Oh these gas prices. . . .

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locoqueso
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Post by locoqueso » Mon Jun 02, 2008 5:12 pm

Over the weekend I saw a documentary called "A Crude Awakening: The Oil Crash". Some may not like the doomsday presentation style, but I found it was an interesting (and depressing) look at the inevitable depletion of this resource. I think the sad part is the vast majority of the world doesn't care about anyone/anything but themselves and will do nothing to change their ways and the people in power will continue to take advantage of that.
1978 VW Campmobile (P-21) Westfalia - T2 2.0L F.I.- 151,000m
1982 Mercedes-Benz Estate Wagon (300TD-T) - S123 3.0L T.D. - 142,000m
1993 Dodge Maxi Van (190 SLF) InterVec Falcon - B350 Magnum 5.9L F.I. - 70,000m

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chitwnvw
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Post by chitwnvw » Mon Jun 02, 2008 6:59 pm

There's a lot of good that can come of us (the US) changing our ways and living more in our (the world's) means. There's going to be some growing pains along the way, there's a lot of sprawl, and people aren't going to want to give up all that they think they deserve. But if not driving my vintage bus is what I have to give up, then so be it. I will remember the memories kindly, and move on.

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Hippie
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Post by Hippie » Mon Jun 02, 2008 7:35 pm

Amskeptic wrote:
Hippie wrote:
vdubyah73 wrote:Peak oil is a marketing scam on a grand scale!
Bill
=D>
IS this what you were applauding, Hippie?
Yepper.
Speculators are much of the price problem right now. Over-speculation ruins economies every single time. We will certainly run out of oil, but I don't worry about too much of anything anymore.
I read. I vote. I drive a 4 cylinder. I try to stay out of excess debt. That's about all I can do, and worrying won't help.
Besides, I have a really cool bicycle.


Rob

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chitwnvw
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Post by chitwnvw » Mon Jun 02, 2008 8:20 pm

Hippie wrote: I read. I vote. I drive a 4 cylinder. I try to stay out of excess debt. That's about all I can do, and worrying won't help.
Besides, I have a really cool bicycle.


Rob
Very sound, Hippie. I am trying to move in that direction. So that the only driving I do is in my bus on vacation, a few times a year. Just biking to work has cut my gas bill by 2/3!

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Hippie
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Post by Hippie » Tue Jun 03, 2008 4:52 am

chitwnvw wrote:Very sound, Hippie. I am trying to move in that direction. So that the only driving I do is in my bus on vacation, a few times a year. Just biking to work has cut my gas bill by 2/3!
Thank you. I wish I lived in biking distance for work/school commute, but I still try to plan my trips better...which is the positive side of all this, I guess...Lots of the Hummers-class-vehicles being traded in and people planning trips better.
Colin, you will not be using up any gas while parked at the Wooded Wonderland next weekend. It's best for the environment that you stop by. :cheers:


Rob

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glasseye
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Post by glasseye » Tue Jun 03, 2008 6:33 am

and people aren't going to want to give up all that they think they deserve. But if not driving my vintage bus is what I have to give up, then so be it. I will remember the memories kindly, and move on.
I think the sad part is the vast majority of the world doesn't care about anyone/anything but themselves
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spiffy
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Post by spiffy » Tue Jun 03, 2008 7:34 am

Ridership on all forms of public transportation have shot up 30% here in the past two weeks. The bite is being felt, not sure if it will change habits permanently though.
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Post by vdubyah73 » Tue Jun 03, 2008 7:43 am

I just put gas in my Bus and drive it, when I need more, I put it in. Albeit, with a grimace when it can cost $50 to fill it. I still throw $20 in the Buggy, well $25 nowadays, and burn it in an afternoon. I figure I can help hasten the depletion of oil and save the planet that way. It could help hasten world peace if you think about it. Lets run the Mid East out of oil then they can pound sand. There is plenty of oil left for a long time. It's just that the easy to drill and find stuff is getting more difficult to find. Didn't Brazil just find a huge deposit of oil, rivaling some of the biggest deposits ever. Don't forget all that shale oil up north, soon it will be cost effective to refine that.
Face it, oil is the axle grease of the planet. The world economy is oil based. There is nothing to be done about it, when oil becomes truly scarce the technology will be there to convert to some other sources, whatever they may turn out to be. In the meantime the NIMBY types should stop trying to prevent people from putting wind generators and solar panels on their property, that would make a huge difference by itself.


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chitwnvw
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Post by chitwnvw » Tue Jun 03, 2008 7:49 am

vdubyah73 wrote:when oil becomes truly scarce the technology will be there to convert to some other sources
Bill
And expensive gas will make more attractive, more economically feasible to develop alternate ways of getting around.

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bretski
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Post by bretski » Tue Jun 03, 2008 8:07 am

spiffy wrote:The bite is being felt, not sure if it will change habits permanently though.
It's changed mine. I've driven about 40 miles in the last 3 weeks...95% of that was to go look at a beetle. Everything else has been on the bicycle.

And you know what? I'm a happier person. Been taking different routes to places, just to see what's there. Enjoyed the wide-eyed looks of my clients when I show up to an appointment via pedal-power. Sure, I get a couple of bugs in my teeth, helmet-hair, and the occasional @$$-hole with penis issues driving a big truck, but the physical and psychological benefits far outweigh it. I've even gotten my wife riding her bike most of the time (good ole peer pressure).

We'll see how it goes when winter comes along, but I'm gonna do my best. It's not like the heat in the bus is any good... :cherry:
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satchmo
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Post by satchmo » Tue Jun 03, 2008 10:14 am

bretski wrote:
spiffy wrote:The bite is being felt, not sure if it will change habits permanently though.
It's changed mine. I've driven about 40 miles in the last 3 weeks...95% of that was to go look at a beetle. Everything else has been on the bicycle.

And you know what? I'm a happier person. Been taking different routes to places, just to see what's there. Enjoyed the wide-eyed looks of my clients when I show up to an appointment via pedal-power. Sure, I get a couple of bugs in my teeth, helmet-hair, and the occasional @$$-hole with penis issues driving a big truck, but the physical and psychological benefits far outweigh it. I've even gotten my wife riding her bike most of the time (good ole peer pressure).

We'll see how it goes when winter comes along, but I'm gonna do my best. It's not like the heat in the bus is any good... :cherry:
I'm with you. I now ride my bike to one of the places I work, 25 miles each way, twice a week. Another place I have to go to is 50 miles away, so I drive my Toyota Corolla unless I have to carry a lot of gear. I have my bike on the car or in the bus just in case there is a short trip that needs to be taken. On weekends, I spend a lot of time planning my engine-powered trips so they are more efficient, especially because I live 8 miles out of town.

I'm still waiting for the weather to get warmer here (48 degrees on the commute this morning), so I am not thinking about what I will do when the snow begins to fly. Maybe get some studded tires for the bike?

Tim
By three methods we may learn wisdom:
First, by reflection, which is noblest;
second, by immitation, which is easiest;
and third, by experience, which is bitterest. -Confucius

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Hippie
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Post by Hippie » Tue Jun 03, 2008 12:09 pm

Even if you just ride in the summer it'll cut expenses by a lot.
I see (have seen) a lot people making little trips in cars. You know the kind...they pull into the driveway and shut it off and they are out the door and in the car again in twenty minutes. A lot can be saved by making loop trips when you have to go somewhere anyway. Plan ahead.
And get the cities to time the traffic lights. (That's a sore spot with me)

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Amskeptic
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Post by Amskeptic » Tue Jun 03, 2008 5:30 pm

For the first leg of this itinerary, I had my rear tires at 47 psi and the fronts at 42 psi (they are passenger tires with max inflation of 36) due to an extremely errant air pump at the Hess in Brockport NY, I also had the carbs at lean drop-off and the central idling circuit at "no change" when I pull the "reference" vacuum hose off, and tried to keep my speeds right around 65 mph. My fuel mileage with the above was 22 mpg. But now I am Chicago with roads that are too rough for insane tire pressures, so they are down to 32/37, the carbs have been riched up a tad and we'll see what the drop in fuel mileage is at the next gas stop.
Colin
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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Hippie
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Post by Hippie » Tue Jun 03, 2008 6:45 pm

Amskeptic wrote:... I also had the carbs at lean drop-off and the central idling circuit at "no change" when I pull the "reference" vacuum hose off, ...Colin
2 questions?
1. If it's at lean drop off, how come the idle doesn't change when you introduce the vacuum leak with the reference hose?

2. Won't that make the heads run borderline-scary hot?

3. VWBusrepairman is right...numbered lists rock.


Rob

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Amskeptic
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Post by Amskeptic » Tue Jun 03, 2008 6:57 pm

Hippie wrote:
Amskeptic wrote:... I also had the carbs at lean drop-off and the central idling circuit at "no change" when I pull the "reference" vacuum hose off, ...Colin
2 questions?
1. If it's at lean drop off, how come the idle doesn't change when you introduce the vacuum leak with the reference hose?

2. Won't that make the heads run borderline-scary hot?

3. VWBusrepairman is right...numbered lists rock.


Rob
I measure and adjust the carburetor idle mixtures with the central idling circuit shut off (and the retard hose off). So the idle circuits in each of the dual carbs are at the ragged edge of not being able to sustain the airflow passing through.
Then I plug in the central cutoff solenoid wire and blip the throttle, reattach the retard hose and now my central mixture is adjusted for no change in rpm when air is introduced, that means it is a tad "rich" but only through the central circuit, when it joins the dual carb air flow at the manifolds, it is all perfectly at the edge.

These 1700 heads were designed to have oxidation occurring at the exhaust valve outlets with that oem air injection system, they have known heat that I will never match.
Colin
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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