Eva-
Great questions. You can actually get up-to-the-minute gas prices online for points all around the US at http://www.gasbuddy.com/
(It also has prices for Canada).
Miles per gallon will depend on a few variables, including the kind of car you're driving (obviously, SUVs get far fewer MPGs than a car like the Toyota Matrix or a small economy car). But hey, there's a website for that, too! It's http://www.mpgbuddy.com/
Another variable, though, is whether you're driving interstates or secondary roads, and you've already mentioned that you're planning on the latter. In that case, your MPG will be slightly lower than it would be on the interstate.
Finally, there's an online calculator for liters to gallons, which is http://www.nomoreodor.com/liters_to_gallons_conversion.htm
Wow, thanks for these! Man, I should be able to get some pretty precise info now. What DID we do before the internet came along? Haha.
i'm a little surprised that i haven't seen much of anything about alternative fuels on this site, so i'll go ahead and start it. fueling my vehicle used to make me physically ill, partly because oil companies continue to post record profits while more american families slip into poverty, and partly because of the exxon valdez fiasco that ruined so many commercial fisherman. it's been almost twenty years and the case is still pending before the supreme court. i could go on forever about that one, but the point is that i took matters into my own hands. i currently own about the biggest, baddest truck a guy could own, and my carbon footprint is less than a lawnmower. get a diesel engine and convert it to veggie. rudolf diesel invented his engine to power his farm equipment with oil he could press from his crops. he was bent about the cost of gas almost a hundred years ago! it takes a little time and a little up-front cost, but you'll make it up fast, you'll feel great, and you won't have to worry about the cost of a tank of gas again. or at least until the industry gets big enough that the government has to get involved.
DSG- Thanks for this. I loved: " i currently own about the biggest, baddest truck a guy could own, and my carbon footprint is less than a lawnmower."
Couple of questions:
1) What do you do with a regular engine when you take it out to replace it?
2) Eva was asking the fuel questions because of her upcoming US road trip-- do you know of any car rental agencies that rent "green" cars? I noticed that on my recent trip in California that there were some "green" vehicle options, but I was surprised that they didn't seem to be advertised heavily.
On a totally different note, when I was home in December, I learned that my mom has a green lawnmower. I don't remember the name of it, but man, it was cool.
hey Julie. i'm glad i got a response on this one, this has become a huge deal to me recently. in some more progressive communities like Portland, OR, competition for waste vegetable oil is already pretty intense. i should have written "diesel powered vehicle" as opposed to just "engine", like a benz 300D or a jetta TDI. you could swap your engine if you're that attached to the rest of the car, but you'll also have to swap the transmission, alternator, compressor and other components to ensure compatibility($$$). if i did that, i would soften the cost by selling the gasoline engine, either whole or in parts, to a salvage yard or a company like cmengines that remanufactures used engines. mercedes and VW are the best to convert, and there are always old 240D's, golf TDI's, and other candidates for sale. if you want a truck, that's even easier. if you're not feeling mechanical, you can even buy one that's already converted at greasecar.com, frybrid.com, the WVO network, and others. the first time i drove the rig on veggie was such a great feeling, i can't even tell you. the major rental companies are stumbling over each other to introduce their "green collection", which at this point means cars that get over 25 mpg. the large-scale transition to alternative fuels is going to be quite laborious. get out in front if you can. peace- Brad
Thanks, Brad. I don't have a car and have no plan to get one, but if I did, I'd trick it out with veggie capabilities! :) I'm really glad you wrote about this.
Julie
Joined: 08-07-07
Okay, I have no idea how much a gallon is, or how many gallons go into a tank, or how gallons convert to litres, or anything like that. And I'm trying to estimate how much I'll be spending on gas while I'm roadtripping in March - can anyone give me a rough estimate of how much it'll cost to fill an economy-size rental car up in the South these days? (Bonus points if you know roughly how many miles I'm likely to get out of a tank, too...)
I'm lost without kilometers and litres. You crazy Americans and your imperial measurements! :P