There’s frugal. There’s resourceful. And then there’s installing a pressure washer engine into a Barbie Dream Camper because gas costs more than your mortgage.
As gas prices keep climbing past $4.50 a gallon nationwide, Americans are finding increasingly creative ways to avoid hemorrhaging money at the pump. Some people are taking the bus. Some are staying closer to home. Others are apparently entering their Mad Max Fisher-Price era.
The Barbie Car Transformation
The internet’s current king of fuel economy is 30-year-old handyman Mali Hightower from Georgia, who transformed a broken pink Power Wheels Barbie Dream Camper into a tiny gas-powered commuter vehicle. Reuters reports he slapped a two-gallon engine into the toy car and now uses it for grocery runs instead of driving his 1996 Mercedes convertible.
Honestly, at this point, seeing a grown man with his knees tucked into a toy SUV at Kroger barely even registers as unusual anymore.
His logic checks out, too. Filling his Mercedes reportedly costs around $90. The Barbie camper probably runs on fumes, vibes, and one gallon of unleaded.
And he’s far from alone.
Americans are quietly reshaping their routines around gas prices in ways that would’ve sounded absurd a few years ago. People are skipping longer drives, avoiding gas stations near highways because prices are higher, and suddenly rediscovering public transportation like it’s some groundbreaking new invention.
One content creator from Washington told Reuters she now parks her Toyota Highlander in Glendale when visiting Los Angeles and relies on buses and trains instead. Not because she suddenly loves public transit, but because filling the SUV costs nearly $100.
That’s the thing about expensive gas. It turns everyone into a part-time logistics coordinator.
How Americans Are Coping With Rising Gas Prices
Apps like GasBuddy and Upside are suddenly getting the kind of attention normally reserved for airline mistake fares and Costco free samples. Drivers are stacking grocery rewards points, comparing station prices block by block, and timing fill-ups like day traders watching the stock market. One Reddit thread about saving money on gas turned into a crowdsourced survival guide. Users swapped tips about combining grocery store fuel points, cashback apps, and rewards memberships to shave off a few cents per gallon.
One person explained how shoppers at Fry’s buy gift cards during 4x fuel point promotions just to eventually score $1 off per gallon later. Others swore by Costco, Walmart+, and Circle K rewards deals that occasionally knock 40 cents off a gallon. At this point, getting gas without at least three apps and a rewards number attached feels financially irresponsible. And brands are fully leaning into the chaos.
Cracker Barrel recently launched a summer gas sweepstakes offering free gas for a year, proving that we can only hope for gas relief from the go-to biscuits and gravy spot. Honestly, once you’ve seen a grown man cruising through town in a motorized Barbie jeep wearing a dirt bike helmet, the rest of America’s gas-saving behavior suddenly feels pretty reasonable.
More From Cheapism
- Sweet Relief: Gas Prices Have Dropped the Most in These States — Gas prices have reached new heights in recent weeks thanks to the war in Iran raising the cost of crude oil. By now, we’re all used to seeing $4 and $5 on the sign at the gas station. But there’s been a little bit of relief in the last week, thankfully, as the average price of gas has actually decreased.
- Gas Over Groceries? Consumers Are Scaling Back Grocery Spending Amid Rising Gas Prices — Rising gas prices aren’t merely an inconvenience. As it turns out, literally eating is becoming a luxury “hobby” that many of us simply can’t afford to maintain alongside a daily commute.
- Forget Costco: Kroger Might Just Be the Sleeper Hit of Cheap Gas — When you think of “cheap gas,” your mind likely goes straight to the massive lines at the Costco warehouse. But while the wholesale giant gets all the headlines, Kroger has quietly built a fueling empire that actually dwarfs most of its competitors.
