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I was in Santa Monica last weekend, and I saw these gasoline prices. Here in southern New Mexico, gas is down to the low $2 range, with several stations in El Paso below $2.00. I filled the tank there last weekend at a station where the price was $1.85 per gallon.
When we were in the great state of California last Friday and Saturday, I saw that prices had followed suit. They're always higher, but they had fallen in proportion, with prices mostly in the low $3 per gallon range.
Then there was this. How does this guy sell any gas when there were stations a few blocks away selling it for $1.50 per gallon less? And then look at his full service prices. Heart-stopping. We were walking around the neighborhood, doing some shopping and eating at a restaurant nearby, and in all the time I could see this station, not a single car pulled in to buy gas. Notice the lack of cars at the time I took the photo, which was about 6 p.m. on a Friday night when the streets were pretty heavy with traffic. You could hear the crickets chirping. Not surprising.
Another thing that gets me is, do we still need the 3 or 4 cent-per-gallon difference between the grades of gasoline at this price level? No. They're just there because we've come to expect it. When gas is $1.50 a gallon for regular, $1.55 for plus, and $1.60 for premium, if the proportions were maintained, then if regular is $4.89, plus should be $5.05, and premium should be about $5.20.
Last edited by jaunty75; January 10th, 2019 at 11:18 AM.
Location: Edmonton, AB. And "I am Can 'eh' jun - eh"
Posts: 24,525
Really? Do we just need 3-4¢ per gallon difference??? Me- laughing at that. Dan, no offence but you should try buying fuel in Canada. 3-4¢ per litre would be reasonable but here we are where regular (87) fuel is going for 84.4/L, mid grade (89) goes for 95¢/L, and Premium goes for $1.15/L. Let me translate for ya...
So hell yeah, I'd love to see only 3-4¢/gallon difference. I get it. Yes I live in Canada. And I live in an energy rich province where gas prices are lower. An energy province that is getting its *** handed to it by world trade of oil, and a government that is trying to tax the hell out of us with carbon taxes. Other provinces (West coast Vancouver as example, the price of regular is closer to 1.25/L (or $US 3.03/gal and they have oodles of taxes on their fuel - federal, provincial, carbon, transit to name a few) Another thing we DON'T have here is a lot of E85, which I think is crap gasoline anyway.
BTW, Diesel prices here are still at an all time big oil raping height. Amazing that truckers can afford to fill up.
I was a little shocked to see the price incredment of over $1.00/gal for full service. Hmmm, that would make even ten 15 gallon fills by an attendant a money maker IMO. That's just plain robbery. FWIW, I remember when the price of regular and premium (Ethyl at the time) was only 2¢/gal here, and the stations were full service - check oil, washer, trans fluid, tire pressure and wash all the windows and chamois them afterwards. Man, that jump to the pump service is dead and buried nowadays. Oh, and the attendants also used to wear company supplied uniforms and those peak hats. I think it was illegal for them not to be courteous and smile. And, I don't ever remember Dad paying with anything but cash.
California is circling the drain. Lunacy prevails, living in this state really test your patience. Maybe smoking pot makes everything better even if you're broke.
I remember when the price of regular and premium (Ethyl at the time) was only 2¢/gal here, and the stations were full service - check oil, washer, trans fluid, tire pressure and wash all the windows and chamois them afterwards. Man, that jump to the pump service is dead and buried nowadays. Oh, and the attendants also used to wear company supplied uniforms and those peak hats. I think it was illegal for them not to be courteous and smile. And, I don't ever remember Dad paying with anything but cash.
I remember those days, too, but back in those days gas stations did more than just sell gasoline. They were also repair shops, and they made most of their money on repairs, not on gasoline sales. The low gas price was almost a loss leader to get you to pull in so they could check your car over and find something that needed repair or offer to do an oil change. Remember gasoline price wars? When's the last time you saw or heard about one of those?
Nowadays there are very few gas station/repair shops. Most gas stations now are convenience stores selling beer and milk with no auto service function at all. And with so much pay-at-the-pump available, a buyer has no reason to actually go into the store when buying gas, so the impulse-buy income source is gone. So gas stations now have to make more of their money on the sale of gasoline.
Really? Do we just need 3-4¢ per gallon difference??? Me- laughing at that. Dan, no offence but you should try buying fuel in Canada. 3-4¢ per litre would be reasonable but here we are where regular (87) fuel is going for 84.4/L, mid grade (89) goes for 95¢/L, and Premium goes for $1.15/L. Let me translate for ya...
84.4/L = $US 2.04/gal
95.9/L = $US 2.32/gal
1.15.9/L = $US 280/gal
FWIW, I remember when the price of regular and premium (Ethyl at the time) was only 2¢/gal here, and the stations were full service - check oil, washer, trans fluid, tire pressure and wash all the windows and chamois them afterwards. Man, that jump to the pump service is dead and buried nowadays. Oh, and the attendants also used to wear company supplied uniforms and those peak hats. I think it was illegal for them not to be courteous and smile. And, I don't ever remember Dad paying with anything but cash.
I won't quote a fuel price because it would give a clue how old I am. I remember when Diesel was cheaper than gasoline. I was one of those "pump jocky's" way back then. You did ALL those services...rain or shine. Everything was answered with a "Yes, (Mam/Sir)".
Now you need a wad of $50 bills to take a trip.
Location: Edmonton, AB. And "I am Can 'eh' jun - eh"
Posts: 24,525
Originally Posted by jaunty75
I remember those days, too, but back in those days gas stations did more than just sell gasoline. They were also repair shops, and they made most of their money on repairs, not on gasoline sales. The low gas price was almost a loss leader to get you to pull in so they could check your car over and find something that needed repair or offer to do an oil change. Remember gasoline price wars? When's the last time you saw or heard about one of those?
Nowadays there are very few gas station/repair shops. Most gas stations now are convenience stores selling beer and milk with no auto service function at all. And with so much pay-at-the-pump available, a buyer has no reason to actually go into the store when buying gas, so the impulse-buy income source is gone. So gas stations now have to make more of their money on the sale of gasoline.
I can't remember seeing a pump jockey here in the past 10 years.... Yes, you're right they used to be 'SERVICE' stations, not gas stations. And the service was indeed the mainstay of the shop. I think repairs back then were way more reasonably priced too which created station and brand loyalty. We do occasionally get price wars, but not that often anymore; and usually they're short lived before prices skyrocket back to meet the other competitors. We've also had legislation passed here that requires 'Pay at the Pump' or "pre-pay inside" for all gasoline sales. It stemmed from too many gas and dash robberies. Personally I prefer to not have to go into the station to pay, it makes my life easier. Besides, everything in those convenience stores is priced like rare metals.
Originally Posted by OLDSter Ralph
I won't quote a fuel price because it would give a clue how old I am. I remember when Diesel was cheaper than gasoline. I was one of those "pump jocky's" way back then. You did ALL those services...rain or shine. Everything was answered with a "Yes, (Mam/Sir)".
Now you need a wad of $50 bills to take a trip.
Hmmm, I'm gonna say not a day over 70. Hahaha, only 50's? I need to have my credit card with me for fuel purchases. It's safer than being mugged for the cash, and it's PIN protected. Can't just use the RFID. But the only disadvantage of CC's is the willpower to not spend, and the potential to have the card scammed at a fake terminal.
I worked in a service station back in high school (30 years ago) that had 4 service bays, 16 self serve pump, and 4 full service pumps. The owner told me he didn’t make enough money from self serve gas sales to pay my minimum wage salary. I can’t think of a full service gas station anywhere around here. I’m guessing the profit margin on fuel is less now than it was then.
Location: Edmonton, AB. And "I am Can 'eh' jun - eh"
Posts: 24,525
If you notice Costco gasoline prices - they are low because they don't have any other features except the pump. Just one attendant to help anyone who can't figure out how to use the pumps. Their margin on gasoline is low too, but then they get you when you go in the store to shop.
I too worked in a service station when I was in high school. At that time the owner paid for the gas when it went into the tank. There was an old man down the road would drop his price when his tanks were nearly empty. The local distributors would give support to the other stations at the low price so they could drop their prices to match his. As soon as the distributor dropped the price, he would fill his tanks at the low price and close his station until the price went back up thereby making lots of profit on the gas he bought cheap. I have seen Gulftane regular for as little as 13.9 cents a gallon.
In '68, I worked at my dad's Gulf station in El Cajon. Regular was 22 cents, half and half was 24 cents, high zoot whoop de doo was 26 cents. I checked your oil and water, washed your windshield and winked at your daughter in the back seat. Nowdays, I fork over 50's to Poopinder, who smiles, most much smileysmile. I get a weeks' worth of corn squeezins for about what I used to pay for a decent used car. I may hafta diddle the fiddlybits under the hood now and then, but I'm driving a By-God-American-Olds that was made before Obama's 'birth certificate'. It's not a mobile baby sitter with a bunch of computers telling me my tires are low. I'll put air in 'em when I damn well feel like it. And when I crash, no black box is gonna make it easy on them, either. They'll hafta figure out how fast I was going by how far the steering wheel went in my forehead. Curmudgeon much? Why, yes. Yes, I do...
Someone needs to pull the flush handle on that slow circling mess we call California.High priced gas is only the beginning of whats wrong with this state. Just a observation from a native who use to like this place.... Curmudgeon.... Tedd
When I needed gas for my Vista Cruiser which needed premium I was surprised how the higher price for each grade varied. The price on the sign was for regular, but each step up from that varied in price. It used to be always .10 (reg 3.10, mid 3.20, prem 3.30 etc.) But lately it can be .25, .30, .50 each grade. I tried to figure out how much each grade cost more at each station, cuz you could go to the cheapest priced regular station and find that you will pay more for premium than you would have at the station across the street! Also sometimes I will see a difference of as much as .40 per gallon a few miles away. You can pay for a decent lunch that day with your savings if you go to the cheaper one! (30 gal. @.40 = $12.00)
Location: Edmonton, AB. And "I am Can 'eh' jun - eh"
Posts: 24,525
Greg - Maybe you should look on line. There's a website called Gasbuddy.com that will give you the information you want without even leaving the house and using gas to find the cheapest pump price.
In '68, I worked at my dad's Gulf station in El Cajon. Regular was 22 cents, half and half was 24 cents, high zoot whoop de doo was 26 cents. I checked your oil and water, washed your windshield and winked at your daughter in the back seat. Nowdays, I fork over 50's to Poopinder, who smiles, most much smileysmile. I get a weeks' worth of corn squeezins for about what I used to pay for a decent used car. I may hafta diddle the fiddlybits under the hood now and then, but I'm driving a By-God-American-Olds that was made before Obama's 'birth certificate'. It's not a mobile baby sitter with a bunch of computers telling me my tires are low. I'll put air in 'em when I damn well feel like it. And when I crash, no black box is gonna make it easy on them, either. They'll hafta figure out how fast I was going by how far the steering wheel went in my forehead. Curmudgeon much? Why, yes. Yes, I do...
Greg - Maybe you should look on line. There's a website called Gasbuddy.com that will give you the information you want without even leaving the house and using gas to find the cheapest pump price.
And for your ethanol free needs, pure-gas.org is a good site.
I live in Oregon where they don't trust us to pump our own gas. We have attendants that pump it for us and I always enjoy the young kid who has to ask where the gas fill is at? "Behind the license plate, that's interesting!" Tedd, we're not far behind you guys with the various taxes and other things we have to deal with.
I live in Oregon where they don't trust us to pump our own gas. We have attendants that pump it for us and I always enjoy the young kid who has to ask where the gas fill is at? "Behind the license plate, that's interesting!" Tedd, we're not far behind you guys with the various taxes and other things we have to deal with.
I travel on vacation often in Oregon and most the time with the 55. I don't think once have they gassed my 55 for me.Not that I encourage them to. Most just stand back and watch and smile..... Tedd
I travel on vacation often in Oregon and most the time with the 55. I don't think once have they gassed my 55 for me.Not that I encourage them to. Most just stand back and watch and smile..... Tedd
Either they're mesmerized by the beauty of your car, or they fear your wrath if they overfill and splash gas on the paint! I've seen them let motorcycles fill their own tanks, but have been told the attendant can be fired if he's caught letting one of us untrained members of the public pump our own gas. Several times the voters have tried to get it on the ballot thinking that if we can have self serve as an option that would bring the prices down. That would probably just make them raise the price to have an attendant pump it. John
I just completed a three-day round trip from Albany, OR, to Spokane, WA , June 3-6, 2022. Total mileage was 936 miles and the gas (regular unleaded with 10% ethanol) was $236 with an average cost at $5.04/gl. My 2003 Silverado half ton averaged right at 20mpg. But another cost that kind of surprised me was lodging. Three night in a motel cost $557.38, or an average nightly cost of about $186. We're not talking about staying at the Ritz; these motels were of "Quality Inn" status. Granted, it was over the weekend but, wow, it seems the lodging industry has significantly increased their prices as well.
I just completed a three-day round trip from Albany, OR, to Spokane, WA , June 3-6, 2022. Total mileage was 936 miles and the gas (regular unleaded with 10% ethanol) was $236 with an average cost at $5.04/gl. My 2003 Silverado half ton averaged right at 20mpg. But another cost that kind of surprised me was lodging. Three night in a motel cost $557.38, or an average nightly cost of about $186. We're not talking about staying at the Ritz; these motels were of "Quality Inn" status. Granted, it was over the weekend but, wow, it seems the lodging industry has significantly increased their prices as well.
At least I still have my social security...!
Randy C.
I definitely can relate to your pain at the pump. I ended up spending roughly $500 on gas in the month of May (insane!) and the prices were actually cheaper than what they are now. We took long trips everyday during that month. Needless to say I won't be doing that again for a while until those prices go down a bit.
H/o, I think you will be waiting a loooong time for gas prices to go down! I've heard that prices at the pump will average around $7.00/gal for regular by summer's end.
H/o, I think you will be waiting a loooong time for gas prices to go down! I've heard that prices at the pump will average around $7.00/gal for regular by summer's end.
we can drill for more oil, but the one inescapable upward pressure on gas prices is the refinery shortage. We haven't built a new refinery since 1972, and the permit approval for that refinery probably happened in the late 60s. This means no refineries have been permitted since the establishment if the EPA. Older refineries (the newest is 50 years old) were shuttered when covid hit and demand dropped off a cliff. I have to imagine they were 70 years old or older and will never reopen. Same thing with coal fired plants in the Midwest being closed under the regulatory pressures with no energy replacement. Glad I don't live in Illinois.
When I go to my local gas station here in Albany, OR, to fill either of my 4-4-2 convertibles, the attendants have always let me do it. I haven't heard anything about attendants being fired for letting owners gas their cars. On my recent trip when I got gas for the Silverado off of I-84 around exit 147, everyone was pumping their own gas which kind of surprised me. Maybe the rules east of the Cascades are different than for us west of the Cascades.
The EPA is the absolute worst decision ever made by the US gubment.
The EPA was necessary and good for administering the Clean Water Act under its original mandate. Many rivers and lakes were extremely polluted; however, the subsequent regulatory overstep has had severe consequences which do not weigh the costs to benefits accurately.
When I was a young and idealistic high school student in 1970, I thought creation of the E*P*A was a great thing.
As I got older and saw its administrator was appointed by, was accountable to, and served at the pleasure of the sitting president, I realized it could easily become politicized and turn into a rogue agency depending on the political climate at the time.
The dozens of different regional fuel formulations don't help when trying to keep this country moving. I'm convinced some of these green evangelists don't realize the cost of everything is tied to the cost of fuel. Costs more to transport it, end user has to pay more.
Another reason the West Coast has higher gas prices is the carbon tax also called cap and trade. This puts additional taxes on fuel at the pump. I believe California is higher than Oregon and Washinton, but all three states have it.
January 10th, 2019, 11:09 AM
