On Fri, 23 Jan 2009 19:42:55 GMT, "Larry L"
wrote:

rdean,

you leave the impression of knowing a bit about the oil biz

I'm trying to decide whether to get another diesel ( which I lean towards
because milage and longevity ) or a gas truck ( cheaper to buy/ maintain/
feed for at least first 1/4 million miles, unless you have very heavy loads
0

anyway ... I got this reply elsewhere

any truth to the idea that diesel vs gas prices might reverse themselves (
like they used to be )

///////////////

One thing not noted in other answers is that the rise of diesel vs gas
prices is not an unending phenomenon, and it is possible that 2008
reached the peak difference. If you buy for the long-term there is
some expectation that you will see diesel fall back below gas, perhaps
substantially.

Refiners are adding hydrocracking capability in the US, which can
produce much more diesel than gas per barrel. That is the opposite
from typical straight cracking that has been the US standard, which
(while variable to a small degree) produces dramatically more gas than
diesel from a given barrel of oil.

/////////////


likely? anyone that might know

Here's what oil prices are going to do, I absolutely guarantee it:
change. They will go up and they will go down again and back up again,
etc., etc., etc. Once you throw refined product(s) into the mix,
anything more specific is nothing more than a SWAG. Remember that pump
diesel, jet A/B/A-1/etc., kerosene, and "home heating oil" are about the
same product (ignoring sulfur requirements, anti-statics, dyes, etc.),
but gasoline is used (essentially) solely for "passenger automobiles.
Moreover, by _gallon_ (or bbl), diesel (rather jet A by weight) contains
more "energy"/BTUs than gasoline, but is simpler to fraction. As more
refining comes on line or existing refining is switched back to diesel,
prices _should_ reset, but ??? Of course, the futures market and
taxation also come into play - for example, marine/farm/dyed/"off-road"
diesel is currently about what "gas station" gasoline is, price-wise,
with the lower wholesale/commodity price of gasoline offset by the
reduction in taxes on the diesel. And the commodity price of "heating
oil" seems to rarely match the gain or loss of oil and gasoline
commodity - today, NYMEX oil and gasoline futures went up about 5.5% and
heating oil went up about 7.1%.

That said, unless and until someone develops "bio-gasoline" (and no, I
don't mean ethanol - it contains less "energy" than "gas"), a diesel
engine, at least in principle, has more fueling options than a gasoline
one. But doing a cost analysis on both is something you'll need to do
with your own numbers - there is no "one size fits all" answer.

If you simply want my opinion on what truck to buy, it would be a good,
clean, used low-mileage Ford F250 or F350, depending on need, crewcab
(or Excursion) of about 2001-02 vintage with the 7.3 Powerstroke. There
are a lot of these up for sale, at least from Texas to Florida, as
"urban cowboys" have felt the pain at the pump.

HTH,
R