Gas prices primed to stunt interest in fuel efficiency again
National average at $2.49Gas prices continue to trend downward, and as America heads into the winter, gas prices should fall even more. And, if the recession sticks into 2010, prices could be, overall, cheaper next year than this year.
Coincidentally, this decline in gas prices could continue as automakers begin a more serious roll out of hybrids, small cars, and other efficient vehicles.
With new CAFE standards, CO2 worries, and a lingering memory of $4.00 gas, this temporary decline in gas prices won't kill alternative, fuel efficient technologies. Nevertheless, without higher gas prices, consumer interest in fuel efficiency is certain to again fall below cup holders in order of importance for consumers.
Labels: fuel efficiency, gas prices, Hybrid Vehicles
posted by Dahcredyns at
11:42 AM
15 Comments:
Too bad Americans won't learn a lesson from this dip in prices. If we made fuel efficiency the number one reason to buy a car, gas demand would continue to fall and we would see gas prices like this and lower for a long time.
Interesting conundrum.
Still, oil is the lubricant of the economy. Cheap oil helps loosen up the economic machine. And once the machine gets moving, it needs more and more grease. Inevitably that leads to higher prices.
Of course, you're right that more intelligent consumerism and personal responsibility could make the machine more efficient.
Unfortunately, it doesn't seem there is a collective will to achieve such a thing.
In leadership training at West Point, it is taught that it takes a combination of both positive and negative reinforcement to influence people.
This same lesson holds true in the push for fuel efficient vehicles.
The government is providing the provide some positive reinformcement with tax incentives (though they need to provide more), but there is no negative reinforcement if gas prices remain low...
The fear of high gas prices will influence some, but the longer gas prices remain low, the less fear people will have.
Hopefully at least this reduction in fuel cost with increases in everything else will continue to reduce the amount of vehicles on the road by less driving and poor sales.
We need to reduce sales across the board. As it is, we have too many cars.
Couldn't agree more on the negative reinforcement angle, Smurf.
Noz, while I agree with you, I think people are only holding back because they can't afford to buy new cars, or they are worried about their financial stability. If the economy strengthens, I imagine people will return to their old consumption patterns.
Oh my goodness, when will we ever learn.
I suggest the following: Present a bill in Congress to raise the Federal gas tax $1.00 per gallon either phased in over 4 years or all at once. HOWEVER, one provision of the bill would be that the federal government would ONLY get to keep 10% of the money collected to administer the gas tax program. The other 90% would go to fund renewable energy sources for our country.
Why is this important. Well as many of you have said on this blog, with cheap gas prices so goes the hybrid cars, renewable energy projects, carbon reduction and eventually the need for coal burning power plants.
When gasoline prices peaked in 2008 we all got used to conserving a little more. Of course we all complained about the price but we all adjusted by maybe driving a little less or even combining trips to cut costs. We might not have liked it but we all learned to live with $4.00/gallon gasoline.
What did this accomplish? Well for one thing it reduced our gasoline consumption in 2008 by 4,548,810,000 [that's 4.5 billion gallons] when prices peaked [hope my calculator is right, see consumption figures below].
Now I don't know how much CO2 would be reduced by burning 4.5 billion fewer gallons of gasoline but I'll bet you a steak dinner it's a lot more than the proposed Cap and Trade bill in Congress will.
What else did we learn. We learned how to consurve a little.
We learned that if we bought a more fuel efficient car [hybrid for example] the increase in fuel cost was canceled out by the higher mileage we achieved
Fuel consumption data
2007 = 142,349,298,000 gallons
2008 = 137,800,488,000 gallons
http://www.americanfuels.info/2009/03/2008-gasoline-consumption.html
What we learned this last year was forced upon us, so I'm not sure we've really learned anything, at least not collectively.
Interesting data, however.
Still, as you ask, "when will we ever learn"?
Not any time soon I fear.
Here is another bit of data to ponder from fueleconomy.gov/feg/co2.shtml.
"Burning fossil fuels such as gasoline and diesel releases carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases (GHGs) into the atmosphere, contributing to global climate change. CO2 is the most important human-made GHG, and highway vehicles account for 26% of U.S. CO2 emissions (1.7 billion tons each year). You'd Be Amazed...
Each gallon of gasoline you burn creates 20 pounds of CO2. The average vehicle emits around 6 to 9 tons of CO2 each year."
END OF QUOTE
Did you also know that every human on the planet breaths out 4.2 pounds of CO2 every day? For a family of 4 that's 6,132 lbs. of CO2 every year. If you want to play with some numbers, multiple that times the 6 billion people who live on our planet.
The question then is this.
How much CO2 are vehicles adding to the planet?
AND
How much is being added by humans who live on the planet?
Tomgarven,
Humans put out CO2 but don't put NOx in huge quantities, if at all...nor CO...and other extremely toxic emissions at startup everytime a vehicle is turned on.
There are more than 200 Million two axle vehicles in the US alone....forget about the rest of the world. Everyday, we turn the ignitions on and for the first 5 minutes pure crap comes out of the tailpipes...doesn't anyone account for that?
Formaldehyde anyone? Heavy metals? And whatever other God-forsaken crap you can think of?
It's more than just CO2
Noz Said:
Humans put out CO2 but don't put NOx in huge quantities, if at all...nor CO...and other extremely toxic emissions at startup every time a vehicle is turned on.
Tom responds:
Yes you are so right AND I can't believe we are still using the internal combustion engine. We have been trying all kinds of stuff for the last 30 years like direct injection, lean burn, variable valve train timing, free piston designs and the darn things still pump out nasty stuff.
I hope my children see the day we become an electric society. At the ripe old age of 69 I will probably never see that day but my kids might. A guy has to dream you know, LOL
Tom,
I am with you in supporting a gas tax increase, but with 85% of the country against a gas tax increase I see very little chance of that happening.
Cap and trade, while not as good or effective, is something that we may be able to push through.
I belive something is better than nothing, so I am therefore in support of cap and trade, even though it is not necessarily the best option.
Dear Smurf:
Your 85% number is correct and is posted on lots of different websites. However, sometimes the quote is not always the whole story LOL. Please go to the below website and see how the percentage changes when the American people are asked in a different way if they would support a gas tax. You might be surprised at the results.
http://environment.about.com/od/environmentallawpolicy/a/gasolinetax.htm
Sort of boils down to how you ask the question doesn't it?
If you asked me "do you want to pay a higher gas tax" my answer would be h_ll no.
If you asked me if I would be "willing to pay a higher gas tax to improve the air we breathe, the water we drink and leave a better planet for our children" I would probably say sign me up.
Or if I asked the question like this: "Do you favor a gas tax increase instead of new taxes on, gasoline, natural gas, tires, batteries, clothing, food, home construction, air conditioners, cars, trucks, boats, RV's and everything else," how would you answer the question [Cap and Trade]?
Before you sign on to Cap and Trade which will be the biggest tax increase on the American people in the history of our country, please go one step further and do a Google search for the following.
"gas tax increase"
I did it today and was shocked to see just how many individuals, news organizations, and businesses are supporting a gas tax increase instead of Cap and Trade.
Please send me some mail after your review.
tomgarven@hotmail.com Please put 'GAS TAX' in the subject line so my junk mail filter doesn't delete it o.k. Hope to hear from you soon.
Tom G.
Tom,
Interesting angle...Use the threat of cap and trade to get a gas tax increase pushed through.
I wonder if that would fly with American voters?
Smurf said...Interesting angle...Use the threat of cap and trade to get a gas tax increase pushed through. I wonder if that would fly with American voters?
Tom responds:
Dear Smurf:
Don't know how to respond in only a few words but will try. LOL
I am beginning to feel like our government is selling out the American people AND I am sure it is not deliberate. Most members of Congress are Americans just like you and me but I get angry when they don't even take the time to read the legislation they are approving.
I get frustrated by the recent actions of our government. TARP is a joke. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act has so much pork spending in it we should have called it the "payback for your vote" bill. We will be spending 3 trillion dollars of our kids money [which of course we must borrow] to do what?
And what have we the citizens been doing while the government spends us further into debt and the Federal Reserve prints trillions of phony dollars? Have we been protesting in Washington? Have we been writing letters to our Congressmen? Have we been selectively targeting some of the major corporations and lobbyists who are corrupting the system?
Heck no - By the time we work 50 hours a week [if you even have a job] go shopping, take the kids to little league and watched a few hours of TV who has time to listen to someone complain about some corporation, lobbyist or politician.
Even our major news outlets have become nothing more than government echo chambers. When was the last time you heard a really good investigative news story? Most news today is just a re-hash of what was covered by the White House briefing or what you can find on the web.
My idea of a $1.00 per gallon gas tax increase does not have a snowballs chance in he.. of passing. Why? For one it would LIMIT the amount of money the government would get to KEEP and spell out HOW the money must be spent. No government trickery like collecting Social Security taxes and then moving the money to the general fund. I want a 90% 10% split. 90% would go to renewable energy projects and the other 10% would go to the government to administer the program. You and I both know this would never happen.
I will also bet you a steak dinner that a new gas tax WILL pass this year and that it will have very little if anything to do with road improvement. Since I am a betting man, I will also bet you that Cap and Trade will also pass.
This is way too long LOL Sorry.
"By the time we work 50 hours a week [if you even have a job] go shopping, take the kids to little league and watched a few hours of TV who has time to listen to someone complain about some corporation, lobbyist or politician."
And there's the crux of the matter.
So, either we need brilliant leadership from all of our politicians, a cultural, grassroots movement, or some combination of both
No problem!
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