Auto Club: Gas Prices Tumble By Double Digits

Gas price averages tumbled by 10 cents a gallon in Los Angeles, Orange County and the Inland Empire in the past week, according to the Automobile Club of Southern California's Weekend Gas Watch. The retail statewide average is $4.10 a gallon for regular unleaded, which is seven cents lower than last week.
 
The average price of self-serve regular gasoline in the Los Angeles-Long Beach area is $4.12 per gallon, which is down 10 cents from than last week, 32 cents higher than a month ago, and 25 cents higher than last year. In San Diego, the average price is $4.07, which is eight cents less than last Thursday, 31 cents higher than last month, and 24 cents higher than last year. On the Central Coast, the average price is $4.18, which is three cents lower than last week, 36 cents higher than last month, and 32 cents higher than last year. In Riverside, the average per-gallon price is $4.05, which is 10 cents lower than last week, 35 cents higher than last month, and 25 cents higher than last year. In San Bernardino, the $4.09 average price is six cents lower than last week, 36 cents higher than last month, and 28 cents higher than a year ago today.

"When prices are dropping like this, it’s tempting to wait until your gas tank is almost empty to fill up again, but doing that regularly can actually damage your vehicle and cost you more money over the long run,” said Auto Club spokesman Jeffrey Spring. “We recommend that drivers keep at least a quarter-tank of fuel in their vehicle at all times to avoid overheating the electric fuel pump or causing tank sediment damage to the fuel pump pickup, the fuel filter or the fuel injectors.”

The Weekend Gas Watch monitors the average price of gasoline. As of 9 a.m. on Oct. 24, averages are: