Confusing News About Gasoline Price Increases

[MEXICOWANDERER]

A link I followed in the Mexico City news led to an article that claims there will be no pump price increases for the month of September. But the article used terminology that was not Mexican spanish.

You should have seen the number of cars at the USA Costco pumps that had hyphens in their license plates. Gasoline was sixty five cents a gallon less.

Regular gas is now $4.00 gallon down here no matter how your figure the exchange rate. Diesel is around fifteen cents more. My gripe isn't from a tourist perspective, but from a stoking inflation for the locals angle.

AS AN EXAMPLE ABC Autobuses de Baja California

Charges Three Hundred Eighty Pesos each way Tijuana to Ensenada. 760 pesos round trip. About thirty eight dollars US.

Please be generous with tips! Remember a "fat" ten peso tip now buys a whole quart of gasoline for the family car. I pull into Costco down here and the pasa pasas (parking lot and shopping cart attendants) all race to get me an electric disabled cart. A pittance 20 peso note is greeted verbally and with a handshake of appreciation. Then when I exit, they appear and unload the cart into my car then direct traffic to see me on my way with a smile and a wave.

Heavily subsidized urban transit buses are stuffed to the gills in this region. The punitive fuel prices have forced many to leave their cars parked.

Prices are inflating in dollar terms.

[Talleyho69]

There have been a number of discussions about pickups with campers and one that is very current. Please check there or start a new thread.

[Talleyho69]

Tipping has been tough for me at grocery stores. I recently made a decision, but am open to discussion.

A small order, 5p. A large order, 10p. A HUGE order, two carts, 15p. Here in Zihuatenejo, we only have seniors as baggers. We only have two grocery stores in town and several of the baggers recognize us. If they smile and greet us, they get a couple of pesos more. Baggers here do NOT take your groceries out to your vehicle.

We occasionally run into or see tourists tipping the baggers what we consider to be ridiculous amounts-100p. To us that is excessive, but would love to hear other opinions on this.

At a gasoline station, in the RV with a huge fill, 10p tip if they didn't converse or do anything else. If they did the windshield and/or made conversation, 20+p.

Now that we are just filling a vehicle occasionally for around town, it's 10p, we don't get out, hand them the gas cap key, smile, pay, say thanks and tip.

[noteven]

Talleyho69 wrote:
.....Times are changing!

but...

Can a visitor enter Mexico with a pickup truck registered 4500kg with a demountable truck camper?

[Talleyho69]

Until sometime last year, the government had all of the gas stations, and they were Pemex with controlled prices. In the 1990's they started selling franchises, but still controlled the prices.

Now, it's an open market. There are several brands of gasoline available and the prices are variable. This is creating a bit more of a market. Even here in Zihuatanejo the Pemex stations all have their prices posted very visibly and there is minor variation between them, we only have Pemex stations here.

The one station that we used in Santa Ana that was not a Pemex has slightly lower prices, fabulous service, a store that had very thing including several restaurants and great restrooms and secure places to spend the night. Times are changing!

[SidecarFlip]

I feel bad for Mexican workers working in US owned plants making $1.50 an hour. Gee, takes almost 3 hours labor for a gallon of Pemex....wow.

[azdryheat]

Doesn't the government own the gas stations and control the prices?

[pianotuna]

$3.25 for regular US gallon in US dollars, best price in Regina, SK.

$4.17 for regular US gallon in US dollars, best price in Vancouver, BC.

$2.79 for regular US gallon in US dollars, best price in Minot, ND.

I feel badly for the residents of Mexico (and BC).

[Wm_Elliot]

This might be a good time to discuss how much a tip should be. I've always been careful not to over tip. Over tipping can be braggadocio.
A peso is now worth about half of what it was worth vs. USD 20 years ago.
At grocery stores the bagger might be 12 or 82 - do you tip the same? Gas station attendants? bellboys?

[moisheh]

Have you noticed how many of the baggers are seniors. They may have a small pension but cannot live on it. We always tip them. My wife always says: They should be at home knitting or looking after grandkids.

Moisheh

[navegator]

Those old folks that offer to take the shopping cart to your car or the parking lot atendant do not have a salary from the stores, they hearn what the coin change folks hand them, so 10 peso tip is very apreciated same for the folks that bag the groceries at the market.

navegator