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Anyone capable of discussing gas without politics? Anyone?

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Bucky Katt;1170649; said:
I took the liberty of correcting some fuzzy math. 'Cause that's just the kind of guy I am. :p

1. First, assume the car is paid for and all you spend for it is gas.
2. The car/SUV/truck gets 14 mpg and a 20 gallon tank lasts a week - 280 miles/week driven
3. So that's 20 x $4.00 = $80/week or $320 per month.
4. Cost for leasing a new Nissan Sentra/Honda Civic/Toyota Corolla is $200/mo. ( I know the Toyota and Civic may be higher but close to the Nissan)
5. A Nissan Sentra gets 33 mpg. 280 miles/33 mpg = 8.48 gallons/week x 4 weeks x $4/gal = $135.68.
6. So spending $320/month gets you 1120 miles in the gas guzzler
7. Buying a new Nissan at 33 mpg requires ~$200/mo for the car and $136/mo for gas = $336 for car and gas per month.
8. That leaves ($16) in your wallet.
9. Now you can keep that money, invest it in Exxon stock or whatever or give it to BP and have a little fun.
10. Take the virtual drive in the Corvette, rent a few movies, buy a few beers and pizzas - you could even go to a movie but driving there would cut into the windfall.

Despite my minor corrections to the calculations, the overall point is good and solid one. :)
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Thanks for the comments. Leasing one may not be the way to go if the annual mileage is exceeded. My point here was about trying to justify buying/leasing a more fuel efficient car. My twisted and somewhat fuzzy math was done quickly and I should have pulled out my calculator. Thanks for the check! You helped me make my point. The point that I was making is you can justify a new one and still pay for the gas. Those of us that are trying not to give Exxon anymore money might consider opting for a more fuel efficient car.

A trade-in of the 2002 gas guzzler would would be about half the new car value and the economics just got better. Even leasing makes sense if you keep the mileage down. I have a 2002 Mercury Mountaineer, it has the space that we need but not the fuel economy. We have 3 SUVs in the house and one can be sacrificed without too much of a problem. "Fuel" for thought.
 
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utgrad73;1170768; said:
Thanks for the comments. Leasing one may not be the way to go if the annual mileage is exceeded. My point here was about trying to justify buying/leasing a more fuel efficient car. My twisted and somewhat fuzzy math was done quickly and I should have pulled out my calculator. Thanks for the check! You helped me make my point. The point that I was making is you can justify a new one and still pay for the gas. Those of us that are trying not to give Exxon anymore money might consider opting for a more fuel efficient car.

A trade-in of the 2002 gas guzzler would would be about half the new car value and the economics just got better. Even leasing makes sense if you keep the mileage down. I have a 2002 Mercury Mountaineer, it has the space that we need but not the fuel economy. We have 3 SUVs in the house and one can be sacrificed without too much of a problem. "Fuel" for thought.
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you forgot to factor insurance. assuming the "gas guzzler" is paid for your insurance is going to be substantially less than the lease vehicle that will have to be full coverage. i have a truck that gets a combined 20mpg that costs me 11 bucks a month in insurance. ill put that against any hybrid cost vrs. cost.

the problem with buying a new car today is that there really isn't anything out there in the US market that actually gets good enough fuel mileage to justify the switch. 40mpg really isn't very impressive. now if we were talking 70-90... well thats a whole different conversation entirely. though i am rather interested in this 2002 gas guzzler you have that a dealership is willing to give you 10 to 15k in trade in on...
 
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martinss01;1170790; said:
you forgot to factor insurance. assuming the "gas guzzler" is paid for your insurance is going to be substantially less than the lease vehicle that will have to be full coverage. i have a truck that gets a combined 20mpg that costs me 11 bucks a month in insurance. ill put that against any hybrid cost vrs. cost.

the problem with buying a new car today is that there really isn't anything out there in the US market that actually gets good enough fuel mileage to justify the switch. 40mpg really isn't very impressive. now if we were talking 70-90... well thats a whole different conversation entirely. though i am rather interested in this 2002 gas guzzler you have that a dealership is willing to give you 10 to 15k in trade in on...
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I'd be happy to get $8K. The thing will be needing repairs soon. Things like tires, exhaust, brakes, and shocks/struts. I will not spend another dime on it. Replaced the rear diff, replaced/rebuilt the transmission, replaced the radio (stuck CDs), replaced the rear wheel bearing and emergency brakes. Some of this was on extended warranty save the transmission for about $2K. So what's next? Radiators, water pumps, AC compressor, ECM, sensors, or climate controls? Now gas prices add insult to injury.

Did you ever just get tired of something? Come on - I know how to fix cars. I just don't want to anymore. Everything in the fleet is old and needs something at any given moment. Between the '02 Mountaineer, a nice '99 Jeep Cherokee (great car for a 17 year old in the winter), and my "hybrid" '88 S-10 Blazer, etc there's enough to keep a guy busy. One less car repair would be a nice change of pace.

Time to freshen up the stable in my mind, but I need the numbers to make more sense. That's my car story and I'm sticking with it.
 
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utgrad73;1171236; said:
Did you ever just get tired of something? Come on - I know how to fix cars. I just don't want to anymore. Everything in the fleet is old and needs something at any given moment. Between the '02 Mountaineer, a nice '99 Jeep Cherokee (great car for a 17 year old in the winter), and my "hybrid" '88 S-10 Blazer, etc there's enough to keep a guy busy. One less car repair would be a nice change of pace.
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lol, sounds a bit like me. i have a 94 ranger and an 01 camaro ss. the ranger has more than earned its retirement. ive been driving it since high school so i can certainly understand how one can be tired of a vehicle and want something new. sadly ive been looking for a replacement for about 5 years now. ive gotten so frustrated with the current selection of trucks that i opened a new savings account and have been putting money in it every month. if the truck holds out for a couple more years and the truck lineup doesn't get significantly more interesting rapidly im just going to build something.

imho, there just isn't anything out there that is even remotely worth the money. certainly nothing that can compete financially. besides, id get rid of the damn thing but every time i turn the key it starts.

if i could figure out a way to get my hands on a bmw 330d turbo charged diesel (engine/w turbo only) id be well on my way.
 
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Great Deal

Just paid $3.83-9 per gallon (credit carded) at Swifty's on Refugee Rd between Eastland and US 33. It could have been $3.78-9 if I had paid in cash. All other stations are in vacinity are close to or at $3.99-9
 
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Nothing under $4.00 in San Fran

I posted this in the Exxon thread in the Political forum:

Government investigates oil market - May. 29, 2008

Government investigates oil markets
Agency looks for fraud and price manipulation in crude-oil markets; crude has soared 42% since December.

Last Updated: May 29, 2008: 3:24 PM EDT
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Federal regulators are six months into a wide-ranging investigation of U.S. oil markets, with a focus on possible price manipulation.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Thursday said it started the probe in December and took the unusual step of publicizing it "because of today's unprecedented market conditions."

Crude prices, which on Thursday hovered around $127 a barrel, have risen more than 42% since early December. Gasoline prices are nearing a national average of $4 a gallon, up from about $3.20 a year ago.

The commission said details of the investigation remain confidential, but announced a handful of other initiatives designed to increase transparency of U.S. and international energy futures markets.

For example, the CFTC said it will immediately require monthly reports from institutional investors who manage funds designed to mimic the price of crude oil and other energy futures. The goal, the agency said, is to identify the amount of such index trading and to "ensure that this type of trading activity is not adversely impacting the price discovery process...
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