Read more: Local, State, National, Economy, Automotive, Colorado Springs
The pain at the pump continues for Southern Colorado drivers. AAA said gas prices have been on the rise for nine consecutive weeks.
Wednesday, unleaded gasoline in Colorado Springs priced out at $3.84/gallon. This time last year, a gallon of unleaded was $3.29.
Even worse, in 2005, Colorado drivers were only paying an average of $2.13/gallon. Nationally, gas prices are just under $4.
With prices so high, some auto mechanics said more and more people are driving on empty.
They said that can lead to a broken fuel pump. If you did not already know, your car's fuel pump brings gasoline from the tank to the engine.
"The fuel pump is lubricated by the fuel that is in the gas tank, so once it gets below a certain level, there is nothing to slosh on the pump which in turn cools the pump, and it also has to work harder to draw gasoline from the bottom of the tank," Jim Thomas said.
Thomas is a Service Manager with Auto Tech Plaza. He said when that happens your pump will stop working. And the repairs, Thomas said they can be pricey.
"Some older cars still have what they call a mechanical fuel pump that is bolted to the side of the engine, those tend to be cheaper than modern fuel pumps that are all inside the gas tank," Thomas said.
As painful as it may be, Thomas said it is best to fill up when your tank is 1/4 of the way full. He said it is even more crucial in the summer when temperatures rise.
"Heat is the biggest thing that kills a fuel pump, obviously in the summer when you have 90 degree days out, and you have the heat from the pavement on the bottom side of the car where the fuel tanks are at, it does not take much for the pumps to go bad," Thomas said.
Auto Tech Plaza said they have not seen a huge soar in the number of broken fuel pumps, but they do expect that number to rise in the coming months.
