I remember when

[bugs2much]

Today I took Big Gulp, my Suburban, out for a run and of course had to stop for gas. Now I remember long ago and far away when I was pumpin gas that gas was about 25 cents per gallon. So for one dollar someone could get 4 gallons of gas. Now you get one gallon of gas for four dollars. My how things have changed.
Many customers would get 2 dollars worth and some just a dollars worth of gas, which was not a problem back then. And then there was always the guy who had only 50 cents in his pocket which would buy enough gas to get him home. Yeah right, he went straight to the bar down the street. We had the  customers who I think got a big kick out of saying fillerup an check da oil, big spenders. Then they would bitch like crazy when you told them that their oil was a quart low. Took about 3  gallons/$1.50 to fillerup. They were the customers who had tar, not oil in the crankcase. I knew better than to ask when their oil was changed last. Carefully and slowly  twist and lower the misaligned squeaky hood  before the big spenders would shout dont slam the f***in' hood kid. They were not ready to leave yet. Its time to check the air in their bald tires. So as they left in a puff of smoke muffler dragging it was on to the next customer, 1gallon of gas in the can for his lawn mower.

[Beetleboi -Greg-]

I remember when I could fill up for 10 dollars. That was back in 2001ish.

[lovebus (jack)]

I use to have a station Jim, same gas prices and had the same customers  -55]

[Bugaru "JAY"]

Hm-mmmm Good one.
I can remember that I could take my kids to the shore and back for the day on 10 bucks. It now cost me 40 bucks for them to take me to the Shore for the day. But I can proudly say that for 10 bucks I can at lease top off my riding tractor to cut my grass.  :icon_puke_l:

[njgt-1]

When I got out of high school I got a big, gas gulpin 61 T-bird. That car must have got around 10 miles to a gallon but I could load it up with a couple of friends and make it down to Wildwood on 5 bucks and still have enough for the 3 for a dollar hot dogs on the boards. Think gas was around $.28 pr gallon and that was for the good stuff. The cheapo stations or even Gulf was around $.25 pr gallon and sometimes you could hit a corner with 4 stations or one on each corner and they would have a gas war then you could get gas for $.22 !! O and they gave you a glass or a dish!

Now I'm feelin old! Damn!!

[Beetleboi -Greg-]

A glass or a dish??? Is that kinda like the hess truck?!

[njgt-1]

A glass or a dish??? Is that kinda like the hess truck?!

no, just a glass or a dish..  screwey))

[carfolite73Super]

I do remember the free glass with a fill up. I loved that set of green glasses we had. When I started college, they were having the odd / even days. People would get caught with license plates mounted over the originals so they would have an odd plate for the odd day. (Why didn't they just have one set on is beyond me!) I would try  to time it to get gas by the college for 99 cents. Yeh you had to wait in line, but it was worth it!

[3Gear]

When clinton left office gas was .89 a gallon...  With an oilman in office we are over 4.00  just imaging if our paychecks inflated at the same rate....

[bugs2much]

Don't remember giving anything away at the station. Although some customers would grab a free quart of oil from the rack next to the gas pumps. Guess that was their gift. Always ended up short 1 or 2 quarts at the end of my shift.

[njgt-1]

Don't remember giving anything away at the station.

think it was Shell, gave some very nice glasses. I had a set for years.
Also not sure but think it was Texaco that gave out the dishes. There was also the "usual junk", plastic magnetic horse shoes ( Gulf ) tiger tails "put a tiger in your tank" ( Esso - I have 2 of them ), Red ball for the antenna " red ball service", think this was Sinclair.

[skymath]

I was at a gas station in deptford several months ago and the guy gave me two bright yellow smiley-faced suns for my kids.  I think they go on the antennae.  It must've been a Sunoco station.  Took a bit of the sting out of the $$$

the week before Katrina gas was $1.28.  the week after it was $3.33.  because "supply is limited" ..it's all nonsense.  the fact of the matter is that Americans are junkies for gasoline.  We'll pay whatever it costs because we like driving our cars. 

plus the oil industry is crooked like brownian motion (which is a line that is crooked on all levels of scale--when you zoom in and look at some tiny little piece, it's still just as crooked as when you look at it from far away)

of course, I'm averaging just under 20mpg in my bus, and I drive 80 miles four days a week--so I'm part of the problem.  That's why I'm going to build a hydroxy booster.  There's a guy in Oregon or somewhere who went from 9.5 to 19.5 mpg in his old GM van using a not-particularly-efficient booster.  Man I'd love to see 100% increase!  I have no idea what kind of increase I'll get though (supposedly 10-30% is more typical).  I'm waiting til I have a spare engine to test everything out on before I risk my only ride to work....

[Beetleboi -Greg-]

I think a glass is a weird thing to give out at a gas station. Which is why the "free" quart of oil would make more sense.

[njgt-1]

I think a glass is a weird thing to give out at a gas station

keep in mind this was back in the 60's and early 70's. Give aways were a big marketing trick back then. I can remember certain laundry detergents gave dishes with a different piece in the box each month. Hey anybody old enough to remember "Green Stamps". When I lived in Calif. in the early 70's they were still giving out "Plad Stamps". You would fill a book and then cash it in for prizes.

[skymath]

In the early seventies I was just a sparkle in my father's eye :)