[Peter]

Over the entire 25 years of coach ownership we have seen oil and fuel prices go from very inexpensive ($.63 per gallon of diesel fuel, $8 per gallon of engine oil) to where the prices are today with a large uptick a few years back to over $5 per gallon of diesel fuel.

I’ve said it before and will restate it……..if we look at our total purchases in dollars of fluids, including fuel, lubricants, etc. we may find we will spend as much as $8000 per year more or less depending on the miles driven. Based on my mileage each year every swing in fuel prices of $.50 is $1000 per year, up or down.

Yes it appears lubricants have increased and are not tracking downward with crude oil prices, but a lot of them are synthetics so that might be why. But when expressed in a cost per mile for example my Transynd at $50 per gallon and a 4 year change interval is going to be a penny a mile or so.

The big expense is not tires which at a 6 year life might add up to $1000 per year, or batteries that might add up to half that, but depreciation which eats up money (and value) faster than any other cost of ownership. Even older coaches with minimal depreciation compared to new coaches will still have depreciation as the greatest cost of ownership until the coach value drops below $100,000.

[Peter]

I’ve noticed oil products (oils/grease) never drop with oil price per barrel as fuel does.

[Andy]

i was at wal-mart they have rotella for 12 bucks a gallon and not replacing any oil on the shelves this tells me its comming down . I have a 350 gal oil tank i fill with rotella and im waiting to fill it . Oil distburator told me he is thinking 8 bucks a gallon and diesel under 2 soon

[Andy]

My Two cents here…

Going into our 15 month trip that Bus fuel would be our largest expense…. we were wrong… Camping fees blew the fuel away. I guess in hind sight it makes sense…we payed to camp nearly every night but didn’t burn fuel everyday.

Here was how our expenses stacked up:

Camping fees

Dining out ( for 5)

Tours and Activities

Bus Fuel

Groceries

Souveniers

Towd Fuel

[Archived]

David,

I hope you are right! I know engine oil and other oil-related purchases are low when compared to depreciation (as Jon pointed out) and even fuel, but that isn’t the point. My point was that because tires and engine oil etc. don’t make headline news, the various manufactures keep hold of the extra revenue for longer. It would make an interesting graph, tire and engine oil prices (and diesel) vs crude oil price over the years.

[Chas]

There is not a business man on this forum that will not hold higher prices for as long as possible, even if raw materials are dropping in cost. The usual trigger for lowering prices is a large customer with multiple suppliers that can play one against another and once the first domino tips, they all fall.

In the instance of fuel and oil there are few if any large customers who can force the issue. And those that do are going to see their lower prices in the form of confidential rebates, discounts, or something similar not visible to the entire market.

If I was Love’s unless and until Pilot reduced pricing I would not. If I was Love’s I would be beating the hell out of refiners however to redcuce my costs and holding onto the extra margins as long as possible.

[Chas]

The refining capacity and specifc use of this capacity will have a great deal to do with the prices of gasoline versus, for instance, the price of diesel. Presently, we are exporting finished gasoline to foreign ports. We have gasoline coming out of the seams of the tank storages…… not so for diesel ! The demand / supply relationship is being nore “stringently managed”…shall we say. It would take a huge change in diesel demand and production to follow gasoline’s price track to these lower numbers we are seeing.. the ability to estimate and provide diesel against the expected demand is a much better process than anticipating the driving habits of Amerricans..

In addition, the USA is not setting the international prices for oil as many might be inclined to think… that function clearly remains outside of our capabilities…

With the growth of the Gulf Coast refinery capacities, (which primarily handle “sour crude” being the crude with greater than .42% of sulphur) and considering the tremendous increases in available natural gas and shale oil, it is almost impossible to have a handle on where we are in this developing story… The next 12 months will be very interesting… but please keep in mind that the efforts made will be those to “turn the tide” of lower prices…

Maybe we will see much lower diesel… time will tell…it is a little better to say the least.

Pres

[Peter]

Have a friend (engineer) that works for Exxon/Mobil in one of the largest refineries in Baytown Tx. and he says they are and have been exporting just as much diesel as gasoline and have been for quite a while. I never understood the price difference between gas/diesel because he said the diesel comes off toward the bottom of the Cat cracker and therefore easier to refine. And brother in law still buys Avgas (leaded) at over 100 octane for his Piper Arrow. Wonder what a tank of that would do it yourchainsaw/lawnmower.

[AL]

Spoke to my brother this morning and somehow got on falling fuel prices. Current “rack price”, this is the term used

when your load fills (invoiced) at fuel depot was $2.554. He is selling at $2.99 currently.

He expects it to be in $2.30 rack price during current low demand months soon Mpls-St Paul.