Question

Imagine that you need to buy some chicken for dinner tonight. You found an ad showing that the store across town has chicken on sale for $1.59 a pound. Your usual neighborhood store sells the same chicken for $2.89 a pound. Is it worth the extra drive?

Look at the information below you’ll need to solve the problem.

How much chicken will you be buying? 3 pounds
How does the distance and the time it takes to get there, compare between the two stores? Your neighborhood store is 2.1 miles away, and takes about 8 minutes. The store across town is 8.6 miles away, and takes about 24 minutes.
What kind of mileage does your car get? It averages about 22 miles per gallon in the city.
How many gallons of fuel does your car hold? About 13 gallons
How much is gas? About $1.98/gallon right now.
Are there any other pieces of information you need to solve the problem? Which option would you choose? Is going to the further store cheaper? Or is going to the close store cheaper? How much money does the cheaper option save you? Give your answer to the nearest cent.

Answer 1

Explanation:

Considering the store in your neighborhood, price per pound of chicken is $2.89. The cost of 3 pounds is

3 × 2.89 = $8.67

Distance = 2.1 miles

The car averages about 22 miles per gallon in the city. It means that the number of gallons needed is

2.1/22 = 0.095 gallons

Cost of gas = $1.98/gallon

Cost of 0.095 gallons =

1.98 × 0.095 = $0.1881

Total cost = 8.67 + 0.1881 = $8.86

Considering the store across town, price per pound of chicken is $1.59. The cost of 3 pounds is

3 × 1.59 = $4.77

Distance = 8.6 miles

The car averages about 22 miles per gallon in the city. It means that the number of gallons needed is

8.6/22 = 0.39 gallons

Cost of gas = $1.98/gallon

Cost of 0.39 gallons =

1.98 × 0.39 = $0.77

Total cost = 4.77 + 0.77 = $5.54

Therefore, it is cheaper going to the further store. The amount that the cheaper option saves is

8.86 - 5.54 = $3.32