Omg ---> Fuel Prices!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[h0ughy (David)]

this is getting way beyond a joke. Between the fuel going up to record levels, then food goes up then freight charges go up then - yes you guessed it - Astro products go up!!!!!

This year alone it will cost around $300 in fuel for me to attend Queensland Astrofest. Its not fair. In 2006 the cost per liter was around a dollar per litre, 2007 it was around a 1.30, now this year it will be around 1.65 per litre.

The impact on our already stretched astrodollars is immense!

only having a whinge..................

[madtuna (Steve)]

I drive a diesil. My fuel bill is over $200 a week.

Odd concidering diesil used to be cheaper option, less refining, basically the scum off the bottom of the barrel

[mark3d]

i read today (crikey.com.au) that in 1998 oil was USD$10 per barrel ... today its USD$138

[Ian Robinson]

Better get your gear before you can't afford it , mind you , way things are going we'll have exchange rate parity with the US dollar before long , and maybe even the $ will be worth more than the US dollar (since the USA is in hock up to it's eyeballs to the oil jockies and the chinese) and they are spending money they don't have on senseless wars like it is going out of fashion.

So for us maybe the oil shock wont be so bad as it will be elsewhere. Worst comes to worst , it will just accelerate coal seam pyrolysis and gasification and coal seam gas to oil developments as these projects will become much more viable , and we've stacks of coal , we've also got stacks of gas.

[Ian Robinson]

Originally Posted by madtuna

I drive a diesil. My fuel bill is over $200 a week.

Odd concidering diesil used to be cheaper option, less refining, basically the scum off the bottom of the barrel

Maybe you should do a deal with the local chippys and take their used cooking oil off them to filter and then run your diesal on it.

$200 per week is a lot of driving BTW.

Way things are goings , if fuel prices keep going the way they are going , there will likely be some people on low incomes and who live in the big cities who might be financially better off on the dole and staying home (and doing minimal driving) than commuting to work everyday.

[CoombellKid]

Boy at a round trip to town and any amenities of 50kms it going to make
rural life a lot harder.

regards,CS

[§AB]

It is pathetic and a disgrace. The prices are increasing at literally exponential rates. It seems the outragous high prices which caused mass anger of yesterday are the accepted norm today. That's how fast they're rising. I remember in 1998 that they were at 30 cents.

Like everything else, what's happening these days is beyond a joke.

[GrahamL]

A friend of my fathers Is paying 10 quid a gallon in the uk I believe
theres worse places to be filling up I guess.

I bike it into town if I need something small these days

[Bobj]

I suppose we are fortunate in that we have the fourth lowest fuel prices in the developed world.
Here is the latest price list, state by state, town by town:
http://www.exploroz.com/OntheRoad/Fu...s/Default.aspx

[Zuts]

Originally Posted by nightstalker

A friend of my fathers Is paying 10 quid a gallon in the uk I believe
theres worse places to be filling up I guess.

I bike it into town if I need something small these days

I just did a search of UK fuel prices, average for unleaded in the UK is 112 pence per litre. On the current exchange rate that is around 2.50AUD.

So we are pretty lucky, but unfortunately may get to UK prices soon

Paul

[xelasnave]

And the Government is still happy to tax the stuff ... I reckon it would make more sense to not tax the means of production and focus the tax gathering at the "profit" end of things.. why not do it this way.

Does a recognition... that the big guys somehow only make a profit if they want to bump the share price and exercise a stock option... prevent the focus of taxing profit.

I am not sure of the taxes but I think it is 40 cents a litre excise and 10% GST.. so we have a tax on a tax..inequitable and cumbersome to profits I suggest.

Still I am OK Jack...I have my gear and although not flash am very happy to have anything at all...until the opperation effects (hernia last week) are over I wont be travelling or viewing I guess.

And the gear is now more affordable ..look at DLSR's ...I paid over 2k for a 300d and look what 1k will now get (or close to that figure)...
When I started the cheapest 16 inch I could source was $6000 and I noted a second hand one here on offer for $1500.. so you gotta look for the upside...
alex

[Ric]

More motorbikes are required, it costs me $27 a fortnight to run my bike and that's riding it everyday.

Cheers

[JethroB76 (Jeff)]

Its all about conditioning the consumer; push the price up outrageously high, then when you drop the price back down to a lower (but higher than before the rise) price everyones happy and you can continue milking your cows, er customers. The supermarkets do it too

[cahullian]

The poms might have really high petrol prices but their cars a half the price we pay for ours here and they don't do a quater of the driving we need to do here in Australia. Sometines I need to travel to Sydney (160 km) and back to visit family or the in-laws, most europeans wouldn't drive that far to go on holiday. We produce most of our own petrol and gas and to be paying $1.65 and 75c for these things is criminal. I sold my car last month and am now getting fit cycling everywhere. Good thing the air for my tyres is free. (but I wonder for how much longer??)

Gazz

[rmcpb (Rob)]

I wonder if one of these could be adapted to pull a small trailer with spare batteries wired in and your astro gear

[JimmyH155]

Let's face it, guys. We are living beyond our means. Demand going up, supply going down 40 years ago I had a mini 848cc. It did 70mph on the motorway and took 4 people. Now we drive those disgraceful gas guzzling 3.8 and 4 litre jobs - not to mention trucks (sorry, 4WD) . The western world has got to realise - as one oil chief said - "Oil is too precious to burn" Back to horses and bikes I say

[GrahamL]

thats a bit cheaper paul ,,I think the old boy may of got his wires crossed .

[ving (David)]

Originally Posted by Ric

More motorbikes are required, it costs me $27 a fortnight to run my bike and that's riding it everyday.

Cheers

fit a family of 4 on a bike...

i drive 100km per day not including weekends. i spend $60-$70 per week on petrol including weekends. getting expensive on my meagre wages. i guess petrol prices have to rise to keep the fat cats happy tho...

[tornado33]

Now airlines are going to fly their planes slower to try and save fuel, as it is fares will probably go up again soon
Foward thinking governments would have us all running round on ultra cheap to run Lithium powered electric cars, that we recharge overnight using cheap Off peak electricity rates, and also save hugely on maintenence costs as all there is is batteries, an electric motor and a simple transmission to maintain.

Seeing car makers wont do it, if I was Rudd Id spend $5 billion of the surplus and build the biggest electric car and lithium battery manufacturing facility on Earth, and supply us, and the world with electric cars, the facility paying for itself in a decade or so.

[Ian Robinson]

Deisal at the local "Independent" at Windale = $1.78 per litre
ULP at the same place $1.58 per litre.

No I didn't buy any .... I was just driving past to get somewhere else and saw the price .... OUCH !!!!

I am glad my Pajero runs on ULP and I don't need to do much drving these days (been 3 weeks since I put any petrol in the tank and I've still nearly half a tank left).

My next 4X4 will have to be dual fuel I think.
Maybe this current oil shock will be enough to the people who have the say to actually start rolling out the hydrogen cycle in order to fuel motor vehicle so we can break from being held to ranson all the time by the big oil companies and the oil jockeys.

Might put on hold the next 4x4 fishing safari I think .... can't afford the fuel.