Anybod remember gas wars?
Considering the current leaps in price, we could use one of those about now. Just imagine driving down Broadway and seeing gas at one place plummeting to $4.10. Wait, no, the one across the street has slashed it to $4.09. Aha, I can go to Sam's Club and spend only $4.05!
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Fond memories, eh? The year that sticks in my mind most was 1974, the year I got my drivers license. It was the perfect storm created by 3 events I thought were sure to be the end of my carefree teenage lifestyle. Gas went to 50 cents a gallon, the speed limit dropped to 55 mph, and cigarettes went to 50 cents a pack....good news was I had just gotten a raise from $1.55 to $1.85 an hour at the Waffle House though! woo hoo!
How about 1953, when I got to drive my father's 1946 Plymouth to Huntington to fill it up at 14.9 cents per gallon! A fill-up for $2.70 plus a quart of oil at $.20 more! As I recall, the Plymouth burned that quart of oil every fill-up!
(But, then, I remember attending Purdue University at West Lafayette in 1957 and paying only $50.00 per semester in tuition!)
Though I am NOT a fan of $4 per gallon gas, I am always humored when folks will drive out of their way to save $0.10 per gallon. I have a 13 gallon tank- at most it would save me $1.30!
10 cents? I know attorney and doctors who brag about driving south to Costco so they can save 2-3 cents when they fill up their luxury cars.
AJ
Whenever I start to feel smug about the fact that my wife's hybrid can't hold more than 10 gallons, which is good for nearly 500 miles, I remember that I literally cannot fit in that tiny thing!
The best deal, if you live on the north side, is to shop at Kroger. Every $100 you spend a month knocks 10 cents a gallon off gas at their station. We filled both our cars, plus the mower/snowblower can for a buck a gallon off last week. I wonder how long Kroger can afford that.
AT $4.00 per gallon and 25 mpg, the cost per mile to drive is 16 cents. As Knuth points out driving nearly any distance to save a penny saves little and could actually cost you money.
The best way to save on gas are:
Do not drive under 40 mph if you can help it. At 0-8 mph most fuel efficient cars only get 5 to 8 mpg. At 10 to 20 mph, the fuel economy can double to 18 mpg. At 40 mph the car can get nearly 33 mpg. Driving at under 30 mph uses a lot of gas. Accelerating fast uses gas, but slow acceleration uses more.
Make sure your tires are fully inflated to their rating. Nitrogen is a waste of money. The difference between air and Nitrogen is little and the mass inside a rotating mass does not decrease the mpg enough to pay the cost of inflating. Besides N2 is a small atom and leaks at a faster rate through seals/leaks.
Check air filter. A dirty air filter can reduce milage substantially.
Plan ahead on what your shopping trips are and combine them. Reduce the miles you drive.
Use the interstate if it is only 25% further than traveling through town - higher mpg by 50 to 75% with only a small increase in travel distance.
My favorite is filling up gas cans when the price is low. Gas prices rise and fall in cycles. Record how much gas you use and determine how much you use in three weeks. Determine how to store three weeks gas (car, cans). When it is low, fill up your storage. When high, use your storage. This combined with a Kroger/Scott's Fuel reward saves me about $400 to $500 a year while at the same time all my cars in theory get filled in just one trip.