What are you going to do with rising gas costs?

[hotani]

our 1 tank of biodiesel wasnt so great.. the car lacked power and didn't seem to run as smooth.

Could you run it without converting anything? I thought something had to be done to the engine first.

I could deal with some power loss for a cheap tank of gas - keep in mind, for me this would not be an A4 replacement, but a daily beater for cheap transportation.

[BHase]

From experience in Germany, I know you can take the 1.9 PDI or 2.5 TDI and just pump in the biodiesel.  One of my grandfathers in Germany is a taxi driver, and he was filling that stuff in. He always liked to tell me that it would smell like French fries in the winter when he started the car in the garage, and it would leave a slightly yellow film on surrounding objects.  But I know he didn't make any conversions.

Ben

[jfrahm]

our 1 tank of biodiesel wasnt so great.. the car lacked power and didn't seem to run as smooth.

Could you run it without converting anything? I thought something had to be done to the engine first.

I could deal with some power loss for a cheap tank of gas - keep in mind, for me this would not be an A4 replacement, but a daily beater for cheap transportation.

You should not need anything for plain B20 (20% bio) and generally people find they get a smoother,cleaner running car.  Older cars might need some fuel system upgrades (old rubber hoses cannot handle the methanol) and might get a clogged fuel filter from deposits coming loose.  For B100 (100% bio) you should be OK with a newer fuel system but there is a greater likelihood of a clogged filter as it has more of the stuff that cleans things out.

You only need significant mods if you go to SVO (straight vegetable oil) where you need to preheat the oil before injecting, etc.

An interesting page:
http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_make.html

-Joel.

[hotani]

great link - thanks. *reading...*

[hotani]

hmmmm - making biodiesel would not be an option for me where I live, nor would I want to have those chemicals around with a 6-year-old in the house. The work involved seems intensive at first, although I'm sure I'd get used to it and develop a process after the first couple of times. I think SVO would be a better option - do the work to convert the engine up front and then just process the oil rather than mess with NaOH (Tyler Durden saying: "this is a chemical burn..." comes to mind) and methanol. Although I do have some ethanol around the house already...

[jfrahm]

SVO became viable in the UK at one point when fuel prices got really high.  Making biodiesel is more for the hobbyist, and the person with a lot of used veggie oil at hand.  Interesting to think about though.

What I have wanted to do is get a home fueler to run a car on CNG (actually a dual fuel CNG/Gasoline car.)  Natural Gas is going to get very expensive too, and the cost of a NG carb, tank, etc. is probably significant.  Also interesting to consider.  What I really ought to do is use my bicycle more, which is powered by clean, renewable mexican food.  

-Joel.

[03Indigo]

[Spicoli]

WOW!!!!  gas has gotten so expensive they have had to start using letters to explain the price....

[evil_O]

Just saw a snippit on the news.... there is whispering it will reach $5 dollars a gallon. 8O

[jayryan]

It went from $2.85 this morning to $2.99 at lunch.

I think the Shell down the street has a guy standing there with numbers and a radio 8O

Jack! Call me! I'm gonna buy a bike  8O

[hotani]

conoco here in boulder is over $3 for regular and $3.29 for premium. In westy this morning it was 2.89 for premium - pretty big difference for 15 miles or so.

[92UrS4]

I decided I am going to stop driving the Passat and go back to driving the scout.  Just want to burn up any fuel left

[JDawg]

Well, up North where I live in Thornton it is $2.93 for premium.  Down south in Lone Tree, it is $3.23 for premium!  And it is going to go a lot higher.  I saw on the news last night that people in the suburbs of Atlanta are paying upwards of $6.09 for premium... now that would dent anyone's budget!  If I were to fill up my W8, it would cost me $121 for each tank, and it gets about 18mpg.  That’s not a fun proposition...

[92UrS4]

Yeah, Dubya is gonna step in on that shizzle I got a feeling.

[JDawg]

Fresh off MSN "How high will gas climb before prices cool off? There's no way of knowing until damage from the hurricane is fully assessed, but predictions of $4 gas are becoming more common. John Pearson, editor of financial newsletter "The Bottom Line," told CNBC's "Squawk Box" that $5 gasoline is very unlikely unless there is another supply disruption"

They are saying these are temporary price increases.

[03Indigo]

Yeah, Dubya is gonna step in on that shizzle I got a feeling.

+1
There will be some regulation, it is not like there is a complete loss in reserves, there is a shortage, but really, do increse prices by nearly 200% in a week is not appropriate.

Just imagine if you were filling up one of those rapper SUV's....wonder if the new MTV videos will have hybrids in them :wink:

[BHase]

I can see that. Not that it would be a bad idea.  Hybrid and diesel technologies could really use some endorsement from celebrities, especially in the U.S. where you can see a lot of sales stemming from new marketing campaigns involving celebrities (e.g. Adidas/Reebok, now joined, are trying to get more U.S. athletic endorsements to combat what they see Nike's superiority in the U.S. by athletic marketing).

Look how big the Escalade on dubs concept has gotten, mostly propagated by marketing campaigns and music videos.  It's a lifestyle.  So let's have Nelly roll up in a GMC Sierra Hybrid.  Too far off base?  It isn't like it is about the engine power anyway. So why put in the V8?

Ben

[kutarkvalidus]

I'll budget.

Frankly i think gasoline is an overinflated cost in people's lives.

Seriously sit down and think about some of the stupid shit people spend money on.

Go out and drop 40 dollars at the bar once a week?  Theres your tank of gas.  Like going out to eat? Usually runs me about 10 dollars every time i go out.

Got that directtv with every movie channel known to man?

I'm not trying to imply anything bad, people make their decisions.  I just find it amusing that some people will go to the gas station, spend ~30 dollars to fill up and bitch about the gas price, and then walk in to pay for the gas, and spend $1.50 on a liter of "aquafina". (note thats ~6 dollars a gallon for water that you pissed in, which then went down the colorado river, was used and abused about 67 more times, then purified in a plant in california, put in a bottle, and sold to the consumer at absurd prices...)

Anywhoo, it does kind of suck dropping 100 - 150 a month on gas, but you can definitely make cuts elsewhere to save the money.

[BHase]

I'll budget.

Frankly i think gasoline is an overinflated cost in people's lives.

Seriously sit down and think about some of the stupid shit people spend money on.

Go out and drop 40 dollars at the bar once a week?  Theres your tank of gas.  Like going out to eat? Usually runs me about 10 dollars every time i go out.

Got that directtv with every movie channel known to man?

I'm not trying to imply anything bad, people make their decisions.  I just find it amusing that some people will go to the gas station, spend ~30 dollars to fill up and bitch about the gas price, and then walk in to pay for the gas, and spend $1.50 on a liter of "aquafina". (note thats ~6 dollars a gallon for water that you pissed in, which then went down the colorado river, was used and abused about 67 more times, then purified in a plant in california, put in a bottle, and sold to the consumer at absurd prices...)

Anywhoo, it does kind of suck dropping 100 - 150 a month on gas, but you can definitely make cuts elsewhere to save the money.

Although you know this, I'll just mention that the more gas prices rise, the more things will need to be cut out.  And these are things that bring some enjoyment into life. As you said, if you like going out to eat, you pay $10. If you like smoking (as I do), you pay $30 for a carton of cigarettes or more.  If you like going to the bar, you spend $40.  Sure you can cut all of these things out, but regardless of how many vices you cut out (and may be better for in the long run), it would definitely suck to work not for enjoyment, not for your vices or social life, but so that you can go to the pump and fill up your car week after week.

Ben

[hotani]

Seriously sit down and think about some of the stupid shit people spend money on.

Go out and drop 40 dollars at the bar once a week?  Theres your tank of gas.  Like going out to eat? Usually runs me about 10 dollars every time i go out.

Personally I'd rather spend my $40 on a nice bottle of tequila. Save the driving for the weekend.

$40 on a nice dinner is also preferable to a tank of gas. Guess my priorities are a little wacky. :lol:

[jayryan]

Personally I'd rather spend my $40 on a nice bottle of tequila. Save the driving for the weekend. $40 on a nice dinner is also preferable to a tank of gas. Guess my priorities are a little wacky. :lol:

Ditto. Temporary or not, I'm going to watch my gas budget this month and see if it's more to fill up the car than a month bus pass...I'd have to tack on an extra hour for the commute, but it could be worth it. And I'd still be getting home earlier than I do now.

There's some of you that don't care and will pay whatever cost you want, but living in Chicago, I've seen the huge benefits and convenience of public transportation. In fact, I yelled at the city councilman in change of the Inverness area, because he was being a dick when I asked about further service down here.

[hotani]

Yeah, people are quick to trash our public transportation system here in Denver - and true, it is nothing compared to larger cities (I lived in Japan - I know that with a good system a car is just a luxury). However, if you happen to live close to a park-n-ride, you're options are better than you might think. Part of the reason I chose my new condo location was its proximity to Broomfield park-n-ride. <30 minutes to Denver OR Boulder on a nice bus; not the city busses but a smooth-riding, quiet airport bus with comfy seats.

I'm not sure what the future plans are for the light rail, but if there was one that ran Denver -> Boulder that would be ideal. Not necessarily for the time or comfort, but when you're standing there waiting for the always-late-when-it-snows bus one cold winter morning, the benefits of a train become very clear, very fast.

[92UrS4]

I looked into riding the bus to work, but it is at least a 2 hour ordeal for me. just to get to work. I'm sure it will be worse coming home. Whereas it takes me about 30 mins to get to work in my car and 30min - hour to get home.

Time == money.

[hotani]

Yeah, that is where our public transport system is weak: if you aren't going from one major station to another, it could take a while. When I 'go with the flow' and go from park-n-ride to work at peak hours, the commute is 30 minutes or less (with busses every 10 minutes). If I stay later and go to my class over on Colfax, then it could take 2 hours to get home as I have to either ride the light rail (few and far between at 21:00) or walk to market street station, then wait for the bus which comes every 30 minutes.

Once again, with light rail running all the way north (in the works, but could be a year or two before completion), that 2 hours would be cut to 1 hour or less easily. I'll bet that with gas prices like they are we'll see more and more motivation to expand the current system, as well as incentives by companies and cities (Boulder is already giving free eco-passes) to ride public transport.

[92UrS4]

Yeah, I mean ther eis a park and ride close to me, but they all go downtown before they go west, so it actually takes me way out of the way then gets me to work (according to their trip planner).

[hotani]

hehe - sounds familiar... here's an interesting route: for me to get to Boulder from the Westy park-n-ride (Huron and 120th), I'd have to ride to Denver, then get the B to Boulder! So on those days I just drive about 2 miles farther to Broomfield PNR and get the B there. They definitely need to expand their routes for more options.

[jayryan]

I checked the trip planner for myself, if my wife drops me off at the PNR on her way to school, I'm looking at around 45min. On the way back if I leave at 5, it'll drop me off at my front door in an hour. But I'm so freakin' close that it'd be tight...however, I wonder....*emailing HR*

[hotani]

and if they don't offer them now, with enough people bugging them about it they might cave in.

[BHase]

Personally, I just can't justify using the public transportation system in Denver.  Jay said it best, time is money!

Ben

[hotani]

Very true. And once again it comes down to my wacky priorities... I'd rather spend an hour sitting on a bus reading my book than 20 minutes in bumper to bumper traffic. To me, quality of time is more valuable than the time itself.