$15 Gasoline

Lester Brown, in his extraordinary new book, World on the Edge, says if gasoline were fully burdened with its environmental and defense costs it would cost $15 a gallon!

This got me thinking, what changes would the Sherwin household make if gasoline were $15 a gallon?  The Prius would cost $160 per fill-up.  What would the Sherwins do? Time for major changes:

1. Mom: Sell the MDX and steal Dad’s Prius. Then convert the Prius to a plug-in hybrid and drive it around town on electric. Cost: About $10,000, less the value of the MDX. Not sure anyone would buy a used MDX if gas were $15, so perhaps its value would be zero.
2. Dad: Now carless, would buy a Tango two-seat electric car! Here I am pictured with my future Tango. Actually this is George Clooney with his Tango. Cost: not yet available. No market today, but with $15 gas, the Tango could be a hot seller.
3. High school daughter: Sell the Jetta and buy an electric MINI Cooper.  Cost: Not yet available. Again, it would be a hot seller with $15 gas.
4. College daughter: The round trip to Cal Poly, even in her hybrid Ford Escape would cost $205, an expensive trip home for the weekend.  Suddenly, the Amtrak bus looks good. So would we replace her hybrid Escape with an electric scooter? No, we would convert the Escape to a plug-in. This would help around town, but not much on the 200-mile drive to college. Cost: Another $10,000.

I am excited about $15 gas and my new Tango; see the video below of me on the test track (actually, it was my double).

Discussion topics:

• Should Mom and college daughter trade cars? Plug-in Prius for plug-in Escape. The plug-in Prius would only cost $120 to bring home for the weekend from Cal Poly.
• Is it fair that high school daughter gets a plug-in MINI just because gasoline goes to $15?

What would your family do in a world of $15 gasoline?

Wait! You want our family to survive on fewer cars? I cannot get my Tango? Then I am not voting for $15 gas.

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