Full service vs. Self Serve.

[BigMattFromTexas]

OK, so that the "Sheetz" thread can go back to being a thread about the store thing, I decided to make this to see which y'all prefer? Full service or self serve and y'alls reasons for preferring the y'alls choice. I prefer self serve, because honestly unless you have two broken legs it's not that hard to pump your own gasoline. The entire idea of full service reminds me of the "olden days" or laziness. . But that's just my opinion. Y'alls?
BigMatt

[Michael in Philly]

Oy.  I see this turning into Jersey-bashing....

[Chris]

Self-service is almost everywhere in Europe. The only place where they pump for you are in old-school small-town gas stations with 10 vehicles per day. I think the last time I saw such a thing in the Netherlands was 3 years ago.

[Michael in Philly]

I just posted the question at SSC.  You beat me again!

[agentsteel53]

Oy.  I see this turning into Jersey-bashing....

there's much easier ways to bash New Jersey    a TV show with the word "shore" in it comes to mind.

as for self-serve vs. full-serve, I much prefer self-serve. 

[BigMattFromTexas]

I don't see why you're so sensitive, why would a thread about GAS STATIONS have anything to do with an entire state? Like really?! If I wanted to bash New Jersey I'da made thread for that. Heh heh.

[agentsteel53]

Self-service is almost everywhere in Europe. The only place where they pump for you are in old-school small-town gas stations with 10 vehicles per day. I think the last time I saw such a thing in the Netherlands was 3 years ago.

in Europe, the prevalence of completely automated gas stations is much higher.  In the US, gas stations tend to go completely self-serve only at night.  In the day, there is an attendant who tends to run the convenience store, giving people the option of paying inside (perhaps with cash) between, say, 5am and 11pm.

I don't think I've ever seen a completely unmanned gas station in the US.

[BigMattFromTexas]

Self-service is almost everywhere in Europe. The only place where they pump for you are in old-school small-town gas stations with 10 vehicles per day. I think the last time I saw such a thing in the Netherlands was 3 years ago.

I don't think I've ever seen a completely unmanned gas station in the US.

Hmm, I've never seen one either. Well not during the day.
BigMatt

[Brandon]

I don't think I've ever seen a completely unmanned gas station in the US.

There are a lot of F/S stations (co-ops, I think) that are completely automated in downstate Illinois.  However, I think one needs to be a co-op member to use them.

EDIT:

I think I may stand corrected.  According to Growmark's website, anyone can buy from FS.  Having never stopped at one, I don't know if one can purchase gasoline without being a member, but they say they take Visa and MasterCard.  I'll have to look next time I go downstate.
http://www.growmark.com/prodserv/faststop/faststop_locator_start.asp

[BigMattFromTexas]

Oh yeah! I've seen those outside of Angelo. And then there's a gas station out by our airport that is for SAPD/SAFD, and whatnot. So it's completely for the city emergency services.
BigMatt

[agentsteel53]

Oh yeah! I've seen those outside of Angelo. And then there's a gas station out by our airport that is for SAPD/SAFD, and whatnot. So it's completely for the city emergency services.
BigMatt

right - those do exist, but I've never seen them usable by the general public.

[corco]

I hate it- even though gas tends to be cheaper in Oregon than Washington (not Idaho), I tend to avoid fueling in Oregon just to avoid the hassle of full service. I never know whether or not to tip- and I hate the full service. If  you're going to do full service, do it the old fashioned way and wash my windows and check my oil. The full service in Oregon tends to just be some cigarette smelling dude walk up five minutes after you pull in, start the pump, walk away, work on the next car, come back, put pump away. Just let me do it- I'm at least near the pump so if there's a malfunction I can fix it- Mr. Pump Attendant just puts the pump in and walks away.

[BigMattFromTexas]

We were gonna go to a full service gas station once, but we decided to go to one that we could pump it ourselves. Self serve just makes me more happy.. I guess.
BigMatt

[agentsteel53]

furthermore, gas stations at night in Oregon and New Jersey need to shut down if unstaffed, as opposed to going to self-serve credit card mode.  Not good when it's 2am and you need gas...

[Chris]

in Europe, the prevalence of completely automated gas stations is much higher. 

Probably correct. I always fill up at an automated gas station, it saves me € 0.10 per liter or $ 0.50 per gallon (that's about 9% for diesel!). However, you cannot always pump gas at an automated gas station in another country, they often only accept national debit cards. I tried one in France a few months ago with my credit card, didn't work. I had to enter a six-digit PIN code, yet my credit card only has a four digit code.

Automated gas stations are rare along freeways though, I know of only one in the Netherlands. You should know gas stations along freeways are always situated on a rest area, you don't need to take an exit to get to a gas station.

[Duke87]

I refuse to buy gas full serve. I'm protective of my things, and I won't allow anyone other than myself to handle my car. I don't trust a pump jockey with my debit card, either, so having to pay with cash would be an added inconvenience.

Beyond that, I compulsively keep track of my mileage and fuel economy, so when I fill up I need to write down exactly how many gallons I put in my tank. Not necessarily doable if I'm staying in the car.

[yanksfan6129]

I think that people that are really against full service are extremely misguided. Corco referred to it as a "hassle"--I see it as exactly the opposite, a service that is being done for you. Corco, you called it a hassle but you didn't really elaborate. You don't tip attendants unless they go above and beyond merely pumping the gas, in which case I give a dollar. One time I had the guy check my oil and put some in, and I gave him two bucks, I think.

As for Duke87's concerns: I don't understand why you wouldn't trust some guy to swipe your card. He does it in full view of you, right next to your window. Also, I don't really think it makes sense that you are wary of letting the attendant 'touch your car' because after all, you (I'm guessing) let mechanics touch your car. It's really not a big deal to just put a pump into a hole. And in terms of writing down the gallons, again I mention that the pump is right next to your window, maybe just crane your neck a tiny bit to see the gallons. And if not, just get up for a moment.

Frankly, when I pumped gas in NY the other day, I found it to be annoying because I was not happy about handling the dirty pump. But I don't think I'm as "vehemently" opposed to self-serve as some in here seem to be toward full-serve. It's not that I'm opposed to self-serve, I just prefer full serve.

[corco]

I think that people that are really against full service are extremely misguided. Corco referred to it as a "hassle"--I see it as exactly the opposite, a service that is being done for you. Corco, you called it a hassle but you didn't really elaborate. You don't tip attendants unless they go above and beyond merely pumping the gas, in which case I give a dollar. One time I had the guy check my oil and put some in, and I gave him two bucks, I think.

It's a hassle because the following tends to happen to me in Oregon (where I would be in 48 other states at the same time is in parentheses)(this may not happen in New Jersey)-

1. I pull up.
2. I wait for an attendant (open gas cap, put credit card in)
3. I wait for an attendant (start fueling)
4. Attendant shows up, puts credit card in- if I'm lucky. I know several stations in Oregon require you to pay inside still to make it impossible for rogue travelers unfamiliar with the law to fuel themselves (fueling)
5. Attendant starts fueling (finishing up fueling)
6. Attendant walks away with car fueling (finishing up fueling)
7. Car fueling (closing my gas cap)
8. Car finishes fueling (driving away)
9. I wait for the attendant to come back. (on the road again)
10. I wait for the attendant to come back  (on the road again)
11. The attendant comes back and puts stuff away and I leave (on the road again)

The process tends to take at least 3-4 minutes longer then just doing it myself. Thus, hassle.

Then there's agentsteele's point that it's often difficult to find somewhere to fuel for you, especially in rural Oregon. This may not be applicable in New Jersey, but try looking for a staffed gas station in the middle of the night in rural Oregon. It's really hard.

[agentsteel53]

it's a hassle simply because I do not have the right to refuse it.  In all 50 states I have the right to change my own oil, repair my own car, etc - so why can't I purchase gasoline and fill the car with it myself?

[yanksfan6129]

Fair enough. But that's not how I find it in New Jersey; true that there is a little bit of a wait sometimes, but I wouldn't say an additional 3-4 minutes.

[yanksfan6129]

it's a hassle simply because I do not have the right to refuse it.  In all 50 states I have the right to change my own oil, repair my own car, etc - so why can't I purchase gasoline and fill the car with it myself?

Also a legitimate argument. Again, I point out, although I prefer full service, I am not opposed to self serve.

[Michael in Philly]

in Europe, the prevalence of completely automated gas stations is much higher. 

Probably correct. I always fill up at an automated gas station, it saves me € 0.10 per liter or $ 0.50 per gallon (that's about 9% for diesel!). However, you cannot always pump gas at an automated gas station in another country, they often only accept national debit cards. I tried one in France a few months ago with my credit card, didn't work. I had to enter a six-digit PIN code, yet my credit card only has a four digit code.

Automated gas stations are rare along freeways though, I know of only one in the Netherlands. You should know gas stations along freeways are always situated on a rest area, you don't need to take an exit to get to a gas station.

What's the difference between automated and self-service?

[yanksfan6129]

My concerns about New Jersey eliminating mandated full-service gasoline are:

1. (personal concern)--not finding many full service stations to go to, even if they are my personal preference
2. jobs. We can debate the type of people that work these attendant jobs and the pay of these attendants etc, but ultimately a job is a job.

[corco]

Fair enough. But that's not how I find it in New Jersey; true that there is a little bit of a wait sometimes, but I wouldn't say an additional 3-4 minutes.

Even if it's not three to four minutes I put enough value on my time that it's not worth 10 seconds to me to have somebody do it for me- I value efficiency over convenience- my objective at gas stations is to get in and out as quickly as possible so I can enjoy the traveling part of the trip. Any delay that's caused by something out of my control is an annoyance. If I'm stuck in traffic, I'm annoyed. If I'm waiting at a gas station, I'm annoyed.

2. jobs. We can debate the type of people that work these attendant jobs and the pay of these attendants etc, but ultimately a job is a job.

This is a legitimate argument. Keep in mind, however, that at night in most other states gas stations actually have to have at least two people on staff if they are open because full service is mandated for handicapped people and it's just stupid to leave a convenience store unattended at night (I think under the ADA, but I could be wrong), so I'm not sure the job loss would be as great as most may think.
(I remembered that wrong: http://www.ada.gov/gasserve.htm)

[yanksfan6129]

Look, if they legalized self-serve in New Jersey right now that wouldn't bother me, although it would likely be coupled with a gas tax increase in the vain of "if the stations don't have to employ people to pump the gas, that'll save them money. So the tax will just make the gas price the same as if they all employed attendants." And I don't think that is a legit argument. You know full well that the gas station owners are just going to take advantage of slightly (SLIGHTLY) bigger margins. So I am opposed to a gas tax increased, and therefore am opposed to eliminating full-serve gas in the name of increasing the gas tax.