DrMike

Well, we have broken the $5 diesel plateau at record speed. With the summer driving season upon us, not to mention a hurricane season that might drive the price skyward at an even higher rate of speed, it's time to ask . . .

For those that don't positively require a diesel, what is you're breaking point?

Diesel is selling in my neck of the woods for $1/gal more than unleaded. The differential between diesel and unleaded has grown almost as rapidly as the cost of the fuel itself.

Can $6/gal or $7/gal diesel be far behind?

My wife and I are driving the truck from Nevada to Dallas in two days. Diesel will cost us over $850 for a trip of about 2800 total miles. Motels and grub for our total of 4 days on the road will run another $600, or so. That's $1450 to get there and back, plus driving a couple hundred miles while we're there. (We're visiting our son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter)

Like most of you, we can afford the expense, but there comes a time when one has to weigh the extra cost of driving these trucks with the benefit derived. That gap is narrowing considereably.

Since I don't have to own a diesel, $5/gal is edging very close to my breaking point - the point I throw my hands in the air, Buy a Honda Ridgeline and say, screw it!!

There are other things to do with one's money besides forking over copious quantities of it for diesel to be pumped into the tank of a truck that gets about 13 mpg in town and maybe 18-20 mpg on the highway running without a load.

So, where is your breaking point - where the cost to benefit ratio can no longer support the price of a gallon of diesel??

rjm022

smartest thing i ever did was start making bio diesel last year with a couple of buddies!! i also heat my home with it!!

06 DIESEL

Since I have a gas daily driver Jeep Cherokee that gets 20 MPG I will just leave my truck parked if fuel gets to the point that I can no longer afford it. I budget quite a bit of money a month for fuel especially since I only put about 300 miles on my truck a month now. But when the money I put aside is not enough I will park it and put the money towards other things.

SjLingenfelter

My breaking point is at $7.00 if it reaches that i will sell my truck get a latter 12v(94-98) for doing all my pulling and get some kind of a honda or jap car for running around. My only problem is im 6'3" its kinda hard to find a car for me to fit in. This is a great subject let try to keep it at the top see what everyone says.

SjLingenfelter

whats the website to get the equipment for the bio diesel? Whats the price difference?

Dieseljunkie

I hit my breaking point when it reached $4 per gallon. I love my truck, but prices are too rediculous. I've had a DD 2wd toyota pickup since about 2005 that gets a consistent 27 mpg. I drive that everywhere unless its winter, then the Dodge comes out, because its 4x4. I drive the Dodge now about once a week just to keep the juices flowing.
Scott

OldDodgeOwner

Well, I don't require a diesel all the time, but comparin it to the gas pickups that I'd buy to replace it, I think I'll just stick with the diesel.

SjLingenfelter

i think owning a diesel that get 20mpg is about the same as owning a gas truck getting 16or so mpg. In my area diesel is 4.59/gal so that equals to $.22 cents a mile. 3.99/gal for gas equals to $.24 cents a mile. So its kinda even with that.

07CTD4X4Sport

At 7/gal I'll have to consider getting rid of the truck. For a econo car.

Tusker

I am about there now. I am looking into dumping my mileage allowance and getting a company car. I'll drive my diesel Samurai around, it gets 35+ mpg. I will keep the truck though for hauling, hunting, etc.

pfbtyson

He's right about a gasser getting 14-16 mpg vs a diesel that gets 18-20, it comes out pretty close but then you have the ability to do it all with the cummins. So it will always have a place in the lineup, but I have a commuter, 86 4 runner, that things runs the roads as much as possible, the truck now sits ALOT. I think I will really hit my breaking point at $5.00. I try now to only make long trips with others to help out with the fuel. There will be fewer hunting trips or just longer stays in one place this year for sure. Instead of selling the diesel I am looking into selling the 4 runner and getting something that gets close to 30 mpg.

kokalit

I ride my old 1989 Yamaha FJ1200 (about 40 mpg) whenever possible which is most of the time.

My truck will remain in the stable. I believe that there are more viable alternatives for diesel fuel than for gasoline. "Biodiesel" is one whether from fresh oil from plants, including algae or reclaimed waste fryer oil. Diesel can and has been made from natural gas and coal (Germany manufactered quite a bit of coal derived diesel in WWII). There are also a couple of experimental processes that have produced a seemingly viable souce of "oil" from animal processing wastes or plastics reclaimed from trash that can be further refined into diesel.

My carefully maintained truck will still be there when these sources become marketed and gasoline finally becomes more expensive than diesel or unavailable. Besides, gasoline has few potential alternatives: methanol or natural gas, that's pretty much it.

bensdad_canada

Afew days ago diesel went up to $1.439/litre here in central Saskatchewn which makes a fill of 125litres about $180.00 canadian,while i cant park the beast(7miles of gravel road to get to the highway)we are not using it as much.I kinda miss the BFG rugged trail tire that were on the truck as with them on the truck got better mileage than it does now with Goodyear Wrangler silent armour but the traction kinda sucked before...

D45

It is right around $4.56 gallon here.

Thankfully, I only fill up once a month so it does not hurt me.........I have a take home vehicle from my "company"

dropped2500

no breaking point here...always wanted a chipped diesel! But it is starting to hurt and i cant go to my second vehicle cause it can only run on premium and it gets close to prolly 10mpg if that! So i may have to go to my third vehicle....LOL