Good stuff, Jim.

I’ve always wondered about the price differential at different locations within a city, and I can come up with a few reasons, but not all of them make sense.

Belle Meade gas is very expensive relatively, probably because a) many in Belle Meade can afford it and b) many in Belle Meade would rather pay more than leave the comfy confines of 37205.

But then, the Mapco on Hillsboro Pike just outside of Franklin/Brentwood always has some of the least expensive gas in the area.

Also, many inner city gas stations are more expensive, while others are less so.

You’d think that stations along the interstate would be more expensive (for the most part that’s true), but then there’s the Flying J outside of Fairview which almost always has the cheapest gas ANYWHERE on the west side of town.

I guess it all comes down to what the people in the area can afford to, and are willing to pay.

The new scooter’s breakin’ me up, folx. With the Vino, I was spending about $4/week on gas. With the People 250, I’m up to $10-12/week (of course, I’m going a lot more places, too).
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The expansion/contraction of gasoline in an underground storage tank over any 24 hour period is negligible because the temperature change in the UST is negligible over the same time period and should not factor into the equation of when to buy gas.

However, it is good to buy gas in the morning in summer months due to the volatility of gasoline (ie. its ability to form vapors that escape to the atmosphere). The cooler 70’s in the morning/late night help to keep vapor production to a minimum compared to pumping gas while the air temperature is in the 90’s.

That is not so much economics as it is a public health concern.

The expansion/contraction of gasoline in an underground storage tank over any 24 hour period is negligible because the temperature change in the UST is negligible over the same time period and should not factor into the equation of when to buy gas.

However, it is good to buy gas in the morning in summer months due to the volatility of gasoline…

Cool, thanks, DB. Good info. The expansion/contraction info came from CNN and I’ve seen it in aboveground tanks but what you say makes sense..

They also noted that gas tends to cost more in better parts of town. My bet is that Slarti is exactly right on why. Staying in the area of the hood is also probably why it’s higher in the inner city. If you live there you may not go longer distances to work/shop and thus are a good target of opportunity for somewhat higher prices - especially if you can’t afford a trip to Donelson, which seems to be the low price of the day winner.

But the gas at the interstates on/off ramps does tend to be a little higher, but it’s probably the exceptions, like Mapco, that make that rule.

Slarti, Fairview’s too far out to be the west side of town.

Slarti, don’t forget that Mapco gas contains a higher than average proportion of sludge, which is why it’s usually the cheapest gas in whatever neighborhood.

Tennesseans, pay attention:

On the left side of your steering column, maybe on the turn signal lever, or perhaps even on the steering wheel itself, there is some combination of buttons and switches with labels like “Set” “Resume” “Accel”, this is called the “Cruise Control”. Say it with me, “Cruise Control”. These buttons, when pressed and released in the appropriate combination, will help you regulate your speed, even when going up hill or down hill. This will help you to no longer fly up behind someone, start to pass, then suddenly match speeds once you are beside them. It will also prevent you from passing someone, then suddenly slowing once you get in front of them. This truly is a remarkable, and possibly even life extending, device. Because I swear if I keep getting passed by morons going 80mph, only to pass them back 5 miles later when I haven’t changed my speed, because I have my “Cruise Control” set, only to have them blow by me again 5 miles after that, eventually, that story will end with you in the wall.

Thinking ’bout getting a Prius with the rise in gas prices here - anybody have any experience good or bad with hybrids?

What car do you currently drive Jett?

as have just moved here = friend loaned me 1997 Altima - car runs pretty good with 135,000 miles on it! anyhew, i like the idea of the Prius obviously due to the MPG, (and hey gas is still cheaper than where i was living = $8.00 a gallon!

If you are looking to save gas, buy a used Civic.

You are looking to be seen as someone that is saving gas, but a Prius.

gosh, too bad i can’t have both!

If you are looking to save gas, buy a used Civic.

You are looking to be seen as someone that is saving gas, but[sic] a Prius.

Yeah because there’s no difference between 60 mpg (Prius) and 36 mpg (non-hybrid Civic) except the way people look at you. ::rolls eyes::

Jett,

If you get a hybrid, do it for the environment not to save gas money. The difference in the selling price of a hybrid vs non-hybrid pretty much balances out your gas savings.

Yeah that’s what I figured dolphin - cheers - we all gotta do our part

(+ looking at the prius owner boards it does like the av. mpg is 50-60)

Great tips, Jim!! I’m bookmarking this post

On another note, did y’all hear about the scientists coming out and saying that certain biofuels are actually worse for the environment than regular petroleum? Strange…

It will take you many years to make up in mileage what you’ll pay for a new Prius vs a used Civic.

Figure 12k miles per year @ 60mpg(yeah right) would be 200gal.
12k miles @ 30mpg would be 400gal
200gal at $3.00 per gal is $600.
2003 Civic retails @ $7k
2008 Prius retails for $21k
$14k difference/$600 per year savings+

So, in 23 years, the Prius will start paying off.

Damn, is that right? Somebody check my math.

Hey there Jay - thanks for the math -
i’ll crunch the numbers - of course a big problem is the cost of petrol and how to figure its rise -

but saving money is not the main issue -

i’ve just moved back to the States after 10 years in the U.K. and the biggest thing I’ve noticed, (other than how crass/dumbed-down the media is), is the vast amount of energy usage - the amount of energy use here vs. where I was living in London is unbelievable - obscene really - so am not comfortable using up so much gas/petrol, (last car I test drove in the U.K. avg. 50mpg)

Jett: My standard answer…
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You’ll probably never get 60 mpg in a Prius or other hybrid (except a used Insight will get close) although that is what the current EPA rating shows. (To get that you habitually drive at 45 mph around town using no air conditioning and keeping the windows tightly rolled up.) However, there is also a hybrid Civic.

Cars available in Europe get better mileage by a big margin. $8 a gallon prices will do that. Low sulphur diesel has been available over there for some time and diesels tend toward higher mileage, even in sportier cars.

The only other way to get higher mileage is to look for older small-engined European cars which offer higher mileage in exchange for lower reliability and far less crash protection. (Cars like the Fiat 500, 600 & 850, Morris Minor, Old Austin Minis, Citroen 2CVs, etc.)

Good tips, Jim.

You would play hell finding a decent 03 Civic for anywhere near the 7k amount.

That said, a Civic is a great choice for those that cannot afford a Prius. (Why the Bush admin gave great tax credits to purchase hummers instead of hybrids is beyond me, myopic fools that they are)

Also, it cannot be said enough to limit trips. Whats so hard about contacting friends and going to the market together? Also, in the Summer months, plan your errands wisely. Limit backtracking, and travel when the weather is nice enough to not use the AC. There is much we can do, without sacrificing too much.

(Boy, Jim, do i have a boatload of car buying adventures to talk about. Took me two months to make a decision.)

I used to drive a ford festiva about 15 years ago. Just an inline 4-cyl clown car, but it got amazing gas mileage, ran great and was very reliable. Just don’t get into an accident with it.

If you can drive a stick shift then do it. Better gas mileage and better acceleration. Also lower maintenance cost

Lower maintenance? How/why?

NM, for some people that ride the clutch…the maintenance is a lot more.

I think auto trannys require more frequent servicing, all things being equal.

When we looked at buying a new car back in 2005 I ran a spreadsheet for all the 30+ mpg cars, looking at which car would be better in dollar terms comparing the no. of miles we actually drove a year, Consumer Reports’ reported mileage rather than the EPA’s off-base estimates, purchase prices, and gas at $3.25 a gallon. The 2005 Civic won out and it took over 3 years, as I recall, before the cost of gas saved with a Prius overrode the lower price for a Civic. Gas is expensive but the cost differential between a 32 mpg car and a 44 mpg one is at best in the range of $600 a year in gas savings.

Also at that time there wasn’t a lot of data on how long the batteries in the Prius would last. A dealer (a Toyota one at that) said we might expect to replace siome of the batteries after 100,000 miles (a $3,500 expense) but other reports I have seen since say that wasn’t true.

Mack,
I took the $7k number from Edmunds.com’s dealer retail listing. I’d assume that Private party sales would be even cheaper. I wanted to give dolphin’s side of the equation every advantage I could. (such as the 60mpg vs 30mpg numbers)

Don’t those hybrid batteries, when used up, create an environmental hazard?

There are two issues here, the price of gas, and the environment. Understanding how the laws of supply and demand work, you can’t have it both ways. You either want lower prices, which increase demand and pollute, or your concern is the environment and pollution. If that is what you are worried about, then you have to support and applaud high prices and higher gas taxes. No cake and eating it too here.

I wanted to give dolphin’s side of the equation every advantage I could.

My side of the equation was about saving gas, not about saving money. Hence the second half of my comment. Driving a Prius (or other Hybrid) DOES save gas over a non-hybrid of comparable size.

Don’t those hybrid batteries, when used up, create an environmental hazard?

Most people willing to pay that much extra to lower their gas consumption probably are environmentally conscious enough to recycle their batteries.

Jay,
Regarding your cruise control comment . . . I’m not sure that the CC on most cars would help you to use less fuel. Yes, jack rabbiting will burn more gas, but it seems to me that coasting and gradual acceleration (two things that don’t happen on Cruise Control) will lead to less fuel use. Isn’t that right?

Glen,
You got it. Not to mention, I think we have to decide between liberty to drive large, safe cars (with the market setting the price of fuel) or submitting to unprecedented levels of gov’t regulation.

And from my recollection, the environmental impact of producing (not so much discarding) the batteries is what is surprisingly steep. But I could be wrong . . . I heard that on talk radio.

Ned, using a cruise control tends to be a bit better at improving consumption because it moderates speed and brings a higher level of consistency to your driving. It is possible to pay more attention to what your right foot is doing, coasting and accelerating like a great-grandmother hooked on molasses, but it isn’t common.

You will probably always have the liberty to piss your money away driving a huge car with its large power plant. I will continue to drive cars that get no less that 32 mpg in town. Personal preference. Assumptions: We’ll look at two people my age who have been driving for over 40 years. In 1966, I bought a small Fiat, this other person bought Detroit iron. All the cars this other person has owned averaged out to 22 mpg, mine averaged to 34 mpg (reasonable for my cars amd probably low); we both drove 20,000 miles a year; gas over the last 40 years cost on average $1.50 a gallon

My Excel spreadsheet shows me that Ive had $102,500 in disposable income that this other person has spent in gas. I’ve also used 68,000 gallons less.

Found all the comments here helpful - ended up buying a Prius last night.

Jim,
I guess my view of CC depends on the speed at which it is set and how prone it is to floor it when it is beginning to go up a hill, etc. I think the best consumption regulator is that feature on hybrids (and some Fords?) that shows you how many mpgs you’re getting at any given moment.

Congrats, Jett, another satisfied MCB customer!

Though I wouldn’t spend your extra $102,500 quite yet.