I would like to know fuel prices around USA

[atikovi]

I got two first gen Honda Insights I bought the beginning of the year thinking gas will go back near $5. I haven't even TRIDED to sell them yet. Maybe next year.

[steve_biegler]

Originally Posted by XDCX

Costco sells so much gas that they often have tankers refill their stores more than once a day. A regular gas station, by contrast, may only get a new truckload of gasoline once a week or once every other week.

Costco makes a killing when wholesale prices drop because they can widen the spread between their prices and the competition which keeps their customers loyal to Costco and keeps them renewing their membership. (Side note - Almost 100% of Costco's profits are derived from Membership Fees.)

The big get bigger and the small go away! Not sure thats all good.

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by steve_biegler

The big get bigger and the small go away! Not sure thats all good.

I'd be inclined to agree.

It wouldn't surprise me if Costco bought their gasoline at a lower price from their wholesaler making it impossible for a neighboring gas station to compete on price. It's not a level playing field but at the end of the day most customers don't care and will simply buy from the cheapest station.

It's no different than Walmart - one of the main reasons Walmart can sell products cheaper is because they buy their products cheaper. Many a small retailer has had to close their doors because they couldn't compete against Walmart.

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by atikovi

I got two first gen Honda Insights I bought the beginning of the year thinking gas will go back near $5. I haven't even TRIDED to sell them yet. Maybe next year.

I'm sure you're not the only car dealer who took a gamble on increasing gas prices that now has vehicles in inventory that are tough to sell.

While I'm no expert I've been following gas prices via this thread for the past several years and there seems to be a definite seasonal pattern - prices drop to their lowest level near Christmas and reach their highest level near the Fourth of July.

While I want gas prices to remain low I'm guessing that you'll get your chance to retail you Honda Insights before next summer.

[DealerEx]

just returned to central Texas from fly fishing in Colorado...prices from low of $2.99 to mostly $3.05-3.14 in the Waco area, rising to $3.19-3.29 heading west on I-20, then north on Hwy 84 toward Lubbock. In Lubbock prices from $2.99 to 3.15 up through Amarillo. Once into northeastern New Mexico, prices jumped to $3.53 on into southeastern Colorado and all the way across Colorado on Hwy. 160 to Southfork in southwestern CO, to the high mark of $3.65 in Creede. On return the low mark was $2.95in Lubbock.

[lsx only]

3.18 in bama

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by DealerEx

just returned to central Texas from fly fishing in Colorado...prices from low of $2.99 to mostly $3.05-3.14 in the Waco area, rising to $3.19-3.29 heading west on I-20, then north on Hwy 84 toward Lubbock. In Lubbock prices from $2.99 to 3.15 up through Amarillo. Once into northeastern New Mexico, prices jumped to $3.53 on into southeastern Colorado and all the way across Colorado on Hwy. 160 to Southfork in southwestern CO, to the high mark of $3.65 in Creede. On return the low mark was $2.95in Lubbock.

That sounds like a nice road trip - I hope you had a great time and caught some fish.

Concerning the price of gas, that's quite a spread. From a low of $2.95 to a high of $3.53. Someone (the oil company, the transporter, the gas station owner, or perhaps a state with higher gas tax) must be making some money on that spread.

Did you notice any difference in the octane ratings on your road trip? As a West Coast guy I'm always used to 87 octane being the lowest grade available but I noticed it was mid-grade in Utah. The lowest octane rating in Utah was 85 and you had to pay 10 - 15 cents more for 87 octane.

My truck seemed to run OK on the 85 octane gas so I bought the cheap stuff while I was making my across Utah.

[DealerEx]

Originally Posted by XDCX

That sounds like a nice road trip - I hope you had a great time and caught some fish.

Concerning the price of gas, that's quite a spread. From a low of $2.95 to a high of $3.53. Someone (the oil company, the transporter, the gas station owner, or perhaps a state with higher gas tax) must be making some money on that spread.

Did you notice any difference in the octane ratings on your road trip? As a West Coast guy I'm always used to 87 octane being the lowest grade available but I noticed it was mid-grade in Utah. The lowest octane rating in Utah was 85 and you had to pay 10 - 15 cents more for 87 octane.

My truck seemed to run OK on the 85 octane gas so I bought the cheap stuff while I was making my across Utah.

Seems like there is probably some state tax involved because of the immediate large increase as soon as I crossed the state line into New Mexico, and the consistency of the pricing from that point on across Colorado. The price stayed within a few cents of the $3.53 mark over several hundred miles with one exception in Walsenberg, CO, the price dropped to $3.39, then jumped right back to $3.53 the rest of the way. Understandably, the price increases the further off the main routes you go...there's only one paved road from Southfork (which is on the main southern east/west route, Hwy 160) thru Creede to Lake City, so it costs more to transport the fuel into the remote, sparsely populated areas. In Creede it was $3.65 and 40 miles farther in Lake City, it was $3.89. Lack of competition also in those areas...only one gas station in Creede, and two in Lake City...if you don't sell very much of something, you have to make more margin on it. And yes, on the octane ratings: the standard grade in NM & CO was 85 vs. 87 here in central TX.

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by DealerEx

And yes, on the octane ratings: the standard grade in NM & CO was 85 vs. 87 here in central TX.

Thanks for the update.

Concerning the difference in octane ratings based on the region, I'm guessing there must be some logical reason for the difference but I've never heard what it is?

One of the cool things I've always liked about Lake Havasu is there are so many high performance boats that like to run up/down the river that many gas stations sell race gas at the pump. It's not uncommon to see 100+ octane available at the pump with the price listed on the station's signage with all of the other octane grades.

[mr4t60e]

I was under the impression that it had something to do with the elevation where the gas was sold. Higher elevations tend to require less octane with lower chance of preignition. I too was a bit concerned to see 85 octane gas in rural Montana last time I drove out to Seattle, but my car didn't seem to mind the lower octane fuel. I did however play it cautious and only took on a half tank of it at a time figuring I'd be driving down the other side of the mountain at some point and didn't want a tank of fuel that would cause me problems later on.

Originally Posted by XDCX

Thanks for the update.

Concerning the difference in octane ratings based on the region, I'm guessing there must be some logical reason for the difference but I've never heard what it is?

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by mr4t60e

I was under the impression that it had something to do with the elevation where the gas was sold. Higher elevations tend to require less octane with lower chance of preignition.

Thanks for the explanation - that actually makes a lot of sense to me.

In the same way that super-charging and turbo-charging require higher octane fuel to prevent pre-ignition, it makes sense that there would be less risk of pre-ignition on a normally aspirated engine that was running at a higher altitude.

Essentially, thinner air and a less dense charge (which is what you get as you gain altitude) is the exact opposite of forced induction so the octane requirements would be lower too.

I feel a little bit smarter right now.....

[XDCX]

I just checked my GasBuddy app and noticed that the two Costco locations I use most often are reporting lower prices - $3.09 for Seattle and $2.99 for Phoenix.

I read last week that gas prices are currently at a two year low - I wonder how long it will last?

[79LilRedExpress]

A new Pilot Station just opened along I70 and priced their gas at $2.99.

The other stations, after seeing very little business, matched the price

[chryslersrt8]

Bought gas this morning for $2.95/gallon!

[steve_biegler]

2.99 here in NE South Dakota. Traveled to Omaha last weekend and saw it as low as 2.72 at Sams club and most of the stations were at 2.77.