Fuel prices

[Journey cat]

Originally Posted by creativepart

The only time I consider the gas price is when I’m looking/buying gas.

If I was concerned about gas prices I wouldn’t have bought a gas RV that gets 6.3 mpg - or any RV for that matter.

It’s the same with campground prices - we go, we stay. I couldn’t tell you what each of our stays has cost on any trip.

I saved for a secure retirement and invested wisely for my future.

In Economics class in college we learned about price “elasticity”. This will be different for everyone here, but for me gas and lodging is relatively inelastic for my RV trips. I don’t take these costs into my trip planning. It may be totally different for you though.

To answer the OP’s question… I’m not sure what cost would make us plan shorter trips. Perhaps $7 a gallon would I’d have to experience it to know for sure.

I’ll be 72 next month so when I started driving gas was $0.21 a gallon. And during “gas wars” I paid $0.17 a gallon. But I only made $26 a week working and going to school. So it’s all relative to me.

And you had air in tires checked .Oil also . And windshield cleaned

That was my Job !

[wyocamper]

Originally Posted by dkoldman

Is that right? If the RV requires 201 gallons more gas than the CR-V then at $3.50 / gallon I see the net difference of $703.5

Depending on your economic situation that $703.5 more for that trip may not be a factor. But for some it is. What is the trip was just to go fishing, you may wish to go fishing but not pay $703.5 or more to do so. But if gas price was $1.75 you may splurge it.

Originally Posted by BobC

Mea culpa. I forgot that spreadsheets don't work in the morning.

Plus 4 nights in a FH campground @ ~$50/night (up to $65 some places) that takes it well over $900. If we wind up going back to Fruita, CO a king suite room with fridge and microwave at La Quinta will be ~$150/night with taxes, etc,.which still leaves room for some decent meals and in-room food.

But...we wouldn't be in our own "house", with our own food, and we don't have to lug suitcases and coolers, etc. in and out of a hotel.

[Mtn Charlie]

Originally Posted by Journey cat

And you had air in tires checked .Oil also . And windshield cleaned

That was my Job !

I had that job too. At 27 cents/gallon, we kept a gas can beside the pumps and drained the filler hose between customers. Those were the days!!!

[Chaffeekid]

Thing is for Me and Bonnie, we know who slept in our bed last, we know it is clean, we know who used our bathroom last, we know it is clean, etc, etc. So we are going to enjoy our RV at 78 years young, until I can't drive anymore.

We are going to drag our jeep behind us, get where we are going, but enjoy the journey, cause the journey is the destination in many cases. And our 4 cylinder jeep gets pretty good gas mileage for running around after we drop anchor, as long as I keep my foot out of the turbo

[Eagle5]

I remember in 1964 that Premium in our local Flying A gas station was 35¢ per gallon. Per the Coinflation web page, that same dime and a quarter is now worth $5.98.
Eagle5

[wyocamper]

Originally Posted by Eagle5

I remember in 1964 that Premium in our local Flying A gas station was 35¢ per gallon. Per the Coinflation web page, that same dime and a quarter is now worth $5.98.
Eagle5

So in effect the price of gasoline has actually gone down relative to inflation.

[Eagle5]

Perhaps so. I just paid $4.20 for premium.

[MadMaxWinny]

It looks like my "limit" is $5/gallon. It just dawned on me one fine day that the price of six tanks of gas to take the rig back and forth every year would pay for the adjusted full year rate (five months on-site + 7 months disconnected) AND plane tickets home.

[Mtn Charlie]

Originally Posted by Eagle5

I remember in 1964 that Premium in our local Flying A gas station was 35¢ per gallon. Per the Coinflation web page, that same dime and a quarter is now worth $5.98.
Eagle5

In 1964 the minimum wage was $1.15/ hr, so you could get about 3 gallons of regular gas, for an hours work. The current minimum wage is $7.25, so an hours work will get you a tad over two gallons of regular gas.

[Mtn Charlie]

Originally Posted by MadMaxWinny

It looks like my "limit" is $5/gallon. It just dawned on me one fine day that the price of six tanks of gas to take the rig back and forth every year would pay for the adjusted full year rate (five months on-site + 7 months disconnected) AND plane tickets home.

You can store a 40 foot RV in Florida for $130/month. Storring it for 6 months and driving the toad back and forth would make a lot of sense, if the RV is only a winter home.

[Dynadave]

Gas price doesn’t have much impact on our plans. I look at the total investment and cost of rving and find that it isn’t enough of a change in total cost to change our plans. If cost of fuel was a major factor that prohibited me from using my rig the way I intended to I would sell the rv.

[creativepart]

We've just returned from a 1800 mile trip - San Antonio to Tucson and back. When we left in early Jan gas was $2.89/gal. As we drove it got higher and higher. Once in Tucson it was $3.39/gal everywhere.

On the way home, 6-weeks later, the highest we saw was $3.59/gal but the most we paid was $3.29. Back at home in Texas it's $3.03 and I'll be filling up tomorrow and putting the RV into storage for a month.

[Mtn Charlie]

Originally Posted by Dynadave

Gas price doesn’t have much impact on our plans. I look at the total investment and cost of rving and find that it isn’t enough of a change in total cost to change our plans. If cost of fuel was a major factor that prohibited me from using my rig the way I intended to I would sell the rv.

Unfortunately, when the price of fuel reaches that point, you would have trouble giving your RV away. At that point, it becomes a stationary mini-house.

[Mtn Charlie]

Originally Posted by creativepart

We've just returned from a 1800 mile trip - San Antonio to Tucson and back. When we left in early Jan gas was $2.89/gal. As we drove it got higher and higher. Once in Tucson it was $3.39/gal everywhere.

On the way home, 6-weeks later, the highest we saw was $3.59/gal but the most we paid was $3.29. Back at home in Texas it's $3.03 and I'll be filling up tomorrow and putting the RV into storage for a month.

Last July, I drove about 1,300 miles from Florida to Michigan and only saw gas over $3.00/gallon on 4th of July weekend. If Russia invades Ukraine, expect $5.00/gallon overnight.

[Harvester]

To keep things in perspective on my trips, I somehow ended up evaluating the cost of traveling 100 miles. In the beginning, I was so focused on how many MPGs the rig was getting, and trying to come up with ways to optimize that number. However, when I turn the generator on (especially here in Texas to run the A/C), that was just a mental time sink. At the end of the day, I get about 8.0 MPG average. That's mostly because I'm going faster than I should - 70-75 on long stretches of highway, and trying to stay cool at the rest stops and Walmart.

So using 8.0 MPG, and $4.00/gallon, that works out to be roughly $50 for every 100 miles. So if I'm going a 1000 miles, the gas would be about $500. If gas goes to $6.00/gallon, the gas on that trip would be $750. It then becomes relative to what other things you can (or need to) do with those funds.

From there, it's just camping fees with a wide range of prices, and food that's mostly prepared as if I were at the house. Once I add all that up, then compare the cost to flying, car rental, hotel, and restaurants. The prices there have also gone through the roof. Then there are qualitative things that don't have a money value. I just like having my whole house wherever I go. BTW, I'm not a big fan of flying anymore. I now look at how many "smiles per gallon" I'm getting.

I should add, that if gas prices do get up to crazy levels, I'll be slowing down on the highways, looking for cheap/free places to camp, and making more use of my MaxAir fan.

[71_340]

Originally Posted by creativepart

Fuel price threads have a very long history of going political. I’ve removed two posts. Anyone else want to go this way and that will be the end of the thread.

Fair warning.

Thank you.

[dkoldman]

Originally Posted by Mtn Charlie

You can store a 40 foot RV in Florida for $130/month. Storring it for 6 months and driving the toad back and forth would make a lot of sense, if the RV is only a winter home.

Now that is a thought, buy an RV for all of your major likely destinations and fill-up the Honda Civic or buy a plane ticket and go wherever you please and never worry about gas costs. I could get by with just 3 measly RVs

[dkoldman]

Originally Posted by Harvester

To keep things in perspective on my trips, I somehow ended up evaluating the cost of traveling 100 miles. In the beginning, I was so focused on how many MPGs the rig was getting, and trying to come up with ways to optimize that number. However, when I turn the generator on (especially here in Texas to run the A/C), that was just a mental time sink. At the end of the day, I get about 8.0 MPG average. That's mostly because I'm going faster than I should - 70-75 on long stretches of highway, and trying to stay cool at the rest stops and Walmart.

So using 8.0 MPG, and $4.00/gallon, that works out to be roughly $50 for every 100 miles. So if I'm going a 1000 miles, the gas would be about $500. If gas goes to $6.00/gallon, the gas on that trip would be $750. It then becomes relative to what other things you can (or need to) do with those funds.

From there, it's just camping fees with a wide range of prices, and food that's mostly prepared as if I were at the house. Once I add all that up, then compare the cost to flying, car rental, hotel, and restaurants. The prices there have also gone through the roof. Then there are qualitative things that don't have a money value. I just like having my whole house wherever I go. BTW, I'm not a big fan of flying anymore. I now look at how many "smiles per gallon" I'm getting.

I should add, that if gas prices do get up to crazy levels, I'll be slowing down on the highways, looking for cheap/free places to camp, and making more use of my MaxAir fan.

You say to keep things in perspective... so following suit, you just stated a 50% increase in gas. Since my limit is $3 and if gas increased 50% that would be $4.50 if I was only basing it on 1000 miles that would only be $187.50 and I would not have a beef. I could live with it, but reality is I travel 10k - 15k miles / year. But again, it is just at what point do you stop and look at the price and say whoa!!!

[courtjester]

well, with a boat that gets between .5 and 1 mpg and has about 800 gallons of fuel capacity, the short answer is no, the relatively, or comparatively small amount we spend on diesel for the motorhome is just not enough of an issue to force us to curtail. I'm 70 YOA, and I just don't have that many years to enjoy my toys.
toni

[T00lman]

Let me ask a different question- When you are no longer able to travel, do you think you would rather have spent that money on stuff or on traveling to places you always wanted to see?