bad gas - anyone gotten a station to pay?

nostatic · nostatic's Garage

My Aprilia died last night about a half mile after filling up at a Chevron station. I noticed that there was a tanker there (not sure if it was filling the storage). A fellow Aprilia rider in Australia had the exact same symptoms as I did and it turned out to be bad gas. The dealer had to drain the tank, flush the system and replace the filter. Warranty won't cover that but the owner was able to get the station to pay for the repairs.

Seems like a longshot here. I don't have a receipt from the fill up, but used my CC so it would be easy to prove I got gas there. Assuming it does turn out to be bad/contaminated fuel, anyone know how to go about getting the station to cover repair costs?

legion · 08-14-2008, 07:26 PM

I once had bad gas.

My wife just got pissed.

nostatic · nostatic's Garage

pissed on or off?

no, wait...I don't want to know...

911boost · 911boost's Garage

I had this happen to me in Laramie, Wyoming. I needed dirt bike gas, so I filled up the 5 gallon gas can with 91 octane (the highest we can get here), and then topped my Tahoe off. We were headed camping, so I was pulling the camper and the dirt bike trailer.

The 91 must have been old or bad, because about 5 minutes after filling up, the Tahoe started running rough, and the check engine light came on. I ofcourse was worried, as we were about to our camping spot, so I just babied it the rest of the way (which can be tough going into the snowies..). I used up almost the whole tank of gas coming home, with it running rough, and the check engine light on. I filled it up when I dropped the camper off. Drove it home, and about halfway home, the check engine light went off, and it started running just fine.

Wierd.

On your situation, good luck. Not sure they will do anything.

Bill

varmint · 08-14-2008, 09:12 PM

almost impossible to prove, even with receipts.

and a lot of states have mandated summer formulas and winter formulas and tuesday formulas. a change in additives may have screwed with the bike, what the hell is "techron" anyway?

there's some state agency you can complain to. can't think of anything else to advise.

nostatic · nostatic's Garage

it shouldn't be a formulation thing - I've used plenty of Chevron recently (I got through a tank every couple of days). I'll have to see what codes it threw, but I'm wondering if sediment and other crap gets tossed around when a tanker is filling the storage tanks. I seem to recall some urban legend or advice about not filling your tank while a tanker is there.

campbellcj · 08-14-2008, 09:26 PM

File a complaint with the Department of Weights and Measures. This is their job, and they take it seriously - they will test the fuel and cite the station operator if it is contaminated or does not test to the stated octane level.

varmint · 08-14-2008, 09:32 PM

maybe hugo chavez is plotting against you.

back in the old carbeurated days, if i was seeing strange behavior, i'd check the filter, and run a tank of av gas through her. is the bike running now? have you taken it to a the dealer yet? there are still alot of other options. plugs, etc. had a tps sensor go bad once, that was a pain to track down.

nostatic · nostatic's Garage

It is at the dealer and they'll get to it "in the next day or two." I was able to start it this am but it had the urgent service message and was in limp mode (which is an almost random pulsing throttle). The dealer said he couldn't get it to run. There have been some people who've had problems with speedo sensors going bad. The problem with having an ECU and ride-by-wire is that weird things can cause problems like this. They just have to put the Axone tool on it and read the codes. I should have checked the diagnostic screen this am but I was busy trying to sort towing, move work meetings around, etc.

That's why gawd created warranties. The sad thing is that Aprilia "roadside assistance" only covers $100 towing cost. That doesn't really cut it when the bike is in central LA and the nearest dealer is either Irvine or Thousand Oaks. Luckily when I bought the Duc I added motorcycle coverage to my AAA. They do 60 mile tow for free...and it was just under 50 miles to Irvine. The downside of a small dealer network. Makes my Duc look almost well supported

sammyg2 · 08-15-2008, 07:08 AM

They have some pretty elaborate filtration units so if they are functioning correctly I doubt it's sediment.
My bet would be water. Drain the fuel from the tank and collect it in a clear bottle. Let it sit for a few hours and see if it becomes stratified.

You would probably have better luck talking to chevron than to the station. Chevron probably does not own the station but if it is a franchise their name it on it and will probably stand behind it just to prevent bad PR.

Jeff Higgins · 08-15-2008, 07:31 AM

Boy did they pay...

Hugh R · 08-15-2008, 08:42 AM

Beat me to it!

nostatic · nostatic's Garage

well, if that is the correct way to get a response from Chevron, ok. I'll look for my blasting caps...

craigster59 · craigster59's Garage

Wild Hogs?

3.2 CAB · 08-15-2008, 09:17 AM

It is advisable to NEVER pump fuel when a tanker is making a drop at a station. It does cause all sorts of things to get suspended in the underground tanks. It is true that the pumps have filter canisters, but how good is the station about changing them, or if they even have a cartridge inside the cannister. I have seen several stations over the years, that were so cheap, they never replaced the actual filter that was in the cannister, because there was not one even in it, and people would get contaminated fuel on a regular basis. There was one particular Chevron station in Houston that was this way, till the State Attorney Generals Office got involved, as did Chevron Corp. They had the stores business license pulled, and could no longer be a distributor of Chevron Products.

It takes quite a bit of time for all of the crap to settle, after a fuel drop. Good luck with it. Tony.

KNS · 08-15-2008, 03:59 PM

I have heard that if while you are pumping and the pump/trigger keeps shutting itself off, that the filters are completely filthy and to stop pumping(?).

Sammy, not sure if you can answer this but... How are we to know if filters are getting changed on a regular basis? Some of the people working at the local gas station look as if they would have difficulty changing their underwear, why should they give a lick about being bothered to change a filter?

Chocaholic · 08-15-2008, 07:31 PM

I've also noticed recently that Chevron's are posting the 10% ethanol notice on their pumps. Really annoying. I usually ride on to get non-ethanol enhanced gas. Not sure if that's causing your issue though. Let us know what the dealer says. My guess is water.

VaSteve · 08-15-2008, 07:52 PM

Happened to me. I had to put up a real fight. They claimed that 'nobody else complained'. I said "I don't give a ****, maybe I got all the water!". I only had a CC statement as well. My arguement was that they either sold me a half tank of water (since I always fill all the way up) or they sold me less than what I paid for. I documented the whole thing as best I could including the $16 I had to pay day care for being late. I had maps and a three page argument written. They offered to pay half. I said **** you I want it all and I'd fight them since I had nothing to lose. 5 seconds it took them say that they'd pay it all.

Cost $900 to replace the fuel pump, filter, reset the codes and flush the system. 2004 bimmer.

john70t · 08-15-2008, 08:17 PM

I used to hang around with a friend who did independent testing for a third-party company.
The proceedure was to get the managers permission, pump a couple pints into a (practically hermetically sealed) bottle, and send it off for lab testing.
Very strict proceedures. The companies want to know if a station is selling someone elses gasoline under their brand and if the pumps were calibrated correctly.
Needless to say, some station owners refused, and were not too pleasant.

Another friend drove a semi, but was a bit puzzled as to how 130gal of diesel could fit into 2 60gal tanks............

schamp · 05:06 AM

Happened to me once in a 320i BMW in about 1975. I was in Tampa Florida and filled up at a Texaco. Made it about 100 yards and it quit. I went back to the station and the girl said "we have been having problems with that pump". I had used a Texaco credit card and had filled the tank to the top. I didn't have time to mess with it all. I called an attorney I knew and rented a car and went on about my business trip. Car was towed to the BMW dealer in Tampa and they went thru the fuel system. Removed and flushed the tank, replaced fuel lines, injectors, anything related to the fuel system got either cleaned or replaced. Texaco paid the bill. The only question I got was why I called an attorney and not them directly. I explained I didn't have time to mess with their crap and the lawyer got their attention and made them do the right thing. They also paid for the rental car.