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My Story of Owning a CNG Car.
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by: MelanieHenage
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Word Count: 453
Back in February 2008 the average gas prices were $3.00 which drastically rose to their record high averages of $4.10 in July. Record high gas prices were recorded during June 2008 ranging from $4.5-$4.7 a gallon. Who could drive anywhere with gas prices like that? We could, but that was because the natural gas fueling our car during that time was $0.63 rising up to $0.87 a gallon equivalent.
We took advantage of the great gas prices we could get while most everyone else was conserving or paying loads of money on their gas. During the summer of 2008 my husband and I took trips to Las Vegas, Nevada, Arches National Park, Utah, Los Angeles, California, Boise, Idaho and many others. Gas prices weren't an issue because we were paying 3-4 times less for natural gas than regular gas. Plus, almost everywhere we went there were natural gas stations where we could fill up our CNG car. A good example of this is in the summer time we took a trip to Las Vegas, Nevada. From Provo, Utah to Las Vegas it is about 380 miles. With gas prices being around $3.75, this trip would have cost us $120.00. Instead of paying that price, we took our natural gas car with the natural gas price being $0.87 gallon equivalent, and the trip cost us $30.00. We could spend money in Vegas and have some fun instead of spending money on gas to get there.
Last fall I was doing my student teaching, and my husband was starting a business. This left our income very low for a time. At times like these are when you are looking out for a way to save some money. Our Super Saver was our CNG car.
While we would normally be paying over $200 a month for fuel, our CNG car was costing us about $40 a month. Having an extra $160 a month during that time was a real blessing to us. Even though our income has really improved since then, having those extra savings every time I fill up my car is great. Especially when I know that I am doing my part in polluting less.
If I was to answer my smartest purchase over the last few years it would definitely be my CNG car. It saves money, especially when I needed it most, and it has helped keep our planet a little cheaper. Not to mention that it is a domestic alternative fuel, that we don't have to rely on other countries for. It constantly perplexes me why more people don't invest in CNG cars like we did. But I guess until more people catch on, I'll just keep saving a lot of money at the pump.
About the Author
I've owned CNG cars for a couple years now, my husband's family has owned them for much longer. There are many ways to go about purchasing CNG cars. There are used and new cars, you can also get your current car converted (costs around $6K). Also, hitting the alternative fuel market soon is the CNG Roadster, it get 70 mpg and runs on CNG. Reserve it soon though.
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