high gas prices and hiking

[captain]

25?

I'm suprised by the outback only getting 25mpg...my Element gets just under 30 on the highway...it won't stop me from hiking, but I will think twice about going solo...

 

[Mark_151]

Re: 25?

I'm suprised by the outback only getting 25mpg...my Element gets just under 30 on the highway...it won't stop me from hiking, but I will think twice about going solo...

I've been wondering about the mileage. Don't the AWD Subaru wagons come with either a 4 or a 6? Interested in the difference in mileage between the two.

 

[SherpaKroto]

I have the 4 cyl (1998) Outback wagon and it gets 25.5 highway on a RT to the Whites from north of Boston. I was also surprised that it did not get better mileage. The 2004 4 cyl wagon is listed as 21/28 mpg (which is in line with mine).

On the other hand, it starts unfailingly at any temperature and gets me further up many roads (Redington) than a car would.

 

[jfb]

I also have a Subaru, a 1993 Legacy wagon with 4 cylinder engine and it gets around 25 mpg. For cruising on the interstates, I prefer my 1992 Audi 100 with a V-6 that also gets about 25 mpg. I guess mpg might be more related to a car's weight than just the engine size. My old 4 cylinder VW GTI got about 34 mpg, but it was more at home cruising on backroads than on interstates.

 

[summit1]

My current Subaru (2004 Impreza Outback) and my previous Subaru(also Impreza Outback) get about 25-26 mpg. The older one was a 5 speed and this one is an auto. This seems to be the norm for a Subaru. My driving style is usuallyfast , constantly slowing down at all the known speed trap spots. I think the fairly poor gas milage (for a 4 banger) is due to the fact that the awd is setup to run 80-20 or 50-50 under no slip conditions depending on the drivetrain, meaning 80% power to the front wheels-20% to the back. Not all AWD vehicles run this way. Every car and every driver differ. The Honda Element runs in 2wd mode at all times, unless it starts to slip. This has its benefits, but also has its downfalls. Sorry for the rambling..I'm kind of a performance nut as well as a hiking nut.

 

[MadRiver]

It used to take my Jeep a tank and a half to go the 235 miles door to door. Since switching to a Mazda Protégé for the past six years, it only takes a half a tank to do the same commute from CT to NH. As long as I am going north anyway, the added miles tacked on for hiking becomes negligible.

 

[Blue]

I'm a Subaru driver too. I just got my mom's Forester (1999), and
I'm selling my 1998 Legacy Wagon (auto, air, new brakes). I've heard the Forester gets less mpg, so we'll see.


Though I won't stay home more, I'm more likely to end up hiking the 100 mile Wilderness or part of the LT for vacation rather than go out to Wyoming or Washington state.

 

[Jim lombard]

I see politics is rearing it's ugly head here again

Gas prices won't keep me from my trek to the mountains.

 

[sli74]

Though I won't stay home more, I'm more likely to end up hiking the 100 mile Wilderness or part of the LT for vacation rather than go out to Wyoming or Washington state.

Hey Liza dear, are you trying to tell me our Colorado adventure is a no go . . . don't go pulling a Sean


Jim,
We usually tend to do a pretty good job keeping the politics out of VFTT and when we don't the moderators do their "clean up"

sli74

 

[CatskillsYeti]

Maybe this should have been a poll, but I haven't let gas prices hold me back. I'm fortunate. My kids (twin sons) are practically middle-aged (36), my wife and I both do ok salary-wise, so the added expense is not the issue for me that it might be for some, in terms of direct economic impact.

But more than gas prices, I have concerns about the fumes and rubber dust I put into the air when I drive the average 3 hours door-to-trailhead (Catskills) and the 3 hours return. My next car (probably this fall) will be a hybrid. Won't do anything about the rubber dust, but it should cut down on the other pollutants.

 

[Stan]

No, gas prices haven't changed my travel plan ... but I did fix that gas leak on my SUV. I don't expect gas prices to come down dramatically, as economies over the world improve and reserves either dwindle or become more expensive to extract it can only go one way until alternative fuels and transportation take hold.

As for the SUV, with three cars with an average 150,000 miles I figure I'm still ahead of the curve.

 

[Blue]

Seema, I would NEVER pull a Sean.

I think Jim was referring to my old signature, which was from a strange newspaper article about a dry cleaner who put "I'm sorry our president is an idiot, we didn't vote for him" in French in all the shirts he laundered.

sorry it might have offended..

 

[snowshoe]

I wont let gas prices effect me although I never travel far anyway It really does not matter to me even though I have no money. Hey I figure I will be in debt the rest of my life as long as I make those monthly payments I am OK. If I get in a real jam I will just live in the woods.

 

[bandana4me]

gas prices effect hiking ?????????

Well, seeings how it is a massive 12 mile drive to Franconia Notch and 23 to Crawford Notch, I would say NO gas prices won't effect my hiking.

 

[DeadFred]

I know were getting off topic and into politics...but don't forget these facts:

The reason gas prices are higher than we like is due to a fixed refining capacity in this country. It has much less to do with ppb (price per barrel) OPEC charges.

The fuel-giant monopoly refuses to build any more refineries (hasn't been a new one in almost 20 years) because they know they can keep supplies tight with a fixed (low) refining capacity while demand is high so they can in turn keep their profit margins high. This isn't capitalism or a free-market industry! It's a monopoly that the anti-trust lawyers in our government are unwilling to break up.

Moreover, the oil companies quash the governments pursuit of alt-energy R and D. And without government help, the private sector cannot make inroads in the alt-energy sector. Thus reinforcing our dependence on fossil fuels and ensuring a tidy profit for the oil giants and their friends in government.

I now step down off the sopabox...

BTW, like most here, I don't let prices hold me back from driving to the mountains. I do try to minimize my impact by driving a VW with higher mpg. I've found that biking 200 miles to get to the ADK's every other week is a little out of the question.

 

[maineguy]

"The reason gas prices are higher than we like is due to a fixed refining capacity in this country. It has much less to do with ppb (price per barrel) OPEC charges."

It has a lot to do with the TAX per gallon. The average TAX today on a gallon of gas is more than the TOTAL price of a gallon of gas 30 years ago.

 

[afka_bob]

The average TAX today on a gallon of gas is more than the TOTAL price of a gallon of gas 30 years ago.

Not sure what your point is; are you trying to show that gas is cheap compared with real estate's rise over the last 30 years?

 

[DeadFred]

maineguy,

You're right about taxes being higher, I really didn't want to go further than I did into the politics of it. But proportionally, it's is about the same as it has always been, figuring in inflation and other factors. (The pump price-including taxes-is actually cheaper today if indexed for inflation, than it was back during the oil crisis of the 70's.)

Plus, as you suggest, the states have identified this as another cash cow. States like NY charge higher gas taxes to solve state budget shortfalls.

In the end, supply would be greater and prices lower, if they would increase refining capacity. Not to mention that this would protect us better from the OPEC price fluctuations. But then, why would a monopolist industry want to increase supply to lower prices if they are already making a killing?

 

[maineguy]

"Not sure what your point is; are you trying to show that gas is cheap compared with real estate's rise over the last 30 years? "

You're right, gas is cheap, what was I thinking of? What are people talking about? Gas is a real steal.

Of course, if you pay NH real estate taxes, then you think everything is cheap by comparison.

 

[Mark Driscoll]

Fred,

There are many reasons why there are no new refineries, one is the cost and one is where would they put it. People will complain about the high price but would not let one be built in their back yard. If one was going to be built outside of a populated area people like us would complain about the harm to nature. So they make their money off the high price.

Mark