Was wondering if any of you all are so concerned about the rising cost of petrol in the states that you were considering or have already made changes to your lives to accomodate this, or because it's impacted you? Things like buying a more fuel efficient car, carpooling, thinking of switching to a job closer to home, using public transport, buying less of the other things you enjoy in order to have more available money for petrol, going fewer places, making any sacrifices, etc etc etc......
I was listening to something on the news the other day and it seemed that the concensus was that Americans didn't like but could handle petrol when it hit $2.40 per gallon. And now that it's at $2.70+ in most places, Americans are begining to choke. Do you concur or disagree?
Personally I haven't seen fewer SUV purchases and it seems to me that people are going about their merry lives. But to listen to other people talk, it seems like it is hitting some folks pretty hard.
As far as me, I suppose I'm not as apt to go drive 50+ miles as much just to go on an adventure and have lunch someplace new and interesting, but as I stopped accepting new clients once I found out I was pregnant, I don't really drive all that much any more, to be honest. And in June I just bought my dream car and am not about to trade it in on a more fuel efficient model. Some might argue that this fact alone means I am passing the buck onto people who are willing to buy smaller, more efficient cars and hybrids and send a message to the automakers thus sending one to the oil companies. I disagree. Why buy something that doesn't make sense for me at the moment?
And being that my hubby isn't phased at all by the cost of petrol here and he states he won't bat an eye if it hits $5 a gallon, I suppose I'm not too concerned...yet. But I do worry about all the families out there who are just getting by, have kids in daycare, both work and drive...this must be impacting them.
Anyhow, was just wondering if the skyrocketing cost of fuel is putting you off anything you normally do.
my neighbor two doors down works with me. We plan on carpooling one or two days a week. We'll see how long it lasts though. Schedules get in the way sometimes/
No, not really. Not like me and the bird do a whole lot in the evenings anyway, we're both kind of homebodies.
No I just moved up from a 4 cylinder car to a V6 4x4 truck. Granted it is a small truck, but I bought it based on needs not on mpg.
I probably do more driving now than I did when gas was cheaper.
no changes planned here either.
I am due for a new car next summer. I'll probably go against the grain and get something bigger than my current 3.4 litre engined car.
I enjoy cars and driving so I think about it more in terms of enjoyment than economy and although MPG is important, I'll happily trade it for something fast and powerful.
The cars I have my eye on currently all have gas-guzzler tax if bought new but I will probably look at getting one that is slightly used and avoid this.
No and in fact this weekend we are looking to buy a used car for Son's 18th birthday. As we don't have that much money to spend on it, it will be at least 10yrs old and with a high milage on it. At least he doesn't want a truck. We have no alternative really as there is no public transport in Pflugerville. At 18, he is considered old to getting a car!
The other cars we have are Mitsubishi Montero which is great for the Pets (kids and dog) and going on long trips with masses of stuff.
Gordon has a 95 Ford Aspire manual drive which has no air conditioning which is horrendous in this heat. The plus side it has great MPH. Gordon basically uses it for the 3 miles to and from the carpool which he has been doing for a couple of years now. Interesting fact, all of the members are foreign born US citizens.
My daughter has a S10 extended cab truck. It use to be Gordon's until he decided to buy her the Ford Aspire lol. Good try Gordon. She couldn't or refused to learn to drive with a stick shift.
My biggest gripe about driving over here, is the insurance cost. We are already paying $483 dollars a month, with another car to be added it's bound increase.
I personally dont drive very far in the week into town for meetings or shopping thats about it , my car is a 1992 infiniti with only 80 thou miles on it .
W e use the wifes car another gas efficent vehicle when we go anywhere during the weekend and she drives to work mon/fri at a distance of 10 miles each way .
When she uses it to meet with customers she gets a mileage allowance .
Wont change much except swearing louder then usual when we get our gas bill at the end of the month .
Until the preice gets to 6 buck a gallone, I couldn't give a toss.
Same here, still seems dirt cheap compared to the UK. Upgraded to a 3litre when I moved here. Not overly extravagent but I could never afford it in a million years in the UK.
That insurance seems a bit over the top though Kinross. Is it because you've got youngsters on it? Mine is only about $160 a month.
Not really, regards the car. The increased cost of gas relates to a $5 increase in my monthly gas bill. Could easily do without the car. Can walk to most places and the bus service is good for longer distance.
Having said that, we all think first of the car when it comes to higher gas prices, but where we will all be hit fairly quickly are commodities that rely on oil. That is where we will feel the worst increase, maybe far worse than our cars.
No, we won't be making too many changes here either.
Our main gripe is also insurance - we currently have 4 cars (an old minivan, 2 BMWs and a porsche). The insurance for the 9 year old van is double that of any of the other vehicles as that's the one we let the teenagers drive roll
Yeah probably will. I'm on the lookout for a new car over the next year or so and will probably look for one with better mileage than my Sable. My wife drives a dinky little 99 Escort and the gas mileage is phenomenal. I guess we will have to see.
Having said that, we all think first of the car when it comes to higher gas prices, but where we will all be hit fairly quickly are commodities that rely on oil. That is where we will feel the worst increase, maybe far worse than our cars.
That is very true.
Jane, you should read Into the Forest by Jean Hegland. gives a good story of what could happen if the oil ran out.
We are very lucky here and have good public transport which apparently over the last year has seen an increased use of. We can walk to a number of shops and other places so when it isn't too hot in the summer the children and I will walk to Barnes and Noble or the supermarket for little bits and pieces. I haven't used the buses here but both my parents and my children have and they find it very handy. However, none of my children's friends will/are allowed to use the public transport and I won't let mine go on their own just yet. One of these days I'm going to go on the bus with the kids and see what it is like. They are a very good price. It only costs $1.50 to go all the way to Riverhead which takes 45 minutes to drive in the car from here.
I guess I mainly just wanted to see if there was a concensus amongst those out here, especially many who come from a country where high petrol prices have been the norm for some time - about whether or not this was impacting you. Doesn't seem to be too much.
I think Americans are used to artificially low gas prices and to some degree have taken it for granted that they are always going to remain that way, or even should remain that way. We tend to forget that it's not an unending resource. Yeah, I know that contradicts my attitude about driving a car that isn't the most fuel efficient. When Volvo makes a hybrid who's battery doesn't cost $8K to replace, then yeah, sign me up. Perhaps I want my cake and to be able to eat it too.
But for all the complaining I hear on the media and for all those who say they can't handle gas that's rapidly nearing $3 a gallon, I just don't see an overall change in attitude or more people taking the bus where I live, or even carpooling. Granted, we don't have the best public transportation infrastructure where I live. But I keep hearing, whether it's on television or radio how people are going to have to "finance" their petrol prices and how this is going to force the US into a massive recession...blah blah blah. And it seems to me that a lot of people are waiting for the President to do something about it. However, there's only so much he can do, and it comes down to individual consumption I guess.
Funny that....I'm looking for another car as I type this. Mr. Deaux will be home for good soon and we'll need another car. It likely won't be another Volvo. :razz: