Driving off with the nozzle

[4WD]

Fuel nozzle is last when getting started & first when getting done.
Even the pump sequence logic works that way.
Payment to receipt.

 

[ATex7239]

I have a career where mistakes like that can result in disaster. For me and all those for whom I am responsible.

So, while I haven’t weighed in on this topic, let’s be careful about “making mistakes” being acceptable. Perhaps they are. Perhaps not.

Some mistakes have grave consequences. Driving off with the hose still in the car is dumb, but not of great consequence.

But you wouldn’t accept the excuses, “it was late, and I was tired”, or, “we are all human” if your surgeon made a mistake.

Of course not. Scale and severity always matter. The point is the slings and arrows tend to come out quicker than necessary.

 

[HemiBenny]

Employees aren’t available when you pull up. Or they start the pump, then disappear for a while, and you’re left just waiting for them to come back. What a pain.

Having never been anywhere that I was not able to pump my own gas, I'm curious, do the pumps work as any other pump would? Pay at the pump? If there were no employees available right away, or if they left and didn't come back, are you able to just get out and do it yourself? Is it a situation where they are the only one that has the ability to turn the pump on and off?
I believe if they worked as any other pump, I wouldn't have the patience to sit there and wait endlessly. I would get out and do their job for them, what would the consequences of that be?

 

[k1xv]

In a related incident, I had as neighbors a retired couple. The wife was rather nervous and fidgety.

They had a single car width driveway that they would back out of, with a tree near the passenger side. One day, they are in the car backing out of the driveway, and the wife thinks she has not closed the door of their full size Cadillac Sedan de Ville (this was back in the 1960s)

She opens the door as the car is moving, the tree catches the door, and the door and its hinges are ripped off the car by their roots, and the door is lying on the ground next to the driveway.

They get the car repaired. It took weeks. Six months later, it happened all over again.

They cut the tree down, and replaced the car with a new one.

 

[Jetronic]

The main reason for that sign is to get people to think about not driving away with the nozzle. But it kind of sends the wrong message since the damage to the station is small if the guy brings the nozzle back so they can re-attach it.

The quick disconnect coupler can get damaged aswell, I've had to replace one. There's no guarantee the nozzle goes back on, and stays on under pressure.

 

[JHZR2]

Which is why I avoid buying gas in that state, if at all possible. I’m there often, and it turns a five minute gas stop into something much longer, and more inconvenient.

Employees aren’t available when you pull up. Or they start the pump, then disappear for a while, and you’re left just waiting for them to come back. What a pain.

I buy gas in Delaware, or Connecticut, and have the range to bypass NJ without issue. Even when gas was cheaper in NJ (which is no longer true) I would fill up in another state.

When I drive to Newark, I would fill up before NJ. Go to work. Leave, and fill up on the Eastern Shore on my way home. Too many bad experiences at NJ gas stations.

NJ isn’t as regularly cheaper as it was but it’s still cheaper than neighboring states.

Case in point - today gas at Costco is $3.13 at Cherry Hill and Mt Laurel (which is super convenient to 295 when traversing the southern half of the state), and $3.29/gal in Delaware (Christiana Costco).

I routinely start, or finish my pump myself. The nice thing is that when I don’t want to, I don’t have to. And no touching of filthy pumps if I do desire.

It really isn’t that bad. Reality is that if they removed the full service requirement, the prices wouldn’t go down, the vendors would just line their pockets further.

 

[Dave P.]

Having never been anywhere that I was not able to pump my own gas, I'm curious, do the pumps work as any other pump would? Pay at the pump? If there were no employees available right away, or if they left and didn't come back, are you able to just get out and do it yourself? Is it a situation where they are the only one that has the ability to turn the pump on and off?
I believe if they worked as any other pump, I wouldn't have the patience to sit there and wait endlessly. I would get out and do their job for them, what would the consequences of that be?

As a NJ resident, it's not really possible to start pumping your own gas anymore. When paying with cash, the attendant has to insert their "key" card to activate the pump. Years ago, yes, you could start the process yourself but for either safety or security reasons, that isn't the case anymore, at least not in top of the line, modern stations. I don't pay with credit so I don't know if the attendant has to put in his key card plus your credit card or just the credit card.

 

[HemiBenny]

As a NJ resident, it's not really possible to start pumping your own gas anymore. When paying with cash, the attendant has to insert their "key" card to activate the pump. Years ago, yes, you could start the process yourself but for either safety or security reasons, that isn't the case anymore, at least not in top of the line, modern stations. I don't pay with credit so I don't know if the attendant has to put in his key card plus your credit card or just the credit card.

I see. Thank you for explaining the process. I can see how this could be an aggravating situation by turning a short fuel stop into a longer than necessary, drawn out process. I guess if you’re used to it, it really isn’t a big deal, but I would have a hard time adjusting to that.

 

[KrisZ]

People are very distracted these days.

There is a rash of kids being left behind in vehicles, and dying as a result, so what’s a fuel nozzle?

 

[Dave P.]

I see. Thank you for explaining the process. I can see how this could be an aggravating situation by turning a short fuel stop into a longer than necessary, drawn out process. I guess if you’re used to it, it really isn’t a big deal, but I would have a hard time adjusting to that.

The key for me is trying to buy gas at the same stations where I know the service will be quick and hopefully, somewhat courteous. If you vary from the norm, it can be like that Forrest Gump box of chocolates.

 

[Astro14]

The key for me is trying to buy gas at the same stations where I know the service will be quick and hopefully, somewhat courteous. If you vary from the norm, it can be like that Forrest Gump box of chocolates.

That’s where I’ve gone wrong in NJ. I have little local knowledge, though I work in Newark, I generally fly there.

So, over the past 30 years or so, when driving through the state, I’ve been burned nearly every time I’ve stopped for fuel.

Yes, some of that is the NJTP, but I don’t have the time to find a good, local station through trial and error, when I can simply side step the problem by avoiding them all.

 

[Dave P.]

That’s where I’ve gone wrong in NJ. I have little local knowledge, though I work in Newark, I generally fly there.

So, over the past 30 years or so, when driving through the state, I’ve been burned nearly every time I’ve stopped for fuel.

Yes, some of that is the NJTP, but I don’t have the time to find a good, local station through trial and error, when I can simply side step the problem by avoiding them all.

Perhaps a Tesla might solve your problem

 

[JHZR2]

That’s where I’ve gone wrong in NJ. I have little local knowledge, though I work in Newark, I generally fly there.

So, over the past 30 years or so, when driving through the state, I’ve been burned nearly every time I’ve stopped for fuel.

Yes, some of that is the NJTP, but I don’t have the time to find a good, local station through trial and error, when I can simply side step the problem by avoiding them all.

Once you get south of 195, switch over to 295, you’ll save the toll and access more options. The flying j at exit 1 used to be about the best one could do, but truck stop gas prices in general aren’t that competitive anymore. Thus why I mentioned the Mt. Laurel Costco.

NJTP gas prices aren’t great and often there are long lines. I think the only times we’ve bought gas there was after Sandy.

As long as you’re not paying cash, start and stop your own pump if in a rush. Yeah it says it’s unlawful, but typically an attendant will be close by to do it for you. The need is only when you’re sitting there waiting…

 

[Chris142]

Perhaps a Tesla might solve your problem

Can a person drive off in a Tesla while plugged in? High power wires laying on the ground ?

 

[bbhero]

I have a career where mistakes like that can result in disaster. For me and all those for whom I am responsible.

So, while I haven’t weighed in on this topic, let’s be careful about “making mistakes” being acceptable. Perhaps they are. Perhaps not.

Some mistakes have grave consequences. Driving off with the hose still in the car is dumb, but not of great consequence.

But you wouldn’t accept the excuses, “it was late, and I was tired”, or, “we are all human” if your surgeon made a mistake.

True story time…

We had a person at the hospital I worked at who gave a patient 8 mg of IV Dilaudid ( which by the way is equal to 56 mgs of Morphine ) and killed that patient…. For good…

My step fathers good friend got killed by being given a IV antibiotic …. Though mind you he was complaining of having a hard time swallowing the pill form and that his throat and mouth felt very funny and not right aft taking that pill… So… let’s give him a IV form of it and… he has a anaphylactic reaction… Gone… For good.

 

[Astro14]

Perhaps a Tesla might solve your problem

Well, to be fair, I plan fuel stops much like a BEV driver would plan charges.

But the S600 has a comfortable range of 400 miles, with good reserves, so it’s easy to bypass NJ. Tundra goes even farther. Range matters to me much more than MPG, but that’s another discussion.

I can fill up in Delaware, drive to EWR, park, go to work, and then easily make it back to Delaware.

Crossing the state is a shorter distance, and so it’s even simpler.