Bad news for drivers...Saudi king wants higher prices on oil

Saudi Arabia's king says the price of oil should be $75 a barrel, much higher than it is now, but his oil minister indicated Saturday that no measures will likely be taken until OPEC meets again next month.

Saudi Oil Minister Ali Naimi said that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries will "do what needs to be done" to shore up falling oil prices when the group meets Dec. 17 in Algeria, but for now it was "too early."
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Read the entire story at Yahoo News.

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Long line for gas at the Exxon on Broadway

It has been up to 5 blocks long but this day, Saturday the 20, it was only a block long.

Volkswagen One-Liter gets 280 miles per gallon!

Volkswagen has been quietly working away somewhere deep in Germany perfecting the design. Originally intended for a launch around 2012, rumors now indicate that the vehicle may indeed be ready by 2010. The vehicle gets its moniker due to its goal of achieving one liter of fuel consumption per 100 kilometers. The concept vehicle, with its single cylinder engine, was apparently capable of doing a bit better than that, as it was rated at a mind blowing 282 miles per gallon, or about .83 liters per 100 kilometers.



For maximum compactness, the vehicle features the driver in the center of the car with one passenger sitting behind in a cockpit-like arrangement. No word as of yet on price, but it seems that VW is hoping that the government can step in to reduce the cost for purchasers.



Visit Auto Green Blog to learn more about this cool German car.

Thinking about new modes of transportion due to the high cost of gas? Check out these funky bikes and scooters!

Over the years, the Pope has been driven around in quite a few different vehicles, which most people refer to as the 'Popemobile.'

The last time the Pope visited the United States, for instance, his ride was a modified Mercedes-Benz M Class SUV which had been specially modified to accommodate his needs. In fact, Mercedes-Benz has a long history of creating vehicles specially for the Pope, and now Piaggio has joined in as well. Piaggio's contribution, though, features just three wheels and is made from the rickshaw platform which is popular in India, where the vehicle was created.

Read the entire story about the "Pope rickshaw" in the Auto Blog Green.


A Michigan man has found his own personal solution to high gas prices in an interesting three-wheeled enclosed scooter which leans into turns from a Chinese company known as Xingyue. Before this story, we were not at all familiar with the company, though a Google search does turn up a little information.

Powered by a 150cc single cylinder four stroke engine, the scooter is capable of traveling on any road that is not a major highway and is fully street legal. The new owner estimates that he is getting fuel mileage of around 120 miles per gallon when he keeps it under forty miles per hour and 80-90 miles per gallon when he's really wringing it out.

Read the rest in Auto Blog Green.



SO you may be asking, "what is a Battery Box Motorbike"

This Motorcycle is one of a few bikes totally designed from the ground up to be a Electric Motorcycle.

A classic internal combustion engine (ICE) motorcycle has the frame built around and designed to hold the engine and this tends to dictate much of design and look.

The BBM-1 frame is designed around holding the batteries and storing as much energy as possible within the frame. To do that and free up the chassis space for batteries, some very innovative engineering needed to be employed.

Wanna build a Battery Box Motorcycle yourself? Visit their website and find out how.

150 miles per gallon car developed by AFS Trinity Power Corporation

This is what we need to have available with the costs of fuel so high now. You might even be able to justify a drive in the country or cross-country in this car. I may just have to order one as soon as they are available.
~Corey Webbspun



AFS Trinity Power has developed patent-pending technology that makes it possible for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles to achieve 150 MPG, go 40 miles in all-electric mode, and use gasoline for additional unlimited miles in hybrid mode.

In July 2007, in order to very quickly demonstrate all of the key attributes of this technology, the company mounted an effort to build two fully operational XH-150 SUV prototypes using off-the-shelf components. The two vehicles—modified Saturn Vue SUVs—were built in less than six months. They were unveiled on January 13, 2008 at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit (Press Announcement) and (Salon.com test drive report).

On April 8, 2008, AFS Trinity started a cross country tour to give Americans their first onroad look at what CNN and others suggested may be “the car of the future.” The XH-150 arrived at the Capitol Mall in Washington, D.C. on Sunday, April 20, 2008 (Video of Congressional Ride-and-Drives). On May 2, 2008, AFS Trinity and Ricardo announced a joint Extreme Fleet™ program that will slash gasoline and diesel use by car, SUV and truck fleets. (Press Release).

Find out more at the AFS Trinity Power Corporation website.

66% of you all have already changed your driving habits due to the cost of gas

This is the results from my recent poll on gas prices and how it affects your driving.
~Corey Webbspun



What price of fuel will make you change what and how you drive?

$4.00 (4%)
$5.00 (12%)
$6.00 (0%)
I've already changed what I drive (4%)
I've already changed how I drive (66%)
The price doesn't affect me (12%)

Corey talks about how American Airlines has started charging for all checked baggage

Corey shares some thoughts about the cost of fuel and how it affects travel