[roadcarver]

Originally Posted by ScotyH

Last year I paid $2800 for fuel @ about 5 bucks a gallon. So if it doubles up in cost, I'll have spent $5600 for fuel.

To me, that is really not the end of the world. That works out to $233 more per month.

I think that if things are that tight, maybe one shouldn't own an expensive car?

You are correct but its that much less going towards retirement funds. One also has to worry about the economic impact and resulting job security for most people. It just takes a little less spending by a whole lot of people to really drag it down. Unfortunately, for a large percentage of Americans, a couple of hundred dollars a month is devastating to them. Not everyone can be upper middle class or wealthy.

[Heat00]

I'll make more money and keep driving the 335i

[Heat00]

oops, guess my answer was kind of silly... now that i think about it, yes most people can't just make more money lol....

[92tripleblack]

Keep voting for Dems and we'll get there.

[StarrDlux]

anyone with the desire to make more money aka Hussle. can make more money. Now laziness is a whole nother story.

[dogfart]

I'm facing reality. I figure my current ride will be my last performance vehicle as we know it. So by 2011, when my current lease expires, I'll be replacing my 335i with a Chevy Volt.

The Volt is a truly pluggable electric. And electric engines hold the promise of truly staggering torque, which may bring back new kinds of fun in performance tuning.

I already ride an electric bike to work most mornings. It's a blast whizzing past the traffic lines on the Lions Gate Bridge. And although the Gov't limits speeds to 35KMH, I've ratcheted mine up to do 50KMH. I mean, who really measures how fast a bike goes anyway?

[Bimmeration]

skate/skateboard with bimmer logo on your wheels.

[mJ335]

I'll get a Tesla.

I can't even remember those times when we "enjoyed" gas prices as low as US has today Just paid around 145 USD worth of EUR to fill up my E46 tank in Finland, Northern Europe

Not to mention the car prices here: a loaded E92 335i costs about 120k USD

[John 070]

All kidding aside, $4 gasoline = subconcious game over in my mind. If it is here to stay, and the doom and gloom folks of the Katrina time have their way, I'm not tooling around here and there like before. The American arrogance if you will, that which dictated that we could charge our way out of a recession, is gone.

Ask yourself rhetorically, when you see that shiny E9x in your garage, how did it get there? Did you negotiate a great lease and put next to nothing down, where you are 18 months away from your next lease and new BMW? Did you save up for that car and put 50% down and borrow the rest (this method can get the payment into the $400's with 60 mos.)? Did you take the money out of the bank and pay cash?

The problem is, with my above rhetorical questions, each person in each respective scenario feels that they can "afford" the E9x. It's the bean counters and financiers that came up with ways to let people "afford" nice things without much cash nor income. Why? Because earning interest and fees sustains their business.

One thing that I always found funny about being an American and all the trouble we've experienced even as young people, over the last decade, is that nobody ever seems to want to roll up their sleeves and do more with less. It's always a matter of finding some loophole or juggling terms that seems to be the solution. Kinda like complaining a person is not losing weight but they never go to the gym or adjust their diet. Without increasing our productivity all bets are off.

I can assure you at $9.50 gallon I'll be requesting to telecommute or stick with public transportation only. The 335 which is rarely driven as it is will be perpped for permanent storage, as will any other vehicles in my household. With that being said, I'm looking forward to my conference next week and Disney vacation afterwards, coporate card in hand.

[Aces_High]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't looking at gas prices too one sided????
I mean the price of the gas is one variable of the equation. The other obvious one that matters is how the car spends the gas you put into it.

Now in Holland, gas is near 9 bucks a gallon, .....but.............on average the cars there are almost 2x as thrifty when it comes to spending it. Ive driven Gas (NOT DIESEL) Mercedes (V6) that get around 38mpg.......

so all these dollars everyone in this thread is throwing around are kinda pointless to me..........

cause even if gas is $9 a gallon in europe, but cars are 2x more efficient, than effectively they are paying the same $4.50 a gallon that I'm almost paying in LA.

my 2 cents @ the pump =)

[pony_trekker]

Originally Posted by snowboarder

Europe is paying already more than $9.50 per gallon and they don't do sh$t...

I'd pay that in a minute if I didn't have to pay $1200 a month in health insurance and $40000 per year for college.

[John 070]

Originally Posted by Heat00

oops, guess my answer was kind of silly... now that i think about it, yes most people can't just make more money lol....

Actually, your answer is not silly, it makes a lot of sense. Most people, when they want something out of their reach, they'll juggle it, negotiate a better lease, extend the repayment period, and on and on. They never consider not getting that thing until they earn more money.

Once we can let go of that "I want it now" mentality, it opens us up to pushing ourselves to be more productive (that usually involves more schooling, more training, more certification, more experience). I can't tell you how many people I've seen in the last 6 years lowering their mortgage payment by extending the term back out to 30 years. I know they know how to amortize a loan pyt. so I guess they just accept the fact that although they were on track to pay off their home at 55, they're willing to settle now for 68. That was their way of getting the material things they wanted now.

[John 070]

Originally Posted by pony_trekker

I'd pay that in a minute if I didn't have to pay $1200 a month in health insurance and $40000 per year for college.

You have a legitimate gripe--paying $1200/mo. for health insurance, especially when you are at a time in your life where in general you'd be quite healthy, is a crock of you know what. My wife and I being young are not pleased about paying $105/mo. for the two of us as it is. Some of my friends have free health care through their employers, too bad mine doesn't offer it.

[Majikthese42]

Originally Posted by John 070

You have a legitimate gripe--paying $1200/mo. for health insurance, especially when you are at a time in your life where in general you'd be quite healthy, is a crock of you know what.

The health insurance fee for my kid's graduate school is $401 per semester. She will be full-time, but they offer this to the part time students also. It covers 100% of inpatient hospitalization and physician fees up to a limit of $500,000, a host of outpatient and preventive services, and generally looks like better coverage than I have with the Blues.

How can they do this? 23 year old graduate students don't get sick very much.

She has a merit grant covering her graduate tuition, we're just paying for room, board and the multiple, multiple misc. expenses. We wouldn't be better off in Europe, even with $9.50 gasoline.

[cwn23]

Its almost 5 bucks here in NY...I have been driving my Mazda3 more often than my 335i because of this...My 335 eats gas like crazy, compared to my Mazda3 that gets around 32-33 miles to a gallon on the highway...streets 29 mpg

[calleballe]

Remember that majority of health care coverage and free schools are funded through 55% income tax, 20% VAT etc. etc. Taxes on gas are mainly there to make gas an elastic good, to decrease demand and to fulfill agreed on lower emission levels.

All I am hoping for, is that consumer demand for i.e. the Tesla (or a 4 door Tesla) would yield volumes in the 100,000 units per year and bring price down to reasonable levels.

[John 070]

Originally Posted by calleballe

Remember that majority of health care coverage and free schools are funded through 55% income tax, 20% VAT etc. etc. Taxes on gas are mainly there to make gas an elastic good, to decrease demand and to fulfill agreed on lower emission levels.

All I am hoping for, is that consumer demand for i.e. the Tesla (or a 4 door Tesla) would yield volumes in the 100,000 units per year and bring price down to reasonable levels.

Thank you for using the word elastic. Many people are baffled that when the federal tax went up by 10 cents overnight, regular unleaded was 10 cents more instantly the next day, while super was only 6-7. The demand for super is in fact elastic, regardless of whose owner's manuals say they need 91 or higher.

Maybe I'm different than most, but I can say my demand for many things is very elastic indeed. Like a giant rubber band about to snap!

I practice turtle theory, and probably can do so because I don't have kids.....yet. When life comes at me with a ton of expenses, I go into my shell like a turtle. I pay my obligations, but I look to cut way back until I can bring some more bacon home from the job.....

[cyba]

ride my bike

[Solonng]

Originally Posted by Heat00

I'll make more money and keep driving the 335i

i like your ambition!

[Solonng]

Originally Posted by 92tripleblack

Keep voting for Dems and we'll get there.

lol, we'll be over the right quadright of the laffer curve!

[StarrDlux]

no really this thread sounds like alot of people are so concerned with gas prices that they are living paycheck to paycheck? bell curve 10-12K a year;16mpg (lets be real its a turbo). 750 gallons * 9.50 = 7125/year. how much is parking in new york city again?

so at 4.25 (current) the delta would be 3562.5~ . That would be $300/month. i seriously hope that not everyone of this forum is living so close to the edge that 300/month would push them into financial ruin.

Might have to cut back on the blow but for real this time.