Administrator Posted July 23, 2008 Posted July 23, 2008 Is the high price of fuel affecting how far you choose to travel with your motorhome?
Kate1881 Posted July 23, 2008 Posted July 23, 2008 We are being careful at the moment and are only travelling a maximum of 500 miles each time we go out. Nice to see that the cost is coming down, we paid 1.26 per litre at Morrisons in Scunthorpe on tuesday. Quite a saving when you need to fill up.
catinou Posted July 24, 2008 Posted July 24, 2008 We are just careful on watching speeds, using cruise control where possible, but after saving hard and waiting so long for our MH we would rather cut back elsewhere - now I have my buss pass I suppose I could use that to save a few pennies? B-)
jenkothewanderer Posted July 24, 2008 Posted July 24, 2008 My main gripe at the moment is the high differential between petrol and diesel. Before the credit crunch the price difference was approx 4p now its more like 16p. Does anyone know the reason for this. As for cutting back and not using the motorhome, no way !!!!!
Mel B Posted July 24, 2008 Posted July 24, 2008 Err ... Mr Mod, there's something not right with the Poll! I just voted on 'Yes' when it was at 11 'yes' (50%) and 11 'no' (50%) and it's added 1 vote to each so they are now both showing 12 and 50% each!!! It is/will make us more careful - we are (hopefully) going on holiday again towards the end of August to France, had the fuel not been so expensive we would probably venture off into Germany but as it's so costly we'll probably stick to the northern half of France instead. I wouldn't let it stop me going somewhere I really wanted to go but just for a nice tootle about it will make us think twice.
Basil Posted July 25, 2008 Posted July 25, 2008 At the end of the day the situation is not going to get a lot better, so it is a case of either you curtail your enjoyment or you just carry on as normal. Life is too short to curtail anything, so for us it will be carry on regardless of any cost, it will not change our use of anything, you might be dead tomorrow. Also 'High Price' is relative it is only high compared to recent years as a proportion of earnings it is much the same as it was years back it has just become cheaper over the years, relatively. Bas
bootbags Posted July 25, 2008 Posted July 25, 2008 I agree. We have just collected our motorhome and intend to get as much use as possible out of it. If we don't do it now we never will. There are plenty of other things we can cut back on. If we are not at home and visiting supermarkets & large stores but somewhere in the country enjoying what nature has to offer, we will not be spending as much. That is, of course, after we have equipped the van with the basic essentials - it will be a bit hit and miss to start with! We intend to have full use. Why else buy a MH in the 1st place., If we choose to outlay this substantial cost and then feel we cannot afford to run it - why bother. We intend to enjoy every moment and hope to meet lots of interesting people along the way - yes, even some of you who 'post' on here - if we know who you really are! Basil - 2008-07-25 8:15 AM At the end of the day the situation is not going to get a lot better, so it is a case of either you curtail your enjoyment or you just carry on as normal. Life is too short to curtail anything, so for us it will be carry on regardless of any cost, it will not change our use of anything, you might be dead tomorrow. Also 'High Price' is relative it is only high compared to recent years as a proportion of earnings it is much the same as it was years back it has just become cheaper over the years, relatively. Bas
rupert123 Posted July 25, 2008 Posted July 25, 2008 No certainly not, just drive a little slower. Incidently someone mentioned cruise control as means of saving fuel, it will have the opposite effect.
Basil Posted July 25, 2008 Posted July 25, 2008 rupert123 - 2008-07-25 12:44 PM ..... Incidently someone mentioned cruise control as means of saving fuel, it will have the opposite effect. Not in our case it hasn't, our cruise control has infinately better feathering capabilities than my heavy right foot, after the fitting of an aftermarket cruise our mpg has improved to the tune of 15 to 20% not to mention the more relaxing drive, but hey thats off topic. Bas
Usinmyknaus Posted July 25, 2008 Posted July 25, 2008 No. Over 9000 miles since June 07 fuel has been a relatively small part of the overall cost of our M/H. Total spent to date £52,057 of which, purchase and fitting out £44,011, loss of interest on capital £2,186, fuel £1,380, site fees £908 (94 nights), Insurance £739, Servicing £488, Road Tax £365, LPG £71 etc. Diesel represents just 2.65% of the total. When it hits £5 a litre................ Bob
Basil Posted July 25, 2008 Posted July 25, 2008 Usinmyknaus - 2008-07-25 3:20 PM When it hits £5 a litre................ Bob Wot next week you mean!! :-D :-D :-D Bas
kelly58 Posted July 25, 2008 Posted July 25, 2008 Our local Morrisons has dropped diesel to £1.26/9 so things are getting a little better.We use our bus passes for short journeys so that helps a lot its short journeys that use more fuel.Its a pity domestic oil prices cannot drop by 50% at least because a rise from 17.5 p ltr to 65.0p ltr in 4 years really hurts as we use about 3000 ltrs a year " ouch "http://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/images/emoticons/icon_sad.gif
ROON Posted July 25, 2008 Posted July 25, 2008 Kelly, do you have one of those bus passes for the whole oif the UK? I have been onto the council here and they don't know where you get them from *-) so I went onto age concern shop and they couldn't help..... they said try MERSEYRAIL..... local rail service ..... but surely they will only help locally. If you have one, who did you apply to please? Joy
watsoa Posted July 25, 2008 Posted July 25, 2008 We will not be cutting down on our travel but I may just reduce the average speed that we travel at - we are never in any real hurry anyway as there is always somewhere to stop along the way to wherever.
rupert123 Posted July 25, 2008 Posted July 25, 2008 ROON - 2008-07-25 8:18 PM Kelly, do you have one of those bus passes for the whole oif the UK? I have been onto the council here and they don't know where you get them from *-) so I went onto age concern shop and they couldn't help..... they said try MERSEYRAIL..... local rail service ..... but surely they will only help locally. If you have one, who did you apply to please? Joy Joy, mine came from local council. It does not say it is a national pass but seems to work most places except National Express, although have no reason to try this. Where I live, Gwynedd North Wales, the council do a combined bus and rail pass for ten pounds but I believe all councils work in slightly differant ways. If you have a local pass just try it outside your area I did and it has been accepted in many places in the UK.
Minstrel Posted July 25, 2008 Posted July 25, 2008 try www.direct.gov.uk/buspass I'm just applying for mine and my provider is www.devon.gov.uk/nationalbuspass so you could try your county council or local council. I'm looking forward to saving a bit more when we are away in the UK.
kelly58 Posted July 26, 2008 Posted July 26, 2008 Our passes are issued by south holland district council and cover the UK we can travel at anytime not just after 9.30 like most other districts , to obtain one you have to be either disabled or 60 years old or over i got mine on my 60th birthday . This last Tuesday we went to hunstanton for the day changing in kings lynn so we passed from lincolnshire into norfolk no trouble a lovelly day out which cost us nothing. Every little helps..
ROON Posted July 26, 2008 Posted July 26, 2008 Thank you all. I will try again now. I have the local one so will check whether this covers UK and if not then go back to council and see if I get someone more helpful. Thank you. Joy
Bazza454 Posted July 26, 2008 Posted July 26, 2008 ROON - 2008-07-26 9:33 AM Thank you all. I will try again now. I have the local one so will check whether this covers UK and if not then go back to council and see if I get someone more helpful. Thank you. JoyJoy,The ones issued in England can be used with any bus company except National Express, but they cannot be used in Wales or Scotland.
Mick H. Posted July 26, 2008 Posted July 26, 2008 kelly58 - 2008-07-25 7:47 PMOur local Morrisons has dropped diesel to £1.26/9 so things are getting a little better.We use our bus passes for short journeys so that helps a lot its short journeys that use more fuel.Its a pity domestic oil prices cannot drop by 50% at least because a rise from 17.5 p ltr to 65.0p ltr in 4 years really hurts as we use about 3000 ltrs a year " ouch "http://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/images/emoticons/icon_sad.gifWhen you think that somewhere like 80% of fuel price is tax I think that is where the reduction should come. And not by 2p. Mick H.
djchapple Posted July 26, 2008 Posted July 26, 2008 If you use cruise control to drive at similar speeds to those you normally use then it may not help with fuel consumption. However if you use cruise control to limit your speeds to a lower vale then it will help significantly with consumption. I find that without cruise control I end up at a speed of 70+ mph on the motorways as I just let the speed creep up and up as I notice all the cars going by me at speeds of 20 - 40 mph faster. If I set the cruise control to 65 mph so (hopefully) that I am not continually accelerating and decelerating the journey is less fraught and more economical. I also find it useful on those long uncluttered roads with lower speed limits enabling me to drive without worrying about excessive speed.
Basil Posted July 27, 2008 Posted July 27, 2008 I drive at exactly the same speeds and cruise has definately reduced our consumption. Cruise is just more efficient than I am at controlling the throttle and maintaining the set speed continuously i.e no creeping up or down. Bas
Dennis Gibson Posted July 29, 2008 Posted July 29, 2008 OAL Moderator - 2008-07-23 4:07 PM Is the high price of fuel affecting how far you choose to travel with your motorhome? Our motorhmes are not the most economical of vehicles and I think we pay a heavy price for the fuel we use. The price of fuel in this country is outrageous, the price has fallen on the international market, but the oil companies are very slow to reduce prices and then by the smallest amount that they can get away with.
howie Posted July 29, 2008 Posted July 29, 2008 OAL Moderator - 2008-07-23 4:07 PM Is the high price of fuel affecting how far you choose to travel with your motorhome? Yes it has. Normally we would spend our weekends touring and visiting places of interest, but with fuel costs so high we now go direct to our favoured site and park up for the Sat/Sun. Cost of fuel comes in at about £15 and another £15 site fees, so for a total of £30 we can enjoy those two days at a reasonable cost. Touring would add another £10/£20, and though this may not seem excessive does make quite a dent in our pensions/savings. I don't think this would affect our main holidays where costs are built in and expected, but as long as fuel prices remain high, weekends will stay strictly local.
n4lucan Posted July 29, 2008 Posted July 29, 2008 We just drive at a steady 55 mph. Diesel currently E1.37 / litre in Dublin Area.
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