Gas Tank Fill Location All Wrong

How do you know? In Oregon and New Jersey, there are no self-service gas stations. I doubt there are enough self-service diesel stations in New Jersey to make a judgment.

Why do you think self-service is more expensive in the same market?

Reply to
Jeff
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There are no emergency disconnect on any of the hoses I have seen in California, the Midwest or the East Coast. Making an emergency disconnect that can come apart easily is more stupid than your comments is this thread.

I don't see how this is asking for a spill if the hose is long enough.

Jeff

Reply to
Jeff

Or the full service station is able to sell more oil and other services to its costumers, making up for the cost of having more attendants.

Jeff

Reply to
Jeff

Varies from station to station and the mood of the attendant. Some offer to check the oil, others don't. Not much different than it was 40 years ago.

Reply to
Edwin Pawlowski

In California, I haven't seen an attendant since the early 60's.

Reply to
F.H.

If that's all true, then we can have zero unemployment. Just mandate no self serve all over the country - force all unemployed to pump gas. Then all those people will magically get a paycheck, insurance, and benefits, and there's absolutely zero cost to anyone. Someone needs to tell Hillary about this!! :)

Something's not adding up here. You've just described a perpetual motion machine.

Bill Putney (To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my address with the letter 'x')

Reply to
Bill Putney

Oh, they're still inside running the C-store, or around back wrenching on cars - if you are willing to pay a $.30 to $.50 premium per gallon for the convenience, they'll be more than happy to drop what they are doing to come out and pump your gas.

And if you are a regular customer (and known good tipper) you might even get the tires checked or under the hood. But that's pushing the boundaries nowadays.

We do have the law that they have to offer minimum service to the handicapped at Self-Serve prices - CA Business & Professions Code

13360. But you might have to wave your HC Parking Permit to remind the attendant, he isn't going to volunteer to come out unless you're a regular whose car is recognized.

There is an exemption in B&PC 13360 if it's a one-man station, he doesn't have to - in a bad neighborhood and/or at night, this is a valid excuse for not leaving that nice safe bulletproof glass bunker with a pass-drawer for the money. In a nice area on a nice day, it's just an excuse for laziness.

And the Handicapped folks I know who can often will get out and pump their own gas for a sense of normalcy. Or out of just plain mule headed stubbornness, take your pick. ;-) And it's a good excuse to get up and stretch, all drivers need to take time out to do that.

Many self-serve dispensers have a "not so hidden" button with a Handicapped symbol on the front panel just for these folks, that button disables the safety no-flow timeout delay after the pump is activated. It might take them a little while to get the nozzle around to the filler and start the flow, or to get the nozzle from the first tank to the second tank on a pickup or motorhome.

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Reply to
Bruce L. Bergman

i have lived in jersey for 50 years, and have driven diesel vehicles for 40 years. and i have never seen a diesel self serve in jersey. mainly cause jersey does not have self serve. there are big signs on all fuel pumps in jersey, gas and diesel, that say do not pump your own fuel. wait for an attendant. it is against the law in the state of new jersey to pump your own fuel.

and don't even start with the top post crap. i have already read everything in these posts. i don't need to read it again to see what i posted.

Reply to
Tom

Well not necessarily "this year" but in the last few years at most of the car makers I've seen.

It takes a while for everyone to get on board, even with a good, simple and virtually free to implement idea - all it takes is a rework of the printing mask for the instrument cluster to add that arrow.

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Reply to
Bruce L. Bergman

I'm going to call Bullshit on these alleged "laws", too. One Way traffic enforced by law on private property? Where you can or can't put the hose? Cites, please.

Most relevant state laws and codes are on the net somewhere, and easily quoted, I know California's are -

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The One Way traffic one, I can see the property owner (gas station) "Enforcing" their own rules by refusing you service, especially if you jumped the line to come in the back way, but they can't give you a traffic ticket.

The drive-off Break-away Fitting that is incorporated in the hose swivel requires quite a bit of force to pop open if it's in good condition. It isn't going to open just from being draped across the back of a car by hand - you'd have to be deliberately trying to pop it open, pulling hard and fast with both hands at the limit of the hose retractor rope.

But there are a few stations who have turned the break-away into a new profit center - "I'm sorry Ma'am, but I have to charge you $250 for popping the break-away. Now we have to call an equipment serviceman out and have him replace the hose and nozzle..." And if the victim doesn't pay, the station can call the cops.

After the victim leaves with their wallet lightened, the owner checks the seals for damage, they're fine. Put a bit of oil on the mating surfaces, two big pairs of pliers and pop it back together, and a 25-cent shear pin out of the box of 100 in the back room. Done.

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Reply to
Bruce L. Bergman

The only place I've ever seen a "one way" sign is at one of these:

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The worst they can do is revoke your club membership. And they have signs up that say they have "extra long hoses to reach both sides of your vehicle."

Reply to
Tim J.

I am suprised to find out that there is something a Yankey can't do ! (pump their own gas)

Reply to
Chevy Man

I only know what I see. The absolute cheapest gas in Uxbridge MA is at Hellens Fuels, two to three cents cheaper than the self serve and they have from one to three people manning the pumps. You can make your own choice, but it seems silly to pay 3¢ a gallon more to freeze my ass off pumping my own.

My point is, self serve is touted to save money for the customer. MA stations are proof that it is possible to sell for the same price and offer pumping service. Self serve is a scam.

Reply to
Edwin Pawlowski

I personally wouldn't want service beyond just pumping the gas and washing the windshield as I think an oil level and tire pressure check is just inviting them to scam you. The reason being that the oil has to have time to drain back down before a reading can be taken or it will seem to be low and if filled back up will be overfilled and with some vehicles overfilled oil can really cause an MPG loss as well as other issues. Also it invites them to sell you a quart of oil. On the tire side the attendant doesn't know if you have driven 5 blocks or 5 miles and if the tires are at operating temp the pressure will read higher and lowering it back down will cause them to be underinflated which once again will cause MPG loss and excessive tire wear.

Reply to
Daniel Who Wants to Know

tom, how about learning where your Shift key is, fer crying out loud...

Reply to
My Name Is Nobody

"Daniel Who Wants to Know" wrote in message

The "low oil" scam was common on the highways. Many years ago, it was far less harmful because cars used more oil and chances are if it was overfilled a bit the level would be back to normal in 500 miles. Two hundred on my '53 Mercury. The last four cars I've owned have not needed any added oil in all the years I've owned them and I change at 7500 miles on my primary, 5000 miles on my secondary and they've gone over 150,000 miles on a couple of them.

The other side though, was my daughter that managed to get 3 quarts low. That was costly.

Reply to
Edwin Pawlowski

Then realize this Paul - almost everything you've posted that reflects life in Oregon, is pretty unique to Oregon. Leave town and head out to the world around you and you'll quickly see why so many people are telling you that things aren't the way you think, once you get beyond the boundaries of your world.

Reply to
Mike Marlow

In Virginia, service stations will not refuse service to someone because they live in fear of getting slapped with a discrimination lawsuit unless the person refused service happens to be white. They will flat out tell you that if, say, you ask them to refuse service to customers who pull in and leave their car stereos blasting the whole neighborhood. And local law enforcement will concur and say that, because the way the laws are written in VA, they disuade station owners from refusing service for that very reason - that the station owner will in fact run a great risk of getting sued on discrimination charges. Personally - I think thy're both FOS - just avoiding conflict to make their days go smoother. But it is a shame that our legal system has allowed this oppression to prevail in the name of "equality".

Bill Putney (To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my address with the letter 'x')

Reply to
Bill Putney

Self service isn't necessarily a scam. But the money to pay the pumpers and their benefits and taxes has to come from *somewhere* - either out of the owner's profits, or in his buying cheaper gas, or otherwise cutting costs somewhere (non-compliance with certain regulations?). Perhaps if you find out where the money comes from to pay the extra unavoidable costs, you'd find that *THAT'S* where the real scam is. But self-service in and of itself is certainly not a scam. Find out how and why the non-self-service stations are able to charge less. You can't just hand-wave those real costs away.

Bill Putney (To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my address with the letter 'x')

Reply to
Bill Putney

IMO, as long as one station can pump gas for the same price as the self serve across the street, touting self service as a money saver is a scam. I don't know how, now do I care how they do it, stations did not lower the self serve price, they raised the full serve price.

When you back out the tax differences, the typical NJ stations pumps the gas for you at about the same price at the self serve in CT. Zone pricing makes apples to apples comparison difficult though. Just as the Shell station in my town is always12¢ less than the one 6 miles down the highway.

If you go back maybe 15 years, they tried to charge more for credit card purchases instead of cash. What happened to that deal? Now that you can pay at the pump they will take your cards at the same price. I've not figured out the benefit of the seller to have you pay at the pump. Convenient for the driver, but I'd have thought the sales of coffee and candy bars at the counter would be hurt by the reduced traffic.

Some stations, like a couple of local ones here in CT offer both. They inflate the full service by 30¢ a gallon to discourage people using it. Even more pathetic is the person that pulls up to the full serve pump and gets out and pumps it him or her self and pays the higher price. They don't look at the pump price.

Reply to
Edwin Pawlowski

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