Heavy Fuel
In Tuesday’s post about me getting a commuter sportster, our good man Rivrdog left a comment about how I should buy a diesel fueled vehicle and that it could double as my SHTF vehicle as well.
Besides the overwhelming “NO!” that immediately enveloped my head after reading that suggestion, a number of other thoughts on diesel fuel went through my mind. And here they are:
The Washington State Legislature, which is Democrat controlled and bending themselves over backwards (and everyone else forwards) to the enviro-wacko lobby, recently passed Senate Bill 6508 which mandates that as of January 1st, 2008, every gallon of diesel fuel sold in this state will be at least 5% bio-diesel.
Let that sink in for a second.
Currently, the cheapest gallon of diesel I can find is running at $2.82 a gallon. I filled my truck up with premium unleaded for $2.55 per gallon on my way home this morning.
Washington State is run by idiots who seem to always forget that everything its citizens need is transported by truck and that those trucks run on diesel, and that when they put huge taxes and extra regulations on diesel fuel, it costs the citzens more to buy what they need.
But they’re Democrats, so go figure.
But diesel engines usually get better mileage than gas, right? Well, no, not really. Or maybe just barely. It really depends on the engine and the sheet metal it is pushing.
And here is the rub about the bio-diesel law: Even with 20 months before this law goes into effect, there will not be enough refineries built to cook up enough bio-diesel to meet the demand and it will therefore sell for a premium price, making the average price of diesel rocket upwards, probably close to the $4 a gallon mark. And I will lay down money betting that the cost of diesel on Jan 1, 2008 will be a minimum of $.25 higher than on Dec 31, 2007.
Then you have the fact that most engines are not set up to run on ANY bio-diesel content. I can think of five engine models that will crap out in under 10000 miles with the 5% mix.
Bio-diesel, though it apparently makes flowers smile, is a nasty concoction that will clog standard diesel fuel filters, fuel lines and fuel injectors and 90% of the diesel vehicles currently on the road need to be converted to make the fuel work. My company is being forced by the City of Seattle and King County to switch the entire fleet over to bio-diesel by the end of the year. We have had to hire on extra help in the maintainence shop in order to get the trucks converted in time (we have over 100 of them here). And no, they’re not subsidizing the conversion. 100% of it is coming out my company’s pocket. I guess I can only be thankful that the county isn’t charging a special tax to pay for it, because my company is trying to use it as an excuse to hold off on raises.
So, if you’re in Washington and have a pre-2000 diesel vehicle, you might want to think of converting it before January 1st, 2008 (at a cost of approx. $800). But your smarter thought would be to just sell the thing and switch back to gas. For those who don’t, I hope you don’t mind paying a yearly tax of $195 in the form a fuel system flush/parts replacement which, if you’re lucky is all you’ll need to do to keep your diesel vehicle working here.
Now, as to the article linked above, it is titled “Stellar Session for Environment”. That should be a clue as to how much this legislative session sucked. And I’m not just talking attitudinally. Next up, State Representative Janea Homquist (RINO), said the following ignorant statement,
This is a step in the right direction in breaking our addiction to foreign and domestic oil.
So now we are supposed to be weaning ourselves off of DOMESTIC oil as well? Like I said, RINO.
The main reason I’m red hot and smoking over this issue is that the enviros wanted a 20% bio-diesel content requirement. They got 75% of what they wanted this year, so what exactly do you think they’re going to try for next year? That’s right an additional 5% on top of the five they got this year. And the year after that they’re going to try to double that so that by 2010, they’ll have their 20% and no one will be able to afford diesel, let alone keep their vehicles running without a full-on conversion.
Whose riding public transportation? Diesel owners. If they can’t persuade the populace onto the bus, they overprice your fuel to the point where you have to go on their “Peace Train”.
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As for the thought of having a diesel SHTF vehicle, I covered that in one of my first By Ourselves, For Ourselves series of posts. Let’s just say that I can’t see it as a good idea, and here is why:
First off, every tractor trailer vehicle in the area effected will be un-assing the zone and they will have trailers full of cargo that they can barter for fuel with. I don’t care how much cash you have on hand (or even precious metals), a guy with ten pallets of Mac & Cheese is going to get fuel before you.
Same thing goes for when the military hits the zone. They are going to have priority over you in getting fueled up and their rigs run on diesel.
Yes, if you are a hoarder, diesel is easier to store and isn’t as flammable as petrol, but in my opinion, it just isn’t worth the hassle. If you’re going to do something, you’re gonna do it right. So store your petrol right.
