I know this sounds crass but one thing I liked about the high gas prices a couple of years ago was that there seemed to be less idiots out on the roads in the DFW area. $5+ gas would solve some of our traffic congestion problems in Texas.

 

Gas prices are set purely by the greed of the oil company. It is one of the *main* factors contributing to the sorry state of our economy. Don't you remember just a short while ago when gas was in the $1+ price? The oil company was still making billions. They just can't get enough no matter who it hurts or which economies it tanks.

 

Raised in Germany. Gas in the US is a bargain, don't complain, almost 3x the price in Europe.

I Paid $3.30 for a gallon of premium, pulled from a mile below the earth, transported half way across the world in a double walled tanker, refined, deliver to my corner gas station, and 80 cents of the price is tax.

Compare to a bottle of milk, fat free, basically grass pulled out of a cow tit in my town, and costs more.

Yes, I own a gas station, and I make more money from a coke and hot dog than from a tank of gas.

 

Yep,it's not cheap here in Australia either. if I run my LS close to dry,I won't see change from $100 to fill it,and the other week it was well over that. Apparently there was a legitimate need for fuel prices to rise by 20c/L on Christmas eve,the day a lot of us finish work for the year,and get in the car to drive long distance to visit family...

The average price of premium in Sydney for the last 5years has been AUD $1.40/L,which works out to about USD $5.60/Gal at the current exchange rate,which is practically one for one.

Coke still cost more though. a 2L bottle is about AUD $6 if you buy it from the same servo you're getting fuel from.

And what kaisersea1 says is true also,the retailer is lucky to see 2-3cents per litre out of what they charge you for the fuel. The rest goes in tax,and back to the wholesaler.
The next time you chew out the guy behind the counter for how much fuel costs,just think about that... if he serves it to you personally,he's not even making a fraction of his time to actually pump the gas into your car back,much less any profit on it's sale.
His profit comes from the cokes and candy bars you buy along with the fuel,that's the stuff that keeps him in business.


Justin...

 

i understand what you are saying completely; however how come its 18 cents cheaper at 1 gas stand than another one 3 blocks down the road? i live in a touristy town and we have a few gas stands near the tourist areas that are even more, something like 30 cents higher than this one in the picture that i always go to...

 

Hey, don't blame the oil companies, they're around to make a buck (or a billion bucks), not to give us a charmed life. It's America's continued dependence on oil that this is happening. Looking at oil as a crack habit, should the dealers sell the drugs for less because the economy is bad, or that because you're having a hard time? If you don't buy it, someone else will.... the only way to stop this is to either use less, or stop using (not likely).

As for $1+ gas... what were you, making your own? The only time gas was even starting with a 1 was like $1.98 for regular, which was only for about one week, if even. Then it quickly went back up to like $2.05. So it's more like $2- htan $1+.... like $24.99, is it's $24 or $25?

 

Enjoy the V8s while you can guys, this is probably the end of the big engine cars sadly.

 

I hear you, and while it sure seems that way, it is incorrect. Oil companies do not control gas prices anymore than coal companies control coal prices.

Oil is a commodity meaning it is absolutely not unique and there are multiple suppliers on multiple continents selling oil to the highest bidder. It cannot be easily price fixed because there are multiple suppliers in South America, Russia, Mexico, Middle East, all selling the exact same thing.

The closest thing to a price controlling organization is not oil companies but OPEC (controlled by supplier governments) which has only loose control over oil field supply in several countries (but not all of them). OPEC is not that strong any more but they do have some oligopoly style control over the major markets because they set the lead on supply and others tend to follow.

What does affect price is demand for oil, and demand is going to continue to go up at a high rate. Even slightly increased demand quickly makes prices go up as supply is fixed in the short run. Even long term supply is relatively fixed so we are in for an uphill climb on oil prices that will go on for decades.

The oil companies are along for the ride - they will profit enormously if they are run right and that is exactly what they are in business to do - maximize their profits.


The sorry state of our economy (I assume you mean the US) has nothing to do with oil prices or oil companies, and everything to do with US high labor prices and too many low value/low skill US workers attempting to compete in a global economy.

Its very simple, the world got smaller and we are competing against workers all over the world for labor rates. So - if workers in the US want 5-10x the average $ wage of a global worker, then they better skill up big time and bring 5-10x the value and skills to their jobs. And that's not happening, so that's why the US has higher than normal unemployment. And the cold hard fact is that the high rate of unemployment will absolutely not change until US workers either get way more valuable skills, or they take a huge pay cut. There is no way to change the world back to 40 years ago - that horse is out of the barn and long gone.

The only thing that would temporarily help jobs and prop up artificially high low skill wages in the US for a few years would be massive protectionism and huge import tariffs. That would work for a couple of years and then plunge the US economy off a cliff.

 

I cant speak For all stations mine is Citgo, they own the pumps, the district manager sets the price. I am off the interstate, and charge about .20 less per gallon to the next station which is shell. I can do that because I am not in city limits, so do not pay city tax. I also do not have to pay fees for hazardous substances within the city. I own the land, he rents, my operating costs are about half. I get most of the trucks, so my volume is at least 5x. The gas is the same, we put additives in at the pump. I make about .02 per gallon, and at the end of the month I get a bonus check based on volume, which I think is calculated by Chavez himself.

I still have a day job, and won't be able to retire until I own the station outright I make more money when people buy more gas, not when the price goes up.

 

^^
Can CL members get a discount?

 

I find it somewhat amusing that people will pay more for bottled water than gas at the pump and not complain.

 

This is why one of the requirements of this car was a V8. 24-25 MPG with the LS430 is a bonus.

 

i remember when i first bought my ls430 it broke $100 bux for a tank of gas back in 08. now it is cheaper now it is around $75 - $80

 

I spent $62.00 for a fill up on Friday. $60.00 the Friday before.

 

Gas was 3.59 for premium in CA and I full up on a military base which is less than anywhere else around.