Got gas pains?

June 1, 2008

As fuel prices soar, you see folks responding in all kinds of ways. Some drive less, some buy a more fuel-efficient car, some drive off without paying for their gas.
Steve at the Speedway on Division and Front Streets in Traverse City said people at his station aren’t driving off -- at least on purpose, but they are venting about prices. “They don’t get mad at us. They know it isn’t our fault, but they’re definitely not happy.”
Beth Roskamp, who was filling up her Volkswagen Passat at the station, said she unpleasantly realized she should be using premium gas after reading a magazine article that said people were damaging their cars by unknowingly using the wrong fuel. Although more knowledgeable, she’s also carrying a lighter wallet. Premium is 20 cents more per gallon than the basic unleaded choice.
“I used to fill up for $20, with money left over for a snack,” she said. “Now it’s $46 -- over twice what I paid.”
Roskamp said it bothers her most that Michigan residents often pay the highest prices for gas in the country.
Norean Martin, a retiree who lives in Torch Lake, said she and her husband schedule their appointments in Traverse City on the same day to save gas. They’re not going to give up their SUV -- they need the space to haul stuff -- but they are looking at hybrids.

A QUARTER TANK
Younger people are taking the approach of water torture — just a small amount at a time won’t hurt as much. Kristina Zywicki, a sophomore at Traverse City West Senior High, said she only buys a quarter tank at a time -- about $25 to $30 -- for her Toyota RAV4.
“I’m working and most of my work money goes to gas,” said Zywicki, who dips ice cream at Moomer’s. “I also beg my parents to let me drive their car.”
The three Mutual gas stations in Traverse City -- often the stations with the lowest prices (as determined by this reporter’s unofficial monitoring) — have still seen a double-digit percentage drop in demand, said Ron George, manager of Gilbert Service Oil Company, which owns three stations in Traverse City.
George said that one reason prices consistently go up at the beginning of summer is that gas stations in the Midwestern states switch over to a summer blend of gas, and that means higher prices to turn over the inventory.
Winter gas is lighter and more explosive in order for the car to start in cold weather. But the winter blend in the summer doesn’t work because it evaporates too quickly. Your car might not start or run really rough, so retailers can’t sell it after June 1.
Cynics also believe gas prices go up on Memorial Day weekend to take advantage of the higher demand. Indeed, prices peaked at $4.20 a gallon, only to drop to $4.15 a gallon the next week.

DESPERATE MEASURES
There are mixed reports on people driving away without paying. Sheriffs from area counties said they haven’t seen that much of a surge.
“We do get our drive-offs, but haven’t seen a spike in them yet. There’s nothing, not yet. We normally get two or three a week, but 90 percent of the time, someone forgot to pay,” said Emmet County Sheriff Pete Wallin.
There has been no noticeable increase of drive-offs at the three Mutual Service Stations in Traverse City, but it might happen as prices climb, said Ron George.
George said drive-offs are more likely to occur when people are allowed to pay after pumping their gas. For that reason, Mutual Service might begin offering pre-pay only.
In April, there was a TV 7&4 television report that said Blarney Castle -- which operates 92 gas stations in Northern Michigan –- has suffered 318 drive-offs in the last seven weeks. That’s a 40% increase and amounts to an average loss of $1,400 a week, according to the report.
Gas drive-offs constitute a misdemeanor, and are punishable by a $500 fine or 93 days in jail. Perhaps even worse, your driver’s license goes away.

BIG FUEL THEFTS
Manistee County hasn’t seen more drive-offs, but there have been some large-scale fuel thefts, said Jane Pearce, a sergeant at the Manistee State Police Post.
“We’ve had thefts of a couple hundred gallons of fuel oil right from people’s homes, tanks completely emptied. We’ve had fuel stolen from the fuel trailers at construction sites. And we’ve had thefts of diesel fuel from large, heavy equipment with large volume tanks,” Pearce said.
Marinas have also been struck, with boat owners getting their gas tanks siphoned over the winter, Pearce said.
Pearce and other police officials said that a large share of drive-offs involve someone who honestly forgot to pay for their gas. People traveling together on vacation, for example, might assume someone else picked up the tab. Or maybe the credit card sale didn’t register.
“Other times, it’s intentional from the get-go. You’ve got people who are really struggling, and they just can’t find $70 a week to put gas in their tank,” Pearce said.
The reports of drive-offs have actually gone down in Benzie County, thanks to a new department policy, said Benzie County Sheriff’s Deputy Kyle Rosa.
Formerly, the sheriff’s department would simply issue a complaining gas station a police report number for an alleged drive-off. The gas station would then use the police report number to file for insurance and be reimbursed for the loss.
“We’d never investigate it, and they’d write it off as another one who got away. Now we send out a deputy and do a full investigation. It turns out, that some of the stations were being ripped off by their own employees,” Rosa said.
The reports of drive-offs average about once a week, he said.
A common practice of drive-offs is to fuel out of sight of the clerk or to put the hose on the ground, said Charlevoix County Sheriff Deputy George Lasater.
“Once you put it on the cradle, it lets the cashier know they’re through,” he said.


A Billion Here, A Billion There...
...oil company rip-offs start to add up

Some might argue the real fuel felons are the esteemed Congressmen who approved a $14.5 billion tax break for Exxon Mobil Corp., ConocoPhillips, and hundreds of other oil and gas producers in 2005. That was the same year Exxon scored a record profit of $36.13 billion.
That was just the beginning.
In 2006, Exxon outdid itself and set another record profit of $39.5 billion, according to an Associated Press report.
In 2007, profits climbed to $40.61 billion -- or $1,300 per second, wrote David Ellis, CNNMoney.com staff writer.
And this year, the first-quarter earnings soared once again -- up 44% from the record profits of the year before, “due mainly to strong crude and natural gas prices,” according to an Associated Press article.
These are not only records for Exxon, but record profits for any U.S. corporation, according to the reports.
“It bothers me that Exxon mobile has record profits, but it bothers me more that they’re not turning any more of a percentage to development, exploration or technology. Then I could see the benefit,” said Ron George, who ironically is considering riding his bike from Suttons Bay to his gas station management job in Traverse City.
“They’re taking these profits and giving out more dividends. I just read a report that their actions are marking the beginning of the end. Instead of furthering their production, they’re producing less and less each year.
“Most other businesses, with that kind of windfall, would invest it in the industry. They’d try to grow their factories or make their factory more efficient. But that’s not what Exxon is doing.”




How to stretch your gas dollar in one easy move (Hint: It involves your right foot)
As gas prices soar, you need to employ the most effective gas-saving tools known to man.
That would be your brain. Forget the adrenaline rush of punching the accelerator, speeding to the next light, and then applying your brakes at the very last minute. Think instead of driving steady as a banker and knowing the joy of keeping hard-earned cash in your wallet.
This calls for driving with greater awareness. The new Oliva Newton John “mellow” approach involves sloooowly accelerating when the light turns green and driving at an even speed. When you spot the next red light or stop sign ahead, lift your foot off the gas and coast to your stop. Another tip. Take advantage of gravity and let it pull you down a hill, and then enjoy the free ride once you level out.
Adopting a smoother driving style is the single most important thing you can do to gain up to a 35% increase in fuel mileage, according to a road test conducted by Edmunds.com road.
That’s because punching the gas not only revs the engine faster, it also pumps more fuel into the engine.
The Edmunds.com road testers said that putting on your air conditioning only at high speeds and keeping tires inflated at proper levels helps gas mileage, but not that much.
Other gas-savings ideas will take a little planning on your part. Call a friend and share rides to sports events, work, and parties. Also, list all your errands and doctor appointments and schedule them geographically. Make a menu for the week so that you go grocery shopping only once a week, instead of several times.

More tips:
Drive the speed limit.
Take all but the necessary stuff out of the trunk. Your engine sucks gas in order to move the extra weight.
Last tip, and admittedly the most controversial. Make like a hybrid car, and turn off your engine at a stoplight. No doubt, you have heard that it burns more gas to start up a car. The Canadian Office of Energy Efficiency says it’s studied this argument, and the breakpoint is a mere 10 seconds. If you don’t believe the Canadian office, do your own road test for a week.
There’s always the option of dumping your gas guzzler now before prices climb higher. Lots of folks have opted for a bike or scooter during the summer or are investigating the purchase of a smaller car. If that’s the way you’re going, the top gas sipping choices (in order of highest economy and lowest emissions) are the 2008 Toyota Prius hybrid, a 2005 VW Jetta (1.9-liter “TDI” diesel engine), the 2008 Smart Fortwo (three cylinder engine), and the 2008 Ford Focus SES coupe with a four-cylinder engine, according to an Edmunds.com test and article by Philip Reed and Dan Edmunds, “Gas-Sipper Smackdown!”