As fuel prices reach and exceed $4 a gallon, American drivers are resorting to some pretty drastic measures to find relief at the pump. In Southern California drivers are crossing the border in search of cheaper fuel and in Minnesota many drivers are filling their tanks with a gasoline/E85 blend, even if their cars’ aren’t meant to burn ethanol.
According to NBC’s affiliate in San Diego, California, many of the state’s southern residents are venturing into Mexico to find cheaper fuel prices. At a Pemex fuel station just across the border, regular fuel costs only $2.75. At that same station, diesel sells for $2.10 a gallon — more than half the cost in the U.S.
“Well, it’s $100 to fill this up in Point Loma where I live and it’s about $70 bucks to fill it up here,” said one driver. “If you come late at night, when there’s no line — where you may have to wait only 20 minutes — then it’s worth it.”
Mechanics say there is no discernible difference between U.S. and Mexican gas.
Halfway across the country in the heart of the Midwest, several Minnesota residents are filling up their old cars with a blend of E85 and gasoline. In fact, the trend has become so popular that some gas stations have added “blender pumps” which mix about a 1 to 1 ratio of E85 and gasoline.
Residents began using the blend due to the lower price of E85 and to help end their addiction on foreign oil. However, the blend technically violates Environmental Protection Agency regulations as it compromises a car’s emissions systems. In addition, burning E85 in a non-flex-fuel vehicles voids the manufacturers’ warranty and can cause serious damage to a vehicle’s fuel system.
“The carmakers may be worried about it, but I’m not,” 77-year old Wally Lutz told the Star Tribune. “And every gallon of ethanol just makes me feel good that it’s not a gallon of imported oil.”
05/30, 2:01 PM
posted by:
NoNameDenton1
Ok, but we still have it far easier then other countries.
05/30, 2:01 PM
posted by:
HemiRoadRunner
My car is a hybrid, it burns gas and rubber.
05/30, 2:01 PM
posted by:
A4
screw the EPA
05/30, 2:05 PM
posted by:
HemiRoadRunner
No chimichanga’s for you!!!
05/30, 2:05 PM
posted by:
jumpoffit
can i go to the liquor store and buy some alcohol to put in my car as well? but i wonder, can you smuggle mexican gas over the border? or would they consider that explosive material?
05/30, 2:10 PM
posted by:
frylock350
My Suburban eats nothing but E85. And yes ethanol can be hell on old fuel systems, especially carburetors. Even the E10 (regular is 10% ethanol) can damage a carb.
05/30, 2:26 PM
posted by:
NoNameDenton1
Because they drill their own oil and nationalized the fields decades back and took them away from American companies.
05/30, 2:26 PM
posted by:
hateful83
Kinda funny how the gas is mexico is so much cheaper isn’t it? I wonder why that is?
05/30, 2:41 PM
posted by:
johnnycanuck
Meanwhile here in Canada we’re all driving across the line to get US gas. And Beer. And beef jerky. And TVs. And Jack in the Box. And more beer.
05/30, 2:42 PM
posted by:
NoNameDenton1
Why would Canadians want US beer?
05/30, 2:51 PM
posted by:
mayer_ray_nagin
Simple why it’s cheaper. Mexico has refineries, sensible rules, and low gas taxes.
Cal limits refineries, places all sorts of additive burdens on gas to appease envirowhacks, and taxes the crap out of everything. Then, in typical modern californifreak fashion, they complain about their prices. Cal is the nation’s idiocracy.
05/30, 2:56 PM
posted by:
johnnycanuck
NoNameDenton1: with the dollar at par I can get roughly 18 US beer for the same price as a 6 pack here. Very important when you’re endurance drinking during summer vacation.
05/30, 3:03 PM
posted by:
frylock350
Yeah beer isn’t cheap in Canada.
lol “endurance drinking”. You make it sound like an Olympic Event.
05/30, 3:03 PM
posted by:
mayer_ray_nagin
Johnny, don’t forget to load up on smokes for your friends. For every few packs you can sell them at a profit, you can get a case of beer, making that endurance drinking free courtesy of Revenue Canada.
05/30, 4:09 PM
posted by:
johnnycanuck
frylock350: you mean it isn’t?
05/30, 4:17 PM
posted by:
NoNameDenton1
Thanks johnny, I dd not know that, I only ever heard of American teenagers who live in the north crossing the border to get beer in Canada.
05/30, 6:48 PM
posted by:
NoNameDenton1
I know Canada has a lower drinking age, it was not my point.
05/30, 6:49 PM
posted by:
Bimmer
NoNameDenton1,
that might be due to lower drinkin’ age (19 in Canada vs. 21 in US).
05/30, 7:09 PM
posted by:
Need4SSpeed
Haha exactly what the minors in the Detroit Area did, just hop across the Ambassador bridge or go through the Detroit-Windsor tunnel and instantly you go from being a minor to of age in Canada. Used to go to Canada with my friends a couple weekends a month to go and drink and party at the clubs in Windsor, Also that was back when the dollar went further for Americans. Now that’s reversed sucks for those 19, 20 year old Americans…
05/30, 7:44 PM
posted by:
stick2clutch
WE NEED TO START DRILLING STOP OUR DEPENDENCY!!!
Hey guys, We need to start drill for ourselves. We don’t need any other country to do it for us and pay them the ridiculous price we’re paying today.
*
LET THE U.S. GOVENMENT KNOW YOU WANT THEM TO START DRILLING – Go to http://www.americansolutions.com/drillnow and petition.
05/31, 9:22 AM
posted by:
Buhbye
Take your BMW to Bavaria and fill it up. Top off the ole Honda in Japan!
05/31, 10:22 AM
posted by:
DeansterTJ
“The carmakers may be worried about it, but I’m not,” 77-year old Wally Lutz told the Star Tribune. “And every gallon of ethanol just makes me feel good that it’s not a gallon of imported oil.”
Someone give this wrinkled bag of **** a cookie for outsmarting us all!!
05/31, 11:46 AM
posted by:
jamesfabin
I’m still surprised to see what some people will do to save a little money. Why would a person drive out of their way and wait in line for 20 minutes to save $30? I value my time, just the 20 minutes itself waiting is worth the small savings. To me it is almost the same as the people waiting in line for the gas station which is 2 cents per gallon cheaper – saving perhaps $3 total for waiting in line and being inconvenienced. For those looking to save money, I feel they can do better by driving more efficiently, insuring only to drive when needed (combing trips, walking to Blockbuster to get movies instead of driving, etc.) and by maintaining their vehicle properly (not carrying extra weight, tires inflated properly, etc.). Through personal experience I can get nearly 20 mpg out of my SUV, which under my preferred style of driving I average 16.1 – so if I decide I need to save, I can by simply adjusting my driving style and get nearly a 25% increase in fuel economy. If I go directly to the gym after work on my drive home instead of going later in the evening after I’ve been home, I’d save even more.
Gas typically doesn’t come down in cost so the best solution to save is to modify out habits – which may include purchasing a smaller or more fuel efficient vehicle. Yes it was disappointing to watch $4.37 a gallon gas get pumped into my car yesterday (California here), but I like my SUV and my driving style and will deal with it.
05/31, 1:57 PM
posted by:
beantownslut
For people close to the border, it’s the only smart thing to do.
I can afford gas, but not everybody can. Blame it on those nutballs with Hummers and Monster Trucks and Escalades.
@jumpoffit
I think you just found yourself a business plan. Bet you could find plenty of people willing to pay you $3 a gallon.
@NameDenton
Beer is for the unwashed.Civilized people drink wine and cosmos
@mayer_ray_nagin
California can’t decide whether it wants to be New York or Oregon. At least it’s not Kansas or Alabama.
@jamesfabin
My SUV is better than your SUV. I make less than $60 an hour, so it might be worth it to me
05/31, 2:40 PM
posted by:
global_lightning
Clearly none of you have ever been to Mexico City. To recreate the feeling, take a teargas canister, seal yourself in greenhouse, and let it rip. And that’s on a good day. Everytime I get back to the U.S. I feel like I’ve just smoked 100 packs of Camels.
05/31, 5:47 PM
posted by:
NoNameDenton1
Guess I must be unwashed, because I hate wine, I like beer and whiskey mainly.
05/31, 11:39 PM
posted by:
Supermann1
Stupid Wally Putz, GM could do better without a dumbass like him at the helm.
06/01, 9:01 PM
posted by:
NoNameDenton1
Bob Lutz has done a good job, some people may not like every decision he has made, but because of him we have the new Malibu and such which is helping GM.