Gas at $3.25,will affect attendance

Tennessee_CP_Fan said:
Well it will affect me...or mainly my bank account, but it won't stop me from coming. Maybe I need to fill up some gas cans and bring those....I filled up at $2.97 a gallon here today!

Can you believe that $2.97 gas is cheap?

Well, flying is different, but we're flying out from Utah this next week, high gas prices or not.

I hope you crash that prius and have to pay the clean up bill on the battery. Then we'll see who has the last laugh.

Also, No hybrids can fit 400 sunday papers. While I no longer deliver papers, the vehicle I purchased (Ford Ranger) to do so is what I have now. The loan is almost paid off, and it doesn't make sense to sell it for next to nothing for another high loan and more debt.

I've even been driving slower to and from work/other places to conserve fuel. It's hitting me pretty hard in the pocket book.

Here's the thing about Hybrids. At $3.25/gallon, going from a car that gets 30mpg to 55mpg, and driving 1500 miles per month, it saves you about $74 each month. So, I will stick with my $0 per month payment rather than upgrade to a hybrid with a $250-$300 per month payment, thank you very much.

Jeff said:

zskoz3 said:
I think 23 mpg is pretty good for a car that can fit my family of 4 with a car seat, full sized cooler, stroller and luggage.

Are you kidding? That sucks! My Corolla can fit said people and gets pretty close to 40 highway. Loaded like that, probably upper 30's, but 23 is terrible.

That's good enough for me. Plus, I was raised with money from Ford Motor Company. My dad still works there for 30+ years. I can't see myself buying an import, even if it is made here in the states.

bholcomb said:
I hope you crash that prius and have to pay the clean up bill on the battery. Then we'll see who has the last laugh.

Well, once again I seem to be the recipient of rude (and in this case obscene) unwarrented comments. Yet coming from Ben Holcomb, whose comments I have been reading on PointBuzz for quite a while now, I would have expected much more from him given his usual level of civility on these fourms... But wishing that I crash my vehicle...? This is extremely low... and that I have to "pay the clean up bill on the battery... then we'll see who has the last laugh" just sends that post even lower (if for no other reason than it is very inaccurate and demonstrates Mr. Holcomb's lack of knowledge about how the Hybrid battery in the Toyota Prius is constructed...

The Hybrid battery in the 2004-2007 Prius is located within a reinforced steel composite housing directly behind the rear seat and below the floor of the rear cargo area directly between the rear wheels... a location that is extremely stable in a crash...

The battery itself is sealed in a hard plastic casing and the alkaline acid in the hybrid battery is further encased in dozens of individual cells that are slighly larger than a "D" cell battery... Additionally when the car is in an accident all electrical connections to the hybrid battery automatically disconnected so that the occupants or emergency responders cannot be electrocuted...

There are several notable reports of Priuses that have been severely damaged in accidents with their occupants surviving and the batteries being removed from the car undamaged (even when the car itself was totaled) With over a million cars on the road with the toyota hybrid synergy drive system sinced it was introduced in 1997 there has not been a single reported instance of a Hybrid battery rupturing or leaking in a crash despite all the gllom and doom predictions...

So, rest assured that if my vehicle was in an accident the odds of me having "to pay the clean up bill on the battery" are near zero... What is mroe troubling is the fact you would wish for me to be in a crash... I certainly would not wish that upon another person.

Now, on a more personal level I would like to note that Jeff said "Are you kidding? That sucks! My Corolla can fit said people and gets pretty close to 40 highway. Loaded like that, probably upper 30's, but 23 is terrible" and yet it seems noone is offended by him calling the fuel economy of the average american mid-size vehicle "terrible" and saying that it "sucks". I am sure this has something to do with him being a moderator... How convienient...
(Im not picking on you Jeff, I am just noting the disparity in how I have been responded to for a post that was far less verbally critical)

I fail to understand why my post has illicited such vile responses from a select few individuals... I strive to be civil and informative on this fourm and this is what I get from one of the top posters at PointBuzz... How sad...

Ok, back to topic... How about those gas prices??? :P *** Edited 5/24/2007 2:43:25 AM UTC by Andrew VanAtta***

I really think he forgot the smiley or the winkey at the end of his post.

If you feel that he wants YOU, specifically, to be in an accident and incur a bill for cleanup you are pretty naive.

He used you as a general example since you drive one of these type of vehicles, whether the example right or wrong, and I'm confident he meant you no physical harm.

Stop acting like everyone's out to get you.

I am about to purchase a Chevy Tahoe that gets around 15 mpg on the highway. Guess I'll be keeping the oil companies in business for a while.

$3.49 in Wadsworth- yikes!

Loopy said:
I really think he forgot the smiley or the winkey at the end of his post.

If you feel that he wants YOU, specifically, to be in an accident and incur a bill for cleanup you are pretty naive.

He used you as a general example since you drive one of these type of vehicles, whether the example right or wrong, and I'm confident he meant you no physical harm.

Stop acting like everyone's out to get you.

First, smiley or not the comment was inappropriate for discourse in a civil society (or a semi-civil online fourm :D )

Second, I am not acting like 'everyone' is 'out to get me'... I simply felt it necessary to respond to that post (which was obviously directed me me specifically)... Now can we please get back to gas prices... I made my response and now consider the issue resolved..

On a lighter note the lowest gas prices in Bowling Green as of 9:30 PM tonight were around $3.30 according to gasbuddy.com... Compared to the $3.58 from 2 days ago I suppose this is a good thing? Im sure gas will be $3.75 by thrusday morning and $5.00 by the afternoon then back to $4.00 by thursday night... that would be logical right?

You're trying to be civil? Because all I read is "smug smug smug im better than you smug smug smug my car is better than yours smug smug smug"

My old man gets about the same gas mileage as you driving a motorcycle, and looks a helluva lot cooler doing it too.

To think Hybrids are the end all solution to our problem or even a viable solution is very short sighted.

A) The government takes so much per gallon in taxes. If people start using less overall gallons, they will raise taxes (you can't believe they'd cut the budget).

B) Try getting repair work done on that prius of yours, mannnn. Good luck paying those high dealership labor rates.

C) Not everyone can practically use a Prius for their day to day activity. Nor any of the other hybrids out there (The only other one besides a small rinky-dink car I am aware of is the Escape, which is pretty worthless to me honestly)

So step off your high horse. Driving an ugly japanese hunk of crap doesn't make you better than anyone else.

Andrew VanAtta said:

<<Putting on my smug hybrid driver hat>>

I drive an almighty Toyota Prius so I have averaged 52.3 MPG over my last 1200 miles of driving... over 21,000 miles of ownership I have an overall summer/winter-city/highway combined average of 48 MPG...

You came out sounding like as ass right off the bat (you even put on your smug hybrid driver hat to emphasize it). So complaining about other people calling you a jerk is just the pot and the freakin kettle.

If you want a cookie, then I'll give you one next time I'm at the park.

::sigh::

Ok... I really am trying to be nice here... I have NEVER claimed to be better than anyone else, and I have only ridden a hrose once and it was not a positive experience (that is supposed to be humorous [and true] by the way...)

I specifically stated that the prius is not the car for everyone... there are many hybrid vehicles out there.. Toyota also offers the Camry and Highlander in hybrid models and many other companies make hybrid cars..the honda Civic Hybrid is very popular as is the Ford escape which gets a respectable 34 MPG (EPS estimate) which is good for an SUV...

I also want to make it clear to everyone that I dont not hail hybrid vehicles as any solution to our nations energy woes... I do believe them to be an important step in the right direction... but ultimately my prius has the fundamental problem of running on gas... perhaps less gas than my last car but it still requires gas... which primairly comes from nations goverend by regimes hostile to the United States and our global interests... I believe that we need to move away from fossil fuels and other greenhouse gas emitting fuels... Hopefully within the next 50 years we can do so... I'll be 68 in 2050 so perhaps I can drive an all-electric vehicle that gets power from a clean energy power grid by then? (mabye???)

I also fully recognize that there is still a valid need for other vehicles in our current society such as trucks and suvs... I would not want to run a landscaping business with my Prius or a moving company with a Camry Hybrid...

As for your claim "that all I read is 'smug smug smug im better than you smug smug smug my car is better than yours smug smug smug'..." I wrote jokingly in my orignial post in this plesant conversation that i was "putting on my smug hybrid vehicle driver hat" to lighten the mood... In fact it was the opening line of my post... Appearantly that subtle bit of humor was somehow lost in translation...

Finally, If you do not like the aesthetics of the Prius that is fine, we all live in a democracy where everyone is free to like or dislike whatever they want... My mother likes her Highlander, my stepfather loves his brand new Harley Davidson, and my father thinks his Nissan Armada is awesome... I dont care for any of those vehicles yet somehow the world keeps spinning... But is it really necessary to continue to degrade this forum with insults??? I consider this issue closed... and I hope everyone else does too... this is PointBuzz and this should be a happy place just like Cedar Point...

Jugga, we're going to head down for the next festival, that is, once they send her home from California, and that, like everything else in the military is going swimmingly well.

I may have to update my signature a little bit though...

I did see a 2001 Black Jeep Wrangler for sale in someones front yard while out on a shoot today, I'll get back out there and grab a phone number if I can.

JuggaLotus said:
You came out sounding like as ass right off the bat (you even put on your smug hybrid driver hat to emphasize it). So complaining about other people calling you a jerk is just the pot and the freakin kettle.

If you want a cookie, then I'll give you one next time I'm at the park.

Oh... my... god... I really have not been an 'ass'... If any of you knew me personally I would hope you would find me to be one of the politest, most helpful persons you had ever met... that is what i strive to every day... some days I succeed more than others but I have never known of anyone who actually knows me calling me an "ass'... As I said I "put on my 'smug' hybrid hat' as a joke to allude to the reputation hybrid drivers have earned in recent years... South Park did an entire episode on this which I personally found to be quite funny...

Nor am I 'whining'... I simply wish to address these insults to my character... if someone said such things about you, would you not try to respond...? So please folks let us drop this and just move on...

BTW I dont eat cookies anymore as Im on a diet... I have dropped 30 pounds in the last year but I do appreciate the offer (again that is supposed to be humorous [and true])

Thank You... *** Edited 5/24/2007 5:08:28 AM UTC by Andrew VanAtta***

Toyota is the awesomest greenest company evAr!

I love the Tundra and it's awesome 19mpg. Even cooler than that is Toyota's 28% drop in overall mpg according to 2008 EPA standards. Gotta be first in everything including percentage drops in fuel economy under the new standards. Thanks for sinking 1 billion dollars into a plant in Texas to build your huge ass, super polluting truck. Whats that? No environmental groups want to back you anymore? Sweeeet.

Toyota is so awesome... So green! Such a fantastic company! Nevermind the fact they recalled more cars due to safety and mechanical issues last year than they sold. Don't worry about the Tundra being the only 4 star safety rated truck in its class. Who cares if the Japanese/American government is investigating them because they hid some safety issues. They are green and can do no wrong.

Tundra. The truck thats changing the climate!

djDaemon said:

And, as I understand it, there will be a dual-mode hybrid Hemi coming to the Aspen/Durango first, likely followed by the Grand Cherokee/Commander, and so on down the line. If memory serves, look for them to start appearing next year.

Correct dj. The 2 mode is the system developed between GM, The 'Merican side of Daimler Chrysler and BMW. Yukon/Tahoe Hybrid, Dodge Durango/Chrysler Aspen and the BMW X series will all get applications from that system and will then move down the chain with the small vehicles getting them last.

Loopy said:
Is a Touran the same as a Touareg here? I didn't think VW changed the names of their vehicles from continent to continent.

No. The Touran, like 99% of vehicles on the sane side of Earth, is much smaller than the Toureg.

^^ *Hugs* You're one of the very few people that actually have those "fact" things about the subject, as opposed to most who canonize CR, and laud anything Toyota as being "teh 1337", in terms of quality, safety, economy and their ability to single-handedly end everything bad in the World.
*** Edited 5/24/2007 10:39:16 AM UTC by djDaemon***

Coastern3rd said:
...with the small vehicles getting them last.

I'm assuming that the larger vehicles are getting these first because they present a larger challenge (and thusly a greater benefit in terms of development) in improving the economy, reliability, etc. of the dual-mode. Is that a correct assumption?

Global Warming is a myth, by the way.

So is The Holocaust, according to some.