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Gas Prices are down, and people are SPEEDING again. Let them!!!

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Fuel Economy' started by Rybold, Nov 18, 2008.

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  1. Genoz World

    Genoz World ZEN-style living

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    I DOUBLE THAT!!! my Z06 is a rocket! NOS and SUPERCHARGED!
     
    #21 Genoz World, Nov 22, 2008
  2. xsmatt81

    xsmatt81 non-AARP Member

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    awesome. haha I don't own a vette though.

    would like to, maybe one of these days
     
    #22 xsmatt81, Nov 24, 2008
  3. Cyrix2k

    Cyrix2k BMW V8 baby

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    FWIW, the most aggressive driver I've encountered was in a Prius. I was on my way to baltimore, on route 1, waiting at red light. The light turns green, I drive a 6 speed so I put in first and was letting the clutch out and some idiot in a prius behind me hits his horn (I flipped him off around here, lol), swerves to the right of me, passes my car, then cuts in front of me and locks the brakes up. Wth? Eventually he gets off the road and shouts "f**ot!" out the window. Again, Wth? I have a girl in my car and we're heading to fells point in a, sorry, BMW and you're in a Prius acting like an ***hat.

    I'll also mention that is usually Prius' going quite slow in my area. Perhaps excessive speeding isn't good, but it would be nice to atleast keep pace with traffic. And FWIW, I get 28-29mpg cruising on the highway with a 4.4L V8. My convertible with its 1.9L 4 cylinder will hit in the 40s if I sit at 65, more like 30mpg at 80 mph. I love having a 600 mile cruising range :)
     
    #23 Cyrix2k, Nov 24, 2008
  4. huskers

    huskers Senior Member

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    Gas was $1.47 a gallon today in St. Joseph, Mo. I never thought I would see it that low ever again.
     
    #24 huskers, Nov 24, 2008
  5. Rybold

    Rybold globally warmed member

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    For those that mentioned Govt. limiting horsepower, I would like to make a modification to that. Total horsepower should not be limited. Horsepower that comes from gasoline should be limited. :D If the automakers want to build vehicles that get 100hp from gasoline, and 200 horsepower from electric, then I'm all for it! :D The govt. should make a limit that only 100hp in any mass-produced vehicle can come from gasoline. Small production and custom automakers can continue to do whatever they want. Your "600hp supercharged" vette will not be in jeopardy. (Btw, they had the new ZR1 at the LA Auto Show ... WOW!!!!)

    "Oil surged nearly 10 percent to near $55 a barrel on Monday on expectations that OPEC will cut output again..." Monday November 24, 1:37 pm ET Oil leaps 10 percent as OPEC and equities support: Financial News - Yahoo! Finance
     
    #25 Rybold, Nov 24, 2008
  6. Cyrix2k

    Cyrix2k BMW V8 baby

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    I should also mention that I really don't pay much mind to fuel prices myself. Even with my first car when it was costing me $70/tank and I was make $6.50/hr, it wasn't enough for me to take fuel economy into consideration and the same went for a bunch of people at my high school. My car had a 305 V8 in it and I was doing about 7 mpg and my neighbor had a 3.1 V6 and was doing about 12 mpg. Those are probably the lowest numbers you can with without being arrested or on a race track. Now days, I care more about mileage to extend my cruising range than anything else; the money has never been an issue. The car costs more per mile in maintenance than fuel. Then again, I also race my car, so I go through suspension components pretty quickly. As you enjoy getting good mileage, others enjoy going fast, even stop light to stop light. I'll give my car some gas from time to time - I enjoy being pushed back into the seat. That doesn't mean I always drive fast. On the contrary, I've been doing between 22-24mpg to and from work and 28-29mpg cruising on the highway. I don't think that's too bad for keeping a 300hp, nearly 4000 lb car with fairly wide tires rolling down the road.
     
    #26 Cyrix2k, Nov 24, 2008
  7. Rybold

    Rybold globally warmed member

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    "Even though gasoline consumption remains below year-ago levels, there are signs that the weakness is beginning to ebb, according to the weekly SpendingPulse report by MasterCard.
    The report's four-week moving average shows weekly gasoline sales of 63.3 million gallons were down 3 percent from a year ago, the smallest year-over-year decline since the first week of July, according to the report. The year-ago numbers included the week of Thanksgiving.
    "It looks like consumers are moving back toward more normal driving patterns," said Michael McNamara, vice president of MasterCard SpendingPulse.

    OPEC President Chakib Khelil said Monday that if the organization met today, a cut of 1 million barrels would not be enough to support oil prices ...
    will hold its next official meeting on Dec. 17."
    Oil prices tumble; gas falls to 2004 levels: Financial News - Yahoo! Finance

    There's nothing wrong with being a weekend race car driver, because it's less than 1% of the population. When gasoline was at $2/gal, I used to autocross my Corolla, going through a set of tires and brake pads every two months. It's fun as heck! People need to have hobbies and sports in life; otherwise life gets boring. Racing cars is great, as it allows you to apply education and physics, and get an adrenaline rush at the same time. Since racing is less than 1% of the population, never feel guilty about that.
    What IS A PROBLEM THOUGH is the when greater than 50% of the population form a HABIT of stomping on the accelerator of their 5000pound SUV every single day during their daily commutes! During your daily commute, you should be helping to set a good example. Even with gasoline prices lower, I'm still getting EPA 35mpg from my Corolla. If I want to have fun, I'll go around a corner fast BECAUSE I already happen to have the momentum. If I'm going down a freeway onramp that is downhill, I'll allow my car's momentum to go faster and let my tires squeel, but that's GRAVITY and (F=mv^2) that's doing that and NOT my mpg. Keep racing on the track or past 10pm, but stomping on your accelerator while driving to or from work (provided you're not late for an interview) will only do one thing: let others on the freeway know that other people are driving fast again, and everyone will start accelerating faster, and it will contribute to global warming, and destruction of U.S. national security!
    I accelerate gradually EVERY time and I've noticed that the others around me don't seem to mind. I'm sure they're confused though once I'm up to speed and all of a suddenly start careening around corners. Lol. :D

    BUT IF YOU GO BACK AND READ THE FIRST POST OF THIS THREAD ... MAYBE DRIVING FAST ISN'T SUCH A BAD THING AFTER ALL. :D
     
    #27 Rybold, Nov 25, 2008
  8. Rybold

    Rybold globally warmed member

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    "This could help speed up the Chinese economy's recovery from the current slowdown and therefore encouraging for oil demand growth in the future," said a report from Sucden Research in London.
    Also affecting prices was news that Russia, one the world's largest crude producers, may join OPEC in output cuts"
    Oil prices jump again in a volatile week: Financial News - Yahoo! Finance
     
    #28 Rybold, Nov 26, 2008
  9. Rybold

    Rybold globally warmed member

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    #29 Rybold, Dec 3, 2008
  10. N3FOL

    N3FOL Member

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    Regular price in our area is $1.69 per gallon. It would cost me $10.00 to fill up and am still keeping my speed below 70 mph. I try not to be in a hurry too much nowadays.
     
    #30 N3FOL, Dec 16, 2008
  11. dipper

    dipper Senior Member

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    Don't worry, gas prices are creaping up now. Seen it moved up about 10 cents within the last couple of days.

    With OPEC restricting supply, it will get back up to "NORMAL" price soon.
     
    #31 dipper, Dec 19, 2008
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