Now California, there's a place short on refining capacity. The people there are deranged. If you want to be pro-environment and not let refineries get built in your area, fine, reduce consumption, that's your choice. But what Californians do is restrict supply, gorge themselves driving tons of miles with low-mileage vehicles and then cry "conspiracy" when prices go up. They want to have it both ways. But they won't even let more pipelines get built to transport gas produced elsewhere. They think gasoline magically comes out of the pump or something.
Thanks to those jackwads at Enron, they have cause to believe it is some kind of conspiracy rather than just supply and demand. Folks in the oil bidness I have talked to say they're just going to throw up their hands, forget about adding capacity, and let the Calis suffer with what eventually will be $4-$5/gal gas. Of course Sens. Feinstein and Boxer will launch a Congressional inquiry or something.
Yes, but a lot of that extra that they pay at the pump goes towards building a viable public transportation system. When I lived in germany, my host-family had a car, but both of my host parents rode the public trans to work and back because it was such a good system. We only really used the car for trips, and to go to the grocery store and back.
too bad the majority in SA chose to vote against the lightrail system...big mistake IMO
Another problem with this overall model, is that you are comparing yourself to what you think is the avg civic driver, a much better model would be the avg SUV driver with the avg civic driverYou are partially right about this. Many larger vehicles have larger tires which allow for a greater surface area which contacts the road. For instance, the tires on my truck allow for such a greater amount of surface area that they actually have a lower PSI value than the stock tires for the Civic given in the example. This may not be an across the board statistic, but it is a factor to consider.
One thing I just thought about after writing that just poped into my head. Have you ever been driving on the highway, or even in a bumpy/hilly road and noticed those scratches in the pavement? You know the ones where some body bottomed out their transfer case or something? What percentage of those scratches are caused by SUVs and light trucks? I would just guess and say they were mostly made by cars and other lower to the ground vehicles. That's just my guess now. :p
I guess Manny can talk all the he wants. His vehicle gets a million miles to the gallon.
AGREED, this was the first thing I ever voted on because I was so enthusiastic about it. (I turned 18 in dec 97, and the vote was in late 99 or early 00)
I know that, that's why I stated when variables were averages or personal to me. Some other things to consider are vehicle catagories and classifications. There are many more small SUVs than larger models out on the road.
Frankly, I think this topic is a huge load. As long as my vehicle passes inspection and I can afford to drive it, then I should be able to drive it.
Marin County, CA
Houston, TX
Boston, MA
There's a song they sing in Houston...
Grandma got run over by the Metro
Coming home from our house Christmas Eve
You might say there's no trouble with light rail
But as for me and Grandpa we believe
I think I'm going to take a few barrels of gas to Boston tomorrow!
i don't think the vehicle itself or its size is the big problem, but rather the amount of gas it uses and consequently, exhausts into the atmosphere. im hopeful that other forms of energy can be used to power vehicles like SUVs to make them more environmentally friendly and fuel efficient. i heard on the radio one night that this guy modified his truck engine to run off of propane, and he got something like 700 miles on one tank, and the power lost was almost negligable in terms of everyday commuting purposes. in germany, scientists also built a hydrogen powered car that could go 1300 miles on just a quarter gallon.Frankly, I think this topic is a huge load. As long as my vehicle passes inspection and I can afford to drive it, then I should be able to drive it.
Ill give you this since you didnt start the thread, and since, as far as I know, you didnt complain about the prices.
I lived in Chicago for a couple of years and only drove my car when it was time to get inspected and when I was driving out of town. The el and the subway were freakin' awesome. My commute was the same 22 minutes each way every day, rain, snow, or sun. I could get work done in that time or use that time to read the paper, bs on the phone or just stare out the window. I never had to worry about finding a parking spot or feeding a stupid meter. I could even get drunk after work and the damn thing still ran every thirty minutes! Mass transit if you can get the public to buy into it is great.too bad the majority in SA chose to vote against the lightrail system...big mistake IMO
I try to use the DART and the TRE systems here in Dallas when I can, especially for concerts, sporting events, and parades and the like.
I'm saying htat you started out with a comparison based only on miles driven to work and that is not the only driving people do. , didn't realize I was writing in a different language.
Look, gas taxes are unpopular in this country, but the fact is that we pay taxes for the gas we get in other forms. We pay for military deployment in the persian gulf region that would be COMPLETELY unessecary if we didn't have to secure an oil supply.
If gas mileage was at a national average of 35mpg we'd need ZERO forgien oil.
But you know, those people who drive around a 10mpg vehicle are not costing us money right? no.
They sell propane conversion kits from the manufacturer of my truck. The model of truck I drive also can be ordered "propane ready" but the cost is around $4,500.00 and that is quite a lot. I don't know if there are any tax benefits or incentives to make it worth s ing out for. I would honestly be willing to pay more for a vehicle in order to get better milage without a loss of performance.
You know, we should be imposting tax penalties on vehicles that pose a larger burden on gas usage.
But there is no politician alive that will campaign on adding a burden to anyone, even if it benefits the country in the long run.
User,
My girlfriend's employer had all of their vehicles converted to propane last January. She is forever ing about how she has to drive out to the sticks to get the car filled. The nearest propane station to their office is probably 15 miles.
So people who lead unhealthy lives are costing us tons of money too. What should we do about them? Regulate that they have to exercise and eat only certain foods? If you're talking about wasting gas, then there are a lot of wastes out there. Car races, jet skies, most sport and pleasure boats, recreational fishing boats, all RVs that are not permenant dwelled in. A 5 year-old Honda Civic that is not taken care of will pollute more than my truck does.
I think people need to push towards advances in technology that will allow us to live the way we want and at the same time conserve natural resources and protect the environment. Companies will follow the demand of the people as they become more aware of these issues.
They already have that Manny. It's called the gas tax. The more you use the more you pay. Unless of course you're thinking of an efficiency tax of some sort.
Don't some states already do this?You know, we should be imposting tax penalties on vehicles that pose a larger burden on gas usage.
My dad had a 1983 Chevy crew cab duelly that had a 55 gallon propane tank and a 40 gallon regular gas tank. You could switch tanks(fuels) by flipping a switch on the dash board. That was great to have but it cost a fortune then, and still does now. I would go for a dual fuel system if it were even slightly overpriced.
The gas tax is a joke.
It's no where near as high as it needs to be.
It's a political 3rd rail however. You mention raising it at all and that's it, you're done.
Take the percentage that gas is taxed and compare that to the sales tax. Still think that's a joke?
Someone tell me if I'm wrong, but doesn't California charge less fuel efficient vehicles in the thousands for their yearly registration?
California has oil rigs in Long Beach, on land and in the ocean. I'm not sure where else they do. Their gas taxes are higher because of their emission laws. We don't have to get our cars smog tested, they do.
Someone tell me if I'm wrong, but doesn't California charge less fuel efficient vehicles in the thousands for their yearly registration?
Their car registrations are extremely high. When we bought a 1996 Jeep Grand Cherokee V8 4WD back in 1996, our registration was well over $600 a year. We later moved to AZ and it was just as high. Here it was no more than $70.
Agree 100%Frankly, I think this topic is a huge load. As long as my vehicle passes inspection and I can afford to drive it, then I should be able to drive it.
I voted against lightrail. Why? Because they wanted to run it right through my neighborhood. Sorry. We already have a VIA route.
I really don't think it is any of your business who drives what! And bye the
way, years ago, they were supposed to have had carbarators (sp) that would give you 50 MPH. Just let the people who produces the energy, do so
and there would be no problem. And oh-yes, China is buying lots of fuel oil,
but so what, if folks would let our companies drill for oil we could be getting
in on the deal and making some money. You know alot of you people remind
me of the junk you put out: If we save just one life, it is worth it. Well,
my question is: how come we still have airbags, it has claimed how many
childrens lives? Oh-========that's different, Right?
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