Warm and Fuzzy feeling .... not!

[Bogie]

Well, this evening I needed to fill up the tank. So I bit the bullet and headed on down the hill to my local Esso station to "fill 'er up". MaggieMuffet is heading up to Muskoka tomorrow, and it was on empty, so ....

Get down there and pre-printed (by Esso) signs are on the pumps stating that Regular gas is all gone and that, just for us, their loyal customers, we get to have Esso Supreme at regular gas prices. And the prices went "down" to 97.7 tonight.

Now, I suppose I should have this warm and fuzzy feeling that Esso is treating me like royalty - Supreme, not Extra, "nothing but the best" - steak at hamburger prices ... not!

Guess I must be ungrateful .... :rrg:

[Adam]

just bite the bullet and pay for the gas. We cannot do anything about the prices.

:(

However we do pay about 50% of gas as tax. If politicans would stop stealing so much money and being on vacation for half of the year gas could be a lot less.

Also i think we should all just buy hybryds, but they cost so much money :(

:rrg: :rrg: :rrg: :rrg: :rrg: :rrg:

however u did get something, so good find

[mander]

I bit the bullet a few days ago and put 40 bucks in...gave me half a tank...I know I know...but I wont give up luxury ever to ride in a compact car. 90 litre tank here. You do the math

[Yogi]

Hey, I wish they did that here in the GTA lol :d

I'll take the premium stuff at regular prices any day :)

You're a King Bogie :d

[Adam]

what kind of car do u drive


because i love my CIVIC, but that is prob cause i am a kid and that is the best i could hope for.

[Mischief007]

And it starts...........

If I cared about gas prices, I guess I wouldn't red line my car when I have an opportunity too. At least I drive a car that is way more economical than my lower powered Cavalier I had. I'm doubling my previous mileage, but with the way I drive.....

[mander]

what kind of car do u drive


because i love my CIVIC, but that is prob cause i am a kid and that is the best i could hope for.


I am glad you asked that actually. I have a 97 Crown Victoria 4.6 L engine. Before I got this car last September, I rented a 2004 Cadillac in July(special occassion), worst luxury car I have ever driven. It at best got 18 mpg highway whereas mine gets 25 mpg highway and a much smoother ride...oh sure, the Cadillac had the fancy stuff on the steering wheel...radio volume and whatnot but I felt like I was riding in a tin can....could feel every bump in the road. We are taleking a 40-50 thousand dollar car here that was junk. I have had better comfort in a Cavalier. Have driven my Moms Accord as well as ridden in it and even though it costs more as far as gas mileage, once you go to a luxury car like mine, you will never go back.

[Yogi]

This brings up an interesting point though....

I wonder how many people are now filling up with regular, despite the fact that the so-called "recommended fuel" outlined in their owner's manual says "premium" ??

[mander]

And it starts...........

If I cared about gas prices, I guess I wouldn't red line my car when I have an opportunity too. At least I drive a car that is way more economical than my lower powered Cavalier I had. I'm doubling my previous mileage, but with the way I drive.....

You hit the nail on the head with that one...no matter what you drive, its your good/bad driving habits that ends up being the bottom line...lead foot = high fuel comsumption in any vehicle.

[Yogi]

Have driven my Moms Accord as well as ridden in it and even though it costs more as far as gas mileage, once you go to a luxury car like mine, you will never go back.
An Accord getting worse gas mileage than a Crown Vic??...I find that hard to believe, unless the Accord was in bad shape.

[mander]

This brings up an interesting point though....

I wonder how many people are now filling up with regular, despite the fact that the so-called "recommended fuel" outlined in their owner's manual says "premium" ??

Recommended fuel. :eri: Its a little known fact but premium fuels burn hotter and end up decreasing fuel economy but burn cleaner not doubt. What happening is that hotter burning fuels lead to engine parts braking down faster than normal because of the heat produced. It is however ok to occasionally fill the tank with premium to burn off and carbon build-ups.

[mander]

An Accord getting worse gas mileage than a Crown Vic??...I find that hard to believe, unless the Accord was in bad shape.
Its in good shape actually but is an older model and doesn't have the technology that the newer cars have. What can I say. :vxd:

[Mischief007]

Absolutely right Mander. With my lead foot, there's no way I can ***** and complain about gas...lol.

As another thing. My Cavalier had a 2.2L 95 HP 4-banger while my Alero has a 2.2L 140 HP 4-banger. I'll let you guess which ones is getting better average mileage ;).
The Cavalier got a worst of 16 and a best of 29 MPG (strictly highway). Alero averages 26 MPG while the Cavalier averaged just over 20 MPG.

[Dr.Dan]

Its a little known fact but premium fuels burn hotter and end up decreasing fuel economy but burn cleaner not doubt. What happening is that hotter burning fuels lead to engine parts braking down faster than normal because of the heat produced. It is however ok to occasionally fill the tank with premium to burn off and carbon build-ups.

I know it's totally off topic, but where do you get your 'facts' mander?

I've said many times in the past that higher octain fuel has a higher flashpoint, burns slower, and cooler.

And until your engine is up to temp, it doesn't completely burn; producing higher emissions and leads to carbon build up... and that incomplete burn is why you have worse mileage, and cylinder washdown (gas washing the oil off the cylinder walls; causing more cylinder wear)
Once the engine is up to temp, all should be good.

Now a tank of Premium to run out on the highway is OK... your car won't know the difference as it cruises down the highway.

So unless your engine requires premium fuel (high compression, turbo or supercharged), then you really don't want to use it.. ;)

[Bogie]

An Accord getting worse gas mileage than a Crown Vic??...I find that hard to believe, unless the Accord was in bad shape.

LOL ... I had a Mercury Grand Marquis Wagon 5.0 L at the same time I had an Acura 1.6EL .... take the Merc any day. Gas mileage was at least equal. That poor 1.6 EL had to work it's a ** off to climb hills and keep up with the flow of traffic. The Merc just cruised in overdrive, with little effort, hardly touching the gas peddle :d

Have had 3 Crown Vics (2 wagons, 1 sedan), and the Merc (all basically the same car) - all around the 5L size, with "highway" transmissions - loved 'em. Great highway gas mileage (all highway up here). Want another.

Right now driving a '93 Chrysler Dynasty thrift machine. 3L 6 banger and great gas mileage. Can go from Barrie to Waterloo, drive around all week, and then come back with still over 1/2 tank left when back in Barrie. Small car to my standards, but big to most people. 275,000 cliks and just keeps on tickin'. My local mechanic doesn't like it - no repairs, just oil and lubes, and minor maintenance.

I'm just peeved about the rapid rise in gas prices and our government making sure to get their percentage without any changes. I know our gas is amoung the cheapest globally, but that's no excuse for one of the world's leading oil producers.

While I don't drive as many miles as I used to (over 100,000 MILES per year when I was on the road all the time), I feel for the people that have to commute to get to work and pay a buck a litre to do it - economy cars or not.

We've have created a society of "improve your position in life", and now a critical element of that enjoyment has skyrocketed in cost.

Hybrid cars, and completely alternative energy cars, are the answer, no doubt, but for the vast majority of people these cars are just out of reach right now. Pay now to save later is for those who can afford to do so. Like heat-pumps, ground-water heating/cooling, etc., for your homes .... the average person cannot afford the capital outlay to install these "money saving" efficiencies.

Most people are 2 paycheques from disaster - how can they afford to "plan ahead by spending more now"? They can't.

If gas prices go too much higher we will be staring down the barrel of an overdue recession.

Rant over ... but still logical :p

[mander]

The reason I know that mine was getting that kind of mileage, was converting the US gallons to CDN gallons on the trip home...my car is in miles, miles travelled to next fillup. in the US, thats what the facts and figures told me you may believe it or not...to each his own but thats what I got...converted to the CDN gallon of course. It was the longest drive I have ever done in a car...because of back issues, 3 hours tops in my Chev Caprice, but the first day with the newer car was 7 hours before I decided to call it a day...after flying there. That was 7 hours non stop...tell me you can do that in a compact car without getting out at least twice to walk around for a bit....I dont think you can without loosing feeling in one leg or another. As a footnote, on the highways I was on, I was doing the max speed limit which was 70 mph and still came out smelling like a rose.

[mander]

I've said many times in the past that higher octain fuel has a higher flashpoint, burns slower, and cooler.

And until your engine is up to temp, it doesn't completely burn; producing higher emissions and leads to carbon build up... and that incomplete burn is why you have worse mileage, and cylinder washdown (gas washing the oil off the cylinder walls; causing more cylinder wear)
Once the engine is up to temp, all should be good.

Now a tank of Premium to run out on the highway is OK... your car won't know the difference as it cruises down the highway.

So unless your engine requires premium fuel (high compression, turbo or supercharged), then you really don't want to use it.. ;)

You just verified what I was trying to say Dan. With a "standard" engine, you dont need premium fuel...I guess thats the point I was trying to make. You wont notice a difference in fuel economy on the highways if running premium even though you have just paid 10 cents a litre more that the rest of us. The "doesn't completely burn" is what I was getting at I suppose, thus...whats the point in paying extra for something thats not needed.

[Exmortis]

Hybrid cars, and completely alternative energy cars, are the answer, no doubt, but for the vast majority of people these cars are just out of reach right now. Pay now to save later is for those who can afford to do so.

After our company had two Prius, I would NOT recommend a hybrid car. First, they cannot be towed. You need a flatbed to move them. Second, they need special tires that can only be bought from the dealership at great cost. Third, they cannot be boosted. Many companies will refuse to boost you should the battery goes too weak to start. Toyota does not keep parts for hybrids on-site so if you need any special kinds of repairs, expect to be out of a car for a week. And so much more... The battery generally has an 8 years limited warranty after which the cost to replace could be the whole value of your car. So many things about them that completely defeats the savings... They are NOT the cars of the future.

[Mouse]

OK, but what about the Honda Accord Hybrid?

[Exmortis]

OK, but what about the Honda Accord Hybrid?

Pretty much the same. The special tires are because of the heavy weight of the battery. And I got a question for hybrid drivers... What happens if you turn on the AC in the summer or heat in the winter while you're driving on battery power? Kinda defeats all this money saving technology...