Gas Prices
- Thread starter imoldernu
- Start date
fidler4
Recycles dryer sheets
- Joined
- Mar 31, 2013
- Messages
- 252
$3.67 Sam's Club
Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum
Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum
aja8888
Moderator Emeritus
$3.51/gallon local Valero diesel with 10% biofuel blend.
Gasoline? I'll have to go check in two weeks.
Gasoline? I'll have to go check in two weeks.
Lakedog
Full time employment: Posting here.
- Joined
- May 23, 2007
- Messages
- 984
$3.39 today where I usually buy gas.
I was just noticing on Tuesday that our local stations varied from 3.24 at the low end up to 3.67 at the high end, all for regular (87 octane). The vast majority were closer to the low end.
I read somewhere about a month ago that some were predicting prices below $3.00 by September (after Labor Day). Hardly seems likely, but you never know.
I read somewhere about a month ago that some were predicting prices below $3.00 by September (after Labor Day). Hardly seems likely, but you never know.
ERD50
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Our local station $3.21 Regular
Yours?
?
Why not just go to gasbuddy.com - you can find current prices for anywhere?
-ERD50
aja8888
Moderator Emeritus
Yes... of course... the interesting part of this is the "actual" prices paid. Just 90 miles from here in the Chicago area, the BP station is charging $4.29 ... our BP station 1/4 mile away has a current price of $3.27....
On a 15 gallon fill-up that's a $15 difference. That price differential ... between $.75 and $1.00/gallon, seems to hold throughout the year.
Overall, not a really big difference, but the small $$$ add up. - For some, who are considering a move during retirement, a checkpoint in determining the cost of living.
Adding up the myriad of factors that go into the cost of living differences... housing taxes, car insurance, entertainment, eating out, utility prices and yes, gasoline cost... we figure the real difference between what we pay here, in Central Illinois, and where we used to live in the Chicago suburbs....is somewhere between $3000 and $5000 per year. That's a distance of 76 miles.
scrabbler1
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
- Joined
- Nov 20, 2009
- Messages
- 6,699
It is $4.19 at my local station.
ERD50
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Sure, but I would imagine that someone interested in deciding between a few locales is going to get that information far easier by just looking it up themselves on gasbuddy, rather than waiting for some random poster to post the current price for a location they are interested in. And then having to adjust for any changes in price since the posting.
We are probably not atypical of a retired couple, we put < 6000 miles on each of our two vehicles. Even our fairly spacious Honda CR-V averages 24 mpg with our short-trip, stop-and-go, limited high-way mile driving. So that's 500 gallons a year. So 50 cents delta is $250 a year. Rounding error.
Hey, if you are just curious, that's fine, to each their own. Just don't go trying to rationalize it as some sort of scientific analysis of retirement costs for various locales!
Just havin' some fun with you on that last bit - don't take that seriously either!-ERD50
martyb
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Saw $3.17 at a couple of stations that I drove past in Shreveport, LA today. I drove from LA to NC & back over the last 10 days, and average in my hometown area of NC was around $3.45. My friend who's a truck driver told me he spotted a station with $3.11 someplace in SC. I think the biggest variable in gas prices from state to state is related to the state's gas tax.
aja8888
Moderator Emeritus
You folks in California use different money than the rest of us.
Those Chevron guys and gals are proud of their gasoline since it passes California standards.
You folks in California use different money than the rest of us.
Those Chevron guys and gals are proud of their gasoline since it passes California standards.
Yeah, I guess we should be used to it by now.
Another Reader
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
- Joined
- Jan 6, 2013
- Messages
- 3,413
$3.759 at Costco this AM. And that's Silicon Valley. Gas Buddy had it at $3.749 as did the sign when I pulled in. When I got to the pump, the attendant was updating the sign.
JakeBrake
Full time employment: Posting here.
$4.39 for 93 octane no-ethanol gas.
$3.29 for 87 octane 10% ethanol gas.
$3.29 for 87 octane 10% ethanol gas.
aja8888
Moderator Emeritus
Yeah, I guess we should be used to it by now.
Let me clarify the high cost in California, which is NOT the highest in the nation (Hawaii and Alaska are higher). From a recent article in USA Today (7/27/14):
"When it comes to gasoline, "California is a bit of an island," AAA's Ash told 24/7 Wall St. State fuel regulations isolate California from neighboring states, requiring it to rely on in-state refineries. "If a California refinery goes offline, which is often the case during the spring transition periods or during the summer, it can have an effect on retail [gasoline] prices," Ash said. State regulations make it harder to supplement in-state production with gas from other states, often creating large fluctuations in California's gas prices."
and,
"California
> Price per gallon: $4.09
> Number of refineries: 17 (3rd highest)
> Tax per gallon: 49.8 cents (2nd highest)
High levels of oil production and refining activity have not led to low gas prices in California. Last year, California was the nation's third largest producer of oil, behind only Texas and North Dakota. The state also has the third highest refining capacity in the nation. Despite these factors, a gallon of gas in California costs $4.09, versus $3.60 per gallon nationwide. One reason for the high prices is state and local taxes, which average nearly 50 cents per gallon, or more than in any other state except New York. Additionally, California refineries operate at near-capacity due to demand and the state's strict environmental standards, the EIA notes. These factors make gasoline prices in California especially volatile."
Link to article:
States with the highest gas prices
gardenfun: I understand why you won't get used to it. I was there for 12 years and didn't either. But it is complicated and a mix of meeting environmental regulations and high taxes.
ERD50
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Am I the only one who doesn't pay attention to gas prices?
I don't do what I'd call 'discretionary' driving. I try to limit my miles, and I drive cars that get decent mpg. So when I need to fill up, I fill up. End of story. I can't control the price of gas, so why spend time thinking about it?
In general, it seems that Costco will be a penny or two cheaper than other places, and we are there often enough that that is our default. But a fill up is 10-15 gallons, I'm not going out of my way to save a quarter for that fill up.
Gas is whatever the sign at Costco or the other low-priced stations says it is. I couldn't tell you my last fill up price if my life depended on it. $3.xx probably, if I had to guess, closer to $4 than $3 I think, but that's a guess.
-ERD50
I don't do what I'd call 'discretionary' driving. I try to limit my miles, and I drive cars that get decent mpg. So when I need to fill up, I fill up. End of story. I can't control the price of gas, so why spend time thinking about it?
In general, it seems that Costco will be a penny or two cheaper than other places, and we are there often enough that that is our default. But a fill up is 10-15 gallons, I'm not going out of my way to save a quarter for that fill up.
Gas is whatever the sign at Costco or the other low-priced stations says it is. I couldn't tell you my last fill up price if my life depended on it. $3.xx probably, if I had to guess, closer to $4 than $3 I think, but that's a guess.
-ERD50
scrabbler1
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
- Joined
- Nov 20, 2009
- Messages
- 6,699
I drive so little, about 3,200 miles per year, that gas prices don't mean much to me, either. My car gets about 25 mpg, so at $4 per gallon I will pay $512 per year for gas. If I pay 20 cents less per gallon (5%), I will save about $26 per year, just over $2 a month. Trivial. The gas station I use is very conveniently located, near where I live and on a main road I drive on all the time. This gas station is where my mechanic is located so everyone there knows me. I pay cash for my gas (he charges 20 cents per gallon less for cash payers) so they let me pump first and pay afterward, another convenience. I can get free air for my tires, too. All of these conveniences add up.
RetireAge50
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2013
- Messages
- 1,660
My gauge said empty so I filled it up. Total cost about $6.00 at $4.19 per gallon (premium). Good for another 120 miles or so (250cc Honda motorcycle).
