We don't have a gasoline problem, we have an addiction problem.

[roofeditor]

Originally Posted by AK_Gandy

Nope.

Sold them both a few years ago.

I did a little calculating recently and based on current diesel prices my 18 month search in lowering my handicap and seeing the country would have cost around $24K............................in just fuel!!

Seems my timing was impeccable.

F-250 and Excursion long gone!!! Boat that would cost only $3,000 to fill up long long long gone also. Lately I take the harley at 40 mpg to work visits. Most people actually respect the 40 mpg and like the look of the bike. Plus it's fun!

[drcampbell]

Originally Posted by Greasy_Dually

... this was purely a matter of vehicle size that saved us. ...

Bigger is safer? Not necessarily:
YouTube - Fifth Gear Crash-test Volvo 940 estate vs Renault Modus

[roofeditor]

Originally Posted by drcampbell

Bigger is safer? Not necessarily:
YouTube - Fifth Gear Crash-test Volvo 940 estate vs Renault Modus

Height is a major factor

[drcampbell]

Yes, it increases the likelihood of a rollover.

[clamgulch]

Yes is does. But does it increase it enough to be a concern? I'll tell you straight up, if you and I happened to meet in a head on collision with me in my jacked up 8000 pound Excursion and you in your Isuzu, I can predict with great confidence who will be killed and who won't be.

However, even as high up as my Excursion is, when I slid through a herd of buffalo a couple years ago, I had no problem realizing that if I hit one, it was still going to come through the windshield.

[drcampbell]

A minority of motor vehicle collisions involving injuries are head-on collisions.
I don't have a lof concern about rolling my vehicle over, but try the fishhook maneuver (as if avoiding a buffalo) at the speed you normally drive and let us know what happens.

(p.s: when we do stuff like that here at the proving ground, we're required to install outriggers)

[checkthisout]

So....is their some kind of patch I can wear to help curb my oil cravings?

Or perhaps an institution that will get me off the stuff in 10 days with a couple of two day follow-ups?

Eat your heart out Mack! We can prosecute speculators under international drug-trafficking laws.

We can pull over tanker truck drivers and throw them in Jail with "Intent to distribute" but of course little people like myself would be let off with a warning since the quanity in my tank is small enough that it's just for my "personal use". Guys with refueling tanks in their bed might suffer more harrassment though...."Officer!! I was just picking some up for a friend, it aint mine"

Of course Gasoline is just a gateway....pretty soon you have a populations that's addicted to food...then the worst of all.....oxygen. Oxygen in small doses for medical use such as keeping tissues alive is ok but in large quanities it can make you feel light-headed and Euphoric......and have you seen the results when you put gasoline and oxygen together and free-base them.......

[AK_Gandy]

That post is actually pretty clever.

[Texrob1]

Originally Posted by checkthisout

So....is their some kind of patch I can wear to help curb my oil cravings?

Or perhaps an institution that will get me off the stuff in 10 days with a couple of two day follow-ups?

Eat your heart out Mack! We can prosecute speculators under international drug-trafficking laws.

We can pull over tanker truck drivers and throw them in Jail with "Intent to distribute" but of course little people like myself would be let off with a warning since the quanity in my tank is small enough that it's just for my "personal use". Guys with refueling tanks in their bed might suffer more harrassment though...."Officer!! I was just picking some up for a friend, it aint mine"

Of course Gasoline is just a gateway....pretty soon you have a populations that's addicted to food...then the worst of all.....oxygen. Oxygen in small doses for medical use such as keeping tissues alive is ok but in large quanities it can make you feel light-headed and Euphoric......and have you seen the results when you put gasoline and oxygen together and free-base them.......

This is the Funniest post I have read in awhile,Good Job.

[clamgulch]

Here ya go- turn your turds into diesel-
BioPetrol Website

[Greasy_Dually]

It isn't a matter of what a person "can afford." It's the fact that a finite resource is being depleted. I could easily "afford" 2 miles per gallon but, I wouldn't be doing my children and grandchildren justice by ignoring the fact that they will be the ones paying the price for my selfishness.

My comment did not imply that you should just drive a gas guzzler because you "can afford it", it was a reasonable explaination of why I chose an f350 over a "Brinks truck". Why do you take my comments to absurd conclusions?

Saying that this hurts my kids makes no sense. According to mentality of that article it is not a "problem" it is a good thing that fuel prices are going up forcing us to move to alternative energy. And the article asserts that we need to get away from oil. So my use of fuel if anything mearly helps that process along. Todays vehicles run cleaner than ever and I can breath just fine where I live. Every few years the EPA ups that ante on what they expect emissions wise, so I fully expect clean air in the future. If you mean global warming, don't get me started.

Hybrids are here. Plug in diesel hybrids are almost here. Electric cars are coming back in 2010. BMW has a hydrogen engine car, Honda has a hydrogen fuel cell, the future is here! Just be patient and let it happen. Neither of our grandkids is gonna care how much of the 100 year supply of oil sitting under the US that we dipped into.

As far as selfishness- once again guilt over just doing what you need to do to get along. Im a selfish addict for wanting to crap my pants a little less when someone comes toward me in my lane and forces me onto the shoulder to try and pass a big rig.

That's the beauty of being an American. You have the freedom of doing what you want

Not if Al Gore has his way. Not if people continue to think we should judge others for thier decisions, and decide for them what they need.

Because you don't really have a "need" for 16 mpg vehicle.

You have a "want".

[Greasy_Dually]

drcampbell

Interesting video, but I am not in the market for a sedan. Guess I could strap the pressure washer to the roof. Picture this: Two trucks, a toyota tacoma and an f350 dually (the f250 I wrecked was a srw), both loaded with 700 pounds in the bed. If I had to do a quick manuver at 70mph I would take the f350 hands down. Much Stiffer frame and suspension. Much wider track. With the tacoma some of the machines weight would have to be behind the axle, not so with the F350. We get these awful Santa Ana winds out here. I don't even feel em. In my toyota the whole thing would bounce side to side. When the f250 flipped, my wife made it about 30 feet thru the field and had it under control until we went nose first into a wash, that's what flipped us not the height.

I drive my wifes car a around town all the time and am fine in it, we take itout of town on the frewway it's no big deal. Nice thing about freeway accidents you are going the same direction as the person you hit. But if i am gonna take my equipment up 395 a two lane highway 5 hours each way 2 to 3 times a month, I am gonna use a large trauck, not a small one at the maximum of it's ability. I have been forced into the shoulder twice, since the accident two years ago. There are tons of hills and idiots will just pass illegally not even knowing what's on the other side of the hill.

So long as I can continue to afford it I will stick with a crew cab dually. If I suddenly lose alot of my clients up north I would consider a srw single cab.

Hey we all have our reasons for our choices, so long as they don't outlaw our ability to chose, we all can drive whatever suits us. Someday when they make an electric powered full size, I might buy it. But until then I'm happy with what I got, and not feeling guilty about being an "addict".

Speaking of SUV flipping over Woman Flips Car On Gate*Video

[eagleeye]

Originally Posted by checkthisout

So....is their some kind of patch I can wear to help curb my oil cravings?

Or perhaps an institution that will get me off the stuff in 10 days with a couple of two day follow-ups?

Eat your heart out Mack! We can prosecute speculators under international drug-trafficking laws.

We can pull over tanker truck drivers and throw them in Jail with "Intent to distribute" but of course little people like myself would be let off with a warning since the quanity in my tank is small enough that it's just for my "personal use". Guys with refueling tanks in their bed might suffer more harrassment though...."Officer!! I was just picking some up for a friend, it aint mine"

Of course Gasoline is just a gateway....pretty soon you have a populations that's addicted to food...then the worst of all.....oxygen. Oxygen in small doses for medical use such as keeping tissues alive is ok but in large quanities it can make you feel light-headed and Euphoric......and have you seen the results when you put gasoline and oxygen together and free-base them.......

I think you missed your calling in life.

[THEBUNDO]

Originally Posted by MackE7

Op-Ed Columnist - 9/11 and 4/11 - Op-Ed - NYTimes.com

I think he has this right.

While a few things he says have merit, the solution of many on the left will leave the country in ruin and broke before a solution can be arrived at. The solution must have multiple prongs, including a Manhattan-project or Apollo type commitment to alternatives, as well as drilling for more oil to fill the gap and not be held hostage to oil. Nuclear plant construction must start to feed the needs of electric vehicles in the future, etc. It's a huge task, and neither tunnel vision, nor dogmatism, by either side, will be the answer.

[drcampbell]

Originally Posted by Greasy_Dually

Interesting video, but I am not in the market for a sedan. ...

Had I found a video of a head-on collision between a Toyota Tacoma and a Ford F350, I certainly would have presented that, but I couldn't.

The larger point is, bigger and heavier does not necessarily mean safer. The car in the video with 33% more mass did a much worse job of protecting the driver.