I just paid $4 a gallon for the first time ever.

I guess, its not really surprising. But I really thought this day would come much later when I bought my 2005 WRX three years ago. I get decent highway MPG (25-28) but my city mileage (18-20)stinks. Lol. I mainly put most of my miles on rural roads with some stops and stop lights. That is on my way to work where the majority of my miles come from. I had been contemplating a small cc motorcycle for sometime already. It would be my commuter bike. And I think that probably sooner than later the expense on one might be economically justifiable in my situation. Even considering insurance, gear, and upkeep on bike. I would realistically be able to ride 2/3 of the year as well with decent weather we have.

Anyone else seriously considering a motorcycle, scooter, econobox, etc?

$4? lol your living on easy street bud ....
WELL over double that here in "ripoff Britain"
yes i cycle to work to save money, but its only a short journey,
...... i would only consider a 500cc+ motorcycle if i were going that route ...

Biodiesel cost has stayed rather steady around here($3.50-ish/gal), but I got caught away from my preferred biodiesel pump last week and had to fill up with dead dinosaurs @ $4.27/gal. Tools and equipment have to be hauled so a smaller vehicle just isn't an option. Was over $500 for the fill up, which might last me through the week..........

:buddies:

Lol at hendo... I know we Americans have had it 'well' in petrol prices for many years. You know, I get that 500cc comment quite often but I have looked up much information and a I still feel that for its purpose, commuting and the occasional weekend windy road excursion, it sounds about right.

According to most info available a ninja ex250 performance, for example, is more than adequate for daily use:

60 mph (0-100 km/h) 5.75 sec
1/4 Mile 14.6 sec @ 88 mph
Maximum Speed 105 mph (170 km/h)
Max Horsepower 36 @ 11000 RPM (26 @ rear wheel)
Max Torque 18 Ft/Lbs @ 10000 RPM (14 @ rear wheel)
Fuel Efficiency 55-75 MPG

My wrx when driven hard, gets 0-60 and 1/4 numbers that almost identical. Of course, my top end, would be better. But who drives over 70mph? :devil:

Diesel Bomber- Whooaa... kinda puts things in perspective for me. $500 fillup, jeebuz.

One of my co-workers has a commute that's about 35 miles one-way. He's begun driving partway to work, parking, and riding his bike the rest of the way (bike = bicycle, not motorcycle). Would that be a workable option? You don't need a super-fancy bicycle, I do most of my commutes on an old basic mountain bike with fenders and LIGHTS :huh:


My Dodge Caravan gets similar mileage figures to your WRX, so I try to use it only when necessary, and ride my bicycle the rest of the time. That works better for me than for most people, because my commute isn't too long, I don't have to look perfect when I get there, and I don't usually have to haul bulky/heavy stuff or pick up kids from daycare/etc.

We're at $3.29 today for 87-octane. It's been going up 3-5 cents per day, for the last couple of weeks.

Current UK price is over £1 per litre. 4.536 litres =1 UK gallon as opposed to 3.78 litres per US gallon. Last fuel I bought cost £1.07 per litre (1.35 euros) or £4.04 per US gallon. At today's exchange rate that is $7.84/US gallon.

And our other energy costs are in a similar ratio. I pay about 4x as much for a kwh of power. We went over $4 a (US) gallon in the 80's.

Almost everything made in Detroit is unsellable in Europe due to outrageous fuel consumption and the cost of fuel here - OK, the UK has the priciest fuel in Europe but not by much.

My wrx when driven hard, gets 0-60 and 1/4 numbers that almost identical. Of course, my top end, would be better. But who drives over 70mph?

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Who drives under 70mph? And why does one buy a WRX to drive it slowly? The local record for my street is well above that (30mph speed limit) and 24 houses - call it an eighth of a mile. My record terminal velocity is over 100mph (On a Honda CBR1000 modded for better acceleration) Went from 0-110mph-0 in the length of the street. Can still see the rubber marks on the road - half of it from the back tyre and the other half from the front tyre under crazy braking.

Converted from kr/liter here in norway to $ a gallon, the petrol in norway costs $9.50 a gallon right now :sick2:. For Americans that would be the end of the world right?

deleted

this_is_nascar said:

We're at $3.29 today for 87-octane. It's been going up 3-5 cents per day, for the last couple of weeks.

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Gotta love it. As soon as you cross the border from Calif into another state, the gas prices drop at least $0.50.

And I don't buy that "California blend" explanation.

Current UK price is over £1 per litre. 4.536 litres =1 UK gallon as opposed to 3.78 litres per US gallon. Last fuel I bought cost £1.07 per litre (1.35 euros) or £4.04 per US gallon. At today's exchange rate that is $7.84/US gallon.

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Can you tell us how much of that is taxes? We give SUV's a bad time here, but as shown by other countries, cutting your consumption by driving smaller displacement vehicles didn't drop the price for them.

Probedude said:

Can you tell us how much of that is taxes? We give SUV's a bad time here, but as shown by other countries, cutting your consumption by driving smaller displacement vehicles didn't drop the price for them.

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I was just thinking that. Every Euro I see/hear/encounter moan about their gas prices, but when asked how much tax is in their price, no one knows/cares/wants to know.

It's not like the Euros don't have oil conglomerates, UK and Holland got Shell, UK got BP, and France got Total. There are others but I can't recall right now.

mighty82 said:

Converted from kr/liter here in norway to $ a gallon, the petrol in norway costs $9.50 a gallon right now :sick2:. For Americans that would be the end of the world right?

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seems to provide endless amusement for you guys, it appears.

270winchester said:

seems to provide endless amusement for you guys, it appears.

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It's just strange to me when i see people complaining over prices that people in most other countries could only dream of. Although I know what prices you are used to, and i can understand why some of you would be upset.

mighty82 said:

It's just strange to me when i see people complaining over prices that people in most other countries could only dream of. Although I know what prices you are used to, and i can understand why some of you would be upset.

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if you understand how rapid increase in consumer goods prices can lead to people not being thrilled, why is it strange to you? Anywhere in the world if goods prices double within a few years would cause the consumers to grumble(sometimes overthrowing of governments) Norway has higher per capita GDP than the US(around 60k USD versus 44k according to BBC), so the costs hits us more than you give us credit.

At least it contributes to your post count, I suppose.

I paid over $4 a week or two ago.

What killed me was my weekly trip to the pump yesterday. $38 to fill up a Prius! That's obscene! I can't imagine paying $500 a week like Diesel_Bomber.

Daniel

gadget_lover said:

I paid over $4 a week or two ago.

What killed me was my weekly trip to the pump yesterday. $38 to fill up a Prius! That's obscene!

Daniel

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should have gotten a diesel Jetta.:naughty:

Sorry, couldn't resist. All in poor taste, I realize.

270winchester said:

should have gotten a diesel Jetta.:naughty:

Sorry, couldn't resist. All in poor taste, I realize.

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I don't mind. I don't think the Jetta is the answer for me. Diesel is much more expensive than regular unleaded, and it's not as clean running and most important.... It's not as much of a gadget.

With the driving I do, I spemnd 20 to 30 minutes a day in a traffic jam. While that does not impact the mileage of a Prius, it would kill the mileage of a diesel Jetta.

Daniel

RdlyLite said:

Lol at hendo... I know we Americans have had it 'well' in petrol prices for many years. You know, I get that 500cc comment quite often but I have looked up much information and a I still feel that for its purpose, commuting and the occasional weekend windy road excursion, it sounds about right.

According to most info available a ninja ex250 performance, for example, is more than adequate for daily use:

60 mph (0-100 km/h) 5.75 sec
1/4 Mile 14.6 sec @ 88 mph
Maximum Speed 105 mph (170 km/h)
Max Horsepower 36 @ 11000 RPM (26 @ rear wheel)
Max Torque 18 Ft/Lbs @ 10000 RPM (14 @ rear wheel)
Fuel Efficiency 55-75 MPG

My wrx when driven hard, gets 0-60 and 1/4 numbers that almost identical. Of course, my top end, would be better. But who drives over 70mph? :devil:

Diesel Bomber- Whooaa... kinda puts things in perspective for me. $500 fillup, jeebuz.

Click to expand...

One thing to remember about larger engine motorcycles is that they typically have a lower center of gravity, making them more stable. Granted, if you've never ridden before, a smaller bike is preferable. But, if you have the experience, a larger bike is "safer"

I don't have one myself, my back can't handle it anymore. But I do have a friend who bought himself and his wife two small honda scooters for around town runs (San Jose/Santa Clara) and he says he gets about 100 MPG on the things!!!

I passed two gas stations in Beverly Hills last week that were both charging $4.49 for 91! I think, 87 was $4.29. I've been paying $4.05 for 91, lately, but this weekend I was lucky and filled up at Sam's Club with 91 octane at only $3.92, which is as cheap as it gets, around here.

My VW R32 is not stoked about this at all!:shakehead Still waiting for the hybrid version to come out...lol

Mayo