Watch Ya self serve gas

[ultrarunner]

I bought gas from one of the old glass pumps...

Left little doubt as to the clarity and volume if you bought 10 gallons...

Try to put more than 10 gallons and the excess went back to the underground tank...

 

[Bird]

There was a Dateline story on this a couple of years ago. Seemed "defrauding" fuel customers was pretty common in the N.East . The two biggest things where 1. selling a lower grade fuel as higher grade, and 2. Metering out less fuel than the pump read.

They rode around with the inspectors that had an exact 10gal hidden tank (New Jersey I think) since they said the modern technology allow some unscrupulous station owners to change it with a "switch" They said they where so short of inspectors nation wide that it was impossible to to check every station.

2 things that stuck out in the story to my wife and I was, the violators they did show didn't speak English well and the other was the inspection stickers on the pump where good "on the day" they where tested.

I don't know how all the states do it, but when Dad had a Texaco service station in Oklahoma and then a Mobil station in Texas, both states inspected the same way. You never knew when the state inspector would show up and they had a special kind of 5 gallon can that had a thin glass cylinder at the top, so he'd pump 5 gallons according to the pump, then look at that glass to tell exactly how much he had pumped, then he'd dump it back into our underground tank, except that he'd put maybe a half cup or less in a little bottle that he'd label. He'd do that for the regular gas and then for the ethyl pump. The little bottles were to check in the lab to be sure we had regular in the regular pump and ethyl in the ethyl pump. In our case, we never had a problem, and certainly didn't mind the state checking us.

 

[jinman]

This got me thinking. Does anyone else remember the old Sunoco pumps that allowed you to dial in about 8 different grades of gasoline by moving a selector on the pump? I assume they were just changing the blend from two tanks.

Yep, the low grade was 190 and the top grade was 260. You could mix any grade in between in increments of 10. As I remember, the 260 had so much lead in it that it had a bluish-green shade. A buddy of mine had a Sunoco station in Virginia Beach, Va.

 

[Ken]

This past December was in central Mich. the fuel man had been on and was reading 3 miles to empty so pulled into a Mobile service sta. Next to our truck was a state measurment man and while filling talked to him. He showed the past record of the pump and present fill of gas was accurite. also took sample for later check of quality. Told us the cost of selling bad gas was to great for any service sta. to try .
He did admit some times there is water in gas but pumps have filters to catch only when so much it overides the filter then pump is very slow.
15 years ago took a 5 gal gas can with fuel in can maybe a gal. and at service sta was filling and noticed the pump was over 8 gal. of fuel stoped the pump talked to attendant He acted like I had put fuel in truck first. wouldn't do anything. Called the state group that does this checking about the problem. They asked if I could wait 10 minutes for a man from there group to stop by and not allow anyone to use pump. said O'k. In less time the measurment truck stopped and pumped into 5 gal container and came up 8 also. the next day the station was closed.
So maybe this group does a good job.
ken

 

[chopped]

Ok I just typed a nice. letter to the head company and explained. I wasnt bad mouthing them Just stated what had happened.Of cource when I clicked to sumit it didnt work But I had set the words into copy and then resent it. So Ill see how they react..

 

[Soundguy]

This might seem like a fluke, But today I purchased gas at a local station which is a small chain componay who sells Gulf gas.Ive bought gas there before with no problems but a couple of times over the years I have caught them with the wrong price on the sign (on top of pump).And before the digital signs I also found that the street price and the pump price was different.
Also One statio has the grades from super to the regular with keys from right to left instead of the 'norm' of left to right.Caught myself once putting in super when I wanted regular.I always wondered if that was deliberate.
well today was a new adventure. I pumped as usual and clicked the regular button. And as I pumped I read the screen and it said puping super. I looked and the large button of grade was lit and it was regular.:confused2::confused2:
Again wonder .... I didt have the time to go inside as I had in the past . but in the past I never had much luck with the cashier to 'fix' it.
Anyways wondered if this was an ''odd' experience or not ..

i know in florida there are dpt of ag stamps on the pumps.. if something weird is goin on.. you can call and report them

does your state have the same?