Has your FUEL CONSUMPTION gone up in the last few months and you don't know why?

For those who do a FULL TANK when they gas up, have you noticed that you now put in MORE LITERS than before?

Well, here's my conspiracy theory: GAS STATIONS (both the individual operators/owners AND the big petrol corporations) HAVE COLLUDED AND ARE CHEATING US.

That's a very bold claim, but I am stating that this is MY THEORY, MY OPINION only.

I have noticed that my fuel consumption has gone down from 8 km/liter to about 7 km/liter. By the way, I use DIESEL, so it may be different for you.

I used the following method to calculate fuel consumption:

1. Start with Full tank of gas, filled up at favorite gasoline station using "automatic"/"one-click lang" (i.e., none of that shaking the car and/or getting the last drop in); Reset counter to zero;
2. Travel (duh)
3. Fill up at same gas station ("automatic"/"one click"), preferably at same pump;
4. Take note of number on counter (kilometers traveled since last full tank), then divide that number by liters that you just put into your car;
5. REPEAT

On an almost empty tank, I used to put about 72 to 75 liters to fill up. Now, when I fill up, sometimes I have hit more than 80 liters!!! How can that be? I _NEVER_ hit that amount before. I thought it was a fluke, BUT IN THE LAST FEW MONTHS, I have gotten the same experience (80+ liters) when I fill up -- even with various gas stations.

Before, no matter the gas station, it would be about 72 liters of diesel, 75 when I have run it really to the ground. Now it's 80?!? No... 80+!!!

My fuel tank isn't any bigger than before, so...

Here's my THEORY:

Gas stations want to raise their prices even more (hey, gas prices continue to go up), but they are being limited by the government or something. Since the government is limiting the increase, gas stations have COLLUDED to calibrate their pumps in a certain way. What used to be 72 liters is now 80 liters -- an 11% DIFFERENCE! Instead of raising their prices by about 11%, they have given us instead about 11% LESS FUEL...

By the way, I have noticed this in the past few months, but was just annoyed with it. When I finally talked to a friend, he said TWO of his cars have also "INCREASED" the fuel consumption... He said that if it were just one car, then maybe something would have been wrong with that, but for two of his cars to show these "symptoms"...

So now my curiosity really is aroused, and I'm posting this on this board (feel free to copy&paste this in other boards to get more feedback).

Questions for all of you reading this:

1. Has your FUEL CONSUMPTION gone up in the last few months and you don't know why?

2. For those who do a FULL TANK when they gas up, have you noticed that you now put in more liters than before?

I'm trying to gather data, so I can write an editor of a newspaper or something.

--Alfalfameister