With gas prices rising, filling your tank might make you wish for better fuel economy or a smaller gas tank — especially if you drive a pickup truck like the 2018 Ford F-150.
Related: 2018 Ford F-150 Review: Small Improvements Are Actually Big Ones
Equipped with a 5.0-liter V-8 and 10-speed automatic transmission, the F-150 has a combined EPA rating of 19 mpg, which is not out of line for a full-size pickup.
- Based on the current national average of $2.49 for regular gas, filling the standard 23-gallon fuel tank from empty would cost $57.27.
- With the optional 36-gallon tank, the cost escalates to a knee-buckling $89.64, enough for dinner for four at many restaurants.
- The good news about the larger tank is that it stretches the F-150's range between fills to 684 miles (using the combined 19-mpg rating) from the standard tank's 437 miles. The larger tank's range is more than enough to make a round trip from Los Angeles to Las Vegas with a side trip to Hoover Dam.
Gas prices rose another 3 cents the past week, and at $2.49, the national average for regular on Thursday was 13 cents higher than a year ago, according to the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report. Premium gas, at $3.02, was 18 cents higher, and diesel fuel was 37 cents higher at $2.89. Pump prices rose in most states, with some of the biggest increases in Georgia and Kentucky (6 cents) and Ohio (5 cents).
Colorado and Utah were among a handful of states that bucked the trend. Regular fell a penny in Utah and 2 cents in Colorado. Though the national average for regular is a penny higher than a month ago, prices in Colorado and Utah are 10 cents lower than a month ago.
Missouri had the lowest average price for regular on Thursday, $2.21, followed by Alabama, Arkansas and Oklahoma at $2.23. Hawaii had the highest average price, $3.30, with Alaska and California at $3.11.
Pump prices could move higher in the coming weeks because oil prices have marched upward. U.S. oil was trading at nearly $62 early Thursday, up about $5.50 from two weeks ago.
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