depreciation, financing and more. Yikes.

No doubt getting around can be a huge budget buster. Here are ten tips to help cut your costs:

Buy a Used Car

Because cars lose most of their value in the first few years, buying used allows you to drive a vehicle you probably couldn't afford brand new.

Recent used models -- those that are less than five years old -- can be a real value because you get a nearly new car still in fine working order for a fraction of the new-car price. And you'll pay less for collision insurance and taxes, too.

Buy a Sipper, Not a Guzzler

You don't need a hybrid vehicle to save money on gas -- higher purchase prices can cancel out any savings. But a regular car with good gas mileage could save you hundreds of dollars a year on fuel.

Drive 1,200 miles per month in a car that averages 18 miles per gallon, and you'll spend $187 per month (at $2.80 per gallon).

Drive a car that averages 25 miles per gallon, and you'll spend $134 per month -- a savings of $53 per month, or $636 per year.

Re-Shop Your Car Insurance

Using a comparison site like InsWeb.com can help you determine if you've got the best deal. Rates vary widely from insurer to insurer. Your savings could equal hundreds of dollars.

Shopping around is especially important for young adults because their rates could drop as they approach age 25 or older, build a credit rating, start a career and get married. Insurers reward customers who are responsible.

Drop Collision & Comprehensive Coverage

If you drive a beater -- say, one worth less than $2,000 -- you'll probably pay more to insure it than you would ever collect on a claim. Dropping that part of your coverage can reduce your premium by one-third.

Raise Your Deductible

Upping your out-of-pocket outlay from $250 to $1,000 on any car can save you 15% or more on your car insurance.

But make sure you have enough cash in an emergency savings account to cover your deductible so you won't have to rely on costly credit cards to bail you out.

Join Policies

When shopping around for auto insurance, check first with the company that provides your renters or homeowners insurance. You could snag up to 15% off for a multiple-line policy.

Shop Around for Gas

Gas prices can vary as much as 20% within only a few blocks, according to GasBuddy.com, a price-monitoring site. So hop online to find the best deal in your neighborhood or along your commute route.

A 20-cent difference on 60 gallons of gas per month adds up to $12 per month or $144 per year.

Use a Gas Rebate Credit Card

If you frequent the pump, soften the financial sting with a credit card that'll give you cash back for filling up.

For example, the Discover Open Road card gives you 5% cash back on gas and auto maintenance charges. So if you spend $200 a month on gas and maintenance, you get $10 back -- or $120 each year.

Hop on the Bus, Gus

Public transportation can save you a bundle on commuting costs because you won't have to spend money on a parking space, gas and auto maintenance. Plus, you can probably get a lower insurance rate for driving less.

Ask if your employer will pick up part of the tab for your public transportation costs. If not, suggest the company look into the matter -- it could qualify for a tax break.

Car Pool

Two heads are better than one when it comes to commuting. Sharing the ride -- and expense -- with another person heading your way can cut your gas costs in half.

Check out carpooling opportunities at www.erideshare.com and carpoolconnect.com.

[slosurfer]

I'm in construction, so when gas prices really rise, it gets passed on to the customer.

As it is now, I don't drive my "work" truck as much, which can be pain as it is a utility bed and carries my tools. It's a 89F250 and pretty much gets 9mpg whether it is loaded or empty, so now I drive it to haul supplies and once the supplies and most my tools are on the job, I drive my 4runner back and forth to the job. It makes it hard because I have to really think about what tools I need to throw in the 4runner each day, doing tile there are days I could use just about every tool I own.

The job I'm on now, I'm being paid "time and materials" and it is about 30-40minutes away, so I have to charge them the time it takes me to drive one way to cover my overhead.

My wife limits her trips into SLO, and only goes when she can get multiple things done in the same trip. She is a stay at home mom also which is great and so far we have been able to swing it, but it can get tight.

We have always recycled but pretty much in our recycle can that gets picked up on trash day, now we save all our cans and bottles and turn them back in for their CRV. It's not much, but it puts some $$ back into our savings.

[tulsa_sr5]

Well, the wife and I work at the same place, so we carpool in her xb everyday, unless the weather is bad. 30mpg easy with 2 people in it 90% of the time, thats like getting 60mpg right?

We've pretty much decided her next car will be a prius. Going to try and wait for the new ones to come out. I've heard different rumors about them having 2 or 3 different ones in larger and smaller sizes, even a lexus version. Also, if you look at the improvements from the first gen synergy drive to the second they are significant. The next gen drivetrain should be much better and it's already pretty great. I know if you just look at the cost per mile prius may not make sense compared to other cars like a yaris or fit or even the xb, but honestly it's a damn nice car. I figure it's also good insurance for whatever gas prices do in the future too.

[neliconcept]

well lately i havent been driving as much, a friend of mine is going to Rics to get his elocker looked at (we are going to pull off the motor to check the actuator) and im gonna pick up my bike then, weather is starting to get nicer, and lately everytime i drive, its no more then 3 miles one way, which on a bike is seriously doable easily.

[MTL_4runner]

~$3.10 a gallon here.

the wife drives the land cruiser to work - a whopping 1.8 miles each way. the runner gets ~18.5 MPG on my 50-mile/day commute, so it's costly (about $60/week maybe), but not killing me. i was only getting 20MPG in the acura legend, so there's no appreciable difference in my opinion comparing the sedan to the runner.

speaking of having families and costs associated with kids... UFFFFF!
on the other hand, i can't WAIT for my son to start kindergarten this fall. we're paying $540 a month for preschool, plus another $1k a month for an at-home nanny for our 8-month-old. once clayton gets in school, we'll have her pick him up in the afternoons and give her a slight raise, saving us over $400 a month. when aidan is about a year-and-a-half (half-way there! wooo hoo!) we'll have him in a preschool/daycare and only have after-school for clayton. that will save us another ~$400-ish a month. once they're both in school, then we'll save ANOTHER $400/month and still have after-school care until the wife gets home at ~4pm.

~$250/month in gas hurts (but in reality it's only $100/month more than if gas was $1.80/gal - way back in the good ole days :D ), but $1500+ a month for child care hurts worse (especially since we can't deduct it due to income restrictions!)




Boy Andy, I can sympathize with those costs but luckily up here they treat you a little better for having kids. We pay for daycare about $650 / month for 3-24 month old, $450 / month for a 2-4 yr old and 5-12 yrs old you pay $250 / month for the after school daycare program. We have a 4yr old and another due in June so income will go down a bit but up here they also have a 1 year paid maternity leave (system is complicated to explain here, but it's WAY better than the US does for you). Then to top it all off you get a childcare benefit of $1200 per year, per child and all your expenses are tax deductable (@15%) at the end of the year. It probably offsets the higher taxes we pay to begin with, but still very helpful on the old family budget. I couldn't imagine your nanny costs added to our budget, that would hurt.




I agree with Arjan that everyone up here in Canada is so used to paying high prices at the pump that even if it goes quite a bit higher (gas is about $4.20 per US gallon right now with the dollar around parity), it probably won't change much unless you're living paycheck to paycheck. Everything about owning a vehicle costs more so typically people just chalk it up to being part of the total operating costs of having a vehicle on the road. Just going to the US to buy your vehicle (retail prices are still much cheaper in the US, despite dollar parity for some time) can save you enough money that you'd drive a serious gas guzzler for free for about 2 years in some cases. That is why we stopped using the 4runner (18 MPG avg) and switched to the CRV (24 MPG avg) as our vehicle of choice for traveling and also why I haven't sold my Civic (33 MPG avg) as a DD. I expect prices to shoot up this summer so I won't be getting any more gas guzzler additions to my fleet of vehicles for quite a while.

[Good Times]

Just to bump this thread, Andy that article is awesome!

[Phalanx]

I'm waiting for the 70+ mpg Diesel Fox's to hit the states

[YotaFun]

I am settling for a mazda miata...
Poor Tess will become a weekend truck...

[AxleIke]

I'm waiting for the 70+ mpg Diesel Fox's to hit the states


By the time that happens, diesel will be so expensive that it'll cost you the same to drive that as it does your toyota.

[MTL_4runner]

By the time that happens, diesel will be so expensive that it'll cost you the same to drive that as it does your toyota.


X2

Pretty soon the advantages of using diesel motors (even at 30% more efficient) could be eaten up by the fuel's price difference.

[Cebby]

Gas is $3.35 for regular here right now. Sucks.

Thank goodness we have a fuel program through the local grocery store. For every $50 we spend, we get .10 off per gallon. They had a special a few weeks back that if you used their pharmacy on a particular day, that you received $1.00 off per gallon in the fuel "perks" program. We stumbled on to it - I don't think it was advertised. The great part was that our prescription was only a $3.00 refill! Plus, with my wife catering and buying a fair amount of her supplies at this grocery store, I've had some fill ups where I'm paying under $1.00 per gallon.

[drguitarum2005]

i was looking into what i, as a poor college kid, can do to stop spending so much on gas and what i concluded (for MY situation) was to just suck it up. i was close to buying a bike but by the time i bought it for $3500, got insured, took the safety class, got licensed, bought the helmet and jacket, it would add up to too much. i'm not going to be saving $4000+ in gas difference over the rest of the life of my truck as a DD.

my other alternative was sell the truck and buy an actual CAR with better mileage (read: Audi a4) but i determined that a) i'm a truck person, b) my truck is too useful and c) i'm a truck person

so for now I'm just sucking it up. my dreams of an F250 7.3 powerstroke were slashed when diesel prices went through the roof though

[Seanz0rz]

gas, last i checked a few days ago, was 3.60 ish.

i just try to not drive anywhere. instead of two trips to the store each week, i make one. dont go out for late night fast food runs, just cook here at 3am (actually saves me a bunch of money)

i also drive 65, dont accelerate quickly, try to not hit my brakes on the freeway (hard but possible, even on the 10) i use my cruise control when i can.

this summer ill be buying myself a POS $1000 car to fix up and commute with next year, 80miles/day, hopefully only 2-3 days a week though.

[cplvc]

87 octane was $3.70 at Costco last night off of Sepulveda in the valley..crazy! I take a bus to work and walk to and from bus stop to destination, but the weekend driving is killer on the Amex. LA is so inconvenient when it comes to public transit. I gotta look into a hybrid, wasn't Toyota working on a 70 mpg prius?

[paddlenbike]

I looked into buying a diesel Mercedes, but when I ran the numbers, it did not make financial sense. Even at double the fuel mileage.

4Runner:
I drive 10,000 miles per year. I cycle to work, so 98% of my driving is recreational.
(10,000 miles / 18.5 mpg) = 540 gallons of fuel per year x $3.60/gal = $1,944 per year.

37 mpg car:
(10,000 miles / 37 mpg) = 270 gallons of fuel per year x $3.99/gal for diesel = $1,077 per year.

A savings of $867/yr, not including maintenance, repairs, insurance and the key...these numbers assume I never drove the 4Runner. 98% of my driving is to go offroad/camping, haul kayaks, etc., stuff I couldn't do in a commuter, so my savings wouldn't be anywhere near what was calculated above.

Recreation for me involves spending money on fuel. I will continue to travel as long as I can afford to. The only other option is staying home.

[cplvc]

Is it worth starting a cheap fuel (no such thing I know :argue:) location thread?

[paddlenbike]

Is it worth starting a cheap fuel (no such thing I know :argue:) location thread?


JC--do a search on google. I remember seeing some google mashups that overlay fuel prices on the map. It will stay much more current than anything we could do here on UY.

Ken

[cplvc]

Thanks Ken, I'll look into that on Google. Google has so much information these days, i.e. street view, shows pictures of residences. I wonder if they've thought of trail view :D

[DHC6twinotter]

Gas was at 3.23 or so just yesterday, but it jumped up to 3.60 or so today I think. I walk to both work and school, but I can definatley notice the difference in my budget. Still have to drive to church and groceries, and the gas adds up quick. I fill up about every 10 days. $$

If I had a garage, I would pick up an old diesel and make my own biodiesel. :thumbup:

[jrallan26]

I only use my Tacoma during the winter months. Currently I ride my BMW everywhere (work, errands.)Our Camry gets reasonable mileage but it is soon to get replaced with a 09 VW TDI Passat or Jetta.

[DHC6twinotter]

I gotta look into a hybrid, wasn't Toyota working on a 70 mpg prius?


There is a company (can't remember the name) that retrofits the Prius with an additional battery pack in the trunk. The car runs on the batteries primarily and just uses the engine as a range booster. The batteries charge using a wall outlet at your house (or wherever). Supposedly, it gets over 100mpg. Pretty cool setup. :D

[jayzus]

hmm here in deep south texas.. Harlingen, texas.. its 3.39 for regular unleaded and 3.59 for the supreme. diesel is 3.95 a gallon.. so yea.. ive got my 4runner parked :)

[YotaFun]

Its 3.20 currently for regular, i haven't even looked hire, i only go hire when i know I am gonna hit the trials.

Some paces at 3.39 for regular.
I really need tog et this commuter car soon...

[slosurfer]

I paid $3.89 a couple days ago and paid $3.85 today (it was $3.95 across the street). :lame:

[Seanz0rz]

looked at the gas station tonight, cheapest was 3.79...

[corax]

There is a company (can't remember the name) that retrofits the Prius with an additional battery pack in the trunk. The car runs on the batteries primarily and just uses the engine as a range booster. The batteries charge using a wall outlet at your house (or wherever). Supposedly, it gets over 100mpg. Pretty cool setup. :D


I've heard of people already getting nearly 100mpg from a regular Prius by "Hypermiling" http://www.wisebread.com/maximize-your-cars-efficiency-with-hypermiling


BTW gas hit another record yesterday . . . $115 a barrel

[paddlenbike]

Keep in mind that hybrid technology does not help you on the highway. Some of you might be better off with either an economy car or a diesel if your commute is mostly highway.

[slosurfer]

I'm buying another work vehicle that gets almost better gas mileage than my F250 (7-8mpg) and my 4runner (13-15mpg) combined. I should be getting over 20mpg and only use my F250 when I need to haul a heavy load. This should really help out my cash flow inbetween checks.

[paddlenbike]

Chris--I think you should rock a Geo Metro with 2,000 lbs of tile in the back. Tile saw should fit nicely on the roof. :flipoff:

[slosurfer]

Chris--I think you should rock a Geo Metro with 2,000 lbs of tile in the back. Tile saw should fit nicely on the roof. :flipoff:


I was thinking more along the lines of two ford festivas. 1 for hauling and one with a built in slide out tile saw. :hillbill: Check out this: http://www.flickr.com/photos/7182626@N05/2423591962/in/photostream/ I doubt the metro could tow the festiva. I like the boxy good looks of the festiva. :flipoff:

Seriously though, it is going to be much more unique and cool than a metro. I'm just waiting for some pics to be sent to me so I can post them, I should be putting a deposit down on it tonight. :flipoff: This will also help to keep the miles low on the 4runner, they have really shot up since I started using it as a play vehicle and work vehicle, I think I'm at 120,000 on it now.

[Marc P]

The past couple years I have been fighting the gas prices by driving this to work.....

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b251/MarcP1971/Picture317.jpg

the Fox gets about 33-35mpg and drives like a go-cart compared to the 4runner.

[paddlenbike]

I was thinking more along the lines of two ford festivas. 1 for hauling and one with a built in slide out tile saw. :hillbill: Check out this: http://www.flickr.com/photos/7182626@N05/2423591962/in/photostream/ I doubt the metro could tow the festiva. I like the boxy good looks of the festiva. :flipoff:


:lol: I got a good laugh out of that.

The rig I really like are the Dodge/Mercedes Sprinter vans with either the 2.7L or the newer 3.0 Mercedes turbo diesel engines. FedEx starting using them around here and I have seen some really nice motorhomes on this platform. Would work great as a construction rig and they pull 20 mpg. They haven't been around terribly long, so used ones still cost $11,000+.

[slosurfer]

I was thinking more along the lines of two ford festivas. 1 for hauling and one with a built in slide out tile saw. :hillbill: Check out this: http://www.flickr.com/photos/7182626@N05/2423591962/in/photostream/ I doubt the metro could tow the festiva. I like the boxy good looks of the festiva. :flipoff:


:lol: I got a good laugh out of that.

The rig I really like are the Dodge/Mercedes Sprinter vans with either the 2.7L or the newer 3.0 Mercedes turbo diesel engines. FedEx starting using them around here and I have seen some really nice motorhomes on this platform. Would work great as a construction rig and they pull 20 mpg. They haven't been around terribly long, so used ones still cost $11,000+.


I'm glad you enjoyed that! Funny you should talk about a van, check out my new work van (http://www.ultimateyota.com/index.php?option=com_smf&Itemid=26&topic=4555.new) :D Being jealous of the plumbers/electricians with the Sprinter vans and Mitsu/Fusos is one reason I ever considered a van.

[YotaFun]

I am thinking of just finding an old YUGO thats still running somewhere....
That would be fun.

[arjan]

Up here in Canada we pay about $4.40 a gallon ($1.16 a litre) now. I am filling up every 3 days or so at the moment. Not about to change vehicles though, it's just a fact of life.
People in the US have been (and still are) spoiled with low fuel prices compared to other countries.
It's supposed to hit a $1.40/litre ($5.30/gallon) this summer, still won't stop me. There will be no sense in selling suvs or trucks, nobody will want them.

Paying for another car and paying twice the insurance (over here anyway) to save some on fuel doesn't make sense to me.
Bottom line is that I enjoy driving the 4Runner, it actually grows on me more as it gets older.

[Good Times]

I think the biggest difficulty that everyone is facing is the fact that many were barely surviving and now that the fuel prices are going up faster than the income increases for the cost of living in their areas it's making it more difficult to survive without seriously reconsidering other ways to save money.

Of course many of us in the US have been spoiled by the reduced cost on the fuel we purchase for our vehicles but I think the sudden increase is definitely putting a bigger strain since it's not like we get a cost of living bump every day on our paycheck.

[YotaFun]

I think the biggest difficulty that everyone is facing is the fact that many were barely surviving and now that the fuel prices are going up faster than the income increases for the cost of living in their areas it's making it more difficult to survive without seriously reconsidering other ways to save money.

Of course many of us in the US have been spoiled by the reduced cost on the fuel we purchase for our vehicles but I think the sudden increase is definitely putting a bigger strain since it's not like we get a cost of living bump every day on our paycheck.


Exactly my reason.
My paycheck a week has been going straight from in my hand back into the bottom of my empty tank...
I did the math and the payment and insurance for me to get a second car that gets better gas mileage will get me at least 200 saved a month, thats 200 more I can save towards mods on the truck, or my final move out west once school is done.

Also since I will be taking out a loan, this will finally give me the chance to build up my credit so I don't screw my self over trying to get a place out there.

[Seanz0rz]

just paid 3.85 today for 14.5 gallons of gas, and im getting about 17mpg... time to buy something with at least double that... and i can justify the cost of a "new" commuter car with basic insurance because i will actually be saving money in the long run.

if this gets much worse i might have to sell my 4runner.

[YotaFun]

if this gets much worse i might have to sell my 4runner.


I would rather eat S&^% and die before I get rid of Tess.
I have invested too much, money, time, and mental frustration to get rid of it.
If she has to sit parked, she will sit parked!
At least she will be around.

[04 Rocko Taco]

selling the rig is out of the question, but selling the '04 Taco isn't neccesarily out of it....

Get an X cab 2.7 5 speed for a commuter..... yeah..... I can dig it.

[paddlenbike]

selling the rig is out of the question



Selling the 4Runner would mean selling my lifestyle & hobbies. As fuel prices go up, I'll have to save money elsewhere so I can continue to do the expedition travel trips that I enjoy so much.

[corax]

I have invested too much, money, time, and mental frustration to get rid of it.
If she has to sit parked, she will sit parked!
At least she will be around.


ditto that sentiment - I top off the tank everytime I get done playing as an investment in the future

[arjan]

We are paying $1.20 a litre now, they expect it to go to $2.25 by 2012. Some experts say that might even happen a lot faster then that.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2008/04/24/gas-prices-consumer.html?ref=rss

If you're worried about gas prices now you probably better start looking for a different hobby.
A lot of younger guys are running suzukis here to keep the cost down a bit. Those things go a long way up in the mountains around here.

[YotaFun]

I can handle my hobby, If I get a fuel efficient DD.

$3.55 Today Here.
33.50 for fill up from half a tank, this is going to be a "FUN" summer