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Time for more snake oil!

This happens every time something causes oil prices to spike.

When the price of fuel starts becoming a significant concern, people start griping and looking for ways to save money.

Of course if you're driving an electric vehicle you're smiling all the way to the bank in 2026, as the Iran conflict forces fuel well north of $3 a litre here in New Zealand and within spitting distance of A$2 a litre across the ditch.

However, for many folk, the capital cost of an EV is beyond them right now so they have to look at cheaper ways to save fuel.

If you're looking for some solid, evidence-based hints and tips on how to get the most out of every tank, the NZ government has come to the party with this useful page.

If you're a low-IQ idiot, that might seem a bit complicated and onerous though. Surely there's an easier way?

Enter the mainstream media and their total inability to separate fact from fiction.

Combine that flaw with the ever-present need to get eyes on screens to earn ad-dollars and you end up with this:

At first I thought this was yet another attempt to promote hydrogen as a fuel -- a concept that is revived from time to time but fails horribly due to the fact that hydrogen is not a fuel, as I have pointed out in the past.

No, this time it's even worse!

Believe it or not, the old "HHO fuel-saver" scam is being rolled out yet again and promoted by the ignorant media as something with hope and promise.

I'm pretty sure long-time readers will have read my previous writing on the subject of these "run your car on water" scams and such but for the benefit of those who are new to the column, there are some relevant links on the Aardvark Features page.

If the oil shortage pushes prices any higher I fully expect to see a raft of ads on YouTube that promote these scams again. We'll be told that all you need to do is buy this $49 ebook (usually $500 but on a special that finishes in a few minutes) which will unlock the secrets that have, until now, been suppressed by "big oil".

Sadly, people will fall for this deception, probably because they were eating their lunch instead of paying attention in science class at school or they watched too much sensationalist mainstream-media.

If/when those ads appear on YouTube, I will report them but, as usual, they will continue to run until the advertiser's budget is exhausted because YouTube itself is now just another form of mainstream media. Even YT's CEO Neal Mohan has said that YouTube is the new television.

As a footnote, here is another reason to get an EV. In some countries, the power companies will actually *PAY YOU* to charge your vehicle at certain times of the day:

Yes, while others are scrambling around, searching under the sofa cushions for a few gold coins in order to fill their tanks, others are raking in the money by charging their EVs at peak production times.

Carpe Diem folks!

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