More Than 20 SUVS and Trucks Now Cost $100 to Fill up
By Jeff Bartlett, Consumer Reports
Note: Consumer Reports has no relationship with any advertiser on MSN.
As gasoline prices continue to climb, the cliché "pain at the pump" is being thrown around with great frequency. But, how much pain is it really? Inspired by anecdotal complaints of drivers boasting of wallet-denting fill-ups, we crunched the data to see what the most expensive tanks are to fill, and we found more than 20 vehicles go beyond the $100 mark.
No surprise: The most expensive vehicles to fill up have massive tanks, and the tally is typically made worse by a need for diesel fuel or premium gasoline. Almost all the vehicles in this exclusive club are large SUVs and pickup trucks.
Generally, these vehicles tend to offer rather modest to poor fuel economy, making matters worse. Not one returned 20 mpg or more overall in our tests. However, most offer tremendous theoretical range, based on their performance in our highway fuel economy tests. Often the city fuel economy is about half that highway figure, so as always, your mileage may vary.
To run these numbers, we started with almost 300 vehicles in our current test ratings, then multiplied the fuel capacity against the current nationwide average fuel costs, according to the Energy Information Administration. The results put 23 models over the $100 threshold.
Just behind this group is about 10 midsized SUVs and a luxury car poised to cross the $100 mark should prices go up a dime per gallon.
There is no question that Americans are feeling pain. With the average age of most cars hovering around nine-years old, most motorists bought their current ride based on different assumptions. Namely, that gas would be about half the price it is today, and they likely shaped their life around these assumptions, such as distance to work and other frequent destinations. But now, armed with this trivia, you will know which drivers are being hit with the greatest fill-up bills.
Prices will continue to rise until Memorial day (look for $5 a gallon plus) and remain high through most of the summer, maybe a fifty cent drop. Then they will ease the prices back down to about $4.00 a gallon and guess what.... we will be happy to have it at that price.
If you aren't going to make the necessary changes in your life to ease your suffering at the pump then get used to shelling out a big fat percentage of your paycheck for fuel.
I don't mind people doing that, it just annoys me to hear them complain about it at the pump.
I like the way you wrote that. I get very irritated when I read about people who, for some reason, believe they have the right to tell other people what they should drive. If someone wants to drive a big gas guzzling truck as a status symbol, they should be allowed to. However, if that person makes that choice, they forfeit the right to complain about the fuel mileage of that vehicle.
I think listing the cost to fill up is misleading.
It's not misleading because it was never meant to lead you anywhere.
This article was not written as a comparison guide for the most or least efficient vehicles on the road. It was written to show witch vehicles would cost the most to fill up assuming they have empty tanks.
Considering I paid about $94 to fill up a tank the other day, I found the article very interesting and relevant.
Another reason fuel is $7 or more in Europe is taxation, however Europeans actually get something for their tax money. We get potholes for ours.
You should not complain: California looks like Switzerland in comparison to the rest of the United States, so you must be getting more than just potholes for your tax money.Also, the tax we pay here is ridiculously small compared to what they pay over there. We would have the same kind of high standard of living if we paid those kinds of taxes.
And assuming you are correct, whose fault is it, that we do not get what we paid for? And why does it go on? And who allows it to go on?
However, if the price of gas continues to rise I expect more pickup owners will do the same as you. I am not sure at what point that will happen. $7/gal? 8?
It's already happening now, even though the results might not be clearly visible.
Truck sales are down (as are all auto sales compared to pre-recession years). However commercial truck sales are not suffering nearly as much as personal use truck sales. Because of this, most truck manufactures are working on improvements that cater to commercial and professional buyers. This differs from recent years when most truck improvements were designed to cater to casual truck owners (mostly based on comfort and luxury).
So the trend you are looking for has already started. The faster the fuel prices go up, the sooner you might actually notice a difference on the roads.
Though I can't help but notice that some heavy 1/2 ton trucks are in this list now, like the Ram 1500, the Silverado 1500, the F-150, the Tahoe, the Tundra, etc. Is the Suburban LT3 the 3/4 ton (2500) model or the heavy 1/2 ton (1500) model? The heavy 1/2 ton is definitely where I see what I call "Cowboy Cadillacs" (people not using them to haul anything but instead as a luxury status symbol). I don't mind people doing that, it just annoys me to hear them complain about it at the pump.
EXPLORE NEW CARS
MORE ON MSN AUTOS
ABOUT EXHAUST NOTES
Cars are cool, and here at MSN Autos we love everything about them, but we also know they're more than simply speed and style: a car is an essential tool, a much-needed accessory to help you get through your day-to-day life. What you drive is also one of the most important investments you can make, so we'll help you navigate your way through the car buying and ownership experiences. We strive to be your daily destination for news, notes, tips and tricks from across the automotive world. So whether it's through original content from our world-class journalists or the latest buzz from the far corners of the Web, Exhaust Notes helps you make sense of your automotive world.
Have a story idea? Tip us off at exhaustnotes@live.com.
