HILO, Hawai'i — Neighbor Island gasoline prices generally held steady or increased slightly as the state's wholesale gas cap went into effect yesterday, but that was small consolation to motorists who have endured a series of big markups over the past two weeks.

Spot checks of gas stations showed that pump prices ranged from $3.249 per gallon in Wailuku, Maui, for regular unleaded, to $3.099 in Lihu'e, Kaua'i, and $3.019 in Hilo on the Big Island.

The price at many Wailuku stations rose a nickel per gallon yesterday from Wednesday morning when the same outlets were charging $3.199 per gallon. That was up from $3.119 the previous week and $3.019 the week before.

"It's crazy. You just got to pay what they're charging," said Rudy Bernardino as he filled his tank at Uptown Chevron Service on Main Street in Wailuku. Bernardino said that despite higher prices, he hasn't made any changes to cut back on driving. He also said the gas cap is hurting consumers.

"All I know is when I come to the station to get gas, it costs too much."

The cap limits what wholesalers can charge for gasoline, but retailers are free to charge whatever they want. Wholesale caps are set separately for eight different zones across the state to account for differences in local market conditions. The caps are adjusted once a week based on wholesale prices in Los Angeles, the Gulf Coast and New York.

For Maui, excluding Hana, the wholesale cap was set at $2.92 yesterday. For Kaua'i the cap was was $2.87, and for Hilo it was $2.83.

The cap will be adjusted Monday, with the new prices going into effect Wednesday. After the adjustment, the caps will rise to $3.20 for Maui, $3.15 for Kaua'i and $3.12 for Hilo. The adjustment will include for the first time the impact on wholesale prices from Hurricane Katrina.

The Tesoro station on Kamehameha Avenue in Hilo increased its price by a nickel a gallon yesterday over Wednesday morning's price, to $3.019 for regular unleaded. That was an increase of 12 cents a gallon over the station's price a week earlier.

Island Mini Mart, which usually offers the cheapest gas prices in the Hilo area, left Wednesday's unleaded price intact at $2.899. But that was after the price for regular unleaded rose 15 cents a gallon from Saturday's level.

Miriam Guerrero, who operates a care home in Kaiwiki north of Hilo, said she drives into Hilo almost daily, running errands and shuttling her five care-home residents to various appointments. The recent gas price increases have been a burden, she said while stopping at the Hilo Shell station.

"Our care-home rate stays the same for how many years already, and everything else goes up," Guerrero said.

Chad Gragas, 36, filled up at the same service station, said he drives 15 miles from Mountain View to Hilo about twice a week, limiting his trips to save gas.

"It's not bad, but I wish they would stop 'um," he said. "Jeez, not all of us on this island is rich."

Prices at the Kukui Grove Self Serve-76 in Lihu'e were unchanged overnight at $3.069 per gallon for regular unleaded, but Lihu'e Service, a Shell station, increased prices by 3 cents to $3.099.

Motorists filling up at the Princeville Service-Chevron in Hanalei saw prices increase to $3.199 per gallon for regular unleaded yesterday from $3.159 Wednesday.

Princeville station operator Jeff Guest said customers are asking a lot of questions about prices and the future availability of gas. He said the Public Utilities Commission's decision Wednesday to allow gasoline jobbers on Kaua'i to charge for delivery to outlying stations such as Princeville means he'll be able to get another shipment today, which he hopes will carry him through the Labor Day weekend, his busiest weekend of the year.

Guest said he has noticed one change in gasoline buying habits.

"Nobody's buying supreme anymore," he said, noting the price was $3.399 per gallon

Kevin Parr of Lawa'i Valley on Kaua'i said he's even thinking of trading in his big Chevy truck for a hybrid car that uses less gas.

"It cost me $80 in gas just the last three days, just driving back and forth to Lihu'e," he said.

Nicole Noe, also of Lawa'i, said she already has made changes in her driving habits and avoids gas stations with higher prices.

"I try not to drive to the north shore as much, where I have family. We try to meet halfway," Noe said.

Reach Kevin Dayton at kdayton@honoluluadvertiser.com.