Charnock Richard rip-off E5 pricing

[Deleted member 26715]

Most of this has been part of the standard driving test, for about 20 years now to my knowledge.

Edit to add.... link

No, that is to the car that the instructor has, not a random car in the car park, also I've known 20-30 kids/young adults who have taken their tests & not one of them has had to physically change a tyre

 

[Brandane]

No, that is to the car that the instructor has, not a random car in the car park, also I've known 20-30 kids/young adults who have taken their tests & not one of them has had to physically change a tyre

Right. You don't think your expectations of a new driver are a touch on the high side?
Could YOU carry out all the checks you listed, on any random car? I know I could not.
A modern Mercedes with no dipstick, where you have to interrogate the on board computer to check oil level? Each and every different type of spare tyre from run flats, to space savers, to those with a sealant system and no actual spare wheel? Locate and operate different types of jack (remember a test only lasts about 45 minutes!).

 

[DRM]

September at Newport Pagnall E10 was £2 a litre, put just enough in to get us to a place where it was more sensibly priced

 

[Bazzer]

Personally I don't see any reason to add fuel at a motorway station. A little bit of planning or forethought is all it takes.
On a recent trip to Mull, Mrs B and I planned and executed our only refill at Costco Glasgow, on both the outward and return journeys. Barely any detour from our route and the difference between our local ASDA was 12p per litre for diesel. I shudder to think what the price was on the motorway.

 

[BoldonLad]

No, that is to the car that the instructor has, not a random car in the car park, also I've known 20-30 kids/young adults who have taken their tests & not one of them has had to physically change a tyre

Change a tyre?, isn’t that what the breakdown service is for?

 

[Regular.Cyclist]

I was down south last week, and drove back north on Monday 17th. Couldn't believe motorway services fuel prices. No idea what E5 cost, but at Southwaite services south of Carlisle on the M6, the standard E10 stuff was 193.9 pence per litre. By way of comparison, I fuelled up in Warrington for 159.9 ppl..

Meanwhile at Southwaite, some people were actually buying fuel. I just wanted to go and ask them why they were willing to line the pockets of these greedy people, and to give them a map which would show several petrol stations within a mile or 2 of the junctions on the northbound M6 on which they were heading, where they could save over 30 pence on every litre. Madness.

Knowing the price of fuel at services around Southwaite / Gretna would be steep I asked my wife to look at alternatives well in advance. She found one, a BP fuel station IIRC, well under a mile off the M6 at junction 44 which was selling fuel at ’normal‘ prices. This was some 30p a litre cheaper than Southwaite were charging at the time.

Getting off, and back on to continue north, was really easy and it’s been added to the memory banks for any future travel in the area.

 

[Brandane]

Knowing the price of fuel at services around Southwaite / Gretna would be steep I asked my wife to look at alternatives well in advance. She found one, a BP fuel station IIRC, well under a mile off the M6 at junction 44 which was selling fuel at ’normal‘ prices. This was some 30p a litre cheaper than Southwaite were charging at the time.

Getting off, and back on to continue north, was really easy and it’s been added to the memory banks for any future travel in the area.

There's also a couple near junction 42. The Golden Fleece services on the east side of the motorway just off the roundabout forming junction 42; or a BP petrol station off the same junction on the main road towards Carlisle city centre (A6 ??).
Junction 43, on the Carlisle side of the motorway, there is a big Tesco with a petrol station.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

Right. You don't think your expectations of a new driver are a touch on the high side?
Could YOU carry out all the checks you listed, on any random car? I know I could not.
A modern Mercedes with no dipstick, where you have to interrogate the on board computer to check oil level? Each and every different type of spare tyre from run flats, to space savers, to those with a sealant system and no actual spare wheel? Locate and operate different types of jack (remember a test only lasts about 45 minutes!).

No I don't think my expectations are too high, I would counter by saying yours appears too low, with regards to it only being 45 minutes, maybe that is part of the issue, potentially there should be hazard perception test, a vehicle condition test & an actual practical test. Something needs to be done to address the standard of driving in this country, not just cars that are AIMED at cyclists, but the standard of driving as a whole.

Change a tyre?, isn’t that what the breakdown service is for?

Personally I would rather change my own tyre on the hard shoulder, than wait a couple of couples in one of the most dangerous places in the UK. Maybe I'm completely wrong & a practical mechanical test is not the answer, but something needs to be done to change driver attitudes.

 

[Brandane]

potentially there should be hazard perception test,

This forms part of the theory test, and has done for about 20 years now! Link.

The theory test must be passed before you can sit the practical test, but I'm sure you know that .

 

[R_nger]

No I don't think my expectations are too high, I would counter by saying yours appears too low, with regards to it only being 45 minutes, maybe that is part of the issue, potentially there should be hazard perception test, a vehicle condition test & an actual practical test. Something needs to be done to address the standard of driving in this country, not just cars that are AIMED at cyclists, but the standard of driving as a whole.

Personally I would rather change my own tyre on the hard shoulder, than wait a couple of couples in one of the most dangerous places in the UK. Maybe I'm completely wrong & a practical mechanical test is not the answer, but something needs to be done to change driver attitudes.

Highway Code rules for breaking down on the motorway include :

• DO NOT attempt repairs on your vehicle

No point changing the driving test if people still ignore the rules.

 

[Brandane]

something needs to be done to change driver attitudes.

I would agree with this bit. Anyone can drive well while supervised by an examiner for 45 minutes. It's after that, that the problem lies. Lack of policing on the roads means drivers can pretty much get away with driving however they like without fear of being caught, unless they are very unlucky.

 

[Alex321]

I always assume the price difference can be as tanks are replenished so the new rate applies. Or so many garages appear to be independently managed they effectively set their own price.
As an aside, my local station 1.63 Ltr (E10)
Cheapest in Pboro is 1,57 ltr...but its 6 miles away.
So if I put in £40...if I went to the cheapest, just 6 miles away...

1,57 = 25 ltrs
1.63 = 24.5 Ltr....1/2 litre will maybe get me 5 miles

Its not even worth travelling a short distance to get cheaper fuel, 5p seems a lot cheaper but its irrelevant in the bigger scheme of things

Who puts in £40 worth though, unless they have a small car?

I almost always fill up, and not until after the fuel warning light comes on, so I am usually putting in over £100 of diesel.

65 litres @ 1.90 = £123.50, 65.5 litres @ 1.85 = £120.25. And there is often that much difference between filling stations near me, sometimes more.

 

[Brandane]

Personally I would rather change my own tyre on the hard shoulder, than wait a couple of couples (hours?) in one of the most dangerous places in the UK.

That is suicidal. You're not even supposed to sit in the car while on the hard shoulder. Have you never noticed groups of people standing on the other side of the barrier next to a broken down car? And as pointed out above, it is contrary to the advice in the highway code.

Motorways apart though, I would agree it is a good idea to be able to change a wheel or use one of these seal and inflate kits found in many cars these days instead of a spare wheel. This IS taught by instructors, as it can be one of the "show me/tell me" questions in the test. But only relevant to the test car, which is fair enough.

 

[Alex321]

I hope you're not suggesting people use their phones on the motorway just to try to save a few pence on fuel?

Well firstly, many people have passengers, so even if you are going to use your phone, the passenger can do so, perfectly safely.

But secondly, you should have a pretty good idea what sort of area you are going to be running low in, and can easily look up filling stations near the motorway in that area at your previous stop, or before setting out.

And many modern cars can actually travel the length of the country without filling up anyhow. I travel from South Wales to Peebles in Scotland a few times a year, to see my daughter, and my diesel Insignia can do that journey on a little over half a tank.

 

[jowwy]

2 petrol stations in merthyr.....diesel in the one is 186.9 in the other only 100yds away is 195.9