$2 gas on horizon?

Sacramento Bee ^ | Friday, December 27, 2002 | Mark Glover

[Dog Gone]

Californians could pay $2 a gallon -- or higher -- for gasoline early in the new year when the state makes the transition from gas additive MTBE to ethanol, some energy experts say.

Analysts, fuel-market watchers and others see a price spike ahead as the state makes the conversion, mandated because of MTBE's potential to leak from underground tanks and pollute groundwater.

[Sgt_Schultze]

Boo, frickety-hoo.

[Incorrigible]

Average Price of Gasoline

Constant 1995 dollars

Year	Price/Gal
1970	$1.32
1971	1.27
1972	1.21
1973	1.22
1974	1.54
1975	1.50
1976	1.52
1977	1.52
1978	1.44
1979	1.79
1980	2.26
1981	2.27
1982	2.01
1983	1.85
1984	1.73
1985	1.65
1986	1.24
1987	1.23
1988	1.18
1989	1.22
1990	1.33
1991	1.26
1992	1.21
1993	1.16
1994	1.13
1995	1.14
1996	1.20
1997	1.18
1998	0.96
1999	1.12

Source: US Dept of Energy

Relatively speaking, gasoline is a bargain even compared to the pre-1973 embargo days.

[SamAdams76]

Thanks for pointing that out. And were it not for all those imposed taxes, gas would cost even less. Nevertheless, as your chart points out, even at $2 a gallon, it will still be a bargain (not that I want to see it hit that).

[lepton]

The state turned its attention to ethanol -- alcohol produced from corn and other grains -- grown primarily in the Midwest but also imported from Brazil.

The current leader in Rain-Forest destruction: Brazil's ethanol mandate.

[PushinTin]

What was it I had to pay for that bottle water yesterday? Oh yeah here it is. $2.49!!!!! Can you drink gas? lol

[Wright is right!]

How quickly the Media forgets about the $2+ gallon of gas we had 18 months ago, and not just in CA, but in the upper midwest, as well. All those idiotic formulations plus a pipeline failure.

Another story with a complete and utter lack of perspective.

Michael

[Dog Gone]

The media has never been able to resist the opportunity to scream bloody murder over a gasoline price increase. Price drops aren't generally deemed newsworthy, though.

[fight_truth_decay]

No..but you can suck down some air for $.25. ;)

[fight_truth_decay]

[dalereed]

"a foundation report recommended replacing the three-octane gasoline format (regular, midgrade, premium) with a single-grade gasoline requirement, with an octane level of 87 or 88. Citing a detailed study, the group said a single-grade plan would stabilize supplies, which in turn would stabilize prices."

What an idiot!

Cars have been designed to run on regular (78 octane) for the last 30 years and people that use higher octane fuel are wasting money, even re tuning the engine won't recover the cost difference.

What they should do is eliminate everything but 78 octane regular.

[dalereed]

"1973 1.22"

Those figures are totally out to lunch!!!!!

In 1973 we were paying 26.9 cents/gallon and even after the crunch in 1974 our gas was only costing us 86.9 cents/gallon.

I was getting bulk deliveries in our own tanks but station prices were only about 5 cents higher.

This was in California with their high fuel taxes.

[Incorrigible]

The figures are in 1995 dollars thus adjusted for the double digit inflation of the late 70's.

I could do some homework and adjust it using 1970 dollars and get the prices you remember but I think the chart is accurate and good for comaprison with recent prices.

[dalereed]

There is still something wrong with the figures because they don't reflect a jump from 26.9/gal to 86.9/gal in one months time in 1974 and after the massive increase they never went back down, they just kept climbing.

[SpinyNorman]

Analysts, fuel-market watchers and others see a price spike ahead as the state makes the conversion, mandated because of MTBE's potential to leak from underground tanks and pollute groundwater.

Maybe they could recoup some of the cost by suing the environmental geniuses that determined that MTBE was a good idea.

[Incorrigible]

Dalereed,

The inflation adjustment only provides a prism of relative prices.  Actual prices may be radically different.

The chart below uses your figure for gasoline prices in 1973 and extrapolates from there what the prices should be in all the other years.  These are not actual values, but what one would expect given inflation.

The forth column uses the same technique but using 1995 dollars instead.  As you can see, gas prices in 1973 should have been $0.20 lower than they were.  Thus, gasoline is cheaper now, relatively speaking, than it was in 1973.

This phenomenon explains why super-size SUVs that get the equivalent gas mileage as a 1972 Sedan Deville are popular now since as a percentage of household income, the bite isn't as bad.

 

Year	CPI	Constant 1973 Dollars	Constant 1995 Dollars
1973*	44.4	$0.269	$0.060
1974	49.3	$0.318	$0.109
1975	53.8	$0.363	$0.154
1976	56.9	$0.394	$0.185
1977	60.6	$0.431	$0.222
1978	65.2	$0.477	$0.268
1979	72.6	$0.551	$0.342
1980	82.4	$0.649	$0.440
1981	90.9	$0.734	$0.525
1982	96.5	$0.790	$0.581
1983	99.6	$0.821	$0.612
1984	103.9	$0.864	$0.655
1985	107.6	$0.901	$0.692
1986	109.6	$0.921	$0.712
1987	113.6	$0.961	$0.752
1988	118.3	$1.008	$0.799
1989	124.0	$1.065	$0.856
1990	130.7	$1.132	$0.923
1991	136.2	$1.187	$0.978
1992	140.3	$1.228	$1.019
1993	144.5	$1.270	$1.061
1994	148.2	$1.307	$1.098
1995*	152.4	$1.349	$1.140
1996	156.9	$1.394	$1.185
1997	160.5	$1.430	$1.221
1998	163.0	$1.455	$1.246
1999	166.6	$1.491	$1.282
2000	172.2	$1.547	$1.338
2001	177.1	$1.596	$1.387

[Redcloak]

Ethanol won't increase gas prices in California; Gray Davis and the Democrats will. They're staring at a $35,000,000,000 budget shortfall. Though gas taxes are allegedly dedicated to transportation uses only, don't expect the Rats to let a little thing like the law stand in their way! They'll jack up gas prices, car registration fees, and anything else they can think of to pay for their spending binge.

[Sungirl]

I'm glad I get 30 miles to the gallon.....

[Glenn]

Source: US Dept of Energy

You trust their math?

[savedbygrace]

I'm glad I get 30 miles to the gallon.....

Are you a car?

;-)