Dude, where’s my fuel-efficient car?

As if the financial toll weren’t bad enough, the run-up in gasoline prices seems also to be making some consumers delusional. In a poll released last week by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, adults were asked to say whether they’ve done various things “lately” to cope with the higher pump prices. Predictably (and plausibly), large numbers said they’ve been driving less (70 percent), shopping around for the cheapest gas (69 percent) and adjusting the thermostat at home to cut their utility bills (64 percent).