Tuesday, July 8, 2014

The Magic Gas Station


We have tons of gas stations around our house, and I am not typically loyal to one or another.  It usually comes down to price, or in some cases convenience (like forgetting that I needed to get gas and needing to stop to put $10 in the tank).  The two large chain grocery stores give you $0.10 per gallon per $100 spent (and sometimes bonus coupons are in the flyer); if we have a build up of points, we will go to the station associated with the program (which is MAYBE 1x a month per store....usually every other month, right before the points expire).  G-man is slightly more loyal than I am....he usually stops at the same 2 stations (either side of the road).  But he isn't wedded to any of them.

This recently changed....when I found the MAGIC gas station.

I stopped at this station (which is right next to, and across from, the stations that G-man uses), just because I needed gas and the price was right that day.  This road is typically not one I travel unless I am going to a specific grocery store, so I don't usually think about this cluster of stations (there are about 5).   After driving during the week after my fill up....I noticed something:  This gas lasted way longer than usual!!  I went 5 round trips to work (and some minor local driving) on one tank of gas!  HUH????  A full tank usually was 4 round trips....and that was pushing it.  There were many times I put a few dollars in at the local station near the office (which tends to be on the high side), if I was concerned I wouldn't QUITE have enough to get home.

So I tested the theory out.  I filled up elsewhere....and got my usual 4 round trips.  I filled up at Magic Gas Station, and 5 trips!  Did it again the next week...got SIX round trips (but that week I had very little local driving...just to work).  This is amazing!  This is incredible!

G-man decided he was going to test out the theory as well (especially since he usually stops at the station next to this one...so he isn't really going out of his way).  He filled his tank.....and after 4 round trips to work, he was still at 1/2 tank! (He gets better MPG than I do).  Previously, he would get about 6 round trips per tank...so we are looking at about 2 extra round trips per full tank.

Gas around here is about $3.90-$3.95 a gallon.  We each drive about 50 miles round trip per day.  And in a month...we would probably be looking at close to $600 in auto gas alone.  Extending the life of a tank of gas is HUGE to us!!!  We are each looking at possibly decreasing our overall usage by 1 tank...or a savings of about $120 a month!

Now, Magic Gas Station is a large chain here, but still considered a "discount" place.  Not sure what the mixture of gas is at this station (because we tried other stations in the same chain), but THIS station seems to have the right mix for our cars.  They now have a new loyal customer!  My new routine is to go fill the tank on Tuesday evenings after dinner (it's about a 7 min drive there), and so far this has been working great.

Today is Tuesday and I am still going to top off tank even though my gauge says 3/4 tank (Today will be the 4th round trip since I didn't work last Friday....my gauge will probably be closer to 2/3 after work today).  And the bonus for this week is that it won't be a full tank, so the total will be less than the typical $62-$65.

Does anyone else have a Magic Gas Station near them???

9 comments:

  1. My dad would fully support your theory. He swears he gets better gas mileage at one station, also known as a discount station, than at any other one. The prices at this station are sometimes lower, but not always, but he is positive the fuel is better.

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  2. There was a station near us that people swore "watered down" their gas. Not sure if that is possible but they did go out of business so there was something to it. I definitely notice some stations gas seems to last longer.

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  3. Hmmm I've tried different gas stations and get around the same amount, close to 300 miles per tank (12 gallon tank). I doubt a mix up with premium or higher octane gas would result in additional mileage but if it saves you money then let it be the magic gas station lol

    HS

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  4. I want a magic gas station near me!! Good job on paying attention and realizing a deal!

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  5. Sounds promising! I've not noticed any magic gas stations near me. I budget $200/month for gas, but I've never really watched my usage that closely.

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  6. Good deal! Though I have never understood just putting a few dollars/gallons of gas in a car? I find it such a pain in the butt to have to stop for gas, that I always fill up, so I don't have to do it again for as long as possible, LOL.

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  7. What a great find! I'm so curious as to the science of it. I have no 'magic' gas station, just BJ's which is usually .40 a gallon less than anywhere else. LOVE the idea of a magic gas station though!

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  8. Did you ever try to reset your trip counter and comparing it as you fill up? May be interesting to see the numbers.

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    1. I do reset the trip counter and the gas average when I fill up, but I have never really analyzed it. I look at it more from how many trips to work can I get, since that is the majority of my driving.

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