NJ Self-Service Gas?

[formulanone]

...as much of the fabric of the state's culture as Taylor Ham and Frankie Valli.

This may be why my folks moved from New Jersey shortly after I was born.

[jeffandnicole]

WTF is Taylor Ham?

You're not from Jersey.  You're not allowed to know.

I guess we shouldn't bring up Scrapple then either...

[odditude]

give me pork roll or give me death, and let me pump my own damn gas when i want to.

[Pete from Boston]

WTF is Taylor Ham?

It is a Trenton-made pork sausage with a salty, peppery seasoning to it that is sliced and fried and eaten primarily in a breakfast sandwich with egg on a kaiser roll.  It looks like something between ham and bologna.  It seems to be commonly called Taylor Ham up north and pork roll down south (the John Taylor company markets a two products, one with each of those names), but it is regardless the unofficial state deli meat.  It is as New Jersey as the Texas Wiener.

[SP Cook]

WTF is Taylor Ham?

It is an acquired taste.  It is not really "ham", although some New Jersians use "Taylor Ham" as a genercised trademark (like band-aid or xerox) for what is legally called "pork roll".   It is made from the same mystery meat parts of the pig  which yeild  Spam or Treet and such.   Mostly eaten in a manner similar to fried bologna.

You don't see it outside New Jersey and nearby Pennsylvania too much, except in places NJians have migrated (you can get it in Morganhole, WV, where WVU, which has more NJians than most colleges in NJ is located; and I have seen it in south Florida too) . 

For me, I will pass. 

[briantroutman]

Pork roll is widely available in Pennsylvania, too–at least of the Budway. I've heard it's available in most of the tri-state (NJ, NY, CT) area as well.

I grew up listening to Bruce Williams (a native New Jerseyan if ever there was one) on the radio, and some years ago, he started up a side business selling pork roll online–primarily to NJ expats who can't find it locally. If you want to try it: http://www.jerseyboyporkroll.com/

Unfortunately, I haven't had it in about a decade–after I first gave up pork and later went full-on vegetarian.

[Zeffy]

WTF is Taylor Ham?

Trenton's gift to the world state.

I don't really know what the big deal is about self-serving your own gas. New Jersey is different.

[SteveG1988]

What is wrong with letting NJ keep this little quirk of life? It keeps NJ from being just another state when you drive through it, it is a reminder that hey, you're in another state, and the rules here are different.

[roadman65]

What is more of an issue is those who boycot New Jersey service stations all over this silly law.  Yes it is silly, but I will not go far to not get gas if I am there.   

Yes, NJ should move on like the rest of us have, but not enough to lose sleep over.

[Pete from Boston]

Wegman's carries it at their stores outside the usual Taylor Ham market.  I'm not sure who is buying it, other than tri-state ex-pats. The Wegman's here are kind of far afield, with typical Wegman's high prices, so I don't satisfy my Taylor Ham cravings very often.

[NJRoadfan]

5000 with full synthetic is a waste, 8500 is reasonable. I do 5,000 with conventional oil with no problems. Modern engines are cleaner burning than what was built even 25 years ago plus modern oils have a lot more detergents in them to keep the engine running fine.

Actually 5000 mile change intervals are perfectly fine with VWs running TSI engines. That motor is pretty brutal on oil going by oil quality tests. I have owned 3 cars with various generations of the VW 2.0TSI/TFSI. That and they liked to burn oil, but they seem to have finally fixed that problem.

As for porkroll, I have seen it in Lowe's Supermarkets and BJ's in NC and in Publix in the Tampa Bay area.

[hbelkins]

Does anyone ever actually check their oil the old fashioned way using the dipstick?

Yes, because while all vehicles I've owned have a low oil pressure light, I've never (to my knowledge) owned a vehicle that would tell you if the oil level was low. Took my Saturn Vue,  which is a male, because it has a DIC,* in for an oil change once and was told (and shown) that there was no oil on the dipstick. So now I check it on a semi-regular basis and add oil if needed.

Funny that the vehicle will tell me if my tires are too low, which is something I can eyeball for myself without any trouble, but it won't tell me if my oil level is low. Low air pressure will most likely lead to nothing more serious than a flat tire, while low engine oil levels can lead to a catastrophic engine failure.

*Driver Information Center

[Mr. Matté]

I had forgotten that NJ's referenda (referendums?) are non-binding except for Constitutional amendments. But still, I hate the fact that he's not even going to allow for a vote on the bill. I'd sorta understand if it was the other way around where Sweeney is strongly in favor of it but he doesn't post it to avoid the embarrassment of it being voted down, but if he thinks that it's a bad idea for the state, let them vote it down and have the representatives of the people show that it's bad.

We now continue with the satellite /r/newjersey forum's Taylor Ham vs. Pork Roll discussion already in progress.

[bing101]

Wait I read the New Jersey Law about this and supposed New Jersey has a standard for portable Gas Tanks. Wait I thought California makes the standards for Cars such as smog, and auto Safety, and gas tanks.

[briantroutman]

Does anyone ever actually check their oil the old fashioned way using the dipstick?

I've never (to my knowledge) owned a vehicle that would tell you if the oil level was low.

A low engine oil level warning light is a relatively new feature that some automakers added perhaps ten years ago at the earliest, but many have added only in the past couple of years, and some still do not offer at all. The 2015 Toyota Camry, the best-selling passenger car in the US, does not have the feature.

Considering that the average age of a car in the US is now 11.4 years, I think it's safe to guess that the vast majority of all cars on the road do not have a low engine oil level warning light.

Duke87's comment about the dipstick being the "old fashioned way"  was a bit like asking whether anyone still accesses the Internet "the old fashioned way...on a computer with keys" . Yes, hundreds of millions still do, every day.

[NJRoadfan]

My car doesn't even have a dipstick, its all electronic... and yes there is a low oil (and over fill) warning.

[SteveG1988]

Friend of mine had a 1987 aerostar with a low oil sensor.

[Duke87]

A low engine oil level warning light is a relatively new feature that some automakers added perhaps ten years ago at the earliest, but many have added only in the past couple of years, and some still do not offer at all. The 2015 Toyota Camry, the best-selling passenger car in the US, does not have the feature.

Considering that the average age of a car in the US is now 11.4 years, I think it's safe to guess that the vast majority of all cars on the road do not have a low engine oil level warning light.

Duke87's comment about the dipstick being the "old fashioned way"  was a bit like asking whether anyone still accesses the Internet "the old fashioned way...on a computer with keys" . Yes, hundreds of millions still do, every day.

Okay, fair point. My car is 4 years old. It not only has a warning light, it also has a young enough engine that oil gradually leaking around the pistons into the combustion chamber is not a concern. I suppose this is one of those things that I don't think of because I've never been in the habit of driving older cars.

[vdeane]

My civic is new enough that it tells me the oil level to the nearest 10%.  Pity the tire pressure sensors can't do that.  The "check tire pressure" light can mean anything from "one of your tires has leaked 1psi over the past 4 hours" to "you just had a blow out", and pulling over on I-95 in PA to figure out which is NOT fun.  Of course, it won't tell you which tire either, so an inaccurate/sticky pressure rod can even CAUSE the problem when you check!  Had to buy a new one over this car (turns out the old rod underestimated by 5psi, so it was probably time anyways).  Newer Hondas don't even have service intervals any more... you just rely on the car to tell you what needs to be done.

As for gas... no other state has a "safety" issue (excep Oregon), so either there is something VERY defective about New Jersey gas pump technology or it's just a BS excuse for politicians to have a stick up their rears.

I think it's funny that people equate with allowing self serve with a ban on full serve.  Full serve culture is strong in NJ; do people honestly think it would just vanish overnight?  I guarantee that had the law passed, nobody would have cared if the full serve stations were more expensive (at least no NJ natives would).

I don't get the attraction of waiting in line for an overworked jockey to scratch your paint by just dropping your gas cap on the side of the car instead of putting it in the holder on the car's whatchamacallit, and then waiting another five minutes after the pump is done for him to finish with someone else.

[NJRoadfan]

When places charge $1/gal more for full serve, it'll vanish over night.

Odd that a Honda TPMS system doesn't show tire pressures. Acuras are one of the few cars that can give psi readings of all 4 tires in real time.

[02 Park Ave]

How does Taylor Ham compare to Parks' Sausages?

[bugo]

Note, cell phones have never caused a fire or an explosion at a gasoline filling station.  They may cause distraction, but they cannot cause a fire or explosion.

"cannot"?

The cell phone is an electric device. Electric devices sometimes spark. In the right situation, a badly malfunctioning cell phone could theoretically cause a spark.

[jeffandnicole]

I had forgotten that NJ's referenda (referendums?) are non-binding except for Constitutional amendments. But still, I hate the fact that he's not even going to allow for a vote on the bill. I'd sorta understand if it was the other way around where Sweeney is strongly in favor of it but he doesn't post it to avoid the embarrassment of it being voted down, but if he thinks that it's a bad idea for the state, let them vote it down and have the representatives of the people show that it's bad.

We now continue with the satellite /r/newjersey forum's Taylor Ham vs. Pork Roll discussion already in progress.

Honestly, I doubt it would be voted down.  The "I will never pump my own gas" crowd is strong in NJ.

You're also dealing with people from a state that will bitch about their high taxes whenever they can, yet a public question that comes up every few years asking to slightly raise taxes to aid Green Acres/Blue Acres/Historical Preservation/Farmland Preservation programs have never been turned down at the polls.

[Pete from Boston]

I don't get the attraction of waiting in line for an overworked jockey to scratch your paint by just dropping your gas cap on the side of the car instead of putting it in the holder on the car's whatchamacallit, and then waiting another five minutes after the pump is done for him to finish with someone else.

I wouldn't understand that attraction, either.  Fortunately what you describe almost never happens, so an attraction to it or lack thereof is more or less a non-issue.

[roadman]

Newer Hondas don't even have service intervals any more... you just rely on the car to tell you what needs to be done.

And the dumbing down of America contines at a blistering pace.