Average gas price $6.20/gal by end of Summer

[NW-Bound]

And you think it's tough locating your car in a big parking lot today...

Eh, people would still be allowed to have customized paint jobs.

That's still a lot better than the Catholic school I attended, where uniforms were mandatory.

 

[Out of Steam]

I was thinking of going beyond and have all makers build to the same design.

Problem with that is that a single product defect can take the whole fleet off the road.

It's bad enough for an airline or a transit system, but it would be an economic disaster on a national or international automotive scale. Southwest Airlines was seriously hurt in the 737 MAX grounding, and is continuing to be hurt by the slow ramp-up of new production.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...frustration-over-737-max-certification-delays


With proper design, systems can be interchangeable without being identical, as engines for over the road trucks are.

 

[Koolau]

I don't know about other ruminants, but here's an excerpt from an article in the Journal of Animal Science. It says 2%.



I will say that these animals' methane production is part of the "green" cycle. They are returning some of the carbon they ingest back to grow more grass. Hence, they are of course "green".

Heh, heh, look at the source - "Journal of Animal Science." They are suggesting that cows only produce 2% of ALL sources of methane. I think it's probably true that there are more "natural" sources of methane (normal decay of plant material, off-gassing of buried/submerged bio-mass, natural out-gassing of methane from methane hydrates in the oceans, etc.

BUT in terms of what MAN produces, 1/3 or more is due to cows (and other ruminants.) Not suggesting - as the greens do - that we get rid of cows. But, cows aren't green in the normal sense of the word.

Having said that, I love cows. Medium to medium well. YMMV

 

[NW-Bound]

Problem with that is that a single product defect can take the whole fleet off the road.

It's bad enough for an airline or a transit system, but it would be an economic disaster on a national or international automotive scale. Southwest Airlines was seriously hurt in the 737 MAX grounding, and is continuing to be hurt by the slow ramp-up of new production.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...frustration-over-737-max-certification-delays

With proper design, systems can be interchangeable without being identical, as engines for over the road trucks are.

Well, by design, I mean form/fit/function. Not down to the internal design or structure of a component.

But of course, my comment was just in jest.

The world needs more levity.

 

[Phroig]

We’re on the last day of a road trip, having driven through 13 states. I think I only paid more than $5/gallon twice, and that was only just over. Of course, that’s still quite a bit more than the $2.xx we were paying not too long ago.

 

[almost there]

We’re on the last day of a road trip, having driven through 13 states. I think I only paid more than $5/gallon twice, and that was only just over. Of course, that’s still quite a bit more than the $2.xx we were paying not too long ago.

I don't know where you were. But I know where you were not.
Has not been under $6.00 in months. Closer to 7 now.

 

[skyking1]

I have a Portland to Long Island NY trip, towing a car on a trailer in November. I hope it settles down by then.

 

[JoeWras]

Problem with that is that a single product defect can take the whole fleet off the road.

It's bad enough for an airline or a transit system, but it would be an economic disaster on a national or international automotive scale.

Good point. It is like monoculture. Bananas are cloned from the same plant and there's worry the world banana crop will crash some day.

And when it comes to our energy sources, we should pay attention to this concept. We need multiple sources of energy. Having dependence on only one is problematic.

 

[Koolau]

Good point. It is like monoculture. Bananas are cloned from the same plant and there's worry the world banana crop will crash some day.

And when it comes to our energy sources, we should pay attention to this concept. We need multiple sources of energy. Having dependence on only one is problematic.

We see that with all kinds of things - such as chip manufacturers. The problem seems to be that companies want to squeeze the last tenth of a cent of cost out of something in order to be able to beat the competition. I understand it, but, collectively, it's a kind of suicide pact. In times like these when chips are hard to come by (and not even because someone is mad at us) many companies suffer. AND prices that were "cheap" have sky rocketed.

I recall Megacorp telling the staff I worked with the wonders of Just-In-Time supply chain. A couple of us asked "What happens if one supplier in the chain has a glitch?" IIRC the answer was that "We pick reliable suppliers."

Guess what? Usually it worked and saved a bundle and sometimes it didn't work and was a nightmare. We ended up doing sort of a hybrid, storing key components with only one supplier and JITing those that had alternate suppliers.

We've seen that when we have relatively inelastic demand such as for energy, slight disruptions cause out-sized price increases. Multiple sources seems key in limiting disruptions but no one asked me. YMMV

 

[Freedom56]

The oil price bubble is about to collapse. It has been driven up by speculators not supply/demand and market price fundamentals. We have Russia now selling their oil below $70 to the second and third largest consumers of oil (China and India). Iran which normally ships oil to China is being squeezed out by discounted Russian oil and is forced to discount their oil. You can't have a market where large producers are discounting oil by a wide margin and expect buyers not to be lured by the lower prices. That defies market economics. Eventually the speculative oil trade will unravel and oil will collapse down to the $60-70 range by the end of the year.

 

[almost there]

Its going to take months for our oil Big oil Co.'s to get going again.
Even after they get the green light. You simply don't turn it on and off quickly.

 

[Midpack]

Thread drift much? Maybe start another thread?

Eh, people would still be allowed to have customized paint jobs.

That's still a lot better than the Catholic school I attended, where uniforms were mandatory.

Problem with that is that a single product defect can take the whole fleet off the road.

It's bad enough for an airline or a transit system, but it would be an economic disaster on a national or international automotive scale. Southwest Airlines was seriously hurt in the 737 MAX grounding, and is continuing to be hurt by the slow ramp-up of new production.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...frustration-over-737-max-certification-delays


With proper design, systems can be interchangeable without being identical, as engines for over the road trucks are.

Heh, heh, look at the source - "Journal of Animal Science." They are suggesting that cows only produce 2% of ALL sources of methane. I think it's probably true that there are more "natural" sources of methane (normal decay of plant material, off-gassing of buried/submerged bio-mass, natural out-gassing of methane from methane hydrates in the oceans, etc.

BUT in terms of what MAN produces, 1/3 or more is due to cows (and other ruminants.) Not suggesting - as the greens do - that we get rid of cows. But, cows aren't green in the normal sense of the word.

Having said that, I love cows. Medium to medium well. YMMV

 

[ls99]

For the last few days in my neck of woods SW PA, gasoline was running $4.995/gal

 

[Out of Steam]

Its going to take months for our oil Big oil Co.'s to get going again.
Even after they get the green light. You simply don't turn it on and off quickly.

Because the US has been so thoroughly explored for sources of oil, the supplies we have left are expensive to produce. Countries in the Middle East can pump oil at far lower cost and destroy the profitability of new supplies at will. Oil companies have been burned one time too many and are hesitant to increase drilling.

If we want domestic oil, we have to be willing to pay more for it by setting a minimum price for oil in the US. We've been setting similar minimum prices in agriculture forever.

 

[audreyh1]

Could you explain it to me?

(Today)
Average charge time is currently 8 hrs.
24 hrs if using 110v.

If anyone wants extended range, swapping like batteries on the road is a possible solution.

Personally, I see it as a solution to a problem that does not exist.
But if EV's were to be made main stream. What other options are there?
Aside from having to stop for 8 hrs every 250 miles?

On a road trip charging time at a supercharger is often only 15-20 mins, maybe 30 mins if you are very low and charging up to a high percent.

That’s plenty good enough for extended range today. No need to swap batteries.

Sounds like you are not familiar with the networks of EV chargers already installed across the US as your numbers are way off. We have an extensive Tesla supercharger network to use on long road trips. Plus many additional ones being installed this year.

On this last charging stop, we barely had time to pick up drinks at Starbucks and use the restroom before charging was complete. I took this pic because all the Teslas at the supercharger were red, and just as we left a 4th red Tesla showed up and backed in to charge. Red is supposedly a rare color for Teslas.

 

[karen1972]

I always am just amazed at the price difference across the country, on my May roadtrip, Georgia was way cheaper.

Here in NC I'm grateful we are well below the national average. Filled up over the weekend was $4.55 at Exxon (using Discover cards quarterly category w/ 5% cash back, saving another 22 cents).

 

[Koolau]

I always am just amazed at the price difference across the country, on my May roadtrip, Georgia was way cheaper.

Here in NC I'm grateful we are well below the national average. Filled up over the weekend was $4.55 at Exxon (using Discover cards quarterly category w/ 5% cash back, saving another 22 cents).

Yeah, never understood it, but Georgia has always been cheeper than other states I've visited. It's quite consistent. YMMV

 

[braumeister]

Price went down from $4.99 to $4.79 today here in northern Kentucky.

 

[NW-Bound]

Because the US has been so thoroughly explored for sources of oil, the supplies we have left are expensive to produce. Countries in the Middle East can pump oil at far lower cost and destroy the profitability of new supplies at will. Oil companies have been burned one time too many and are hesitant to increase drilling.

If we want domestic oil, we have to be willing to pay more for it by setting a minimum price for oil in the US. We've been setting similar minimum prices in agriculture forever.

People like the free market when competition drives down the price.

When the free market causes the price to go up, they cry for price regulation to make producers work for free.

People!

 

[Koolau]

People like the free market when competition drives down the price.

When the free market causes the price to go up, they cry for price regulation to make producers work for free.

People!

They are also especially sensitive to oil companies making big profits. Of course, they could give a rip when Houston becomes a ghost town. Oil has always been boom and bust. Make hay one year and duck and cover the next year. No apologist for O&G but human nature is very much tilted toward self - but YMMV.

 

[madatrub]

The oil price bubble is about to collapse. It has been driven up by speculators not supply/demand and market price fundamentals. We have Russia now selling their oil below $70 to the second and third largest consumers of oil (China and India). Iran which normally ships oil to China is being squeezed out by discounted Russian oil and is forced to discount their oil. You can't have a market where large producers are discounting oil by a wide margin and expect buyers not to be lured by the lower prices. That defies market economics. Eventually the speculative oil trade will unravel and oil will collapse down to the $60-70 range by the end of the year.

I wouldnt call $70 by year end a "collapse". That is still enough for every domestic driller to still make a profit and would be equvalent to a roughly $10/bbl crack

 

[madatrub]

I always am just amazed at the price difference across the country, on my May roadtrip, Georgia was way cheaper.

Here in NC I'm grateful we are well below the national average. Filled up over the weekend was $4.55 at Exxon (using Discover cards quarterly category w/ 5% cash back, saving another 22 cents).

Mostly taxes, although transportation/demand factor in as well.

 

[Out of Steam]

I wouldnt call $70 by year end a "collapse". That is still enough for every domestic driller to still make a profit and would be equvalent to a roughly $10/bbl crack

Until this year, $70 a barrel would have been considered within the "boom" part of the boom-bust oil price cycle.

 

[Koolau]

Until this year, $70 a barrel would have been considered within the "boom" part of the boom-bust oil price cycle.

I know little about O&G but I assume the per bbl price is just one factor in whether it is economic to go after oil. If you have an idle pump jack with relatively low production capability that has been shut down, $70/bbl is probably a good price to turn it back on. If you're thinking about drilling, $70 might not be enough to take the chance. Other big factors that I've heard of: Ability to transfer oil (pipeline or truck or rail.) Quality of oil (tar sands to light-sweet.)

IOW It's complicated.

 

[Chuckanut]

Today I received an email reminding me to activate my Chase Freedom
flex card's third quarter 5% bonus. The big one in the third quarter is gasoline.

So, 5% bonus points April through June with the Discover card. The same 5% bonus July through September with the Freedom Flex card.

The best deal near me is still buying at Costco with the Costco 4% bonus. But, there are times I am not near a Costco, or I may not have time to wait in the lines. (Though they seem to be shortening quite a bit in the last two weeks.)