Texaco Air

flyton5

Pulled in Texaco in Rathfarnham earlier to top up the tires on my motorbike. Turns out they've installed a new air machine and are charging €1 for 5 minutes of air. They've also cut the hose on the old air machine. Now I'm pissed off for two reasons:

1. It's a safety issue. Surely if I have low pressure in my tires I'm putting myself and other road users at risk?

2. The air machine makes more in an hour than I do.

I'm cranky enough to never buy my petrol there again.

E.S.T.

Invest in your own compressor if you feel so strongly about it and a private company is not responsible for road safety.

Reg'stoy

Put an extension lead outside your front door offering free mobile phone charging and see how long that attitude lasts.

Ghandee

flyton5 wrote: »

Pulled in Texaco in Rathfarnham earlier to top up the tires on my motorbike. Turns out they've installed a new air machine and are charging €1 for 5 minutes of air. They've also cut the hose on the old air machine. Now I'm pissed off for two reasons:

1. It's a safety issue. Surely if I have low pressure in my tires I'm putting myself and other road users at risk?

2. The air machine makes more in an hour than I do.

I'm cranky enough to never buy my petrol there again.

I bet the air machine doesn't get lunch breaks, coffee breaks, and as favourable working conditions as you do OP?

You haven't said what you do for a living, so implying that the poor air machine might be overpaid is short sighted IMO. That air machine might well have studied hard for many years to get into that position.

More data required OP.

Air machines are people with feelings too ya know. :mad:

wilkie2006

flyton5 wrote: »

Pulled in Texaco in Rathfarnham earlier to top up the tires on my motorbike. Turns out they've installed a new air machine and are charging €1 for 5 minutes of air. They've also cut the hose on the old air machine. Now I'm pissed off for two reasons:

1. It's a safety issue. Surely if I have low pressure in my tires I'm putting myself and other road users at risk?

2. The air machine makes more in an hour than I do.

I'm cranky enough to never buy my petrol there again.

It's not really Texaco's responsibility to ensure that your bike's safe...

Rastadoyle

more like toxico

Bad Santa

Buy yourself one of these. They work well. Or at least mine does.

CreepingDeath

flyton5 wrote: »

1. It's a safety issue. Surely if I have low pressure in my tires I'm putting myself and other road users at risk?

You drive a motorbike.. you're probably doing that already.

Sinfonia

flyton5 wrote: »

Pulled in Texaco in Rathfarnham earlier to top up the tires on my motorbike. Turns out they've installed a new air machine and are charging €1 for 5 minutes of air. They've also cut the hose on the old air machine. Now I'm pissed off for two reasons:

1. It's a safety issue. Surely if I have low pressure in my tires I'm putting myself and other road users at risk?

2. The air machine makes more in an hour than I do.

I'm cranky enough to never buy my petrol there again.

If you needed to use the air pump for 30 mins every day, then I could see how it'd be a problem. It's €1 every what, three months? I think you can rise above the red mist here.

Pilotdude5

Many WMD's were invented, puppet dictators installed, and wars fought to get that cheap air to your forecourt OP.

cantdecide

They have the safety of motorists but particularly us bikers in their hands. A bad reading could contribute to an accident in which fatalities could occur.

The convention is that they provide service stations provide air FOC. They shouldn't treat people who are leaving a lot of money with them at the fuel pump with contempt by charging them for what is a simple but crucial service.

flyton5

E.S.T. wrote: »

Invest in your own compressor if you feel so strongly about it and a private company is not responsible for road safety.

They seem pretty happy with the free advertising they get when the RSA give them a shout out for giving fatigued drivers free coffee.

Reg'stoy wrote: »

Put an extension lead outside your front door offering free mobile phone charging and see how long that attitude lasts.

An uncharged mobile phone is less likely to lose control and crash into a school bus full of orphans!

Fighting Irish

flyton5 wrote: »

Pulled in Texaco in Rathfarnham earlier to top up the tires on my motorbike. Turns out they've installed a new air machine and are charging €1 for 5 minutes of air. They've also cut the hose on the old air machine. Now I'm pissed off for two reasons:

1. It's a safety issue. Surely if I have low pressure in my tires I'm putting myself and other road users at risk?

2. The air machine makes more in an hour than I do.

I'm cranky enough to never buy my petrol there again.

Do you want them to give out free mars bars as well?

Chips Lovell

"It's a safety issue. Surely if my brakes are shagged I'm putting myself and other road users at risk if Texaco doesn't repair them for free?"

3ndahalfof6

On board bicycle pump up grade, motor bicycle pump, how the fook is it someone elses fault if you got a puncture, prepare, be aware, I might get a puncture, that is all.

LordSutch

flyton5 wrote: »

Pulled in Texaco in Rathfarnham earlier to top up the tires on my motorbike. Turns out they've installed a new air machine and are charging €1 for 5 minutes of air. They've also cut the hose on the old air machine. Now I'm pissed off for two reasons:

1. It's a safety issue. Surely if I have low pressure in my tires I'm putting myself and other road users at risk?

2. The air machine makes more in an hour than I do.

I'm cranky enough to never buy my petrol there again.

Well I'm with you 100% on this one, on principle I just wouldn't pay to put air in my tyres.

So my advice would be to just boycott that petrol station, and hopefully if enough people do the same, Texaco will get the message.

Big Nasty

Every cent matters in business these days.

They have to pay for and service the compressor and also a new gauge every time some tosser drops it on the ground after use and drives over it. Garages make SFA on fuel and rely on their shop and additional services to meet the bills.

sidcon

The machines are a service provided by a private company, a air gauge cost just under €500 to fix if broken. Considering most motorists don't bother hanging them back up and the next person comes along and drives over the hose/gauge you can imagine the amount of money the company pays for this "free" service. Companies cannot absorb them costs any more hence why you now pay for the service of your vehicle. 5minutes normally is given which includes air, Hoover and fragrance.

TheUsual

It's not just Texaco that charge for air nowadays. A lot of them have none.

Go to Halfords car shop in Blanchardstown and invest 30 euro in a footpump (Michellin I got) and a digital pressure guage 10 Euro.
Best things I ever bought - seriously I should have done it years ago.
You tend to do it more often as it's in so handy, and with the digital gauge it's a million times more accurate than the garage pumps - how often are they callibrated ?

amacca

On the one hand i would be pissed off with this

ffs its just air why the fcuk am i being charged for it, it should be provided for free as i am bringing valuable custom here


on the other hand I know as a franchise owner you have to sell a hell of a lot of litres of petrol/diesel and stay open for a hell of a long time in order to make a profit and when you do provide these things people/gobsh1tes/scumbags etc tend to treat them with disdain instead of respect and expect you to foot the bill when they knot up the hose and leave it in the path of cars, yank the hose out of its housing, fcuk the pressure gauge anywhere when they are finished with it etc


the best solution to the problem I can see at the moment without outright scabbily charging you for the air to cover costs incurred due to scumbags that dont give a sh1t are the ones that require you to put a coin in a slot (similar to trolleys) to get the gauge and when you actually go to the trouble of replacing the gauge where it should have been you get your fcuking money back.....these also retract the hose (but not like the crappy tesco ones that require you to preselect pressure and then suck hours/well minutes [long long minutes on your hunkers] of your life away getting to that pressure)

Where To

It's up to you to ensure your bike is roadworthy, not Texaco.

Sinfonia

You're not being charged for air.

somefeen

I hate this ****e myself but in fairness its not JUST air.
Its air thats been pressurised and filtered to remove moisture etc.
Compressors aren't exactly easy on the electricity either.

A euros a bit steep though most places I've seen its about 50c.

LordSutch

Pulled up at a petrol station the other day and the machine needed a refundable €1 coin to release the chain attached to the air-line > fair enough.

I didn't have a €1 coin, but I did have a Tesco trolley token which came in very handy

3ndahalfof6

amacca wrote: »

On the one hand i would be pissed off with this

ffs its just air why the fcuk am i being charged for it, it should be provided for free as i am bringing valuable custom here


on the other hand I know as a franchise owner you have to sell a hell of a lot of litres of petrol/diesel and stay open for a hell of a long time in order to make a profit and when you do provide these things people/gobsh1tes/scumbags etc tend to treat them with disdain instead of respect and expect you to foot the bill when they knot up the hose and leave it in the path of cars, yank the hose out of its housing, fcuk the pressure gauge anywhere when they are finished with it etc


the best solution to the problem I can see at the moment without outright scabbily charging you for the air to cover costs incurred due to scumbags that dont give a sh1t are the ones that require you to put a coin in a slot (similar to trolleys) to get the gauge and when you actually go to the trouble of replacing the gauge where it should have been you get your fcuking money back.....these also retract the hose (but not like the crappy tesco ones that require you to preselect pressure and then suck hours/well minutes [long long minutes on your hunkers] of your life away getting to that pressure)

Charge 150 percent, you get 75 percent back if you comply, the machines need to be paid for, the only air that is free is the air we breathe, to put a price on this will deplete the human race by the billions it has grown,

no doubt this will happen in the future, try to save the air that is escaping so we do not have to pay for the air we are breathing, that is all, we are creating our end, if our beginning knew how we were going to go about it they might of taken a different path, folly to chance.

cantdecide

sidcon wrote: »

The machines are a service provided by a *private company, a air gauge cost just under €500 to fix if broken. Considering most motorists don't bother hanging them back up and the next person comes along and drives over the hose/gauge you can imagine the amount of money the company pays for this "free" service. Companies cannot absorb them costs any more hence why you now pay for the service of your vehicle. 5minutes normally is given which includes air, Hoover and fragrance.

€500? You'd buy an industrial compressor for that. The basic inflaters you see everywhere cost less than a tenth of iirc and are serviceable.

Any conscientious garage or manager owner a) needs a compressor for other equipment such as cardboard compactors and b) with minimal expense and effort, maintain the service if he give a fcuk about doing it c) can install a coin return chain which ensures their customers must hang the inflater back up and are saved from *d) this racket of private companies charging for the most trivial of services as a courtesy to their paying customers

somefeen

3ndahalfof6 wrote: »

Charge 150 percent, you get 75 percent back if you comply, the machines need to be paid for, the only air that is free is the air we breathe, to put a price on this will deplete the human race by the billions it has grown,

no doubt this will happen in the future, try to save the air that is escaping so we do not have to pay for the air we are breathing, that is all, we are creating our end, if our beginning knew how we were going to go about it they might of taken a different path, folly to chance.

What?

flyton5

CreepingDeath wrote: »

You drive a motorbike.. you're probably doing that already.

Don't think I've ever seen someone texting or doing their makeup while driving a motorbike.

3ndahalfof6

somefeen wrote: »

What?

Yes.

3ndahalfof6

flyton5 wrote: »

Don't think I've ever seen someone texting or doing their makeup while driving a motorbike.

Interesting, your not sure.

TheUsual

flyton5 wrote: »

Don't think I've ever seen someone texting or doing their makeup while driving a motorbike.

You haven't lived darling.

DonLimon

TEXACO ARE SCUM

3ndahalfof6

DonLimon wrote: »

TEXACO ARE SCUM

The last vile part of the oil break down, (or first), that is all.

Pottler

cantdecide wrote: »

They have the safety of motorists but particularly us bikers in their hands. A bad reading could contribute to an accident in which fatalities could occur.

The convention is that they provide service stations provide air FOC. They shouldn't treat people who are leaving a lot of money with them at the fuel pump with contempt by charging them for what is a simple but crucial service.

but not worth paying €1 for.... Any idea how many muppets rob the Inflator gun off the end of station airhoses? If it was my Station, I'd charge €2. Seeing as it's crucial, etc etc.

Seedy Arling

Safety reasons aside, many people who pump their tyres may go into the shop at the filling station to buy something. If that was me, i'd ignore Texaco, go elsewhere and then maybe use the shop there instead. Seems a bit short sighted.

Yellowblackbird

This is profit maximisation. You put as few low paid workers as possible on the cash tills. You put nobody on the forecourt. Then you complain when the gauge is left on the ground. The margins are tight on fuel but the stations make big profit on the shops and car wash.

cantdecide

cantdecide wrote: »

a simple but crucial service.

Pottler wrote: »

but not worth paying €1 for.... Any idea how many muppets rob the Inflator gun off the end of station airhoses? If it was my Station, I'd charge €2. Seeing as it's crucial, etc etc.

Just because it's crucial doesn't make it an opportunity. That is unless you're lazy and/ or cynical. It takes virtually nothing to maintain this most basic of services.

They also don't have to switch lights on in the shop during daylight hours. This is the same level of equipment and maintenance we're actually talking about. Would you pay for that or would you expect it to be part of the service?

What about garage toilets? Would you gleefully pay for this too? €80 for diesel- €1 for the jax -€1 for inflating your tyres? Maybe they should charge for parking at the pumps?

Poor little garage men...

Yellowblackbird wrote: »

This is profit maximisation. You put as few low paid workers as possible on the cash tills. You put nobody on the forecourt. Then you complain when the gauge is left on the ground. The margins are tight on fuel but the stations make big profit on the shops and car wash.

Well said. Garages handing you to the profiteers for this service is cynical in the extreme.

ejmaztec

flyton5 wrote: »

Don't think I've ever seen someone texting or doing their makeup while driving a motorbike.

This must be close enough

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klteYv1Uv9A

opti0nal

cantdecide wrote: »

They have the safety of motorists but particularly us bikers in their hands. A bad reading could contribute to an accident in which fatalities could occur.

Of all the safety concerns contributing to motorcycling accidents, I think tyre pressure is not the most significant. If you really want garages to play a role in road safety, then RoTR knowledge tests and headlamp checks would be the way to go.

3ndahalfof6

Or just be vigilant, you have 2 wheels, do not think you are in the window of 4 wheels, 1 wheel down on a 2 wheeled motor is 1 wheel left, that is all.

kowloon

I check my tyres at home. Correct pressure is much more important on a bike than on a car for obvious reasons.

flyton5

ejmaztec wrote: »

This must be close enough

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klteYv1Uv9A

Think you're confusing countries there...

Crackle

Yellowblackbird wrote: »

This is profit maximisation. You put as few low paid workers as possible on the cash tills. You put nobody on the forecourt. Then you complain when the gauge is left on the ground. The margins are tight on fuel but the stations make big profit on the shops and car wash.

Whatever about the rest of it, it's not asking a lot (in fact it should go without saying) that people put the gauge back where they got it, and in the condition they got it. The very same as if you borrowed something from a neighbour or friend.

If you have to replace the gauges and hoses regularly then the cost of doing that is gonna outweigh the benefit of having them in the first place.

That said, if the point of charging is to discourage the damage of equipment, then the machines that give customers their money back would be a good way of earning customer trust, showing that it's not about making money.

phasers

the local esso charges 2 euro but you get access to a hoover and air freshener for 10 minutes too.

Normally I just go to Topaz to do it, they have a thing like a trolley where you get the euro back at the end, which is much fairer than stupid texaco

Capt'n Midnight

Got caught by one of these evil machines on the way to the NCT :mad:

Mr Benevolent

I just bought a compressor. €15 for a good investment.

ejmaztec

flyton5 wrote: »

Think you're confusing countries there...

As I said, "close enough" (thanks to out-sourcing). :P

CruelCoin

flyton5 wrote: »

Pulled in Texaco in Rathfarnham earlier to top up the tires on my motorbike. Turns out they've installed a new air machine and are charging €1 for 5 minutes of air. They've also cut the hose on the old air machine. Now I'm pissed off for two reasons:

1. It's a safety issue. Surely if I have low pressure in my tires I'm putting myself and other road users at risk?

2. The air machine makes more in an hour than I do.

I'm cranky enough to never buy my petrol there again.

Most people yank the thing off its holder and toss it on the concrete when finished.

The gauges break really easily. Making you pay goes to wards new gauges.

RidleyRider

I'd have rathered blown are into the tyres of the motorbike than give Texaco the fcuking satisfaction!!!!!!!!

Sofiztikated

flyton5 wrote: »

Pulled in Texaco in Rathfarnham earlier to top up the tires on my motorbike. Turns out they've installed a new air machine and are charging €1 for 5 minutes of air. They've also cut the hose on the old air machine. Now I'm pissed off for two reasons:

1. It's a safety issue. Surely if I have low pressure in my tires I'm putting myself and other road users at risk?

2. The air machine makes more in an hour than I do.

I'm cranky enough to never buy my petrol there again.

1. Yes, it's a safety issue. But the service is still there. You are just choosing not to use it, because there is a charge for me. But yes, you deciding to have low pressure in your tyres is putting yourself and others at risk.

2. Really? €1 for 5 minutes is about €12 an hour, if used constantly. If. What about photobooths? They cost what, €8 for 5 minutes work. Hookers are €30 for 1/2 hour. I don't think I understand this point.

TwoShedsJackson

Give people something for free, or cheaply, and they will treat it accordingly.

Where I work a certain item was being bought in by us for about a fiver, and we were selling it for 9.95 - this item would be something where if it was perceived to be 'cheap', people wouldn't be interested, and so we didn't sell many of them.

Then I decided to put the price up to 19.95 on the 'you get what you pay for' principle, and lo and behold, sales up by 700%. So that idea is at work in most peoples heads when they see 'cheap' or 'free' - not worth the few cents, or I'll treat it like crap, sure it's free!