Gas stations for Class A gassers with space

soren wrote:

rgatijnet1 wrote:
The trick is to set a tank level, say down to 1/4 tank, and then stop at the first station that has room for you to pull in. Usually this is an end pump but depending on the stations layout, sometimes we have used an inner pump.
If you wait until you are close to empty, not only could you damage your "in tank" fuel pump, but you could also minimize your chances of finding a station to fill up. Flying J and the other major truck stops are usually the most expensive places to refuel while some of the outlying stations may be quite a bit less expensive. We very seldom will fill up at a major truck stop unless we have other things that we need there, that we cannot get elsewhere.

I see the claim the FJ is "the most expensive", many times here. On a recent return from snowbird season (FL to PA), I decided to see if I was failing to pay attention to high prices, since I typically refuel at FJ. I used a smartphone app to look ahead at current pricing, several stops down the road, when deciding to fuel at FJ, or find another nearby location that was, according to forum members, going to be "dramatically cheaper". Bottom line, in a 1200 mile trip? I found ONE example of an overpriced FJ. It was alone at an exit, and dozens of miles away from the competition. As for any significant savings at all from nearby competitors, it just didn't exist.

Now, I did have the opportunity to head into a town off the exit, deal with the chance of trying to get a 34' Gas class A and toad into a tight old, urban station, and save a few pennies a gallon. Once you calculate the frustration, good chance of failure, and no real savings involved when driving a few miles off the highway in a rig that gets 6-7MPG, it is almost never worth the effort.

You may have a totally different experience, but for me, I just don't see the big payday, avoiding FJ, or most other large, easily accessible highway interchange stations.

I usually average 20,000 miles a year in my coach, mostly out West, and I found many places less expensive than the large truck stops along the interstate. Since I travel a lot of the back roads, it is not going out of my way to stop at a smaller station that I can get in to without any hassle.

rgatijnet1 wrote:
The trick is to set a tank level, say down to 1/4 tank, and then stop at the first station that has room for you to pull in. Usually this is an end pump but depending on the stations layout, sometimes we have used an inner pump.
If you wait until you are close to empty, not only could you damage your "in tank" fuel pump, but you could also minimize your chances of finding a station to fill up. Flying J and the other major truck stops are usually the most expensive places to refuel while some of the outlying stations may be quite a bit less expensive. We very seldom will fill up at a major truck stop unless we have other things that we need there, that we cannot get elsewhere.

I see the claim the FJ is "the most expensive", many times here. On a recent return from snowbird season (FL to PA), I decided to see if I was failing to pay attention to high prices, since I typically refuel at FJ. I used a smartphone app to look ahead at current pricing, several stops down the road, when deciding to fuel at FJ, or find another nearby location that was, according to forum members, going to be "dramatically cheaper". Bottom line, in a 1200 mile trip? I found ONE example of an overpriced FJ. It was alone at an exit, and dozens of miles away from the competition. As for any significant savings at all from nearby competitors, it just didn't exist.

Now, I did have the opportunity to head into a town off the exit, deal with the chance of trying to get a 34' Gas class A and toad into a tight old, urban station, and save a few pennies a gallon. Once you calculate the frustration, good chance of failure, and no real savings involved when driving a few miles off the highway in a rig that gets 6-7MPG, it is almost never worth the effort.

You may have a totally different experience, but for me, I just don't see the big payday, avoiding FJ, or most other large, easily accessible highway interchange stations.

The trick is to set a tank level, say down to 1/4 tank, and then stop at the first station that has room for you to pull in. Usually this is an end pump but depending on the stations layout, sometimes we have used an inner pump.
If you wait until you are close to empty, not only could you damage your "in tank" fuel pump, but you could also minimize your chances of finding a station to fill up. Flying J and the other major truck stops are usually the most expensive places to refuel while some of the outlying stations may be quite a bit less expensive. We very seldom will fill up at a major truck stop unless we have other things that we need there, that we cannot get elsewhere.

We use regular stations 98% of the time and we are 36' pulling a trailer so about 48' overall. Not too much of a problem if you use the end pumps. Do make sure there is an exit you can use before pulling in. We take a look on google satelite or street view many times before going as we also check prices with gas buddy to find the lower prices.

I aim for Costco whenever possible, though in some metro markets its a pretty tight fit at times.

Sam's club or Costco........
Always a better price and roomy.

Try to look for stations that have the lanes horizontal with the station instead of vertical (if that makes sense). I have found that most Shell's and some BP's tend to have the horizontal design. I tend to avoid stations like the plague where you pull straight in. I also take the time the night before the look at my exit on google maps street view so I can see which station I want to use and how it is laid out.

Almost any station and if you use the end pump even more room.

Most Walmarts... But be sure and take a good look first. Some are a bit close.

Skyfarmer wrote:
Generally speaking, I know the Love's and Pilots and Flying J's have just diesel pumps in the semi area. But for a gasser with a toad, what stations have large enough areas?

Pilot and Flying J have RV gas pumps with plenty of room as well. Many gas stations have room (Buc-ees as an example if you have one nearby. Many newer stations like 7-11 and WAWA have plenty of room but each location varies.