fuel prices Options

[AMS]

I read in some other topics that some people were complaining about high fuel prices, so I thought it's a good time to make an official topic I'm also curious about the price of 1 liter gasoline in your country or region :D, if you want to answer this question, please say what the price is per LITER in EURO, just to compare, thanks...

maybe you could also add the price at the beginning of this year

1 EUR = 1,2524 USD
1 USD = 0,7985 EUR
1 Gallon = 3.785 Liter

Currently, 1 liter gasoline in Holland costs: 154,9 cents :cry:
at the beginning of this year: 118,5 cents
found this info on the website of shell...

now it's your turn,
AMS

[SF3aviatrix]

I can't afford my gasoline

[learguy]

Currently, here in Arizona, gasoline is hovering around $3.00/gallon. That's .63 euros/liter. And, yes, EVERYONE is complaining about the cost.

The problem is, Americans are used to having cheap gas and have come to believe that it is a devine right. Or very nearly so anyway. The US has the cheapest gasoline in the entire world. Everybody else pays more for it than we do and almost always have. The exception to this are those countries that have their own petroleum, making it virtually free, plus the cost of pumping it out and refining it.

Other countries recognize the limited availability of a finite resource and have long established the need to encourage conservation. This is done by placing very high taxes on the product, thus making gasoline something the average person can afford only in low quantities. (How well those gasoline taxes are spent is another subject.)

America became a car culture as soon as the Ford Model T came out. Ever since, Americans have felt they are entitled to big cars and bigger trucks. It is the American way. And the price of gasoline has been kept low to accomodate the fuel need. Today in America, the average new vehicle gets worse gas mileage than the average new vehicle did 25 years ago. Everyone wants a big vehicle with a big engine. And they expect to be able to afford to put the gas in the tank.

Gas prices are climbing because the demand goes up every year but we have reached the limit of our ability to pump it out of the ground. Demand has gone up of late due to the raging economies of China and India. But demand in America is higher as well.

Look in a parking lot anywhere in America and just about all you see are big cars and huge personal trucks. The entitlement metality of this country now is such that we all "need" a big truck. For safety, for the 4 kids and their friends, to tow the boat, etc. I wonder how the Europeans all manage to get by with their small cars?

Gasoline has gone up a lot lately. And it is largely due to demand, somewhat less to other factors. But the fact is that if gasoline were REALLY too expensive you would not see the highways full of SUV's occupied by a single person.

There is some argument here that we should take advantage of our oil deposits in Alaska by drilling there. It's claimed that we could keep the price down and reduce our dependency on foreign oil. The problem is that the amount of oil available in Alaska is equal to about what the US uses in 5 months. Compared to the HUGE demand for gasoline in the US, it really is not very much oil.

I drive a sports car that gets 18 MPG in the city and 27 MPG on the highway. No economy car by any means. But it is my contention, nevertheless, that gasoline in the US is still too cheap.

I just wanted to take advantage of the subject to say a little about it, because the whining here about gas prices bugs me more than a little. I recently listened to the friend of a friend who started a conversation at lunch about his new full-size Dodge pickup truck (V-8 engine and about 14 MPG), and went on from there crying about the price of gas. The hypocracy was almost too much for me to handle. I found myself biting my tongue so hard it's a wonder I didn't need stitches.

[Harmattan96]

Currently, here in Arizona, gasoline is hovering around $3.00/gallon.  That's .63 euros/liter.  And, yes, EVERYONE is complaining about the cost.
...
I found myself biting my lip so hard it's a wonder I didn't need stitches.

Agreed Lear.
I to believe that Fuels are not expensive enough yet. If they were indeed expensive, we would see a change of mentality. The average american would trade its gas-hungry monster in, for a smaller, more fuel efficient vehicle, and perhaps think twice about taking a useless cruise ride on the week-end.
I vividly remember a scene from the movie "The gods must have fallen on their heads"; during the intro scene, we can see a gentleman get into his automobile and drive down his driveway, from the house, to go get the mail out of his mailbox! Granted this is a little bit of an exagerated depiction it still sums up the "american way" very well.

[Jason]

For all of you that bash these people who drive inefficient cars, the next time you see an old, gas guzzling airplane, go up to the owner and tell him he should help conserve fuel also and get a more fuel efficient airplane. Some people drive certain cars for the same reasons we fly certain airplanes, they really love to. I do agree however that if you are going to drive or fly one of these gas guzzling machines, then you shouldn't gripe about the gas prices because you knew what you were getting into beforehand. Personally, whenever I hear about all this fuel conservation stuff I think to myself, why are people not yelling at NASCAR, they are getting about 4 or 5 miles per gallon driving in circles and use more fuel in one race than many do in a month or two.

[Jorge]

I'm more concerned about aviation. I really don't care about car gas going up, but avgas and jet fuel could really hurt the world.

[F-14 Tomcatter]

In Tacoma, Washington the price of Unleaded Fuel is is topping the $3.00 mark. ($2.95 right now.) Its also supposed to rise about 10 more cents by next week. Its getting to the point now that I take the Public Bus to get around! I'm thinking about getting one of those riding scooters too.

[Raptor]

Currently, here in Arizona, gasoline is hovering around $3.00/gallon. That's .63 euros/liter. And, yes, EVERYONE is complaining about the cost.

There's nothing to complain about - here in Slovenia the price is 1 euro/liter and growing up all the time. And diesel costs almost as much as unleaded.
That's why we are driving around in 2 liter cars. It's still expensive.

[concorde001]

Here in the UK petrol is around £1 a litre (£4.50 a gallon). Thats around $1.70 US a litre and $8 US a gallon. We could be expecting farmers and lorry drivers to go on strike because their industries are unprofitable and there are many of them. I hope they do go on strike as it would put our government in another awkward position. I remember the last time there was a petrol strike and they dealt with it very badly.

[talldude]

My gas price is $3.12/gallon. I fear it will only get worse as winter season peaks above the horizon. But in a way, I could really care less about the cost of gas because I'm a college student and I don't really drive my car often except out to the airport 8) .

On the other side of this topic is the price of avgas; back at my old training airport gas is now $4.00/gallon for 100LL, and $2.99 for self serve. I remember when the cost was $2.80 and $1.75 for self serve.

[ClubCX]

The fact is there's a problem and there has been for decades. We're already reaching a point where the oil supply doesn't meet the demand, and it'll only get worse from there.

What I don't understand is why the industry hasn't switched to other fuel sources. There are plenty of good alternatives, plenty more efficient and cheaper to produce. Even water contains more energy than gasoline, and that falls from the sky for free.

I guess the industry and various governments of the world are just incompetant, to dig themselves into this hole.

[glnflwrs]

Read my post in "A pause for thought and support" in off topic.

The ones making the money are all the union employees of the American petroleum producing, refining, and retail corporations in the US. I guess they don't count when you want to bash a president or the whole government.

:evil:

[Puhuri]

Only union employees?? What about CEOs etc? And the role of brokers trading oil futures and other financial instruments?

The rise of India and China plays part as well. It's not just west with SUVs anymore.

You blame union employees and I blame those pesky peasants in 3rd world who want their piece of action

[glnflwrs]

Guaranteed, the union membership and the non-union workers together earn 10 or 20 or even 100 times the combined salaries of the executives. And I don't blame them for anything. There is no reason to lay any blame anywhere except on the spoiled consumers who never want to see anything change, even for the better. When prices go up the economy grows and everyone benefits. If they can recognize it for that.

Truck drivers, station owners and their crews, refinery workers, offshore workers including cooks, stewards, medical techs, radio/radar techs, electricians, pipefitters, millwrights, roughnecks, engineers, draftsman, pilots, aircraft techs, and roustabouts, and all the others supporting them like tire salesmen, tuneup mechs, etc, and on and on. The petroleum industry is a LOT more than the CEO's and COB/BOD's.

My dad owned 50% interest in three wells in Kansas back in the 40's and 50's. That was 50% of the gross production. He used to get a check every 90 days for around $3200. A lot back then. The total of $6400 paid to the two owners was the seed. The oil that paid for went on to provide over $42,000 in wages and profit from sales for INDIVIDUAL, private businesses and their employees and families.

Before you start whining and questioning the integrity of American Oilmen, including the Right Honorable President George Herbert Walker Bush, God save him, get your facts correct, the outline of the oil business and its many branches in order, and the money tree upright and the dollars going to the right branches. What you keep bringing up as your point is just not a valid or correct assessment of reality in these great United States.

Let it go. Reality prevails.

[bluebird121]

Currently, here in Arizona, gasoline is hovering around $3.00/gallon. That's .63 euros/liter. And, yes, EVERYONE is complaining about the cost.

The problem is, Americans are used to having cheap gas and have come to believe that it is a devine right. Or very nearly so anyway. The US as the cheapest gasoline in the entire world. Everybody else pays more for it than we do and almost always have. The exception to this are those countries that have their own petroleum, making it virtually free, plus the cost of pumping it out and refining it.

Other countries recognize the limited availability of a finite resource and have long established the need to encourage conservation. This is done by placing very high taxes on the product, thus making gasoline something the average person can afford only in low quantities. (How well those gasoline taxes are spent is another subject.)

Today in America, the average new vehicle gets worse gas mileage than the average new vehicle did 25 years ago. Everyone wants a big vehicle with a big engine. And they expect to be able to afford to put the gas in the tank.

.

I just wanted to take advantage of the subject to say a little about it, because the whining here about gas prices bugs me more than a little. I recently listened to the friend of a friend who started a conversation at lunch about his new full-size Dodge pickup truck (V-8 engine and about 14 MPG), and went on from there crying about the price of gas. The hypocracy was almost too much for me to handle. I found myself biting my tongue so hard it's a wonder I didn't need stitches.

Lear.. the price of fuel has rocketed in the UK. although we have always paid a lot more than the US. it is now almost £1 a litre in Scotland although i have heard that it is already over £1 a litre in England..the goverment gets a good share of this too by the way.. so hauliers are talking about blockading the major oil producers depots and refineries as early as next week.as some feel that we are being held to ransom with the huge profits these consortiums are making.. but i can see how the high fuel prices are hitting Americans because as you quite rightly say..the vehicles over there are not very fuel efficient. so i can see that there will have to be a major turn around to smaller cars because if the fuel keeps on going up at the rate it is going..very few people will be able to afford their Dodge V-8.s Then again.. there is always the bike..(i could not resist that Lear).

[concorde001]

This will be happening. I've heard that the M4 will be bought to a stand still so goods getting into London will take longer or wont get there. I live near a major refinery in Ellesmere Port and chances are that will get blocked off. I hope this does happen because in France the oil companies have cut the prices otherwise a huge tax will be slapped on them and it gives the impression the U.K. is a walk over for consumers.

[bluebird121]

I have heard that Grangemouth will also be hit by a blockade. but the truth of the matter is that this is where the fuel gets refined and yet the prices at the pumps there are the most expensive in the country.. ironic isn't it. :!: and then the oil companies will announce record profits if they can't spend some of it on advertising on television and in the media..
Of course this government is not blameless either taking their lion's share of the revenue too..
I am just glad i have my bike...i may well need to use it a lot in the coming weeks..

[concorde001]

Its not just the oil companies who are capitalizing on this. 80% of the money goes to Gordon Brown and the government who don't have any part in making petrol or diesel and just make money for doing nothing. Its not just the oil companies these protesters are moaning at. One thing id like to know is where does all the tax on fuel go! Bad public services and (lets be honest) a lying government is all that we see round this part of the world. If they spent the money wisely and we could see it then perhaps these protesters would not be doing that. I hope they do protest and bring the country to its needs like they did last time. However they said they weren't blocking oil refineries because of a new specific law that was passed so they don't protest there again.

Sorry to moan so much but at least its off my chest.

[learguy]

Inventor fuels car with dead cats

BERLIN, Germany (Reuters) -- A German inventor has angered animal rights activists with his answer to fighting the soaring cost of fuel -- dead cats.

Christian Koch, 55, from the eastern county of Saxony, told Bild newspaper that his organic diesel fuel -- a homemade blend of garbage, run-over cats and other ingredients -- is a proven alternative to normal consumer diesel.

"I drive my normal diesel-powered car with this mixture," Koch said. "I have gone 170,000 km (106,000 miles) without a problem."

The Web site of Koch's firm, "Alphakat GmbH", says his patented "KDV 500" machine can produce what he calls the "bio-diesel" fuel at about 23 euro cents (30 cents) a liter, which is about one-fifth the price at petrol stations now.

Koch said around 20 dead cats added into the mix could help produce enough fuel to fill up a 50-liter (11 gallon) tank.

But the president of the German Society for the Protection of Animals, Wolfgang Apel, said using dead cats for fuel was illegal.

"There's no danger for cats and dogs in Germany because this practice is outlawed in Germany," Apel told Bild on Wednesday in a story entitled "Can you really make fuel out of cats?"

[katana bhoy]

Inventor fuels car with dead cats  

BERLIN, Germany (Reuters) -- A German inventor has angered animal rights activists with his answer to fighting the soaring cost of fuel -- dead cats.  

Christian Koch, 55, from the eastern county of Saxony, told Bild newspaper that his organic diesel fuel -- a homemade blend of garbage, run-over cats and other ingredients -- is a proven alternative to normal consumer diesel.  

"I drive my normal diesel-powered car with this mixture," Koch said. "I have gone 170,000 km (106,000 miles) without a problem."  

The Web site of Koch's firm, "Alphakat GmbH", says his patented "KDV 500" machine can produce what he calls the "bio-diesel" fuel at about 23 euro cents (30 cents) a liter, which is about one-fifth the price at petrol stations now.  

Koch said around 20 dead cats added into the mix could help produce enough fuel to fill up a 50-liter (11 gallon) tank.  

But the president of the German Society for the Protection of Animals, Wolfgang Apel, said using dead cats for fuel was illegal.  

"There's no danger for cats and dogs in Germany because this practice is outlawed in Germany," Apel told Bild on Wednesday in a story entitled "Can you really make fuel out of cats?"

Didnt esso have a marketing campaign a few years ago that encouraged you to " PUT A TIGER IN YOUR TANK" :lol:
Now i know what they meant !!!!