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OK, it's the same email, and of course it won't work, but it's a symptom of growing fuel price unrest. The only fuel protests that have ever worked were the farmers and the truckers blockades, so that's the quarter I'm watching. I expect go-slows on trunk roads and motorways some time in the next few months - they're not allowed to blockade any more.
The point has been made above that everyone should drive fuel efficient cars. I think that's Gordon Brown and Alistair Darling's big problem at the moment, a lot of people are already doing that. Back in the '70s people drove Cortinas that did under 30mpg, now they drive Mundaneos that do over 40 and smaller cars that do in the 50s. This has caused a bit of a revenue hole and since they can no longer close it with rampant pseudo-green fuel price increases like the Tories did they're desperate to bring in road pricing as a replacement.
I wonder at what fuel price we'll see a shift from the extreme gas-guzzlers. Forget 30mpg Cortinas, I'm talking sub 20mpg monster 4wds. In my part of the world you can't move for them, everything from shiny crewcab pickups to Porsche Cayennes, and all driven at crazy speeds for their limited handling on twisty roads. Right now they're a status symbol and their owners think they're rich because they've confused a huge debt on their house with huge wealth but I have to wonder, at what fuel price will they become a liability to own?
Since I am guessing £1.10 a litre is only the start and I expect to be paying £1.50 a litre before my 2001 car is 10 years old, I'm guessing I won't have to wait long to find out.
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"Jeremy Clarkson, a man we motor enthusiasts need on our side like Lewis Hamilton's F1 car needs a towing ball and a Sprite Musketeer" My motor
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carmad
Posted a lot
Posts: 2,000
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we also live in a lazy way of life
if you use 5L of fuel to get 1L of milk something is wrong
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harris66
Part of things
drive it, break it, fix it and make it quicker!
Posts: 699
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ive started my own protest and bought a push bike to go to work, tax me know mr chancellor!!
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1.2 corsa daily, 1.8t a4 avante, 6.3ltr austin a40....
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No, for countless reasons that have been mentioned countless times on countless car forums on the internet.
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Corsa Apology Champion 2014.
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harris66
Part of things
drive it, break it, fix it and make it quicker!
Posts: 699
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the only real way to get fuel prices down is to unsettle the goverment, and short of a revolution that aint gonna happen, even the fuel protests of 2000 only really had short term effects, as was said previous, get use to it guys.................
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1.2 corsa daily, 1.8t a4 avante, 6.3ltr austin a40....
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107.9p a litre is fuggin' expensive when you have to drive 30-40 miles (£12+ there and back) to get anywhere.
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For the record, Philip Holdsworth offered this 'good idea' around 4 years ago, in AMERICA, where they don't have fuel duty.
The document has been reworked to suit our current fuel predicament.
Where the fcuk do ppl think Tesco and Sainsbury's get their fuel from anyway, they don't have their own refinaries, they just buy it from the big three without all the facy additives in it!
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I quite like Jeremy Clarksons take on petrol prices. Water. Probably the most abundant liquid. Falls from the sky for christ sake. Dribbles down mountain sides. Filtered. Wanged into a bottle. Sold for £1.18 per litre. Petrol. Has to be dug up, filtered, PITA to transport due to being flamable, PITA to store, taxed to gosh darnage. Only £1.10 per litre. Love it! ;D ;D ;D
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Hirst
Posted a lot
This avatar is inaccurate, I've never shaved that closely
Posts: 3,930
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This is going to be an unpopular opinion, but if you don't like the price of fuel, don't buy so much of it! I do above average mileage and probably spend about £1000 a year on fuel, the vast majority getting to and from work. Even on my fairly low wage, I've never considered it that big an issue.
I feel for people who have no choice in the matter (living out in the sticks, haulage companies, etc.) and accept the knock-on effects that increased fuel prices bring, but I have zero sympathy for people who moan because it costs them a fortune to drive on the motorway to Ikea/garden centres/shopping centres nearly every weekend (i.e. my folks).
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I see your point, Hirst. My way of tackling this is to earn enough money so that I don't need to care what the fuel prices are! ;D ...I'm a long way of that still...
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Petrol is a living expense.
Most people spend the majority of their income on living expenses. Rent, household bills, insurance for the house, the car, and all your other stuff..
Why is petrol any different? People don't complain HALF so much about paying the electricity bill, and that can be a very scary bill.
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bxer
Part of things
Posts: 457
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It isn't a small increase.. Oil prices have gone up by a third in the last 5 years or so, and yet the price of petrol here remains much more constant than say, it is in the US. As oil prices go up, the tax goes down. The economy cannot take higher fuel prices, so the government essentially controls the price to the consumer. If they didn't tax the fuel, they would have to tax something else. Either higher VAT, or higher income tax. And chain letters are BLOODY ANNOYING, and downright stupid. I have never seen one that is worth the bandwidth it takes up. So I thought, until a mate at work sent me thisApologies for being way o/t, that's why I've linked to it instead of clogging up things here, but it's good for a laff... ;D
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Only our diesel is much dearer than Europe. Last couple of comparison things I saw we were about average for fuel prices. Yup, its tax, like 90% of the cost of fuel is tax now. But we are very unlikely to move to a situatuion where we undercut the tax charged in the rest of europe. Even though we don't have the currency we are stil part of the economic zone.
Fuel prices suck, but we get an awful lot of benefits (no pun intended) for our taxes we pay that a lot of countries don't...
We also pay less tax in total than a lot of our European partners and some of the Scandanavian non-Eurozone countries too.
The farmers and the truckers got concessions paid to them in the form of HGV licence reductions and farm subsidies not fuel duty reduction. If they strike again it will be about the same result...
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1937 Austin Street Rod - 1941 Wolseley Not Rod - 1956 Humber Hawk - 1957 Daimler Conquest - 1966 Buick LeSabre - 1968 Plymouth Sport Fury - 1968 Ford Galaxie - 1969 Ford Country Squire - 1969 Mercury Marquis - 1970 Morris Minor - 1970 Buick Skylark - 1970 Ford Galaxie - 1971 Ford Galaxie - 1976 Continental Mark IV - 1976 Ford Capri - 1976 Rover V8 - 1994 Ford Fiesta
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Well put AK. Hey, if things are that bad for people here, perhaps they should move to Norway where EVERYTHING is expensive! (Gorgeous place though, we'll be going back!)
The rising price of oil is hurting everyone but as it's my hobby as well as my main method of transport, I'll keep driving. The Merc might be getting less use mind...
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1986 Citroen 2CV Dolly Other things. Check out my Blog for the latest! www.hubnut.org
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Wagers are also higher in the UK though, aren't they? When I lived in Portugal a few years ago, petrol was fairly cheap (I forget how much), road tax was a a nomonal fee, but my boss was on £12k a year.
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Hirst
Posted a lot
This avatar is inaccurate, I've never shaved that closely
Posts: 3,930
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Does that mean if I move to Portugal I get to be a boss?! SIGN ME UP!
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dunno what the fuss is about ?can't afford it don't drive ...same applies to beer, fags, hols, etc ...all luxuaries
I don't own a 3 litre plus chelsea tractor or owe thousands of pounds in car finance.
but do own a 200 quid cavalier in good nick, that i have had for 3 years with little or no mot work required.
which cost me (at the mo) £20 a week to use
so tax ins mot and running costs put my annual cost of owning a car around £1500
this suits me
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harris66
Part of things
drive it, break it, fix it and make it quicker!
Posts: 699
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the fuss is about the amount fuel is taxed isnt it?? it bugs me to pay 110 a litre in my skyline that returns 12mpg, but thats my choice so i do it, as for clarksons quote, if he bought 50litres of water every week I'm sure he wouldnt have the same opinion on it!
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1.2 corsa daily, 1.8t a4 avante, 6.3ltr austin a40....
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My Saxo diesel will transport four people 60 miles in reasonable comfort for around a fiver in fuel costs. To me, that's still incredibly good value.
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1992 Justy 1992 L300 Delica
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The reduction in HGV road tax only works out to about £500 a year reduction (without going and checking) I use about £200 worth of diesel a day!
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1987 Maestro 1.6 HL perkins diesel conversion 1986 Audi 100 Avant 1800cc on LPG 1979 Allegro Series 2 special 4 door 1500cc with vynil roof. IN BITS. HERITAGE ISSUES.
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