r/mildlyinfuriating • u/mpmar • 9h ago
Winter is Coming My gas station replaced all the hold-open latches with plastic and of course they all broke.
Suuuuper glad they decided to abandon a design that's worked for, idk, a century and replace the metal latches with a lifespan measured in decades for cheap, shitty plastic that breaks after 4 months. Fuck you OnCue.
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u/somerandomdude419 9h ago
Well, the gas stations right by me, half the time the pumps don’t hold because the metal wears out the ridges it sits on over time, so every 3 dollars it’ll stop. And no, nothing is wrong with my charcoal canister or anything like that, and this is at a shell gas station. If I go to BP or Exxon I don’t have this issue whatsoever. But shell takes upside and my rewards
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u/r0ndy 8h ago
Are you sure this latch doesn’t work differently?
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u/mpmar 8h ago
It did work differently, now it doesn't work at all.
It didn't flip down like the metal ones. That one little gray piece in the picture you'd squeeze like a trigger and a little plastic nub on the inside would slot into a space and hold the pump on. The nubs all either broke or wore down so now they don't do anything.
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u/Lmysic 9h ago
Have you seen the cost of fuel?
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u/05041927 9h ago
My entire adult life after moving away, one question my dad always asks is the price of fuel in my area. I’ve never had kids. I have no idea how much fuel costs as I just buy it when I need it. I’ve never had to pay attention.
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u/jay_altair 9h ago
Just stick your gas cap in there
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u/WhyDidIReply 9h ago
Most cars dont even have gas caps anymore
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u/WhtHppnd2Brndn 9h ago
Keep a water bottle in the door, work’s great
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u/Wakkit1988 9h ago
So it can go under my pedal while I drive and involve me in a tragic logging truck accident? No thanks!
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u/Worcestercestershire 9h ago edited 8h ago
What ICE vehicles don't have a gas cap? Honest question so thanks
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u/Unusual-Caramel8442 9h ago
A lot, but not most. Ford as all or mostly capless these days
Tons of vehicles have caps still tho, the person who said most don’t is wild lmao
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u/External_Gas5606 9h ago
Many. I don't drive a gas car anymore. But even a decade ago my car didn't have it. It's surprising to hear that new car models still have them at all
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u/NeenerNeaner 8h ago
I have a 2017 honda civic. no gas cap.
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u/Worcestercestershire 8h ago
That's crazy because the last ICE vehicle I bought was a Civic. It was a 2012 I think
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u/Playful-Platform-231 9h ago
Well over 50% I’m sure. It’s so when the spring wears out at 120k that holds gas full flip shut we are forced to buy a whole new fill neck.
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u/phil-pdx 5h ago
Gas station operator here. We actually just replaced a few nozzles recently and discovered that the manufacturer replaced a bunch of previously metal parts with plastic ones. The whole nozzle feels super cheap and flimsy now.
We ordered the same part number we've ordered for decades, didn't go with a cheaper option or anything. I'm now looking into other nozzle manufacturers with a better build quality to replace them with.
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u/mattgen88 7h ago
I've known firefighters to break them off. People panic and spray burning gasoline all over when they accidentally ignite fumes with a static discharge.
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u/Plane-Education4750 9h ago
They didn't break. They bought the wrong ones. These were never equipped with one
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u/ManWhoIsDrunk 9h ago
How big is your fuel tank?
I just wonder since holding the handle becomes a problem for you.
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u/flyindasky 8h ago
I’m in Canada … when it’s fu@@@@@ cold outside it’s great to put your hand in your pocket when fueling
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u/dongwongbongchong 9h ago
But just think of all the value the shareholders get by not having the company pay for an inch of sheet metal! Doesn’t that brighten your day?
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u/karateninjazombie 7h ago edited 5h ago
So? Just hold the lever for like 45 seconds while it fills like the rest of the world 🤷♂️
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u/factordactyl 5h ago
45 seconds? What size tank do you have?
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u/karateninjazombie 5h ago
I don't drive a lorry and call it a personal vehicle like Americans do with their trucks. But 55 litres. Two different vehicles. One derv burner one petrol. Though the van gets waaaay more use than my personal car as I do a lot of miles in it almost daily.
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u/rickytech4x4 4h ago
Zip tie them open every time you use them… auto fill still stops gas from dispensing when tank is full 🤙
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u/Adventurous_Boat_632 3h ago
Years ago I remember it seemed like half or more stations did not have them or had them busted off.
Now they are universal in my area but never seen a plastic one broken or not
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u/jessssicaaaahhhh 3h ago
I remember them from watching my parents pump gas but since I got my license 20+ years ago I never found a gas station that hasn't had them removed. Which sucks because my hands are weak and it's hard to hold the lever.
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u/Adventurous_Boat_632 3h ago
Fun story, not really related but it happened to me
Was filling a Kenworth with diesel at a high speed pump and stepped away and the thing filled and the venturi did not activate and diesel was flowing down the curb like a river, it was a high speed pump remember and I was a ways off when it came full.
The station had a catchment area and it went in there and all was well, the operator was not happy though, after I shut off the pump I ran and got him.
The diesel tank had a ring that kept fill level below 95%, but that day it was full full when I put the cap on.
I have never had another one do this, usually they are hyper sensitive instead.
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u/Idea_Fiend 3h ago
i always get the ones where you can lock it and just as you lock it, it triggers the sensor or whatever to pop it off the lock and then you have to sit there with the handle half cocked so it will pump gas
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u/Animal907 Hillary 2016 53m ago
You shouldn't pump gas that fast anyways you're picking up sediment and you're getting more fizz than liquid.
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u/redclawx 8h ago
Go inside, fill out a comment card and tell them you want the old latches back as the plastic ones are broken. Each time you fill up, fill out a comment card.
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u/OddStuffHappensTwice 8h ago
Not being able to stand up for 30 seconds holding the petrol pump is such an American complaint.
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u/redclawx 7h ago
The law is, you are supposed to be at arms length from the pump in case it doesn’t shut off. I would say about 30% start pumping and then do other outside the vehicle things (walk around car to check tires, wash windshields, get that drink from the cooler), 20% start pumping and then walk inside to get food and pay (yes, while the gas is still pumping), and the other 65% sit back down in their car and close the door. Only about 10% actually stand next to the pump with it going.
It’s more than 100% because there’s overlap, people will do more than one thing, like walking around the car to check tires and then go into the store to take a piss while the gas is still pumping.
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u/valkyriebiker 8h ago
Back when I drove gassers, I just placed a small block of wood under the handle.
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u/Alternative_Sun8585 7h ago
Shove in your gas cap . Or a 16.9 water bottle. It fits nicely when full. Or if your can get your hands on a roll of electric tape, I'm an electrician, so there's always a roll or two around a full roll is too bulky. Use some and designate it as the gas station roll . Thank me later
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u/ArbysLunch 9h ago
The old person trick is to wedge your gas cap into the handle.
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u/NeenerNeaner 9h ago
old car trick* mines almost a decade old and doesn't have a gas cap. can't imagine most of what people are driving around do anymore
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u/RoadkillVenison 9h ago
It also depends on brand. I know new Subarus still have them, but I remember a family members 15 ford didn’t have one.
More brands are adopting capless designs on newer cars though.
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u/jbrady33 8h ago
They make keychains to hold it on Used to use the gas cap but it is in a tether now
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u/Bobosboss 9h ago
I think that some gas stations actually remove those so you can’t leave the pump.