RV Fuel Issues & Prices - Post 'Em Here!

I take it that you are against fuel alcohol.

Fuel alcohol came back into consideration in the 1970s because of OPEC threats to our petroleum imports. It was thought that alcohol could be produced readily, after all, you don't have to ferment a dinosaur for millions of years to get it. And we perceived a huge farm surplus, so putting two and two together they came up with the idea of burning those surpluses as fuel.

A lot has changed since then. NAFTA reduced the surplus, mileage requirements were imposed on cars, etc. Conservation and regulation changed the fuel picture.

I'm against ethanol fuel because it's stupid to waste valuable US topsoil and pollute the Gulf with runoff chemicals even more to create fuel crops. Fuel Methanol would make more sense because you could use wood slash and cellulose for root stock.

But IC engines will probably phase out as more people find electric vehicles advantageous and we better utilize sun and wind power (Germany seems to be a leader in this).

Eventually, I suppose, hydrogen fuel cells will be used for portable power, and many fuel quibles will fade away.

Ethanol is a wonderful product, if you're into starving the world's poorest children. The U.S. accounts for about a third of the world's corn crop and, years before EPA's 15% ethanol mandate, a third of that production was going into our tanks. I found a truly, to me, infuriating article in a 2009 Harvard International Review, hardly a right wing publication. Those of you who detest Big Oil should read it. Especially where it explains how much more imported oil is required to produce this wonderful - oops, Harvard-described product as "unsustainable."

I found this quote from the article illustrative of the senseless ideology forced down our throats by EPA/NHTSA et al. "Thus, 22 pounds of corn grain is required to produce 1 gallon of ethanol. To fill the fuel tank of a SUV vehicle with corn ethanol requires a total of 660 pounds of corn or food. This is enough corn to feed two people in a developing country for an entire year. Furthermore, to produce corn ethanol, 46 percent more fossil energy is required to produce a liter of ethanol than than is yielded. Oil therefore must be imported to produce ethanol. As a result, the cost to produce 1 liter of corn ethanol is US$1.05 per liter or US$3.95 per gallon."
Article

It's really worth reading. Keep in mind, this is an old article. As is usually the case with government run programs, the bad numbers just get bigger and bigger with time.

I actually found this article while simply looking for information on suitable fuel for DW's new Ford Expedition. I had gone to a FAQ page produced at a site Ford referred me to. I recognized the misleading spin put into this response to a consumer question of whether ethanol affects food prices:
Ethanol has a marginal impact on food prices.
In 2011, ethanol used less than three percent of the global grain supply.
Approximately 3 percent of food production costs are related to corn prices.
In contrast, 80 percent of food prices are directly determined by: transportation, processing, packaging and marketing.

Spin Alerts were all over that answer, diluting the impact by switching from corn to All grains, and folding corn into All foods.
Spin
This led me to look further, where the Harvard article came in.

Interesting article on recent spike in fuel prices and the new 15% ethanol mandates.

Click here

Yes, local gasoline prices have reached a higher "plateau." $3.69 is the latest price for a gallon of regular. $106.44 is the latest oil price. Diesel prices range from $3.70 to $3.92. Any bets on when the gasoline prices touch the $4.00 mark?

Looks like our new pricing level for gasoline will be $3.66 a gallon. Oil is up to $106.25 a barrel at this moment. First it goes up, then it drops, then it goes back up because of some Middle East disturbance, etc., etc.. This is certainly getting old. I need small fusion reactors for the motor home, cars, and S&B. But I suppose the gov't would ban something like that......:R

Yup, gasoline prices are certainly increasing!! Prices have increased the past week from around $3.34 to $3.59. I bet we're going to see prices up by another 20¢ a gallon by next week. :E

Geeze, the price of oil dropped from $105 to $104 a barrel. Probably hover around this mark while Egypt "burns."

Summer travel and Egypt eruption causing excuses to raise prices. 5.00 will be target for regular unleaded.

After sitting at or around $3.21 for the last 6 weeks regular jumped 10 cents today. I gassed up a couple of days ago at $3.21... whoo hoo! I saved $2.20. :B

My dually weighs over 4 tons loaded with fuel and me and a bit of misc., plus whatever I might load into the bed. With the diesel I got 17 mpg on a round trip from Davenport, Ia., to Annapolis, including two days driving in the suburbs. Overall average is 15.5. I know other diesel pickup owners talk about 20+ numbers, but mine is what it is and I don't monkey with the numbers.

No excuse for the U.S. not to be running millions of high fuel mileage diesel cars on our roads. EPA began running and ruining our cars back in the 1970s when they introduced corporate average fuel economy standards, standards that became more severe as time went on, reaping very little benefit at very high cost after a point. It's whackos unrestrained. Lower fuel consumption saves oil and reduces emissions, but "improvements" come at a higher and higher cost for much smaller gains. Same with emission standards. A 90% reduction in harmful emissions might cost X dollars, while the next few percentage points can cost the same X, or more.

NTHSA's own estimate of increased cost of implementation of proposed CAFE standards for 2012 cars was $500 - $110 per vehicle. And we all know how splendidly accurate government cost estimates are. Wonder what the actual added cost ends up by 2016. My guess is, they're already busy writing new proposals for 2017 and beyond. NTHSA acquired EPA's habit of never-ending requirements. Witness the imposing rules coal has faced for decades. And with the current administration on the 15th hole, they've decided to close coal down completely.

But who cares? It's only Other People's Money!

Well, didn't get out soon enough for the non-ethanol gas for the small engines. All the stations have raised their prices. The station that I usually get non-ethanol, the prices were $4.05 a gallon. This is 91 octane. $40+ for 10 gallons. Going to have to check out the area for cheaper non-ethanol.

Watching the news this morning (Fox Business) they said the price of oil has reached $105.50 a barrel. The gasoline prices will probably reach towards $4.00 a gallon again. Too bad we're stuck with "world prices" for oil considering all the oil we're getting from the Baaken formation in N.Dak.