Tom Tessin asked:


The world hugely relies on natural gas or natural gasoline as a source of energy. It is highly combustible and a much cleaner source of energy compared to fossil fuels found in the deep reservoirs within the earth.

To obtain gasoline, drilling is the only option. Natural gasoline is made up of many hydrocarbons out of which methane is the predominant one. Natural gas in its original state also contains ethane, propane and butane as impurities. Removals of these impurities take place during the refinery process

With fossils fuels depleting at a rapid rate, scientists have diverted their attention towards natural gasoline as a chief source of energy. The usage of gasoline keeps fluctuating with climatic conditions. For instance, the demand increases during winters and goes down during summers.

Importance:

Natural gasoline has the property of burning without leaving any impurities and is a good source of energy. Due to these reasons, the demand of natural gasoline has sky rocketed. To make this natural gasoline available in the market, it is important to have natural gas pipeline facilities.

The number of these pipelines is proportional to the increase in the demand of natural gasoline. More the demand of natural gasoline more is the need of these pipeline facilities. Major petroleum companies have already started to build natural gas pipelines across Europe, North America and other countries.

Pipeline facilities provide the most effective means of transport for natural gasoline. By far, these pipeline facilities are the most convenient and best supply source for natural gasoline. Petroleum companies also transport natural gas through trucks and carriers. The cost of transportation is very high and it is a tedious job. Due to these reasons, this mode of transportation is impractical. Sometimes, such transportation is risky.

Natural gas pipeline facilities provide availability of natural gasoline to those places, where there is no reservoirs of natural gas. The cost of transportation is also negligible. Pipeline facilities are able to hold large volumes of natural gasoline.

Pipeline facilities transport natural gasoline faster to various fuel stations. Pipeline fuel stations transform natural gas effectively. The money spent on such transportation to the pipeline fuel stations is much less. These fuel stations help to facilitate thousands of natural gasoline supplies.

Countries, which have natural gas reservoirs with pipeline facilities, contribute a huge amount of money to their respective nation’s economy. It also helps in decreasing the amount of money spent on foreign import costs of fuels.

These pipeline facilities have made a broad way for the development of pipeline gasoline industry. These pipeline facilities have become a unique and independent industry. For many years, natural gasoline operators have identified the usefulness and functions of these pipeline facilities.

These pipeline facilities have made it possible to use natural gasoline in houses and offices easily for various purposes. The natural gasoline used in homes and offices is pure methane. Hence, you always need to recognize and remember the importance pipeline facilities for providing the community with such cleaner source of energy.



HERSCHEL

Tom Tessin asked:


Did you know you can save money with a gas credit card? Many people equate credit cards to high interest rates and spending unnecessary money. However, if you are responsible then you will be able to save money with a gas credit card. The reason why you can save money is because there are advantages to buying gas with a credit card that shopping with cash does not have. Check out some of the benefits of shopping with a gas credit card.

Benefit #1 Lower Price of Gas

Many gas credit cards will charge you a lower price for gas when you use the card. Therefore, you could expect to save a good deal of money over a year’s period of time simply by shopping with your gas card. Many people are unaware that gas cards offer discounted gas prices, however this is the case with most gas credit cards. Do the research to find the gas credit card that offers the best rates.

Benefit #2 Buy Now, Pay Later

With a gas card you can buy the gas you need when you need it and then pay it off at the end of the month. This will give you more purchasing power throughout the month and then when you pay your balance in full you will save money because you will not be charged any interest. This is really important to keep in mind and it is a definite benefit to buying gas with a gas credit card.

Benefit #3 Earn Points

You can also earn points when you use a gas credit card. Different lenders offer different points programs, but in general you can get some pretty nice deals simply by using your gas card. All you have to do is use your card every time you fill up for gas. Then, in time, you will accrue points that you can use for free items, airline tickets, cash back, and more. Anything you can do to make a little bit off of the high gas prices is certainly worthwhile.

There are of course many other benefits to buying gas with a gas card. These are just a few of them that will help you see that you really can save money on your gas. Of course, in order for you to benefit from a gas card and save money you will need to pay the card off in full each month. As long as you do that you can save money all the while having your car full of gas. Since gas prices continue to rise you need to do all you can to save money on gas. Consider a gas card today to help you get something back for what you spend.

Saving on gas with a gas card is the way to go, just make sure that you do your research and you know what you’re applying for before you fill out that application. If you use your credit card properly, you can really save a lot of money!



TERRENCE

Tom Tessin asked:


Although there are several different alternatives for gasoline reward cards, the best gas cards (rebate) are those, which provide more than one refund at the end of a billing cycle.

Comparison of different gasoline cards offered by various companies will disclose the truth that only a few cards are good. The finest offers are those that possess a complete package, which constitute a generous rewards program, no annual fee, and a reduced interest rate.

Interest Rates:

If a person is paying an extremely high interest rate on a credit card, then it is of no use to maintain that card. The rewards a person may attain will not even validate the money used for paying the interest charges.

The same case holds true for other fees linked with gasoline cards and the annual fees. An individual may acquire substantial gas rewards and a great interest rate, but if that person pays fee after fee then it is absolutely of no use.

Some of the cards, which fall into the rebate card category, are true gas cards, while other cards in this group are cash back cards, which provide an increased percentage of cash back, when a person purchases gas with such cards.

Sometimes the finest gas credit cards are nothing but cash back cards, which offer a liberal refund on gas purchases along with providing an overall flexible reward program. These versions of cards end-up providing greater refunds to cardholders compared to other one-dimensional substitute cards.

Low fees and a reduced interest rate sometimes makes up for an average reward program, but with the variety of gas reward programs available these days, it does not seem sensible for a person to resolve for less impressive gas credit cards.

Earn Highest Rebates With Gasoline Credit Cards:

An individual needs to make it a point to understand the stipulations and terms of the account to achieve finest rewards from gas cards (rebate). If people take time to go carefully through supplementary information, which arrives with new cards in the mail, they will come across situations enabling them to build rewards very fast.

Some credit cards arrive with an introductory bid, which doubles or triples the rebates for a particular number of months. An individual will thus be able to take complete advantage of the available time and in turn may increase the rebates. Other cards offer higher rebates for only specific purchases.

For instance, if people use their gas credit at a gas station for purchasing fuel, they will attain only a five percent rebate. However, if they use their credit cards for paying movie tickets at the theater they will acquire only a one percent rebate.

Thus, if a person understands the situations that will result in highest rebates, then it will be possible to plan properly on how to use gasoline cards and how to get a greater rebate. Make sure that you do the proper research and you spend your money wisely. If you can accomplish this, you shouldn’t have a problem with getting the best out of your rewards.



EARL

Klaus H Hemsath asked:


are full of news about electric cars. The $100,000 Tesla electric sports car is going to be sold soon, automakers are falling over each other to announce new electric vehicles, and entrepreneurs across the world are jockeying for venture capital.

Petroleum prices have jumped during the last year and everybody is feeling the pain at the pump. Not a single soul is concerned about filling up the batteries of his next electric car with electricity. After all, you just plug the car into the next receptacle and there seem to be no appreciable costs.

Joe owns a Corvette, a high performance car manufactured by General Motors, which according to the car manufacturer drives 25 miles per gallon.

Joe’s monthly commute is 1000 miles, he drives very carefully, and actually achieves 25 MPG on his daily trip going to work and running errands. At $4.00 per gallon at the pump he is paying $160 for gasoline every month.

Joe is thinking about buying the Tesla, an electric sports car. He tried to find the cost of electricity for driving this car. He could not find any data anywhere. Joe knows that he must explain to his wife why he needs to save energy and money before buying the Tesla, a new, very fast electric sports car.

The Tesla will accelerate faster than his Corvette. There is no doubt that an electric vehicle can have a faster acceleration than a gasoline car. Electric motors and liquid fuel engines are just two different devices converting electric energy or petroleum fuel energy into mechanical energy. Electric motors can generate much higher torque at the wheels at much lower turning speeds.

In comparison, electric motors will have several shortcomings, too. They certainly will emit more pollutants and more carbon dioxide as long as coal is used for producing electric power. Overall energy efficiency of the electric car, from power plant to the road, is still worse than that of a modern automobile propelled by an advanced combustion engine.

The biggest drawback of electric cars is the small number of miles they can drive after a complete recharge. Additionally, the charging of an empty electric battery will take forever, high performance batteries are expensive, and will only have a limited life expectancy.

What about energy costs for driving an electric car compared to a gasoline powered car? Both vehicles will have to store energy. The electric car stores electric energy in its battery, the combustion engine powered car stores energy in the form of gasoline or diesel fuel in its fuel tank.

Now let us take a comparative look at the cost of storing and paying for enough electric energy or liquid fuel energy to drive 100 miles. Let us assume that both cars will have the same power requirements to drive 100 miles. In this respect the match-up between Tesla and Corvette is perfect. But how do we compare prices at the gas station with utility costs at the receptacle?

Energy contained in gasoline can be converted into mechanical energy only at the limited energy conversion efficiency of a typical heat engine. The Corvette engine will have an energy conversion efficiency of about 35%. (Fuel fired engines may eventually reach 50% peak energy conversion efficiency after decades of future advancements). Conversion efficiency of electric power from the receptacle into stored energy first and into mechanical energy later is much higher at about 85%.

The energy content of gasoline is 131 MJ/gallon (megajoule per gallon). For driving 100 miles the Corvette will burn four gallons of gasoline or 524 MJ/100 miles. Only 35% of the energy in gasoline or 183 MJ will be used to propel the Corvette. This is the mechanical energy transmitted to the rear wheels of the Corvette. Virtually the same amount of energy must be transferred to the wheels of the electric car, the Tesla. Both cars are very similar in size and driving characteristics.

However, the Tesla has to take a little more energy from the receptacle because the charging, storing, and discharging of electricity in the battery experiences energy losses. These losses are about 15% of the electric energy taken from the receptacle and will not be available at the wheels. The Tesla owner will, therefore, pay 1.15 times as much to get the same energy to the wheels as the Corvette or 211 MJ per 100 miles. Electric energy is priced in the form of dollar per kilowatt hour or $/kWh. The average price of electricity in the US is $0.09/kWh. The factor for converting energy measured in MJ to energy measured in kWh is 0.2778 kWh/MJ.

To drive 100 miles, the Tesla will consume 58.6 kWh of electricity at a cost of $5.28. The Corvette will consume 4 gallons of gasoline at a cost of $16. Now we know that the Tesla will save about $10 per 100 miles or $10,000 over 100,000 miles.

The Tesla will cost $100,000. The Corvette is priced from $50,000 to $75,000. Guess who gets the square deal with the roar of the engine as a free bonus.



KEN

Tom Tessin asked:


Gasoline credit cards are the easiest way to make a base of faithful consumers to support the business. With gasoline cards, cardholders receive rebates or discounts, free items after purchasing a pre-determined quantity of gasoline. Gas cards are very different from conventional cards, which were offered by retails stores.

In conventional reward system, you get trivial amount as discount or you need to buy expensive items to avail the discount or to obtain gifts. Such system does not attract customer interests and result in low rates of customer participation.

The reward system of gasoline credit cards automatically records the billing information and it is stored in the consumer reward database. When you obtain cards, you have to make payments using them.

Credit companies then send you the bills each month, which you have to pay dutifully. If you pay the bills on time, you get certain points or cash back as rewards. You can redeem these points to make other purchase or convert it into cash and pay the gasoline bills too.

Therefore, while applying for gasoline credit cards you need to go through the reward system of credit card companies and select the most appropriate one.

Reward System In Detail:

Points system:

Points systems in gas credit cards are same as that of cash back structure. It means, if you spend a dollar, you get one point. Sometimes, companies keep deal days, wherein you get the opportunity to double or triple your points during specific days.

Whenever you spend money, your points are accredited in your account. You can easily check the points online, by accessing your profile or just go through the monthly statements. It usually states how many points you have gathered until date. Later acquire those specific points and log on to online stores to make the purchase.

Most of you think that, stores do not pay attention to the individuals who wish to buy the products using point systems or they give them trash or old stock items. However, this is far from truth. You can easily buy anything from petty gift items to huge electronics, air tickets and so on. People, whose gasoline credit cards work on such systems, think that they actually offer them more as compared to cash back reward systems.

Miles Count Per Dollar:

Miles count per dollar system is rare and is a new concept in gasoline credit cards. Here instead of points, you get miles. The more the miles you stack up, the more money you earn. For instance, when you spend $2500 on gasoline, you earn 2500 miles and get rebate of $25, or you can also shop for anything that is worth $25.

Cash back: Here, when you use gasoline credit card, you get reward on every dollar that you spend. Some cards give you 5% back on each gallon. If the price of the gas is $300, then you need to pay $285 per gallon.

Thus, if you use you gas cards wisely they will help you to earn more rewards.



THERON

John Stafford asked:


It has been 114 years since Rudolph Diesel applied for a patent for his new improved engine. It was hoped to replace the gasoline engine but as we can all see that this has not happened. The gasoline engine having just been invented in 1876 was still considered inefficient in fuel consumption and power. An evaluation of each engine’s performance tells a story that is difficult to reconcile with the way things have shaken out in the beginning of the 21st Century. The invention of the Diesel offered the world a far more efficient and effective fuel based engine. It actually provides more horsepower per gallon or liter than a gasoline. This is why diesel engines power our large earth moving equipment, trucks, marine engines, low mileage cars and now aircraft.

The diesel is a combustion injection engine. Unlike the gasoline engine, air is compressed first and then the fuel is injected into it. The compressed air is hot enough to ignite the diesel fuel without the use of a sparkplug. Diesel engines developed out of the earlier work surrounding two engines; the original diesel design and the solid injection system of Herbert Akroyd Stuart created in his hot bulb engine. This means that the upward stroke of the diesel engine compresses the air to where its’ temperature is between 1300-1650° F. When the piston has reached the top of its’ upward stroke, diesel fuel is then injected, combustion occurs, pressure increases and pushes the cylinder downwards. This motion is transmitted by means of the connecting rods to the crankshaft which itself turns thus transmitting rotating power to a drive shaft which powers ships, cars, generators, aircraft and even motorcycles.

During cold weather, diesel fuel thickens when the wax crystallizes. It becomes a gel and the fuel injection will not easily work. Technological advances have made this a problem of the past. The fuel lines and fuel filter can be pre-warmed, others use a glow plug in the combustion chamber to pre-heat its’ walls, some use resistive heaters in the intake manifold to warm air taken into the combustion chambers and engine block heaters are used in areas like Kansas or Nebraska when automobiles are left in the cold overnight.

Diesel engine speed used to be controlled by governing the rate of fuel through a gear system. Today the use of electronically controlled engines ECM (electronic control module) allows diesel engines to adjust their timing to start according to the environmental conditions of heat and cold, regulate the engine speed in terms of RPM (revolutions per minute) and maintain fuel economy.

Diesel engines may not have beaten its’ chief contender, the gasoline engine, but it has kept ahead in terms of heavy machine and naval engines. It has recently performed outstandingly in the area of remotely piloted vehicle engines, set amazing land speed records for racecars and motorcycles. The diesel engine has improved amazingly in the past 114 years. The use of electronics has given all engines abilities of fuel conservation unheard of in past years. This makes the diesel engine a real budget-winning contender. This year the new 2006, Volkswagen diesel won fourth place in the best mileage evaluation according to http://www.fueleconomy.gov. Diesels may prove to be the green vehicle engine of choice in the future since they have very little carbon monoxide emissions. Catalytic converters and diesel particulate air filters have made diesel engines free from particulate, nitrogen and sulfur oxides. Diesel engines may prove to be the easiest solution to greenhouse gases.



RUSTY

Tom Tessin asked:


These days, gasoline prices are continually increasing. People have to start looking for methods to save on gasor attain something additional each time they fill up tanks of their vehicles. This is essential, since there is always a requirement of gasoline when people travel. Gasoline credit cards are the answer for this.

Gasoline Credit Cards:

Gas credit cards are extremely convenient, since people just have to swipe the card at the pump and fill up the vehicle tank. Possession of these cards are also an excellent way to maintain better records on how much a person frequently spends on gas. This is mostly beneficial for businesses, where there is a requirement to preserve data concerning such expenses for their income taxes.

Gas cards are not only favorable, but are also helpful in emergencies, when a person travels away from home. Thus, if an individual does not have enough cash it is still possible to fill up the vehicle’s tank with the help of these cards.

In addition, gasoline credit cards offer extra rewards that considerably reduce the cringe of buying gas because you know that you are acquiring something more than just purchasing gas. Cash back offers on gasoline credit cards help you to get back a proportion of what you put into your vehicle’s tank.

These days, since gas prices are incessantly increasing several credit card issuers are providing gas-specific credit cards. If you possess a decent credit, then it will be simpler for you to apply and attain approval for gasoline credit cards.

However, there are numerous cards given to people with below average and average credit scores irrespective of the fact, that lower credit scores require people to pay a yearly fee.

Sometimes, gas cards allow only gas purchases, while at other times these cards enable a person to shop elsewhere, thus behaving as usual credit cards. People may attain better rewards or greater percentages of cash back on gasoline purchases or car maintenance.

Nevertheless, cards with gas rewards are more suitable, if an individual wants to have only a single credit card and not different cards each intended towards particular types of purchases.

Recently, distinctive gas reward programs are providing five to six percent of a person’s gas purchase. If you are planning to buy a new car in the coming time, you may want to go through gasoline credit cards, as they also provide purchase reward, or car rent programs.

Additional Points:

If you want your credit card to benefit you rather than causing additional financial losses, then you have to be very cautious, while choosing a gas card. Careful budgeting is the way to success, when an individual plans to pay the monthly expenditures on a credit card.

Make it a habit to pay the full balance every month, as it is the only way to ensure that a person will definitely enjoy the advantages of a reward program rather than paying additional money for interest, finance charges, and late fees.



JODY

Chuck Bonner asked:


If you knew how much your corner gas station was going to charge tomorrow, you’d be able to save a few cents by beating the increase, or by holding off until the price goes down.  And if you could make such a prediction every day, the savings could add up to several dollars a year.  It’s not enough to change your life, but it helps a bit.  And when the $4.00 per gallon gasoline returns to the U.S. market - as you know it will sooner or later - the small savings on each gallon will be that much more important to your budget.

 

Now, if you could make a reliable forecast of long-range changes in the price of gasoline, you could make a killing in the futures market.  However, that is beyond the scope of this article.  It is, in fact, impossible.  Let’s just stick with saving a few bucks on our yearly gasoline budget.

 

The retail price of gasoline is determined by a number of factors, including, whether we like to admit it or not, human whim.  It is impossible to predict the exact price at any particular gas station unless you are the owner, and it is equally impossible to predict the lowest or highest price within a particular geographical market.  However, what we can predict is the general movement of prices at a large number of gas stations in a given area.  The extremes - highest and lowest prices - are most affected by the truly random factors which can never be predicted perfectly.  But the average price in a given market is driven by some predictable and well-known factors.

 

Here are three of them:

 



Gasoline futures prices.

Local constant factors.

Current local retail prices.



 

Gasoline Futures Prices

 

News media are always reporting the wholesale price of crude oil, and often run stories that describe how it affects the price you pay at the gas pump.  This is an important factor, but it’s a bit removed from the gas pump.

 

A better indicator, more closely coupled to retail gas prices, is the price that investors are paying for “futures” in refined gasoline.  We won’t go into details about what exactly gasoline “futures” are, but you can readily guess the most important thing you need to know:  This reflects what the gas stations will be paying to refill their gas tanks in the near future.

 

Look for reports of gasoline futures prices.  They are published every day in financial news outlets, and the latest price is posted and updated in near real time throughout the business day on many financial news Web sites.

 

Watch the price of gasoline futures over the course of a few weeks and months, and you will see a relationship between this price and the retail price of gas in your area.  Of course, this relationship is not exact.  Sometimes the futures price will go up, but the retail price will go down in the same day.  But over the long term, the two prices will tend to move in the same direction.

 

This relationship is not the same in all places, either.  For example, let’s look at yesterday (as I write this), December 11, 2008, and let’s look at the retail price of gas in two U.S. cities.  The futures price of unleaded gasoline was $1.08 per gallon when the market closed.  In Atlanta, Georgia, the retail price of gas that afternoon was $1.56 per gallon, and in White Plains, New York, it was $2.39 per gallon.

 

So, what is the relationship?  It varies from one place to another, as we can see, but there are local factors to consider.

 

Local Constant Factors

 

By observing the price of gasoline futures and the local retail price of gas over a period of time, you can figure out the relationship between these two prices for your area.

 

Take another look at the examples cited above.  On December 11, 2008, the retail price of gas in Atlanta, GA was 42 cents higher than the futures price, and in White Plains, NY, it was $1.31 higher.  Will these relationships always hold?  Will you always be able to add 42 cents to the futures price and find the retail price in Atlanta?  Probably not.

 

Here’s another way of looking at it.  The retail price of a gallon of gasoline in Atlanta was about 1.44 times the futures price, and the retail price in White Plains was about 2.21 times the futures price.  Proportional relationships like this tend to work better.

 

The difference in retail price between these two cities has to do with several complex factors, including the cost of transporting gas to the gas stations, local business taxes, local employment costs, and the vague “what the market will bear” factor.  Nevertheless, these factors themselves change rather slowly, and therefore you can come up with a proportional relationship between the futures price and the local retail price, and this proportion works pretty well.

 

If you keep track of the futures price and your local retail price over a period of time, you can eventually come up with a proportioning factor that comes pretty close to predicting the retail price of gasoline for your area.

 

Current Local Retail Prices

 

Another important factor in predicting tomorrow’s gas price is, what is the price today?  Gas stations tend to change their prices slowly.  When their costs go down, they want to keep their retail prices as high as they can in order to maximize profits, but they have to follow the other gas stations to avoid being undersold.  When their costs go up, they must raise their selling prices in order to remain in business, but they must be cautious to avoid driving their customers away.

 

So, even if the futures price were to increase dramatically, say 10%, in a single day, the gas stations in a given area will adjust their retail prices a bit more slowly.

 

If you build a mathematical model of the retail price of gasoline based on the gasoline futures price and the local constant factor described earlier, it just won’t work.  Your model must also account for this “drag” factor whereby tomorrow’s gasoline price is held back from moving, either up or down, by today’s price.

 

There are many other factors affecting the price of gasoline, but the three described here are the biggest ones.  You can watch these three factors from day to day and figure out whether you should buy gas today, or hold off until tomorrow and save a few cents.  It won’t change your life, but it feels good to “beat the system,” even in a very small way.



JESUS

Tom Tessin asked:


With the gas prices gone up, people need to find ways to keep away from excess fuel consumption. It is vital to save on fuel, especially when you travel long distances. Most of your hard-earned money goes on refueling the car tank.

Hence, you need to look for ways for restricting your car’s fuel consumption. For this, you may seek help from different web sites on the Internet providing information on how to save on fuel.

As a first step toward saving on gas, use quality oil to improve the engine’s performance. This reduces friction and the car consumes less fuel. Certain branded auto oils bring down the fuel costs from 5 % to 20 %. Next, you as a car owner, have to decide on how to improve your car’s overall performance.

Useful Tips:

1. Use the engine oil recommended only for your vehicle. Do not use under-grade oil, as it reduces the life of engine. Check the octane mark before you buy the fuel.

2. Do not leave the engine on for lengthy periods. Pre-warming the engine for one minuet is enough.

3. Fuel the engine when it is cool, because each gallon will contain more gas, as the liquid expands in heat.

4. Keep gas cap airtight after the engine tank is full. You may accidentally lose on gas, if the cap is not fitted properly.

5. Check the car tires properly before driving for your long trip. Fill the tires according to recommendations of the manufacturer. Do not leave the tires under-filled. Always carry an extra tire.

6. Limit the car’s speed while driving on expressways. Make sure to activate the cruise control at regular intervals.

7. Do not drive on bald tires, since they are not only unsafe, but also lead to much fuel consumption.

8. Avoid starting and stopping the engine continually. The car consumes much fuel this way.

9. Do not apply hard brakes. Accelerate the car gently. Ensure you apply brakes at the minimum.

10. Do not load the car with heavy items. This leads to more fuel consumption and the tires tend to deflate soon.

11. Minimize the usage of air condition in your car, since it increases the fuel consumption.

12. Treat the car through proper maintenance and tune-ups. By servicing the car frequently, the engine runs smooth and you save on unforeseen servicing as well as fuel costs. Tell the maintenance team to add the fuel injector cleaner every time they change the engine oil.

Online Help:

You may seek help from different web sites on the Internet devoted to auto users for providing round the clock information to save on fuel. Many web sites post the fuel prices that fuel pumps normally charge.

Hence, locate a nearby fuel station, where you can get fuel for your car at the cheapest rate. Next, it is good to walk the moment you reach the target destination. Avoid taking the vehicle in reverse gear unless needed. There are tons of ways to save on gas, it’s your job to find the options and take advantage of it.



MELVIN

Diane Nassy asked:


Use Credit Cards to Cut Gas Prices

By Diane Nassy

With gasoline prices soaring out of control, wouldn’t it be nice if you could shave even a few pennies off of every gallon? The Key to Lowering Your Gasoline Costs is to “Charge It”

Yep, charge it, but not just on any credit card. If you want to start paying less at the pump then it’s out with the old and in with the new. You may need to replace your current charge card with a gasoline “cash back” card.

Cash Back is Nothing New

The Discover Card has been offering it for years, but there’s a new breed of cash-back cards, ones that offer rebates on gasoline purchases, and those are the cards that we’re talking about.

As gas prices continue to escalate, many oil companies are offering gasoline price incentives to get you to apply for their affinity card. Some offer a straight cents-off rebate for every gallon you buy, while others offer percent of purchase rebate. With those rebates running as much as 5%, or higher, it doesn’t take a calculator to figure out that a $3.00 per gallon can become $2.85 per gallon just by choosing the right credit card when you pay at the pump.

Many of these credit cards have annual rebate limits and those limits vary. So check the Terms and Conditions before you apply.

Most gasoline rebate deals are offered through joint ventures between major banks and the oil companies. In order to get in on the savings, you have to apply for a Visa or MasterCard that bears some oil company’s logo.

For example, Hess Oil has teamed up with Chase Bank to offer the Hess Visa Platinum Card. Besides no annual fee, it offers a 10% rebate on all Hess gasoline purchases for the first 90 days, a 5% rebate after that, and a 1% rebate on any purchases made anywhere else for practically anything else.

Even though that 10% doesn’t last forever, a $3.00 per-gallon price becomes $2.70, and if you’re planning a road trip anytime soon, it just might make sense to apply for a card.

If Hess isn’t a familiar name where you live, Marathon is offering the exact same deal for their Chase/Marathon MasterCard.

Gasoline discounter Speedway also has a deal with Chase and MasterCard, but they’re only offering 8% for the first 60 days, 4% after that, and 1% on any other purchases.

Don’t forget to check the credit cards that are already in your wallet. American Express Blue cards offer 5% back for all gasoline and grocery store purchases, and Discover is offering “up to 10% off” at gas stations.

And if you’re a student, the CitiBank Student MasterCard gives 5% cash back on gasoline and grocery store purchases as well.

A penny saved is a penny earned and that penny does more good in your pocket than in the oil company’s. Check your wallet to see if there are hidden gasoline savings inside. If not, grab a credit card that pays you to pump gas



MARGARITO