By now many people who have been searching for cheap gas on the internet have heard or come across websites that display where you can find the cheapest gas in your area. Probably the most well known site is gasbuddy.com Now, I don't how useful a website like this to everyone, but here is Michigan we get ridiculous gas prices fluctuations. For example, last night gas averaged $3.84 per gallon and when I went to lunch today it was up to $3.99. So for my area, it's well worth looking for the station that hasn't adjusted there prices just yet.
The site itself works on a basic premise; people log into gasbuddy with an account and post gas prices at specific gas stations. That's basically it in a nutshell, but I wouldn't be surprised if there is a bit more to there price gathering techniques.
Whats nice about the site is that you do not need to register to check prices in your area, all you need to do is enter your zip code and bammo, you have a listing of gas stations, locations, and the last price submitted by the user. In my opinion, the site (which is pretty fast) is a little 'busy' looking when you first glance at it. The information is pretty much in the middle, and the ads are not overwhelming (which is nice) but the overall flow of the site throws allot of information tables at you in one setting. Maybe some more defined table borders or something would break it up better, I don't know, but I'm not going to deny the site works very well and is definitely worth taking a look at.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Cheap Gas | The Future of Hybrid, Diesel and Electric Vehicles
Toyota is will be selling there next-generation Prius for the 2009 model year. With gas prices on a never ending spiral upwards, it leaves little doubt that this new Prius, which gets even better gas mileage then its predecessor, will be one of the best selling cars in America for the next few years. With that being said, what should we expect in the short term as far as hybrid or alternative fuel technologies? As your well aware, nothing breeds competition like success so be prepared for an onslaught of hybrid, diesel and electric cars to come trickling in from all over the world for the next decade.
First up to bat will be the Chevrolet Volt from General Motors. Even though people are still arguing if GM ‘killed’ the electric car when they discontinued production of the EV1 earlier this decade, there’s no doubt they are trying to revolutionize the electric vehicle market with the Volt. The Volt is still in the planning stages as of this writing and as such is far from a finished product. GM is heading head all-out into this venture as they are tying up a lot of monetary and human capital on the project. According to there website “We have devoted significant resources to this project: Over 200 engineers and 50 designers are working on the Volt alone, and another 400 are working on related subsystems and electric components. That’s how important we think this is.” Honestly, it could be safe to safe there future may depend on electric vehicles to keep them from going under. The reality is that the consumer SUV and full-size truck market is pretty much gone at this point, and considering that trucks sales provided the bulk of GM, and Ford’s, domestic profits it’s no wonder that GM is throwing so many resources at electric vehicle research and development. Luckily for GM, it would be impossible to predict the Volt being anything but a wild success for them. The car is projected to be able to travel up to 40 miles on a single charge, well within the range of the average Americans daily commute to work and back. GM is theorizing that if used under 40 miles per day, the car will never use a drop of gas. The only immediate downside is that the Volt, with a delivery target of 2010, is expected to price north of $40,000US. At that price, it could take quite a few years until the technology is seen in an entry level vehicle, and that’s what GM need to compete with the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic.
What about diesel technology? In Europe, diesel is poised to overtake gasoline as the primary fuel used in automobiles, even at high diesel prices due to there increased fuel efficiency. One would think it would make sense to foreign automotive manufactures to import those efficient diesel models to North America, but there are a few reasons that they don’t. For starters, much of the existing diesel technology has to be modified in order to meet stringent US emissions regulations, and the other reason being that the demand for diesel cars in the US has historically not been high enough to justify the added expense of meeting all those US mandates. This may all change, however, as rising gas prices in the United States is starting to make diesel powered vehicles look more attractive, even with diesel fuel costing more that gasoline in North America. The renewed interest in diesel powered vehicles has prompted American manufactures, particularly GM and Chrysler, to start serious development of diesel hybrid vehicles. The primary emphasis will be on commercial trucks to try and get those over 30 miles per gallon on average; the technology is easily scalable to smaller trucks and cars as well.
With ever rising fuel costs we can expect to see decreased demand for gaso in the United States. In the past, this has usually had the impact of lowering fuel costs as demand drops, but with developing nations ever increasing fuel demands this has offset our decrease in fuel consumption, pushing fuel prices even higher. The question is; will these prices ever stabilize? Yes. But when will that happen, and at what price? It is doubtful that anyone has the answer at this point, but it is safe to say that we are at the beginning of a consumer driven boom in alternative fuel vehicles that could possible spell the extinction of the purely gas driven vehicle.
First up to bat will be the Chevrolet Volt from General Motors. Even though people are still arguing if GM ‘killed’ the electric car when they discontinued production of the EV1 earlier this decade, there’s no doubt they are trying to revolutionize the electric vehicle market with the Volt. The Volt is still in the planning stages as of this writing and as such is far from a finished product. GM is heading head all-out into this venture as they are tying up a lot of monetary and human capital on the project. According to there website “We have devoted significant resources to this project: Over 200 engineers and 50 designers are working on the Volt alone, and another 400 are working on related subsystems and electric components. That’s how important we think this is.” Honestly, it could be safe to safe there future may depend on electric vehicles to keep them from going under. The reality is that the consumer SUV and full-size truck market is pretty much gone at this point, and considering that trucks sales provided the bulk of GM, and Ford’s, domestic profits it’s no wonder that GM is throwing so many resources at electric vehicle research and development. Luckily for GM, it would be impossible to predict the Volt being anything but a wild success for them. The car is projected to be able to travel up to 40 miles on a single charge, well within the range of the average Americans daily commute to work and back. GM is theorizing that if used under 40 miles per day, the car will never use a drop of gas. The only immediate downside is that the Volt, with a delivery target of 2010, is expected to price north of $40,000US. At that price, it could take quite a few years until the technology is seen in an entry level vehicle, and that’s what GM need to compete with the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic.
What about diesel technology? In Europe, diesel is poised to overtake gasoline as the primary fuel used in automobiles, even at high diesel prices due to there increased fuel efficiency. One would think it would make sense to foreign automotive manufactures to import those efficient diesel models to North America, but there are a few reasons that they don’t. For starters, much of the existing diesel technology has to be modified in order to meet stringent US emissions regulations, and the other reason being that the demand for diesel cars in the US has historically not been high enough to justify the added expense of meeting all those US mandates. This may all change, however, as rising gas prices in the United States is starting to make diesel powered vehicles look more attractive, even with diesel fuel costing more that gasoline in North America. The renewed interest in diesel powered vehicles has prompted American manufactures, particularly GM and Chrysler, to start serious development of diesel hybrid vehicles. The primary emphasis will be on commercial trucks to try and get those over 30 miles per gallon on average; the technology is easily scalable to smaller trucks and cars as well.
With ever rising fuel costs we can expect to see decreased demand for gaso in the United States. In the past, this has usually had the impact of lowering fuel costs as demand drops, but with developing nations ever increasing fuel demands this has offset our decrease in fuel consumption, pushing fuel prices even higher. The question is; will these prices ever stabilize? Yes. But when will that happen, and at what price? It is doubtful that anyone has the answer at this point, but it is safe to say that we are at the beginning of a consumer driven boom in alternative fuel vehicles that could possible spell the extinction of the purely gas driven vehicle.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Cheap Gas | 2009 Toyota Prius Preoder
So I've been thinking about buying a 2009 Prius but I know, especially with gas prices in my area, that they are going to be next to impossible to find. This is especially true since they reportedly get better gas mileage then the version before it. So what's to do? Try and pre-order a new Prius.
Well, I didn't have much luck at my local Toyota dealer so far. They told me it had something to do with no firm production date or price at this point, but to keep checking back with them. My gas is that they plan on taking Toyota Prius pre-orders in the fall, since that will be closer to the new models 2009 Detroit Auto Show debut. I guess we will have to wait and see.
Well, I didn't have much luck at my local Toyota dealer so far. They told me it had something to do with no firm production date or price at this point, but to keep checking back with them. My gas is that they plan on taking Toyota Prius pre-orders in the fall, since that will be closer to the new models 2009 Detroit Auto Show debut. I guess we will have to wait and see.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Cheap Gas | 2009 Toyota Prius Review
There's a new version of the Toyota Prius coming out as a 2009 model, and if gas prices continue to skyrocket at there current pace expect the car to sell out before they even hit the lot. Why? Even though the Prius is one of the most fuel efficient vehicles sold in the US, the 2009 model will have more power and be even more fuel efficient then the previous version. Plus, it looks cooler then the old Prius as well.
Rumors are that the new Prius will exceed 50mpg (although I know people who say theres can do that already, if they drive it conservatively) and will be cheaper to buy then the current model. You really cant go wrong there. With no cheap gas in site, expect these things to be hard to find. If your looking to buy a Prius right now the pickings are slim (at least in my state) so pre-order if you think you want one.
Rumors are that the new Prius will exceed 50mpg (although I know people who say theres can do that already, if they drive it conservatively) and will be cheaper to buy then the current model. You really cant go wrong there. With no cheap gas in site, expect these things to be hard to find. If your looking to buy a Prius right now the pickings are slim (at least in my state) so pre-order if you think you want one.
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Cheap-Gas | Using Water for Gas Review
So if you're like me you may have been looking for fuel efficient cars or gas savings alternatives and ran across these ads for Water For Gas. Now, the theory for this system is that you can use this thing called a hydrolyser that eventually enrichens your fuel to be similar to premium. Your new premium fuel will then burn more efficiently, giving you better gas mileage.
Apparently you can buy either the plans for the entire setup or you can buy the individual components needed install the kit in sections. For example, you can by the hyrdolyser (which essentially separates the water into a gas called HHO) off the internet or you can make it using the instructions in the Water for Gas instructions.
Does it work? This guy claims it does, but it's not knocking out the 50% fuel mileage improvements the product seems to point to. On the other end of the spectrum, this wiki claims the theory is not sound and will not work. The best thing you can do is to research what you can and come up with your own conclusions.
Cheap-Gas | Are you selling your truck or SUV to save money?
A friend of mine put his pickup truck on the market a while back and it took three months to sell it. Why was he selling it? Because the seat hurt his back if he drove it for too long. As gas prices climb higher and higher you will start to see more people dumping there 4-wheel drive trucks and big SUV's in favor of small cars. Apparently this is the start of a trend.
So my first question is; are you, or do you know anyone that is selling there truck/SUV and buying a small car? The movement is picking up steam, and with a $4 per gallon gas national average on the horizon I suspect a year from now it will be a full blown epidemic. I know I've considered selling my 2005 Mustang time and again to buy something that gets better gas mileage, but my heart isn't completely into it.
Is it worth it? hat will all depend on how much you drive. Right now I average 288 miles driven per week. In my car that equates to about $210 per month in fuel costs. Yea, that's alot. I remember 12 years ago filling my VW GTI for $15 and driving a week and a half, but I digress. So let's say your car payment is $300 per month, fuel costs $200 per month and you also have to pay $100 per month in insurance. That's roughly $600 per month to drive a vehicle like mine. Now, if you sell your hot rod or pickup and buy a Honda Civic, expect to save around $80 per month in fuel. For most people that will be a real savings (if you buy a Toyota Prius then it's a huge savings).
So how does this bode for manufactures that sell alot of big pickups and SUV's? Not very well at all, at least until they retool to sell mid to small sized cars and crossover SUV's. It does mean that if your in the market for a truck you will get a great deal. A year from now you might even find new ones that have been on the lot for 6 months at half off, who knows. Either way, it's going to be a greatly changing landscape on American freeways in the next few years.
So my first question is; are you, or do you know anyone that is selling there truck/SUV and buying a small car? The movement is picking up steam, and with a $4 per gallon gas national average on the horizon I suspect a year from now it will be a full blown epidemic. I know I've considered selling my 2005 Mustang time and again to buy something that gets better gas mileage, but my heart isn't completely into it.
Is it worth it? hat will all depend on how much you drive. Right now I average 288 miles driven per week. In my car that equates to about $210 per month in fuel costs. Yea, that's alot. I remember 12 years ago filling my VW GTI for $15 and driving a week and a half, but I digress. So let's say your car payment is $300 per month, fuel costs $200 per month and you also have to pay $100 per month in insurance. That's roughly $600 per month to drive a vehicle like mine. Now, if you sell your hot rod or pickup and buy a Honda Civic, expect to save around $80 per month in fuel. For most people that will be a real savings (if you buy a Toyota Prius then it's a huge savings).
So how does this bode for manufactures that sell alot of big pickups and SUV's? Not very well at all, at least until they retool to sell mid to small sized cars and crossover SUV's. It does mean that if your in the market for a truck you will get a great deal. A year from now you might even find new ones that have been on the lot for 6 months at half off, who knows. Either way, it's going to be a greatly changing landscape on American freeways in the next few years.
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
I think the Chevrolet Volt will be to expensive
I was going over the Wiki on the Chevrolet Volt and it looks like trouble. First off, I like the Chevrolet Volt, it's a cool looking car for a 'hybrid' (GM is insisting on calling it an electric vehicle, so whatever) and it looks practical for what it is. First a little background; the Chevrolet Volt is expected to debut in 2010 as an electric vehicle that will have a range of 40 miles on a single charge. This falls in line with the average commuters daily mileage of 33 miles and means that, in theory, you wouldn't have to worry about buying gas for the thing.
Original speculation was that the car was going to cost between 20 to 30 thousand dollars. In my opinion, that was the sweet spot. Considering how gas prices are on an upward spiral with no end in site and the fact that we will never see cheap gas again, that price range would make the Volt fly out of the showrooms. Will, recently Bob Lutz, CEO of GM, stated that the car would more then likely cost in the 30 to 40 thousand dollar range. Ouch, but the Toyota Prius was around thirty thousand or so when it's new model arrived, so were still with you. Lutz then stated that due to development cost's expect the car to cost around 48 thousand. Ok you lost me.
Why? I flat out cant afford that because I'm poor. And even if I could afford a payment on a $48000 car I wouldn't have to worry about gas prices as much as I do now, so it would not be high on my shopping list.
Ah well, they have to start somewhere. Hopefully they will have the technology standardized in a decade that people can by an electric Chevrolet Cobalt for $14,999 by 2018.
Original speculation was that the car was going to cost between 20 to 30 thousand dollars. In my opinion, that was the sweet spot. Considering how gas prices are on an upward spiral with no end in site and the fact that we will never see cheap gas again, that price range would make the Volt fly out of the showrooms. Will, recently Bob Lutz, CEO of GM, stated that the car would more then likely cost in the 30 to 40 thousand dollar range. Ouch, but the Toyota Prius was around thirty thousand or so when it's new model arrived, so were still with you. Lutz then stated that due to development cost's expect the car to cost around 48 thousand. Ok you lost me.
Why? I flat out cant afford that because I'm poor. And even if I could afford a payment on a $48000 car I wouldn't have to worry about gas prices as much as I do now, so it would not be high on my shopping list.
Ah well, they have to start somewhere. Hopefully they will have the technology standardized in a decade that people can by an electric Chevrolet Cobalt for $14,999 by 2018.
Chrysler offer $2.99 per gallon gas incentive
http://wot.motortrend.com/6245987/ad-watch/chryslers-lets-refuel-america-program-offers-299-gas/index.html
This is a real cool concept. Hopefully it will lure some customers back to Chrysler at $2.99 per gallon
This is a real cool concept. Hopefully it will lure some customers back to Chrysler at $2.99 per gallon
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