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I've had my 7.3 PSD for a couple of months now. I have just purchased a 5er and will be hitting the roads soon.
Until now, I've fueled at the normal gas station on the corner. When I'm towing, I want to pull into truck stops where you can pump and pull right through. My question:
Is there any difference in the diesel that i've been getting at the normal gas station vs. what i'd be getting pulling through a truck stop.
Yep, I should know this, but will claim it is because i've only had the 7.3 for a couple of months.
My 02 takes the truck stop nozzle too. I can usually fill up at the high rate, but I don't get a full tank from all the foaming. So i slow it down a notch or two.
bertrbr, You should allways buy your diesel at a place that "moves" a lot of deisel, like a truck stop. The smaller stations don't get a new supply often enough to prevent some of the degradation that happens to diesel that sits around. Our fuel systems are suseptable to contamination so it is a good practice to buy from a high volume station. Also don't buy from a station based solely on the parent company name. I have gotten real bad diesel three times from a company that is one of the two largest fuel companies in the world, but the station was a small, low volume station. As far as the quality, its the same when it leaves the refinery, but it depends on how long it sits around and the quality of the bulk tank it is stored in.
Your best bet is a truck stop; if you're too far from one, watch where local shippers buy their fuel.
I've noticed when I fill at a station with low turnaround, I get 4.1 miles per litre, but when I fill at a station where fresh fuel is delivered every week, I get 4.6 miles per litre. My driving habits remain the same, literally all city driving with a couple 8% grade hills on the way.
There are two diffrent kinds of fule #1 and #2. #1 has a Lower gel point for cold weather. It cost more and i felt a power loss.
most fule stops have #2.
Brian. Ex-long haul trucker now I get home ever day.
I will say 2 things. The only knock on some of the truck stops is the "housecleaning" around the pump. I fill up at a truck stop near work and there is always fuel spilled all over the ground. If you step in it you smell diesel fuel all the way home. (I understand that this is not a universal problem but I try to keep my truck as clean as possible). Also, getting back to the sales volume issue, if the cold weather additive is put in at certain times of the year, it's probably beneficial to go where they move a lot of fuel to make sure it's in your tank when you need it. Diesel engines are getting so popular now that fuel turnover is bound to be better all over the place.
Just one other word of caution. The first trip I took with my camper and my new PSD I did something really embarassing. All the pumps were taken but one on the end. When I started pumping I did notice that the pump didn't have any way to tell how much fuel you had gotton. Come to find out I was pumping on someone else's satilite pump. This is so the trucks can fill both tanks as once. Needless to say that trucker wasn't happy when he found out. Also a pair of gloves is a great thing to have when using the stations with poor housekeeping. Keeps the smell off your hands.
it only took two fill ups to see that i needed a pair.
these should come with the truck!!!
our truck has the big filler neck. it makes filling up a breeze.
i have a truck stop near where i work that has the "big rig" pumps on the other side of the building. this is benefical as some mother driving an SUV, yelling at the kids and talking on the cell won't back into my new f-250 and ruin my day.
I've also noticed the big rig side is a lot quieter and a lot calmer. Makes it easier to enjoy the mellow tones of diesel engines as the trucks pull away from the pumps. Of course I could see where that calm might get interrupted if somebody pumped out a bunch of fuel on somebody else's tab.........
On gloves, I found it real convenient to keep a box of medical glover behind my seat. Just throw them away after each use, no keeping a set of stinky gloves in or around the truck.
I have seen all the posts about using the "big rigs" tanks. While this will work, don't you pay more taxes if you use the truckers pumps
Here in Arizona the light duty tax on diesel is .18 per gallon but it looks like its .26 on the truckers pumps. (at least looking at the advertised prices on the signs) Is this right or am I just still confused??
AZ. Has a higher tax on trucks over 26,000 # GCVW I was in Bullhead last month and i had to look around for a auto pump to save. But here in California the tax is the same. fuel is always cheaper almost at truck stops it's like 1.65 in LA and Barstow will be 1.45
You're right about the fuel tax being higher for big rigs in AZ; unless it's changed in the last 4 years.
I see you're from Tucson, where do you fill up? I used to live in Ft. Huachuca and would go to Tucson every weekend, so on the way home I used to go to the TripleT station off the Alvarado Rd I-10 exit. They had the freshest fuel in town and if you pulled up to the big rig pumps, you would get the extra tax credited on the spot.
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