Diesel prices - truck stops vs regular gas stations

Around here, nearly every fuel stop in town has the same price for gas or diesel.
When one changes pricing, within 4 days all the others have changed.
The truck stops near the freeway are usually 3 or 4 cents per gallon cheaper.

I use truck stops daily.

On vacation I also use them. Almost always easier ingress/egress with my 63' rig, and no waiting. My time always trumps some pennies.

The fuel cost is relative. I drive for economy. Have for over forty years. Spec'd both pickup and trailer for longest life at lowest cost.

Travel at 62-3 mph and never mix with 65-mph truck traffic or 70+ cars. No lane changing. No brake use except at exit. Etc.

Plenty of you will pass me three times in the same long day. I see this several times weekly. Tailgating. Getting stuck with a pack of cars around. This doesn't work for fuel economy, safety or vehicle longevity.

I might pay more per gallon. But I'll burn less with a one ton pulling a 35' TT. Lower fuel cost on a cpm basis.

Do the numbers.

Most of all, try to understand average mph. Nothing to do with set travel speed. It's miles divided by engine hours. Travel speed and set speed can be vastly different.

Monetary savings are not in fuel price. It's the burn rate that matters. Better mpg offsets not only fuel price dilemmas, but the very real chance of damage to the vehicles in maneuvering around gas stations. Curbs, signs, traffic. I deal with it daily. Not worth the headache.

My fuel cost is in my sig. Figure yours. Lowering the burn rate is the only effective approach. Solo and towing. Do a good enough job with the former and it underwrites the latter.

Not sure how the fuel tanker matters as they don't pull up to the pumps with little cars and SUV idiots. I won't use a regular station unless I'm without trailer. On holiday not interested in the stress of an obstacle course with fools. Truck lanes = safe and low stress for me. Well worth any small difference in price for easy quick in and out.

My moral to the story is that I only bought diesel in IN once.

after that my 50 gal aux was full when i crossed the border.

fulltimedaniel wrote:

ShinerBock wrote:
Funny, I said said the very same thing in a post a while back telling another member that I wouldn't fill up at a truck stop unless I had to if I were him and most people said I was nuts.

I think I was part of that discussion and I got lambasted for claiming the same.

I think the people who claim to prefer "the convenience" of the big truck stops are just not comfortable driving their rigs in a bit tighter areas like a regular gas station.

What they don't take into account is that a very Big class 8 Truck and trailer delivers the gas and fuel to all these gas stations. My truck and trailer are 53 feet overall and I have never been "stuck" in a regular station. I find them easier, truly more convenient, cleaner and far far less crowded than the truck stops.

I am one that prefers truck stops. If I am traveling through , I am not driving into town to go to a small gas station for the savings.
Give me a large truck stop that is easy to maneuver.
The fuel cost is simply the cost of doing business.
I have no issue moving my rig around or maneuvering in tight spaces.
Nevertheless, I don't need to squeeze into some Mom and Pop station to save a few cents on fuel.
In general I try to fuel without trailer attached, but if I'm running with the trailer I'm generally fueling at a Truckstop.

Most fuel delivery tankers are in the 45' range with a day cab tractor.
Much more maneuverable then a big rig with a sleeper and 53" trailer.

This may be a bit off topix but is there any difference in diesel fuel sold to truckers and that which is offered at smaller gas stations? I don't know the answer but is it possible this would be a contributing factor to the price difference?

Cost of the land required right along the interstates will also be a factored into the costs .
In South Florida Pilot / FJ just paid eight hundred million dollars for 60 acres on I-95 . How many gallons will they havta sell ?

ramgunner wrote:

fulltimedaniel wrote:

I think the people who claim to prefer "the convenience" of the big truck stops are just not comfortable driving their rigs in a bit tighter areas like a regular gas station.

What they don't take into account is that a very Big class 8 Truck and trailer delivers the gas and fuel to all these gas stations.

But they don't go up to the pumps. Most of the fill access ports are located on the periphery of the station where they can drive around the pump islands. I can't remember ever seeing any fill tankers drive under the canopy at any stations I've ever seen them at.

You are right about the placement but many many times the fueling truck has to pass thru the pump lanes to get properly positioned so that their outlets are in the right place and on the right side.

But never-the-less it is highly unusual to find a station that cannot easily accommodate even the largest of RV rigs. In addition, many of the convenience store delivery trucks are also tractor trailers and they maneuver the parking lot just fine.

I am sorry but from what I see out here it is the drivers ability that drives this issue, papered over by claims of convenience to save face for those that feel they cant do it.

ramgunner wrote:
From a logistical perspective, truck stops are great in terms of being able to move a larger rig around easily, especially right off of an interstate.

The Pilot Flying J RV Plus Card is the ONLY way to really make them worth it from a financial perspective. They start by lowering the price at the pump to the CASH price, then give you a discount off of that based on your membership level ($0.08/gallon for a life member) - plus they start the pump and you don't have to go in.

We have a toy hauler, so it's easy enough to get fuel at any conventional station when we have the trailer detached, then hitch up and go. A Sinclair card gets you $0.10 off per gallon at the pump, and that works in many of the places we roam.

I have a Fly J Charge Card and I can tell you for sure that if Fly J are .20 per gallon higher than the station at the next exit (Often the case)the eight or ten cents off these cards get you just means it's a bit less of hwy robbery.

The only time the card is worth it is if the Fly J price is at or lower than the competing (regular non truck stop) stations. And this is exceedingly rare.

What I use most often and has much bigger discounts are grocery store gas rewards which can get me as much as .40 or more off what is already probably the lowest price around.