Higher Fuel Prices And Overlanding

[Murphy Slaw]

I took this picture Nov. 8th, 2020 because I had a feeling we may never see this again.



As pipelines close and more restrictions increase the price of fuel, this will surely have an effect on the ability for some of us to travel. My Hemi actually gets pretty good mileage with the 8 speed.

If gas gets up to near $4.00 a gallon, or perhaps even MORE, will you be looking at a different rig, travel less, or are you a Rockefeller ?

 

[bgenlvtex]

Insomuch as it is a violation of site policy to discuss the reason for currently existing and imminent fuel cost increases, I'll just say that I hope the folks who asked for that stupidity are the first ones to be affected, the most seriously affected, and the most long term affected.Simple economics says they will, so I take some comfort in that.

I eagerly await the construction of the pixie dust and unicorn fart stations to put into my rainbowmobile for free, while kumbaya plays on endless loop from the dispenser.

 

[MidOH]

I'll go diving instead. Overlanding is already on the chopping block due to lack of reward. Too much effort, not enough fun. Both of my favorite quarries have campgrounds now. 18-19mpg easy, with my F250, on the way to those due to straight 55mph roads

The last trip we did, the Kids would have rather gone to a regular state park. I can set my cruise control and get 17mpg all the way to East Harbor State Park in Marblehead/Sandusky Ohio. That'll be a better option if gas goes up, especially since it's paved 55mph roads to those.

Shutting down the pipeline and attacking our energy economy was a dumb arse move. We were a net exporter of oil just a little while ago, for the first and only time in my lifetime. Many of my energy dependent, big customers are winding production down, and starting to mothball equipment. Happened in 2009-10 as well. You can't make steel if NG and electric prices are too high. The president sold out to chyna. They are the only ones that are going to benefit from this move. That's not political at all, that's plain fact. Bad move. Really bad move.

It's listed here with no politics:

All of President Biden’s key executive orders — in one chart

As people and markets around the world adjust to having Joe Biden as U.S. president, a key factor is what the veteran Democratic politician aims to...

www.marketwatch.com

We're re-entering the Paris climate accord as well. You know how they feel about your ''macho trucks'', ''tearing up the earth with trails'', and such.

Hope ya'll like chinese winches and lockers, because the American ones will be shutting down or raising prices soon.

 

[FishinCrzy]

An extra few hundo for fuel for an extended trip, while certainly not welcomed, may be worth it if it reduces the crowding. According to the stories I am hearing some of the popular destinations are a bit overrun. LOL, sitting at home has cost me more in Amazon purchases! An extra $20-30/day for fuel might be a good trade off. My capacity for new, neat toys is getting expensive.

 

[MOAK]

Good subject, back in 2005 we were paying well over $4.00 a gallon. In Canada it was over $1.20 a liter. In the mid 2000s it spiked up to nearly $5.00 a gallon. In 2009/10 gasoline was averaging $4.50 a gallon. Our Jeep got 10-11 mpg, then our LC got and still gets 12-13 mpg. Those high fuel prices didn’t keep us from taking our trips. The closure of any pipeline or any other “restrictions” is not going to raise the cost of fuel. The pipeline that has been shut down was going to be for moving junk raw oil, to the gulf coast, then transported to China. What will raise the price of gasoline is if the federal government ends the billions of dollars of subsidies to the industry. What will keep fuel prices affordable for us is the advent of alternative fuels competing directly with internal combustion engines. Currently for internal combustion engines we get what? On average 15 mpg, 20, if we are lucky. The Tesla model Y gets the equivalent ( cost per mile) of 121 miles per gallon. The performance pick up gets the equivelant of 70 mpg. The oil companies are well aware of this and will do everything they can over the next couple of decades, to remain competitive, thereby, keeping the cost of fuel affordable. By the way, not my opinion, just well researched information combined with an understanding of how capitalism works.. the oil companies have never before had any real competition which allowed the markets to swing wildly. Now, for the first time since Rockefeller’s Standard Oil there is real competition on the very near horizon.

 

[Correus]

Me... driving less.

 

[grubworm]

we're AMERICANS...we'll adapt!

 

[Trail_pilot]

LOL our prices have come down to just about 4x that price here. we are paying $1.10 per litre but last summer we were $1.95. and i live in a cheaper area for fuel. You guys over in the states got nothin to complain about with fuel prices.

 

[MidOH]

A liter of cola?

 

[MazeVX]

Currently paying 1,67 US $ per Liter mid quality petrol / gas, about 6,50 $ per gallon.
Diesel is about 10% cheaper.
The effect is people not driving and if they are mostly slow.

Fuel prices are a huge number when traveling, at least for me and yes I sometimes give up on a trip because of fuel cost.
I would like to give some advice but I believe that would have consequences for me...

 

[Correus]

Back in June or July our one and only gas station had gas priced at $1.10, or maybe $1.12 per gallon. There is a grocery store chain that gives you 'fuel points' for every purchase you make that you can use as a discount when filling the tank. We actually got gas, using the points, for $0.87 a gallon.

Right now we are pushing $2.25, up from $1.89.

 

[J.W.]

If higher gas prices will keep people off the roads and out of my favorite spots, I'll gladly pay it.

Unfortunately, the past 20 years proves that isn't how it works but it's a nice dream.

 

[PNW EXPLR]

Just start a YouTube channel. Then record your trips. Viola, a "Business" with business expenses!

Governments like to control and oppress subjects that allow it.

 

[FishinCrzy]

Just start a YouTube channel. Then record your trips. Viola, a "Business" with business expenses!

Governments like to control and oppress subjects that allow it.

If I weren't a few days from official retirement...anyways starting a business to support my fishing and travel aspirations would be interesting if they weren't fixing to pay me to quit working! I haven't really done much hard work in several years. Kinda eased into this retirement thing. If I were unemployed and needing some form of income it might be an interesting route. At this point it doesn't seem worth the effort for me. I wish I had recorded some of the good old boys I came up with. They were a hoot and I would probably be rich now. Being on social media is not something I aspire to. Being on a forum as a semi-anonymous voice of semi-reason is close enough for me!

 

[Murphy Slaw]

Fuel prices are a huge number when traveling, at least for me and yes I sometimes give up on a trip because of fuel cost.

It's a large part of many budgets, period.

I still work, and now it's up to about $ 50.00 a week in gas just for my truck, which is over $ 200 a month. If that DOUBLES in the next few months to $ 400 a month, that's money pulled from somewhere else. Plus, energy cost are reflected in every single product.

I hate to see those days coming back.

 

[Trail_pilot]

It's a large part of many budgets, period.

I still work, and now it's up to about $ 50.00 a week in gas just for my truck, which is over $ 200 a month. If that DOUBLES in the next few months to $ 400 a month, that's money pulled from somewhere else. Plus, energy cost are reflected in every single product.

I hate to see those days coming back.

Agreed. My previous job had a longer commute than my new one and I was spending $400 a month in fuel with a 4 cylinder ( which I bought because it was cheaper to buy and make payments on a new car than it was to drive my TJ every day). my commute went from 1.5-2 hours each way every day to 15 min each way and even though I am making less money at my new job I am still keeping more in my pocket because I am now only about $45 a month for gas to work. IT'S GREAT! lol

Every trip I plan, once I have a rough plan in mind of where my route will take me, I have to figure out mileage and fuel costs. I also need to pick between the Compass ( if camping with the wife and kid) and factor in paid campgrounds, or my TJ if I plan on camping out on the trails that are harder to get into. The fuel consumption of the TJ is more than twice that of the compass, so if i take a long trip with that vehicle, like a trip from where I was living previously to Rausch Creek a couple years ago, costs about $2000-$2500 or a trip around central Ontario and wheeling into campsites on harder trails costs about $1000-$1500 vs a trip to a campground in the compass could be $150-$500 depending on how far the campground is and how long we stay.
the fuel cost on the trip is THE cost of the trip in most cases.

 

[Billiebob]

In BC, we are at $1.29 per liter..... thats $1.02 in USD..... per liter x 3.78 liters per Us Gallon...... we pay $3.85 for the same thing.

One of the best things about US travel is my gas budget gets cut in half.

 

[DMS1]

Wont be slowing me down unless gas get's around 6 to 7 dollars. I will just eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches instead of steaks. Life is too short to just stay home and do nothing. Equip and explore. Also, you don't need 95% of the overlanding do dads to actually camp and explore, they are nice, but not necessary. Glad I did my trip of a lifetime in 2018 - 2020.

 

[leeloo]

I don't think petrol prices will ever see the folly before 2007 at more 100 U.S $ / barrel..
What might change is the fuel taxes, and with the debt that all countries have, it might go up in time.
Anyway, US has nothing to complain, I think they are one of the OECD countries with the lowest price ever. If you think fuel is expensive there take a trip in Europe.... hence the love story with diesel here...
Overlanding.. not an issue. So you go a normal trip, not overlanding, stay in hotels and buy 3 meals at restaurants per day for the whole family. Even if the fuel doubles in price for me it will be cheaper to overland than a standard trip..

 

[bgenlvtex]

I don't think petrol prices will ever see the folly before 2007 at more 100 U.S $ / barrel..
What might change is the fuel taxes, and with the debt that all countries have, it might go up in time.
Anyway, US has nothing to complain, I think they are one of the OECD countries with the lowest price ever. If you think fuel is expensive there take a trip in Europe.... hence the love story with diesel here...
Overlanding.. not an issue. So you go a normal trip, not overlanding, stay in hotels and buy 3 meals at restaurants per day for the whole family. Even if the fuel doubles in price for me it will be cheaper to overland than a standard trip..

This is like saying America shouldn't complain about getting cancer because Europeans have had cancer for a long time now.

Curious what nation you live in and how many miles on average you drive a year?