Ruh-Roh -- Danger Ahead...
Thursday, 1 October 2015 11:27![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dr_phil_physicsGas prices have been wandering around in the mid two dollar range for weeks. Strangely, there was quite a stretch in the beginning of the semester when the Kalamazoo stations were running all the way down to $1.99.9/gal for regular, even while Allendale was running at $2.24.9.
I believe I remember that gas on Tuesday was $2.41.9/gal. Wednesday it was $2.38.9/gal. But I got the tank filled at the Shell in Wayland on the way home last night. And that's when I noted something odd.
For years, the differential between grades (regular-midgrade-premium) was about 10¢/gal. Then it crept up to 15¢/gal. With the freefall in gas prices to way under three bucks a gallon, they finally pushed the differential to 20¢/gal/grade.
Yesterday the Shell was selling midgrade -- what the 1996 Blazer prefers -- for $2.68.9/gal. But regular was $2.39.9/gal. That's a differential of 29¢/gal. And the differential to premium was even more. Yikes.
We'll have to see how this shakes out. For a while, even after everyone else had gone to 20¢, Shell in Wayland had still been running at 15¢/gal differential. And I see today that Allendale has jumped up regular to $2.58.9/gal this morning. So... maybe it was just the first parts of the pricejacking.
Or maybe Shell had decided to recoup some of the billions they just lost by deciding to close down their off-shore Arctic drilling in Alaska. (evil-grin)
Would be really sad to be talking about missing the "good old days" when the differential was "only" 20¢/gal. Oh how soon we forget. How soon we get used to the new normals...
Dr. Phil
I believe I remember that gas on Tuesday was $2.41.9/gal. Wednesday it was $2.38.9/gal. But I got the tank filled at the Shell in Wayland on the way home last night. And that's when I noted something odd.
For years, the differential between grades (regular-midgrade-premium) was about 10¢/gal. Then it crept up to 15¢/gal. With the freefall in gas prices to way under three bucks a gallon, they finally pushed the differential to 20¢/gal/grade.
Yesterday the Shell was selling midgrade -- what the 1996 Blazer prefers -- for $2.68.9/gal. But regular was $2.39.9/gal. That's a differential of 29¢/gal. And the differential to premium was even more. Yikes.
We'll have to see how this shakes out. For a while, even after everyone else had gone to 20¢, Shell in Wayland had still been running at 15¢/gal differential. And I see today that Allendale has jumped up regular to $2.58.9/gal this morning. So... maybe it was just the first parts of the pricejacking.
Or maybe Shell had decided to recoup some of the billions they just lost by deciding to close down their off-shore Arctic drilling in Alaska. (evil-grin)
Would be really sad to be talking about missing the "good old days" when the differential was "only" 20¢/gal. Oh how soon we forget. How soon we get used to the new normals...
Dr. Phil
Posted on Dreamwidth Crossposted on LiveJournal
