Ok, this post is going to have two parts:
1. Why I am glad that gas prices are going up
2. What I am doing to still keep my gas costs down, despite the rising prices

Why I am glad that gas prices are going up

I believe that we are way too dependent on foreign oil. That is (I believe, and there is evidence to back this up) the main reason why we are in this war with Iraq, and about to be in a war with Iran. We need oil. With oil prices going up, Americans are going to have to change. Immediately, I think that we have to change how we drive, which I am going to talk about in the second part. Eventually, we are going to have to find other sources of energy. Now, I know people have been screaming for new sources of energy for years now. Up until now, the reason for this has been global warming. But global warming seems like such a far away concept. I personally don’t really believe the theories. There hasn’t been enough motivation for an overwhelming majority of people to really push for better energy sources because the majority of people have not been directly affected by this shortcoming. But now it is affecting the overwhelming majority, actually, the overwhelming majority’s wallet. If you think about it, there have been no major breakthroughs in automobile technology in DECADES. You would think that with all of the technology we have, that we should be getting at least 100mpg. But no. We are still manufacturing cars that only get 10mpg! All because we have had such low oil prices. Many countries in Europe have had $6 gas (or more) for years now. How is it that they can cope with this, but Americans, the richest people in the world, are crying their eyes out? Europeans have cars with better gas mileage, and their towns are usually built so that driving is not a constant necessity. In a majority of towns and cities in Europe, everything you need is only a couple minutes walk or bike ride away. In America, hour-long commutes to work are typical. The American way of life has evolved with the mindset that we would always have cheap gas. Now America is going to have to wake up, and I think that is a good thing. I think there will be more competition to make cars with better gas mileage, which I think they should have been doing years ago.

2. What I am doing to still keep my gas costs down, despite the rising prices

I am changing how I drive. I am trying to drive less. I am also increasing the MPG that my car gets. How am I doing this? It is called hypermiling. I have gone from 25mpg (which I thought was pretty good for a 17 year old car!), to over 30mpg (which is still only half of what the typical European car gets). Here is what I have been doing to achieve this:

  • Accelerate more slowly from a stop*
  • Go into neutral (I do this when I am coming to a stop light or getting off the interstate)
  • Drive 65mph on the interstate*
  • I don’t always drive below the speed limit. If the limit is 45, then I will go 50. I do this because my car (an automatic) doesn’t shift into the last gear until about 48mph, and since you get better gas mileage in the higher gears, I go 50 to kick it into that higher gear. This might be different in your car. They say that you get the best gas mileage between 55 and 60 mph (source)
  • Place a lot of space between yourself and the car in front of you, so that you don’t have to slam your breaks when they hit theirs.

*Fair warning, if you do this, you are likely to tick some people off.

By slowing down more (for the most part), I find that I do not get as stressed when driving. Before, driving at least 75 down the interstate, I would get mad a people not even doing the speed limit. Now, I am the one not even going the speed limit. So not only am I saving money by increasing my gas mileage, but I am also healthier, because I do not get as stressed.