If your time is worthless, then the gas burned driving or waiting can cost you more than what you saved.
I try to not push that line of reasoning too far. At my billing rate almost nothing I do is economically justified. I eventually came to the conclusion that there are things I like to do and I will do them just for that reason. If I don't want to do them I take refuge in the economic argument. Tom
I was just addressing the issue in terms of gas, because I've seen people sit and wait, with engines idling, to save 10 to 50 cents on a fill up. People just stop thinking on a whole when it comes to gas prices here. It's why we don't get more premium fueled cars, despite them burning less gallons of gas for going the same distance.
That takes a valid but somewhat insignificant point and takes it to extremes and assumes that just about every hour in your waking life is billable. Take it just a bit farther and it makes no economic for many to raise their kids - work more and hire a nanny.
We fill up almost always at the same place, ignore the pump price, because: it's convenient to our weekend "chore route", is a trusted name (Chevron, fwiw), has free air, and is one of a very small number of nearby self-serve's (our municipality has legislated full-serve only, this one's just across the municipal border).
The float over caption covers the going out of your way for cheaper gas as a cost of the gas burned to get it. xkcd: Working Which also applies to taking longer routes for better mpg figures. My main point is that when it comes to gas prices and octane ratings, people are too myopic. They just seem unable to look at the big picture.
Don't know what happened - I though that I had said hire nanny's 24x7. I know a whole lot of dual career folks who have used a nanny and are also terrific parents and I would hope that my girls would say the same about my wife and myself.
I know petrol prices in the areas I drive through the week by using a website called gasbuddy.com In the same way that I combine shopping trips to save fuel and time, I refuel the car when it makes sense (cents.) No wasted fuel or money or time, just a bit of pre-planning. While it does take a few minutes to search prices, I use time when I am just sitting around. I also find that price movements are a curiosity I enjoy following. No doubt saving a dollar or two a week in fueling is not going to affect my retirement much at all, but I extend frugality and conservation to most everything I do, so why exclude this ?
People have always been that way. That is nothing new. "Penny wise and pound foolish," is what they used to say. There is a shop around here called Penny Wise, but I don't want to bother them with how they are insulting their customers.
You realize that the same logic in the cartoon applies to hypermiling. At speed, air resistance dominates power requirements. So, let's simplify it and say that (on the highway) mileage drops as the square of speed. But, you go faster and waste less time sitting in there driving. So, let's say your time is worth R ($/hour). How fast should you go? Say you know your mileage at 60 MPH, and that for the Prius is 55 MPG. So for a speed S: MPG=55 * (60/S)^2 and of course: Time to drive D (miles) = D / S so the time-price you pay is: Time cost = D * R / S For a fuel price of P ($/gal): fuel cost = D * S^2 * P / (55*3600) When deciding how fast to drive, you want to minimize your total cost (time-cost + fuel cost) by choosing the correct speed (S). Total cost = D * R / S + D * S^2 * P / (55*3600) Using some simple calculus (differentiate with respect to S, set to 0 and solve for S) we can find S that minimizes the Total cost: Best S = (R * 55*3600/2 / P)^(1/3) If I set my hourly rate to $20/hr and fuel is $3.50/gal, my best speed is 83 MPH, and getting about 29 MPG. If I decide to be generous and only require $7.25/hr to save gas (minimum wage), then my best speed is 59 MPH. So, if you're driving 60 MPH (assuming you are on the highway and have a choice, not in town with a 30 MPH limit) you're time is worth $7.64/hour.
Good post and spot on. A rigid application of economics to everyday life can make for funny choices. If you get a chance, edit your post and change the "you're" to "your". I'm sure you meant the possessive and not the contraction. Tom
People readily pay more for a cup of coffee or water in a plastic (oil-based) bottle than for a Liter of gasoline. People think nothing of idling while parked, at a stop sign or waiting to pick someone up. I even had one individual argue he idles so he "won't wear out the starter." Gas will need to go to $5 Liter ($20 gal) as in Europe and then people will pay attention. The whole situation clearly demonstrates that we substitute oil for knowledge instead of applying the knowledge. A Sacramento News & Review article: http://www.newsreview.com/sacramento/sacramento-on-empty/content?oid=46557, clearly shows what it will take. In the interim, plug-in hybrids will be a major leap toward conservation and efficiency. The realty of Peak Oil has not yet hit the mainstream in the US.
But I don't go out of my way to hypermile. Most of my driving is also by necessity. Regardless of my time's worth, I have to spend some traveling. The Cartoon's point is that the time and distance generally spent going out of the way to save a buck on a tank of gas.
We had a new station here that decided to have a 50¢ off special on regular unleaded for grand opening. There was a line so long that the police had to stop people from blocking intersections. My Prius and Insight each can hold 10 gallons if they were totally empty... This would result in a $5 savings. Even my Lincoln Navigator which holds 28 gallons would only result in a savings of $14. I don't know about you but I'm not driving to the next town, then waiting in line for a couple hours to save $5 - $14.
This is how our present government works, Most of their policies make no economic sense whatsoever, it's all done for appearance and ends up costing more or accomplishing nothing! :yo:
