Filled up the Prii today . . . $1.80 per gallon! While doing so, some guy in a large SUV asked, “Are you still glad you bought a Prius? Gas prices have fallen so much it won’t save you as much money?†My reply: “Gee, I don’t recall gas ever costing me 90 cents a gallon.†He then said, “It costs you $1.80 just like every one else.†I then said, “no, the price is $1.80 - but I get twice the mileage of my old gas guzzler so it only COSTS me about 90 cents. The cost for you on the other hand is closer to $3.60 to go the same distance as I do on a gallon." He said, “actually I think it costs me more . . . and I can’t wait to get my Prius.†I thought he was just trying to gig me . . . so I passed on some Prius love and let him drive it around the block. He was thrilled! He had never driven an ‘04+.
I wanted to see what the going rate was in the 'Cheap Zone' I noticed about 15 miles away from here up US1. I 'saved' 5 cents per gallon on the nearly 8 gallons I bought by driving more than 20 extra round-trip miles to that Citgo, so I don't think I'll be doing it again. $1.69 there, $1.74 here. Lesser brand names as low as $1.64 there...
A curious personal observation that I have made over the years is that as gas prices have gone up so has the mileage of my cars. Over the years, it has been the rare fillup that has cost me more than $20. This trend has continued by our purchase of our Pruis last spring.
Do people really believe we all bought Prius' to save money? Obviously they haven't checked the MSRP. Fluctuating gas prices mean nothing in terms of the big picture; reduced dependence on oil, low emissions and the chance to help save the environment.
I bought a Prius because I needed a car with an automatic transmission, liked all the high tech features (smart entry, Homelink mirror, etc.) and because I wanted to save on gas. Reduced emissions, helping the environment, and lowering dependence on foreign oil were all unimportant to me. One could argue that every little bit helps, but all the Prii in the world added together have virtually no impact on these factors. A city bus or diesel truck are going to offset the benefit of a hundred Prii.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jamarimutt\";p=\"58429)</div> You just don’t get it man! The city bus and diesel truck are going to be there anyway. What you and I collectively add to the mix does matter! My individual Prius makes squat of a difference to the mix, but collectively all the Prius sales are having a profound impact on the auto industry. Just recently General Motors and DaimlerChrysler announced they are joining forces to develop a new hybrid powertrain. If the Prius was a gigantic flop, you can bet that announcement would have never happened. We are the tail that is wagging the dog . . . and those who bought the classic Prius are on the tip of the tail. It is just a matter of time until the city bus and diesel trucks are hybrid too. Economics will demand it, because the bus and diesel truck have the most to gain from hybrid technology.
Patrick, I guess you have a point.. I think the auto makers in Detroit have thumbed their noises at us too often.. and not given us a gas/reduced emissions saving car... but there is the buying public who wants a BIG car.. the Hummer, large cars, SUV's, and pickups.. GM doesn't just make one cookie cutter car nor do any of the other car makers.. Toyota says it has 15 models.. and only one is a Hybrid.. and I'm not sure that it isn't the 16th... I think everyone who owns or is on a list for a Prius is making a difference.. maybe we can change the car makers minds... your California Gov has mandated delivery trucks be hybrid and Toyota has started building trucks for UPS or Fedex.. Seattle has Hybrid busses... Denver just bought more diesel busses.. so I guess it may take a while to get out message out there... everyone talk up your Prius. Bob Andersen
The EPA just released a map of those areas with high particulate matter levels - poor air quality for much of the country. In the current cold weather it becomes more apparent than ever for purchasing a hybrid: minimal idling. I think of the tonnes of emissions each day just from idling. Making diesels hybrids reduces particulate matter and idling. Want to double your profit? Then double your efficiency - go hybrid. Next time you see vehicles in a "drive-through," at a railroad crossing, stop light or highway off ramp - look at the emissions and wasted energy. Anyone can talk about fuel consumption and fuel economy. Rational people do not spew aerosols and particulates without considering the consequences. Hybrids are not perfect, but a step in the right direction.
OPEC just voted to constrain supply... so we'll be back to $50+ a barrel (and progressing on upward) soon enough.
Those comments about hybrid diesel city busses actually made we wax a little nostalgic: Back in 1987/88 I spent a year as an exchange student in what was then West-Berlin, and the Berlin Transit Authority (BVG) was helping to test prototype busses with new technology by running regular routes with them. I got several rides on a bus with a CVT, several rides on another one that was a start-stop hybrid, and I want to think a few rides on one of them even was a dual engine bus. I remember the start-stop hybrid being awfully rough at the time, but I became convinced right then and there that given sufficinet advances in technology that that was where the future lay, since it just made so much sense not to waste fuel while idling.
Oil prices will not be stable. They will continue a long upward climb. http://www.kfor.com/Global/story.asp?S=2390876 The fundamentalists in the mid east would like to see $100/barrel. "Get ready for $100-a-barrel oil, economist Michael Economides told those gathered at the Oklahoma Independent Petroleum Association's fall conference on Monday. And don't expect to see $20-a-barrel oil ever again." The Prius is part of the solution.
We have hybrid diesel busses here. Well one or 2 out of the fleet. And they use bio diesel to boot all of our busses do. Only problem following one of them is you get an urge to pull in to fast food places. The hybrids are tests. I did read a recent article that the system was unhappy because they had looked at milage figures for some southern city and were disappointed when the temp dropped and their milage went down. Boo Hoo. So did mine. :mrgreen:
