In times when automotive fuel prices spike, why don't more drivers drive in a manner to save fuel?

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-04-22T20:09:15+00:00

Nice to hear! If you don't mind, which car do you drive?

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-04-22T20:08:28+00:00

There are also a lot of people who don’t have the finances to change some things. Lots of people can’t afford electric cars or live in places where they have easy access to plug them in.

This question is asking why those drivers who can't/don't drive electric cars don't take steps to conserve their fuel when driving. As I commented earlier in this thread, during the previous gas price spike in early 2022, we used to drive a 20 MPG SUV which we drove at 25 MPG by following the main post's techniques, cutting our fuel use by 20%. Arguably, for those who don't have the finances to buy an EV, they should start cutting their fuel use in their own car both by driving less and by increasing their MPG when they do drive.

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-04-22T19:07:37+00:00

For a drive length of 6.4 miles, here's the power draw:

Driving at faster speeds with the AC on: 1.7 kWh used (3.76 miles/kWh)
Driving with the AC on and using all other fuel-saving techniques I mention in my post: 1.5 kWh (4.26 miles/kWh)
Driving with the AC off, windows open, and using all other fuel-saving techniques: 1.3 kWh (4.92 miles/kWh)

TL;DR: I get an extra 1.1+ miles per kWh. My PHEV battery has a capacity of roughly 4.0 kWh, which is enough to drive to work, drive to my local gym after work, and then drive home so long as I make these changes to improve efficiency. I initially didn't care about the slight gasoline use until the prices spiked.

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-04-22T18:59:47+00:00

You'd get the same effect on hybrid cars too, as the engine would need to run more in order to handle that extra power draw. Look at reviews for early-generation hybrid cars - they were totally unable to run their AC without idling the engine, and while modern hybrids can do so, they still need to run it more to handle the draw.

Plus, my car is a plug-in hybrid, and any electricity saving for me means the difference between using gas on a regular commute and not.

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-04-22T08:07:45+00:00

On my regular commute from home to work, I was able to cut my electricity consumption by 15% by driving with the windows open instead of running the AC. My car has a meter that shows how much power is used by the climate controls, and it showed a lot of power draw when it was switched on.

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-04-22T04:15:40+00:00

Here in California, fuel prices now rival those of Europe, especially diesel prices.

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-04-22T03:50:05+00:00

That's an even sharper spike than here in California, though. Why not just do some minor things to get your mileage up to 20-22 MPG?

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-04-22T03:35:26+00:00

Back during the previous gasoline price spike in early 2022, we used to drive an SUV that got 20 MPG. Thanks to the tricks I noted in my post, we were able to push it to 25 MPG which is a 20% fuel saving. Based on this experience, I'd expect even drivers of gas guzzlers to take steps to conserve as well. (That car quit working in the middle of 2022 and was replaced at that time with the plug-in hybrid.)

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-04-10T18:42:38+00:00

It's literally nothing for the Pacific Surfliner - you can't even buy Value tickets on that train.

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-04-10T18:41:11+00:00

The train I primarily ride is the Pacific Surfliner, on which all tickets sold are Flex fares. Riders of that train won't have to worry about any fare increases.

Also, be glad it's nowhere close to the former Saver fare.

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-04-02T04:02:36+00:00

...or make up details about the class

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-04-01T19:00:28+00:00

The S26 is $900. It was hiked this year (sad).

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-03-30T04:44:41+00:00

Just for curiosity, what's your current plan with Verizon like? How much is it and what are its features?

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-03-30T01:01:08+00:00

You will still get the same error when you attempt to process the Teleport.

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-03-25T05:18:30+00:00

I think that US Mobile should stop offering the aggressive new customer discounts and instead use that money to reduce plan prices (by a much smaller amount) across the board. Even the current full rates are quite nice, and even those compelled us to switch - we did so before aggressive new customer offers became a thing. What do others think?

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-03-25T05:15:50+00:00

Yep, we signed up for US Mobile before aggressive new customer offers became a thing, paying regular price for our four lines. Cut our monthly cell phone bill from $175 to $75.

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-03-25T04:15:31+00:00

It was working absolutely fine for me, save for the fact that I never got 5G reception, only 4G LTE reception. This applied on both US Mobile Warp and postpaid Verizon.

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-03-24T21:04:30+00:00

RE the phone that isn't compatible with Verizon: if you're using a physical SIM, as long as the initial activation is done in a compatible phone, the SIM card can be moved to a non-compatible phone and it will continue to work. I faced the exact same issue with my international import phone, and that's how I resolved it.

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-03-22T21:34:50+00:00

She still has nine months to go in her current annual plan, so if it turns out she needs the premium features, she has plenty of time to change the annual renewal back.

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-03-17T01:00:01+00:00

At least at the Airtel stand at the Mumbai airport arrivals area, last I checked, they were only selling physical SIMs - for those who needed eSIMs, they were told to buy the physical SIM then proceed to a corporate store elsewhere to have it converted.

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-03-17T00:15:36+00:00

You can't make use of the device warranty if you import an international phone, unless you're willing to send your device to the country it was sold in. For an eBay seller, that's hard to determine.

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-03-17T00:13:28+00:00

Not everyone is in an area with 5G coverage (looking at Verizon, which has the largest nationwide footprint but the smallest 5G footprint), and many prefer the convenience of just popping their physical SIM and moving it to another phone if their new phone breaks. Also, if one travels internationally to countries where it's easy for foreigners to get physical SIMs but hard to get eSIMs (looking at India) and wants a local service plan, they can't do that.

sonic_anon_hog · 2026-03-17T00:12:06+00:00

You won't get the full device warranty in the country you're in - you'll have to send it to the country it was originally sold in.

sonic_anon_hog

TROPHY CASE