*Sigh* Alternative Fuel Sources? I guess not.

[MTNRAT]

Awww, kwich yer whining. Fuel is cheaper relative to income than it was in the much of the past.

According to the Bureau of Economic Affairs (see chart here), American consumer spending on energy as a fraction of total personal consumption has declined considerably since 1980. Whereas 25 years ago, one in every ten consumer dollars was spent on energy, today it's one in every 16. In other words, what it takes to heat and cool our homes and drive to and from our jobs and vacation destinations is relatively less costly than it was then.

This was written in May 2006.
Cheers,
Sean

 

[bluto]

I just saw this info on a major cable news last week but heres a linky to the same subject:

http://www.truthabouttrade.org/article.asp?id=5029

*Sorry if its not a hyperlink.

I would love to be independent from Middle East oil and save the $billions on keeping that area "West" friendly. I would rather spend that money here.
I plan on keeping the 80 until we have flying cars.


*Can anybody help me with not being able to paste smilies, attachments, (the advance features)? Same problem with the other forums Im on. I share this computer with my other kids.
Thanks.

 

[Kalawang]

Awww, kwich yer whining. Fuel is cheaper relative to income than it was in the much of the past.

According to the Bureau of Economic Affairs (see chart here), American consumer spending on energy as a fraction of total personal consumption has declined considerably since 1980. Whereas 25 years ago, one in every ten consumer dollars was spent on energy, today it's one in every 16. In other words, what it takes to heat and cool our homes and drive to and from our jobs and vacation destinations is relatively less costly than it was then.

This was written in May 2006.
Cheers,
Sean

Have a caution with statistics. 25 years ago, the dollar bought a whole lot more then it does today. It would be easier to accept statistics if the basis were on the current dollar or the dollar of that time, but dealing with different dollar purchasing values is too much akin to comparing apples and oranges.


Kalawang

 

[parabola]

I'd love a diesel conversion for my 80, but that just isn't economically feasable at this point. For now, I picked up a $1300 civic that gets ~30mpg with me beating on it. I drive it whenever I don't need my 80. My math shows that I will pay for the car and the few repairs I had to do to it in a year if I split my driving 50/50 with it, assuming $2.75 a gallon. I definately don't expect gas prices to go down so I think it's a fair bet.

 

[Brian Macgyver]

I'll run the same line here;
Driving my 80 instead of my Celica is like feeding my dog steak instead of kibble. It is not cost effective, but it makes him happy!

 

[NeverFinis]

Have a caution with statistics. 25 years ago, the dollar bought a whole lot more then it does today. It would be easier to accept statistics if the basis were on the current dollar or the dollar of that time, but dealing with different dollar purchasing values is too much akin to comparing apples and oranges.


Kalawang

It is a proportion, which means it has nothing to do with the value of the dollar, just a percentage of our income, we spend less on energy than we did 25 years ago. We have more money to spend on apples and oranges

<-gets 16mpg+ in his cruiser, but now car pools more with my wife..please lower the gas prices! Have mercy!!!!

 

[rolliges]

If you want a diesel in the States, it's either a big-ass truck or a VW. I want the option to buy diesel on any vehicle. Are you listening Ford? GM? Toyota?

Jeep has a few CRD (diesel) models that sell-out quickly. Toyota are you paying attention?


To answer another question about diesel and price: Diesel still has an advantage because it has more stored energy than gasoline. More energy=more miles per gallon. Other factors, of course, contribute to MPG.

 

[450 Cruiser]

Jeep has a few CRD (diesel) models that sell-out quickly. Toyota are you paying attention?.

It's a step in the right direction, without doubt, and I hope it is successful for them as this would open the eyes of other manufacturers. The only problem: it's too small, it's towing capacity is weak, it's 4X4ing capability is suspect according to some publications and...oh yeah, its a J**P.

 

[Jiggy]

Okay, here's the real deal IMHO. I've been doing a TON of research into bio-fuels and the like, and here's what I've been able to glean.

Ethanol is crap. It takes more energy to make then you get out of it, and lowers the power and gas-mileage of anything it's used in. Not good.

Hydrogen is still too inefficient with out current technology,it takes loads of energy to store and utilize, there's no benefit. That's at this point tho, maybe it'll do better later on. Not good.

Biodiesel is bio-degradeable, can be made out of new or used vegetable oil, is cheap and safe to convert, and actually has more stored energy in it then petro-diesel. I've run it in a 6.0 powerstroke for over a month straight with no petre-diesel at all and it ran better then normal. Less turbo lag, lower EGT's, and comparable mileage. It takes over 90% of the pollution out of operating a diesel vehicle (only NOx is higher then petro), they run quieter, (for some reason the signature "diesel clatter" is lessened) they have more power, and since it has a much higher viscosity than petro-diesel, it'll make engines last longer. It's also a solvent and can be used to clean parts/degrease, but is non-toxic. Tastes yucky tho.

And all that is using an engine made for petro-diesel. With an engine tweaked for bio-diesel all the benefits would be magnified, more power, better mileage, longer life, etc. And a catalytic converter made to just scrub out the NOx would clean the last bit of nasty stuff out of the emissions pretty well.

Did I mention it's also cheaper? I filled up this week for $2.66/gal.

Umkay. That's about all I have to say about that.

Just my 2 cents.

-Jared

 

[cptmud]

overhere in oz petrol is $1.28 at the cheapest and up to $1.40 a litre

 

[gbell210]

I just picked up a 2000 Corolla VE 5spd as my solution to rising gas prices. Supposed to get 31-38mpg. And paid $3650. I thought about a geo metro at one time, but that moment passed quickly. Its really odd for me to pay $10 in gas and almost have a half full tank.

 

[RavenTai]

overhere in oz petrol is $1.28 at the cheapest and up to $1.40 a litre

so about $4.96 AU / gallon or about $3.75 US /gallon, we are gettign close to that here in the states.

 

[johnmrson]

I just had my 4.5 petrol converted to LPG. A small drop in power but with a price difference of almost $1 a litre it is well worth it. I will pay off the conversion cost with the savings in 13 months and then it's all good.

 

[HJ61DOTCOM]

Hi,
I'm running my 80 on straight vegetable oil.
(recycled fryer grease).I'm in Vancouver if you want to check it out.
It smells like BBQ when it it's running.

 

[Ocelot]

Is that an imported JDM HDJ-81?

 

[BOUNDER]

The bastards are making record profits each year because today I was one of many who paid CDN$1.202 per liter (US$3.95/gal). Most of Canada is disparate, which means we burn more fuel to get places. We pay more taxes (and fuel taxes) than other similar countries... and our Prime Minister says 'Suck it up' with regards to gas prices. A honda civic won't work for our family because we regularly haul a trailer, and I work 16 miles from home. Gas prices have increased by 36% in the past 4 months. I truly enjoy my cruiser, but there is a breaking point, and that point is getting closer daily.

Is anyone else seriously considering the future of their 80 series.

Will the fuel companies ever compete or will they continue to collude?

Will there be alternative fuel sources for our 80s so we can continue to inexpensively use them as trucks?

Some rhetorical questions here, but the point is clear. The future of our trucks using affordable traditional fuel sources appears to be short. And so is my interest in paying oil companies making regular record breaking profits.

Cheers all...

Bitter in B.C.

Hmmm, your Land Cruiser was terrible on gas when you bought it however long ago. Are you now saying it's really, REALLY terrible on gas?

 

[LandyLover]

No, I'm saying its becoming less and less affordable.

 

[RedmondCruiser]

I posted this on HHO and it got bumped from tech. I guess someone thinks alt/fuel is chit chat material.

https://forum.ih8mud.com/showthread.php?t=93885