of waiting until this morning to do it, as the Mighty Corolla was
scheduled to carry two little ones to play practice and I didn't want
the low fuel light to add any concern to the trip.
Ended up going 423.3 miles on 10.874 gallons of gas, for a mileage
number of 38.93 mpg. This looks good on the surface, but last tank gave
me 36.20 mpg, so it sort of evens out.
Over my first twelve tanks of 2008 I have spent $370.75, comapred with
$264.12 over the first twelve tanks of gas in 2007. This is about 40%
more in gasoline cost.
My fuel economy for the first twelve tanks is up as well, but not nearly
40%, only about 3.98%. So more money comes out of pocket on gas.
Everyone who drives is probably facing a similar increase in gas prices.
Let's say I am averaging 37 miles per gallon (which I am not, I am
averaging better mileage of 37.83, but that's harder to use for
calculation purposes), and those folks who drive pickup trucks, SUVs or
minivans average half that, or 18.5 miles per gallon (which I think is
reasonable given the way I see some of these drivers move on the
highway). That would mean they are spending roughly twice as much on
gasoline as I am.
That's over $700 on gas alone for basically the first three months of
the year. Close to $3,000 for the year if prices remain about the same
for the rest of the year.
If regular people made sure they had their tires pumped up properly, and
looked ahead and coasted a little more instead of accellerated to the
pile of stopped cars a quarter mile ahead, I am sure they could squeeze
out an extra 2 or 3 miles per gallon out of those SUVs, which would save
roughly 80 gallons over the course of a year, or about $240!
Would you make a small lifestyle change in order to not have to spend
$240?
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