Fuel Price is Killin Me - Montana Owners Club

Fire1 · 01-21-2011, 01:19 PM

OK I give, I needed to fill up today on the way home from work I normally ride my scooter but the rain drove me to the Ram.
I did keep an eye on the price of fuel and watch it climb at a rate faster than the shuttle but today was the end.
It was $3.27 this morning and $3.49 this afternoon.
The Ram is parked and travel is done for now.
If as predicted it goes to $5.50 for diesel it will end me driving the truck for any reason. How do you full timers handle the price of fuel?

Doug

CamillaMichael · 01-21-2011, 01:41 PM

We do not full time, but do use our truck a lot...when the price of fuel goes up, we avoid using the truck more than is necessary. What else is there to do???

bncinwv · 01-21-2011, 01:59 PM

We do not full-time and the only thing we use the truck for is pulling the Montana and the one time trip to take the boat to the ramp, then at the end of the season the pullout. When fuel prices increase, we deal with it by camping closer to home and economize on the other parts of the stay. Hot dogs, burgers, cheap food, state parks where the stays are on average $10 to $15 cheaper a night, etc. On the vacation trips, we just plan ahead and stash a little extra to cover the additional fuel cost and try to cut costs in other ways. It usually does not slow us down, just changes our spending habits. On the bright side (for us anyway), a weekend camping even at $5.00 fuel cost is cheaper than a weekend spent boating. Might end up with more camping trips as a result, so that is actually a good thing!! Sorry, this isn't much help to you, but to us, the camping time with family and friends is priceless.
Bingo

Mrs. CountryGuy · 01-21-2011, 02:07 PM

Here is Nick's take on it, I read this recently:

http://gypsyjournalrv.com/2011/01/pay-it-or-park-it/

remember, this is HIS take, I am just sharing.

exav8tr · 01-21-2011, 02:30 PM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by Mrs. CountryGuy

Here is Nick's take on it, I read this recently:

http://gypsyjournalrv.com/2011/01/pay-it-or-park-it/

remember, this is HIS take, I am just sharing.

Nick has a very succinct way of putting things into perspective, sort of like calling a spade a spade!!!!!!

Mudchief · 01-21-2011, 02:32 PM

It will slow thing down for a lot of people making them stay close to home. As we have been traveling West it is about $150.00 a day for diesel. One day with a bad head wind it was $200.00. It is not going to stop us but will make us do more planning.

bncinwv · 01-21-2011, 02:42 PM

Oh, and the thing that I forgot that we will be forced to do without is that long-awaited adventure that was planned to attend the ever advertised Nebraska rally!!!! Sorry Rondo!!! Hee Hee!!!!

Bingo

sailer · 01-21-2011, 02:43 PM

Its true what bingo said its a lot cheeper to camp than to boat , as a boat burns about 15 to 40 gals per hr , depends on motor size and how hard you push it , but as you if you try to out run a storm as we did once I watched the fuel gauge going down so I had to pull it back from full speed to 3/4 as I was going to run out of fuel and I carry 60 gal and only had 15 or 20 miles to go, so yes we would rather go camping and drive 200 miles , a lot cheeper. sailer

CORattler · 01-21-2011, 02:43 PM

We try to make good choices and plan but we're not gonna live forever. There will come a day (soon enough)when we have to give this all up. Till then, we're going to live life to the fullest. It's what we do.

Waynem · 01-21-2011, 03:21 PM

Nick's take is about the same as my take. I get between 8.9 and 10 mpg, depending on how I drive and where I drive. For a 1500 mile one way trip, the difference for me between $3 a gallon and $5 a gallon is about $400, so figure a round trip cost rounded up for variances is about $1000. I can cut back in other areas, stay longer for the weekly rate, use the camping clubs where possible, and other areas (like said - eating out). It is not going to stop me. It didn't stop me when I was pulling the Monty and it was over $4 a gallon. To us, we just figure if we can't afford an extra $1k, well we can't afford to RV.

However, you do have to look at a very bigger picture than just fuel. The fuel price the trucker pay mean that the prices for commodities are going to increase. So EVERYTHING is going to go up. That is where the big strain on the pocket book is going to come into play. I'm just gong to have to go with the flow until I can't afford it anymore. Then what? Sell the RV? Who's going to buy it. May as well set it up near by at a CG and rent it out cheap!

Edited: Hmmm! There's a thought. Everyone put the RV at one of their nearby CG,'s and we can rotate between them driving a car to each one.

What could we call that, "Trailer Trash Rotation?"

Bill-N-Donna · 01-21-2011, 04:37 PM

With the higher prices of the fuel I am very agitated at the fact that the pump kicks off when it reaches $75.00. I’m told it’s the credit card company but I’m not convinced of it. The station tells me that I can start the pump again and pump some more. I have done that a few times but I figure unless I really have to have a full tank and since I’m being restricted that they don’t need any more of my money anyway. So now at that point whenever it kicks off I usually just quit pumping fuel.

Also after the D/W got a hummer I’ve been driving the PT Cruiser around for daily use and commuting to work in it so I don’t have to depend on the truck for every day driving. I can get somewhat picky now and not buy the diesel as much; the only problem is that I would rather be driving the big stinking, diesel smelling truck. I guess that’s my contribution to cutting back on the cost of fuel.

stiles watson · 01-21-2011, 05:03 PM

I AM a full timer and the rising cost of fuel is a big concern, especially because I believe it has been manipulated to do so. A few people are lining their pockets at the expense of all of us over and above a fair profit. But that's is another story.

I will be looking for a small second car to drive around the Home site during those long stays between excursions made longer by the high cost. We will need to make a trip to Ft. Collins next during April and May for medical treatment. If that were not the case, we might not travel at all in 2011.

washley1 · 01-21-2011, 05:27 PM

We are not full timers by any means. We bought both our truck and our 5er when fuel was 4.50 per gal. The fact that it has been lower than that for so long does my heart good. And it breaks that same heart that it is going up, but it will not keep us from the open road, at least not yet. It may slow us down and shorten our adventures, but we are not getting younger and the time for us to do these things is now, so we will keep on as long as we can. I just wish all our money was staying in the US instead of going to the Arabs. We have the resources here, but our stupid government will not let us tap them.

richfaa · 01-22-2011, 01:43 AM

We had to cancel our planed New England States trip a few years ago when Diesel went above 5.00 per gallon. The trip is on our travel agenda this summer but if diesel continues to increase at the predicted rate the trip will be off. The Ego would like to say we will travel no matter what the price but the budget says otherwise.

BTW.. refresher.... here are the OPEC countries...Note that most of them are NOT Arab.. http://www.opec.org/opec_web/en/about_us/25.htm also note that the #1 importer of Oil into the USA is...Canada.. Saudi Arabia is third. Mexico is second. Look it up...

bigdave4435 · 01-22-2011, 01:48 AM

They really are robbing us that's all I can say! :O(

washley1 · 01-22-2011, 02:08 AM

My bad singling out the Arabs. And since my wife is Canadian, I don't mind QUITE a much sending money up there...just kidding. My point is as I have stated elsewhere in this forum before; we have untapped oil deposits right here in the US, more than enough to sustain us until either hell freezes over, or some other sustainable fuel is developed. If we would just tap that resource we would not need ANY from outside our own boarders. Zero, zip, nada. Even if the price NEVER came down, we would be ahead of the game. Our money would not be flowing into the hands of SOME of the OPEC counties who do not particularly wish us well, and historical bullies like Russia would not have so much leverage, throwing their oil weight around. Can you imagine the effects on our trade balance if we spent all of our oil dollars right here instead of elsewhere? Can you imagine the effects on our employment rate? Can you imagine the effect on our foreign policy and national security? Drill here. Drill now. And it's not all about pay less, although that would be great if it happened!!

tim43 · 01-22-2011, 02:09 AM

I filled the truck with diesel yesterday and with the exception of weekly runs to keep everything lubed and running, it won't go far till the next camping trip. Now with the fuel prices higher, we stay longer at the campground.

CORattler · 01-22-2011, 02:22 AM

It's the gas station policy. Blaming it on the credit card company is ludicrous ... they set a credit card limit and sometimes have user options that allow YOU to place a limit on single purchases. The gas station is simply trying to limit their potential loss as a result of drive offs.
I had this $75 limit happen to me the last time I filled up as well and you're right, it is irritating. I had to hang up the nozzle and wait for the pump to reset and go through the whole process again to finish filling my tank. It cost me pennies short of $100. I'm going to look for another place to fill the truck that doesn't have this limitation. Small annoyance? Yes, but if I can minimize annoyances that is a good thing.

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by Bill-N-Donna

With the higher prices of the fuel I am very agitated at the fact that the pump kicks off when it reaches $75.00. I’m told it’s the credit card company but I’m not convinced of it.

Waynem · 01-22-2011, 02:53 AM

Wow! I guess I was misinformed. That $75 dollar rule really gets me, and I have a 90 gal tank. But, in defense of the station operators: I was pumping one day and it hit the $75 lime. I reset and did it again and it hit the $75 limit. The third time it would not accept my credit card. I went inside, rather upset, and the clerk tried to run the card and it was refuse. I'm glad I had stopped a a little less than half a tank, so I was good to go, but rather upset. I belong to one of the largest credit unions in the world, Navy Federal CU. I called them. The nice lady said that after the second consecutive billing the software put an alert on the card and stopped further transactions. During the conversation I asked about the $75 limit and she said it was the policy for fuel. They are responsible for payment to the merchant, not the customer, and the customer is only responsible for the 1st $50 for a stolen card. They annotated my account so that it would not trip for consecutive fuel purchases, but I just don't get myself into that situation again.

Locally, I have one service stations that is typically 4 to 6 cents cheaper than any one else in the area. When I pull in I just have to wave to them and then pump my fuel. It does not shut off after $75. I then go in and pay inside using the credit card.

The $75 rule is one of the reasons that I use the trucker's lanes for fueling. Yes, I have to go inside just like all the truckers, but there is no limit on how much I can fuel.

DarMar · 01-22-2011, 02:58 AM

Going to the seasonal lot is all the rage in our part of the world and has been for about the last four years since the last time fuel prices climbed beyond acceptable levels. Canadian consumers don't get any deals as our fuel is ALWAYS more expensive than the US even though we are an exporter of said commodity??? Right now our diesel price is $4.90 for our larger gallon, so about $3.92 comparative to the US gallon, quite a bit more expensive than the US market. Basically our camping season up here is May to Sept. end. We usually do a 1200 mi trip somewhere each spring and then again in late fall and while parked at our seasonal we use the mid-sized SUV to go to and fro so that really helps.

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