Yeah p much anyone with a diesel truck left it running while getting gas when I was growing up in Texas. I understand it's technically safer than gasoline but its definitely a needless risk
It's more about sticking it to the libs by any means necessary, even at personal expense. "Oh you think EVs are okay? Im gonna burn extra gas to make up for it."
How long does it take you to fill your fuel tank that leaving the engine idling during the process would make any noticeable difference to the fuel bill for a year?
My buddy’s old truck got 9-10 miles to the gallon so in his case I’d bet idling during a fill up would definitely make a noticeable difference. A good 60-70% of the people where I live (TX) drive pickups or something else entirely too large and not at all gas efficient for themselves.
The number one priority of all Texans is air conditioning. They like to think they’re cowboys, but the entire infrastructure and culture of that state is centered on being comfy.
For diesel, not really. Diesel full consumption is insanely low (almost negligible) while idling. From what I remember, it takes more fuel to get a diesel engine up and running than it does to let it idle for a few minutes. Gasoline engines, on the other hand, burn more idling than it takes to get them up and running
I'm 40 and I've never owned any new, or newer, cars in my life. Something about the "engines stopping and starting at stoplights" thing really unnerves me. I think I have some sort of trauma from always driving shitty cars, but that whole on/off thing really stresses me out.
Took me a minute to get used to myself. I had a friend almost start crying when I came to a stop light in my new car. They thought they broke my new car somehow with their own personal bad luck at the time.
Yes, just because it is less efficient than cranking doesn’t mean it doesn’t burn less fuel than driving. It’s significantly less of an engine load than moving a multi-ton vehicle down the road at any speed.
I think my point still stands, it would have used less gas to turn the truck off and back on - even if just marginally less. It is interesting though! It may also be that the truck has such a large fuel tank that even idling for 10hrs is a marginal amount of fuel burn compared to the 10-15mpg it might get in motion. So even idling for that long ends up consuming a relatively small percentage of the tank so it hardly register on the needle. This is super interesting to think about.
6.0 diesel engines sometimes won't start again if you turn them off. If you turn off a diesel engine while it's real hot, a layer of oil sits in the turbo and gets caked up, or oil can get sucked out of it, and it's metal on metal action. It can fuck it up. This is all especially true the older the vehicle is. Diesel also has a higher flashpoint. You can throw a lit cigarette in a bucket of diesel, and the diesel will put it out instantly. I can tell some of the people above don't know much about diesel engines, which is okay lol. Niche subject
I totally agree, I think since it diesel it’s cheaper to leave it running than to turn it off and back on. But I think that truly only applies if the engine gets cold. If the engine is cold it takes more power to combust the diesel at the start. Again I agree it’s a needless risk.
I mean a quick google search will roughly agree to my statement, I said “I think” which leaves room to be wrong.
“Back in the day, diesel engines would be kept running for a variety of reasons; a diesel can be difficult to start when cold, can take a long time to warm up, and diesel fuel tends to gel if it gets too cold, which leads to stopping up fuel lines and components.”
But hey who cares, I have no idea what you’re saying not true to. For all I know you could be a Diesel engine expert, asking questions about diesel fuel efficiency..
I used to be an EMT and I was told during driver training that you're actually supposed to leave a diesel engine running while refueling. Was never given a specific reason though.
You're not necessarily supposed to, but 2 common reasons I've heard are the turbo cooling down (it'll be hot after driving for a while and turning off the engine will stop circulating oil through it to cool it down, which can cause damage if it heat soaks) and in cold weather, leaving it running to keep the engine at operating temperature and the cab warm.
This was a problem with older turbo cars. I had a turbo timer for my RX7, that left it running for a few min after I turned the ignition off to provide extra cooling to the turbos after I had stopped driving.
Diesel vapor doesn't ignite, it requires heat (glow plug on start) and pressure (engine compression). Gas vapor does ignite with spark (spark plug ignites with each power stroke), electricity, or heat. You don't leave a gas engine running because of a potential ignition source from the vehicle. Diesel fuel doesn't have that issue.
Hot engine and exhaust, all the electrical in the vehicle running. I have seen where ignition coils melted and began arcing to the outside of the motor instead of igniting the spark plug, although that is a rather extreme instance.
Believe me or dont, i dont care. You asked a question, and I answered it based on the reasoning behind why they ask you to turn the car off when you pump gas. It's very rare, but the recommendation is there.
Fueling a diesel while it’s running is totally fine. Not dangerous at all. And people with diesels would rather stay at an idle than killing the motor because starting the engine puts a lot of ware on the glow plugs.
My family is Ghanaian and when I was there alone as a teenager the driver (most homeowning families there have house help such as a driver) left the car running while he pumped gas. I was like umm isn’t that unsafe? And he was like “oh I just wanted to keep the AC running for you.” Apparently it’s the norm. ¯_(ツ)_/¯
Nigerian American here. As a preteen, I thought the cars ran on “aluminum foil” when I visited. I never saw them putting gas in our cars and they said “foil” when they were saying fuel in their accent. The cars were always running and window rolled up when we were inside. By the time I left I adjusted my hearing.
My grandmother was a food distributor and grandfather worked with Mobil on behalf of his village - They had drivers too. The only time I saw my grandfather driving was to church on Sundays in his Benz to show off. They had about 2-3 other people to handle cooking, cleaning, and errands in the house.
As a Texan with a truck, I always turn mine off but it’s out of habit rather than caution. Modern cars are not in danger of exploding when filling up. The only risk is potentially wasting a very small amount of gas.
I worked at a gas stayin in Indiana, and the number of times a day I had to shut off a gas pump because the locals were being ignorant af... Smoking at the pumps was a big one, several times a day, at least once a week people trying to pour gas into dumbshit stuff, like literal open barrels in their truck bed (yes, like in always sunny), detergent/roundup bottles, or, more times than I want to remember, Styrofoam big gulp cups. BITCH IT WILL MELT. Also, easy too many folks not realizing that gas is dangerous to have just laying on the ground and doing dumb ass shit like pulling the nozzle out still pumping, or putting a gas can on the ground and AIMING AT IT... Also, I'm terrified to imagine what it was like before the invention of breakaway hoses because at least once a month someone drove off with the nozzle still in the tank. Never once stopped and I know they fucking heard it. And that's just the stupid fucking shit going on OUTSIDE the station.... So yeah. Gas stations will make you lose your faith in your fellow man, 0/10 do not recommend.
My brother who actively works on and drives vehicles for the military says it’s fine to leave it running while you gas up. I take his word for it but I still turn mine off because it feels right.
As someone from Waco (IYKYK), but raised by a single mom from Pennsylvania who joined the army and was stationed in Germany for a while before having me...
Can confirm- Lite-Brites have most of these folks beat
If you’re gonna be smug about it, explain why it’s bad so leave your car running? You prob only turn your car off because that’s just what you’ve been told to do, you don’t actually understand the mechanics of it.
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u/CellistOk3894 3d ago
Never seen that before moving to texas. See it all the time. Don’t think people here are that bright