Nah well thats just one specific garage doing that, but seriously they prices you're complaining about have been commonplace in the UK for the past year, but yeah they do suck.
Nah well thats just one specific garage doing that, but seriously they prices you're complaining about have been commonplace in the UK for the past year, but yeah they do suck.
A 400% rise over ten years is always hard, no matter where you start.
Speaker on
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HonkHonk is this poster.Registered User, __BANNED USERSregular
Nah well thats just one specific garage doing that, but seriously they prices you're complaining about have been commonplace in the UK for the past year, but yeah they do suck.
A 400% rise over ten years is always hard, no matter where you start.
Nah well thats just one specific garage doing that, but seriously they prices you're complaining about have been commonplace in the UK for the past year, but yeah they do suck.
Doesn't the UK have a developed mass transit system?
We had something like that once upon a time. They called 'em passenger trains. The government subsidized the shit out of their infrastructure, and then they vanished in a cloud of monopolization. Now the passenger train is just about extinct, replaced by the airlines in the days of artificially cheap gas.
TL DR on
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ElJeffeRoaming the streets, waving his mod gun around.Moderator, ClubPAMod Emeritus
Nah well thats just one specific garage doing that, but seriously they prices you're complaining about have been commonplace in the UK for the past year, but yeah they do suck.
A 400% rise over ten years is always hard, no matter where you start.
Especially when done in an area that hasn't been designed around mass transit so as to obviate the need for autos.
ElJeffe on
I submitted an entry to Lego Ideas, and if 10,000 people support me, it'll be turned into an actual Lego set!If you'd like to see and support my submission, follow this link.
I bought a Prius almost as soon as they were available in 2001, so that seems to have worked out well, but I really can't see myself buying another one. The car is just so small and terrible in the snow that I found myself literaly unable to drive home from work on at least one occation this past winter. I need something a bit bigger, but I don't know what. Ford has a hybrid Explorer that goes for 25,000 or so that gets 30ish, which is still a lot less then what I get now and I don't want to give up filling up once a month.
I'm with Jeffe, though, but I want to be rich so I can buy a Tesla Roadster and flip off gas stations as I speed silently by.
You've got the older version. They're updated it since. I haven't driven the older one, but from what I hear the newer is a big improvement. Supposedly there's yet another new design on the way too.
(and it inspired a "...dammnit your car is huge" comment when compared to my coworkers Calibur, so take that as you wil. )
The hybrid SUVs aren't quite as impressive in pure MPG, but they're still almost doubled from what they were...
This thread I imagine (well to me at least) is hilarious to us Europeans. In the UK at the moment it costs about £25-£40 to fill a tank. That approximates about $50-$80.
There has been a noticable increase in the amount of people growing their own food and using public transport in even greater numbers.
This is true. But unfortunately (with absolutely NO data to back this up) Americans tend to travel to and from work a lot further than Europeans, right? We're all about space in the US.
urahonky on
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ElJeffeRoaming the streets, waving his mod gun around.Moderator, ClubPAMod Emeritus
This thread I imagine (well to me at least) is hilarious to us Europeans. In the UK at the moment it costs about £25-£40 to fill a tank. That approximates about $50-$80.
There has been a noticable increase in the amount of people growing their own food and using public transport in even greater numbers.
This is true. But unfortunately (with absolutely NO data to back this up) Americans tend to travel to and from work a lot further than Europeans, right? We're all about space in the US.
We have lots of suburbs.
Lots and lots of suburbs.
ElJeffe on
I submitted an entry to Lego Ideas, and if 10,000 people support me, it'll be turned into an actual Lego set!If you'd like to see and support my submission, follow this link.
This thread I imagine (well to me at least) is hilarious to us Europeans. In the UK at the moment it costs about £25-£40 to fill a tank. That approximates about $50-$80.
There has been a noticable increase in the amount of people growing their own food and using public transport in even greater numbers.
This is true. But unfortunately (with absolutely NO data to back this up) Americans tend to travel to and from work a lot further than Europeans, right? We're all about space in the US.
We have lots of suburbs.
Lots and lots of suburbs.
Yeah that was my impression when I was in Germany. There would be a suburb... Then a few kilometers of farmland, then another suburb.
Here it feels entirely different. Everything's much more spread out.
This thread I imagine (well to me at least) is hilarious to us Europeans. In the UK at the moment it costs about £25-£40 to fill a tank. That approximates about $50-$80.
There has been a noticable increase in the amount of people growing their own food and using public transport in even greater numbers.
This is true. But unfortunately (with absolutely NO data to back this up) Americans tend to travel to and from work a lot further than Europeans, right? We're all about space in the US.
We have lots of suburbs.
Lots and lots of suburbs.
Yeah that was my impression when I was in Germany. There would be a suburb... Then a few kilometers of farmland, then another suburb.
Here it feels entirely different. Everything's much more spread out.
We are a big country with a lot of space. We didn't have the problems of small countries and border definitions restricting growth. As is, we became overly dependent upon oil. Now we're suffering.
Yeah. I'd love to ride my bike to work myself, but I have class right after work. Lugging a bookbag while running on my interstate (which would be fucking deadly... Holy shit people in Ohio can't drive) isn't the best idea. And it also takes 20 minutes to get there by car (15 minutes on the highway) so I don't think I could do that.
Plus asthma and allergies. Fuck I hate them... I want to lose weight by riding my bike, but I don't think I can do it.
urahonky on
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TL DRNot at all confident in his reflexive opinions of thingsRegistered Userregular
Yeah. I'd love to ride my bike to work myself, but I have class right after work. Lugging a bookbag while running on my interstate (which would be fucking deadly... Holy shit people in Ohio can't drive) isn't the best idea. And it also takes 20 minutes to get there by car (15 minutes on the highway) so I don't think I could do that.
Plus asthma and allergies. Fuck I hate them... I want to lose weight by riding my bike, but I don't think I can do it.
Yeah. I'd love to ride my bike to work myself, but I have class right after work. Lugging a bookbag while running on my interstate (which would be fucking deadly... Holy shit people in Ohio can't drive) isn't the best idea. And it also takes 20 minutes to get there by car (15 minutes on the highway) so I don't think I could do that.
Plus asthma and allergies. Fuck I hate them... I want to lose weight by riding my bike, but I don't think I can do it.
Where are you in Ohio?
I live in Bellbrook and work in Beavercreek. Near Dayton.
urahonky on
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TL DRNot at all confident in his reflexive opinions of thingsRegistered Userregular
Since 2005 I was looking at buying a nice SUV, preferably compact but since gas prices have sky rocketed I bought a BMW Z4 instead. Not the best mileage ever but I love it!
Next year I plan on learning how to ride a motocycle and get me one of these!!
Investment can flood into the oil market without driving up prices because speculators are not buying any actual crude. Instead, they buy contracts for future delivery. When those contracts mature, they either settle them with a cash payment or sell them on to genuine consumers. Either way, no oil is hoarded or somehow kept off the market. The contracts are really a bet about which way the price will go and the number of bets does not affect the amount of oil available. As Mr Harris puts it, there is no limit to the number of “paper barrels†that can be bought and sold.
I would highly recommend the article, its good and presents some solid reasons for oil price increases, like this one:
The problem is exacerbated by a growing mismatch between the type of oil being produced and the refineries that must process it. The most common benchmark prices, including the one used in this article, refer to “light†crude, the least viscous sort, which produces the most petrol and diesel when refined. “Heavy†oil, by contrast, yields more fuel oil, which is used mainly for heating.
At the moment, diesel is in short supply and there is a glut of fuel oil. That makes processing heavy oil unprofitable for some refineries, since the gains from diesel are outweighed by losses on fuel oil. As refineries turn instead to lighter grades, it pushes their prices yet higher. The discount on heavier crudes has risen to record levels. But even then, points out Ed Morse, of Lehman Brothers, another investment bank, Iran is having trouble selling the stuff. It is storing huge quantities of unsold oil on tankers moored off its coast.
Presumably, Iran and other heavy-oil producers will eventually be obliged to drop prices far enough to make processing the stuff worth refiners' while. In the longer run, more refineries will invest in the equipment needed to crack more diesel out of heavy oil. Both steps will, in effect, increase the world's oil supply, and so help to ease prices.
But, in answer to the OP's question. I do find that I drive less. I was already taking the bus to/from work. But now I'm seriously contemplating selling my car and saving the insurance money as well as the gas money. I am also thinking about a scooter or 150-200cc motorcycle. But winter here is really cold
edit: yeah, all Prius' are ugly, but my 2001 is really ugly and really small.
Are you in Europe? Because that's the only way you'll see one of those any time soon. We may someday see them in the US, but I wouldn't hold my breath waiting.
Nerissa on
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TL DRNot at all confident in his reflexive opinions of thingsRegistered Userregular
edited June 2008
Has anyone had luck with a rideshare program? I know sites like Craigslist have venues where people can arrange carpooling on regular commutes or trips to events like Bonnaroo.
I moved within walking distance of work, but that was just as much to do with wanting my own place, a shorter commute, and more exercise as with gas prices. I am thinking of getting a scooter or something, though I will miss not being able to go on the highway with it.
When gas first went over $3.00, I said eff that. I had every intention of bicycling to work. It was only about 3 miles in, and everything was going to be great. So I bought the bike and took it out for a spin... And oh, boy, am I a fat fucker. I went about 1/4 of a mile on it and felt like my chest was going to burst. So then I went on a diet, shed some tons, got in a little better shape, and was all set to give the bike thing another whirl.
And right about then, my work moved. From 3 miles away to 15 miles away.
So instead I went and spent ~$5,000 on a motorcycle (including things like insurance, armor, a class on how to ride and not die so much, etc.), which I now ride when the weather isn't completely shitty. It gets about 60 MPG, and is a complete blast to ride. My car gets about 20 MPG, so I'm saving... Hmm.
30 mile round trip
Car:
30 miles @ 20 mpg = 0.75 gallons per day
0.75 gallons * $4.00 = $3.00 per day
Motorcycle:
30 miles @ 60 MPG = 0.5 gallons per day
0.5 gallons per day * $4.00 = $2.00 per day
Well, damn. I kinda wish I hadn't checked those numbers.
When gas first went over $3.00, I said eff that. I had every intention of bicycling to work. It was only about 3 miles in, and everything was going to be great. So I bought the bike and took it out for a spin... And oh, boy, am I a fat fucker. I went about 1/4 of a mile on it and felt like my chest was going to burst. So then I went on a diet, shed some tons, got in a little better shape, and was all set to give the bike thing another whirl.
And right about then, my work moved. From 3 miles away to 15 miles away.
So instead I went and spent ~$5,000 on a motorcycle (including things like insurance, armor, a class on how to ride and not die so much, etc.), which I now ride when the weather isn't completely shitty. It gets about 60 MPG, and is a complete blast to ride. My car gets about 20 MPG, so I'm saving... Hmm.
30 mile round trip
Car:
30 miles @ 20 mpg = 0.75 gallons per day
0.75 gallons * $4.00 = $3.00 per day
Motorcycle:
30 miles @ 60 MPG = 0.5 gallons per day
0.5 gallons per day * $4.00 = $2.00 per day
Well, damn. I kinda wish I hadn't checked those numbers.
How flat is the terrain? I ride my bike 12 miles to/from work all the time. 15 isn't that bad, so long as you have showers available there.
When gas first went over $3.00, I said eff that. I had every intention of bicycling to work. It was only about 3 miles in, and everything was going to be great. So I bought the bike and took it out for a spin... And oh, boy, am I a fat fucker. I went about 1/4 of a mile on it and felt like my chest was going to burst. So then I went on a diet, shed some tons, got in a little better shape, and was all set to give the bike thing another whirl.
And right about then, my work moved. From 3 miles away to 15 miles away.
So instead I went and spent ~$5,000 on a motorcycle (including things like insurance, armor, a class on how to ride and not die so much, etc.), which I now ride when the weather isn't completely shitty. It gets about 60 MPG, and is a complete blast to ride. My car gets about 20 MPG, so I'm saving... Hmm.
30 mile round trip
Car:
30 miles @ 20 mpg = 0.75 gallons per day
0.75 gallons * $4.00 = $3.00 per day
Motorcycle:
30 miles @ 60 MPG = 0.5 gallons per day
0.5 gallons per day * $4.00 = $2.00 per day
Well, damn. I kinda wish I hadn't checked those numbers.
Just don't add the price of buying the motorcycle and the gear you wear to ride it.
I haven't changed my driving habits at all but my work is only 15 minutes away and I look at it this way:
I don't have really any way of changing gas prices and I'm not taking 2 hour joy rides out to the mountains so why worry about it? I make enough money its not like $4 a gallon is really cutting into food or even luxuries.
CommunistCow on
No, I am not really communist. Yes, it is weird that I use this name.
When gas first went over $3.00, I said eff that. I had every intention of bicycling to work. It was only about 3 miles in, and everything was going to be great. So I bought the bike and took it out for a spin... And oh, boy, am I a fat fucker. I went about 1/4 of a mile on it and felt like my chest was going to burst. So then I went on a diet, shed some tons, got in a little better shape, and was all set to give the bike thing another whirl.
And right about then, my work moved. From 3 miles away to 15 miles away.
So instead I went and spent ~$5,000 on a motorcycle (including things like insurance, armor, a class on how to ride and not die so much, etc.), which I now ride when the weather isn't completely shitty. It gets about 60 MPG, and is a complete blast to ride. My car gets about 20 MPG, so I'm saving... Hmm.
30 mile round trip
Car:
30 miles @ 20 mpg = 0.75 gallons per day
0.75 gallons * $4.00 = $3.00 per day
Motorcycle:
30 miles @ 60 MPG = 0.5 gallons per day
0.5 gallons per day * $4.00 = $2.00 per day
Well, damn. I kinda wish I hadn't checked those numbers.
Also my 6'10" ex boyfriend endorsed the Prius as far as leg/headroom for a small car
So suck it
Medopine on
0
DVGNo. 1 Honor StudentNether Institute, Evil AcademyRegistered Userregular
edited June 2008
I'd love to be able to change the lifestyle, but even though I'm much closer to work now (from a 80 mile drive to a 12 mile drive) it's still too far to reasonably walk or bike ride in.
I'm applying for a job downtown, which would mean I could reasonably bike it in (6 miles each way) or more likely take the bus in. (The buslines here suck in general, but the number 5 from my neighborhood to the arena district where I'd be working is a very nice option)
DVG on
Diablo 3 - DVG#1857
0
ElJeffeRoaming the streets, waving his mod gun around.Moderator, ClubPAMod Emeritus
Also my 6'10" ex boyfriend endorsed the Prius as far as leg/headroom for a small car
So suck it
I'd think it'd be sort of uncomfortable banging an Ent. You know, splinters and all.
ElJeffe on
I submitted an entry to Lego Ideas, and if 10,000 people support me, it'll be turned into an actual Lego set!If you'd like to see and support my submission, follow this link.
Often in the mornings I will do a combination of biking (3 miles or so) and riding the bus (express bus, 9 miles), since the buses have bike racks attached to the front and it gets me to the office without being all sweaty. It only takes about 15 minutes longer than driving, too.
Also my 6'10" ex boyfriend endorsed the Prius as far as leg/headroom for a small car
So suck it
He must be mighty forgiving about cars then. Having sat in the driver's seat of a Prius and being very close to cramped, I can't imagine dealing with another 7 inches.
Anyone who bitches about Hondas or Toyotas not having enough room doesn't know what the fuck they're talking about. They frequently have more interior space than significantly larger luxury vehicles. I'm a big guy, and I can sit reasonably comfortably in the back of my Honda.
Thanatos on
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ElJeffeRoaming the streets, waving his mod gun around.Moderator, ClubPAMod Emeritus
Anyone who bitches about Hondas or Toyotas not having enough room doesn't know what the fuck they're talking about. They frequently have more interior space than significantly larger luxury vehicles. I'm a big guy, and I can sit reasonably comfortably in the back of my Honda.
...
I'm not a big guy, and I can tolerate the back of a Civic, but I'd hardly call it comfortable. This was a '98, so maybe they've changed since then. That said, I don't think Hondas and Toyotas are worse than your average car for back seat space - they all pretty much suck, until you start getting into full-sized sedan territory.
ElJeffe on
I submitted an entry to Lego Ideas, and if 10,000 people support me, it'll be turned into an actual Lego set!If you'd like to see and support my submission, follow this link.
It's a 5 mile bike ride, and if I take back routes through residential areas is very nice for exercise/getting outdoors.
Extra benefit: It's uphill on the way to work and downhill coming back. Meaning after I'm tired from work, I get to just coast home.
Fuck cars, this is so much better. The only thing I don't like is that because I'm afraid of getting hit by cars I can't listen to my ipod. But that's not the bikes fault.
Anyone who bitches about Hondas or Toyotas not having enough room doesn't know what the fuck they're talking about. They frequently have more interior space than significantly larger luxury vehicles. I'm a big guy, and I can sit reasonably comfortably in the back of my Honda.
I'd be pretty terribly uncomfortable sitting behind my seat(as far back as it can go) in my Protege.
But legroom for driving is what I was talking about, that's much more important. It needs to be just right so your legs aren't forced up and around to straddle the wheel, and not so far back that you have to stretch your arms all the way out.
Posts
You Yanks don't know you're born.
Nah well thats just one specific garage doing that, but seriously they prices you're complaining about have been commonplace in the UK for the past year, but yeah they do suck.
A 400% rise over ten years is always hard, no matter where you start.
Not if it's a 400% rise of awesomeness...
Google's conversion tool is awesome. I never would have thought it could do it, but "1.55 euros per liter in US dollars per gallon" works.
It's about $4.90 USD a gallon here in Toronto at its absolute lowest.
Doesn't the UK have a developed mass transit system?
We had something like that once upon a time. They called 'em passenger trains. The government subsidized the shit out of their infrastructure, and then they vanished in a cloud of monopolization. Now the passenger train is just about extinct, replaced by the airlines in the days of artificially cheap gas.
Especially when done in an area that hasn't been designed around mass transit so as to obviate the need for autos.
You've got the older version. They're updated it since. I haven't driven the older one, but from what I hear the newer is a big improvement. Supposedly there's yet another new design on the way too.
(and it inspired a "...dammnit your car is huge" comment when compared to my coworkers Calibur, so take that as you wil.
The hybrid SUVs aren't quite as impressive in pure MPG, but they're still almost doubled from what they were...
Sold. (as long as it is not to expensive...)
edit: yeah, all Prius' are ugly, but my 2001 is really ugly and really small.
This is true. But unfortunately (with absolutely NO data to back this up) Americans tend to travel to and from work a lot further than Europeans, right? We're all about space in the US.
We have lots of suburbs.
Lots and lots of suburbs.
Yeah that was my impression when I was in Germany. There would be a suburb... Then a few kilometers of farmland, then another suburb.
Here it feels entirely different. Everything's much more spread out.
We are a big country with a lot of space. We didn't have the problems of small countries and border definitions restricting growth. As is, we became overly dependent upon oil. Now we're suffering.
Plus asthma and allergies. Fuck I hate them... I want to lose weight by riding my bike, but I don't think I can do it.
Where are you in Ohio?
I live in Bellbrook and work in Beavercreek. Near Dayton.
Next year I plan on learning how to ride a motocycle and get me one of these!!
http://www.piaggiousa.com/pScooters/MP3500.cfm
Shut your mouth, my Prius is a beautiful blue jellybean and honestly the headroom is better than most small cars
I read an article related to this. It was mainly of the opinion that this is a misconception
Article
I would highly recommend the article, its good and presents some solid reasons for oil price increases, like this one:
But, in answer to the OP's question. I do find that I drive less. I was already taking the bus to/from work. But now I'm seriously contemplating selling my car and saving the insurance money as well as the gas money. I am also thinking about a scooter or 150-200cc motorcycle. But winter here is really cold
Unfortunately no.
Are you in Europe? Because that's the only way you'll see one of those any time soon. We may someday see them in the US, but I wouldn't hold my breath waiting.
Medo how tall are you, because if it's less than 5'10 I don't think headroom is really a problem.
And right about then, my work moved. From 3 miles away to 15 miles away.
So instead I went and spent ~$5,000 on a motorcycle (including things like insurance, armor, a class on how to ride and not die so much, etc.), which I now ride when the weather isn't completely shitty. It gets about 60 MPG, and is a complete blast to ride. My car gets about 20 MPG, so I'm saving... Hmm.
30 mile round trip
Car:
30 miles @ 20 mpg = 0.75 gallons per day
0.75 gallons * $4.00 = $3.00 per day
Motorcycle:
30 miles @ 60 MPG = 0.5 gallons per day
0.5 gallons per day * $4.00 = $2.00 per day
Well, damn. I kinda wish I hadn't checked those numbers.
I'm 5'10.5
How flat is the terrain? I ride my bike 12 miles to/from work all the time. 15 isn't that bad, so long as you have showers available there.
Just don't add the price of buying the motorcycle and the gear you wear to ride it.
I haven't changed my driving habits at all but my work is only 15 minutes away and I look at it this way:
I don't have really any way of changing gas prices and I'm not taking 2 hour joy rides out to the mountains so why worry about it? I make enough money its not like $4 a gallon is really cutting into food or even luxuries.
30 miles @ 20mpg is 1.5 gallons per day.
So suck it
I'm applying for a job downtown, which would mean I could reasonably bike it in (6 miles each way) or more likely take the bus in. (The buslines here suck in general, but the number 5 from my neighborhood to the arena district where I'd be working is a very nice option)
I'd think it'd be sort of uncomfortable banging an Ent. You know, splinters and all.
He must be mighty forgiving about cars then. Having sat in the driver's seat of a Prius and being very close to cramped, I can't imagine dealing with another 7 inches.
:winky:
...
I'm not a big guy, and I can tolerate the back of a Civic, but I'd hardly call it comfortable. This was a '98, so maybe they've changed since then. That said, I don't think Hondas and Toyotas are worse than your average car for back seat space - they all pretty much suck, until you start getting into full-sized sedan territory.
It's a 5 mile bike ride, and if I take back routes through residential areas is very nice for exercise/getting outdoors.
Extra benefit: It's uphill on the way to work and downhill coming back. Meaning after I'm tired from work, I get to just coast home.
Fuck cars, this is so much better. The only thing I don't like is that because I'm afraid of getting hit by cars I can't listen to my ipod. But that's not the bikes fault.
I'd be pretty terribly uncomfortable sitting behind my seat(as far back as it can go) in my Protege.
But legroom for driving is what I was talking about, that's much more important. It needs to be just right so your legs aren't forced up and around to straddle the wheel, and not so far back that you have to stretch your arms all the way out.
So he was basically only evaluating passenger side