Fuel from petrol stations for race cars

[vjay48]

read po ferries terms and conditions, paragraph 10, item V. A fact of life is when vosa are checking if your car/trailor is ok for weigh etc. why wind jobsworth up because you have 50/60 litres of petrol in the boot.

[Colin McKay]

Doom & Gloom Dept here......

Cribbed from Anglo-American Oils' catalogue and confirmed by our Dangerous Goods Safety Adviser at work:

Unless the driver is ADR trained and the vehicle is carrying specific extra equipment the limit for a private individual is 240 litres of petrol in containers no larger than 60 litres.

A business may carry up to 333 litres in containers of either 25, 50 or 200 litre capacity provided that:

• The vehicle has a minimum of 1 x 2kg dry powder extinguisher
• The driver has undergone hazardous awareness training
• The cans are not opened in transit
• No portable lighting equipment is carried unless conforming to ATEX
• No smoking in or around the vehicle during loading, unloading or in transit
• Containers must be secured whilst in transit
• Instructions In Writing are carried with the goods (google this)
• Correct signage is displayed on the outside of the vehicle

Bear in mind that even as an individual if you receive sponsorship in any form you could be considered to be in a commercial relationship and you would come under the business rules (also applies to tachograph regs and operator's licensing but that's been dealt with on another thread).

Re ferries, P&O do not allow empty or full fuel containers. Seafrance will not allow containers with fuel, but make no mention of empty ones. Britanny Ferries say 'The transport of petrol cans is specifically forbidden' so presumably both full and empty. I expect other ferry companies are the same.

The International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code says that you must declare (on a Dangerous Goods Shipping Note) any fuel not in a vehicle tank, and then you'll end up being treated as a freight vehicle which might limit the crossings available to you. Not all ferries carry DG. Apart from financial penalties, if undeclared fuel is found you will be made to dispose of it outside the port area so you can't flog it to the drivers in the queue behind you.

On Eurotunnel the restrictions are a maximum of 20 litres in 2 x 10 litre metal containers. Plastic containers are restricted to 2 x 5 litres.

For obvious reasons I mostly buy my fuel at the circuit now.

[midgetman]

So from a tourist POV, leave your spare can at home and buy one over the channel and dispose of on return. From a racer's, dry break fuelling systems or TufJugs need thinking about.

In the UK as an individual, the limit isn't going to worry me, nor indeed VOSA. A couple of years back I was accosted filling three 20 litre jerrycans. Turns out it was local petrol trading standards checking the garage. When I told them I was going racing and they were for personal use there was no problem. I was requested to put a better label on the cans that was all.

Last time we got fuel for Alex's karting they wouldn't let him pay even though they'd seen me putting the fuel in the cans and I was with him. So Alex had to give me his card and PIN and they were happy! No point in arguing.

[937carrera]

Originally Posted by SFurness

Good evening,

At the Total garage in Louth, near Cadwell Park, a couple of years ago they had stickers on the petrol pumps stating that it was against the law to carry more than 5 litres in a plastic can or 20 litres in a metal can.

Steve

Yes, I think they must be the most miserable pair of petrol station operators in existence and I regret ever single litre of fuel I had the misfortune to purchase from them in desperation a couple of years ago. .... over 100 regrets

[Al Weyman]

No one would think they were actually in business to sell the product FFS!

[greenamex2]

Originally Posted by Al Weyman

No one would think they were actually in business to sell the product FFS!

Petrol stations don't make any money selling petrol....that has been the case for over 25 years since I last worked in a petrol station. The petrol is there to get you to come in and buy sweets, drinks, bread, milk, carwash etc, all that stuff that the person in front of you has spent the last 20 minutes looking at whilst hogging a pump and stopping you getting to where you want to go, usually when you are late.

The petrol companies make their money refining the crude oil into petrol etc and effectively run the petrol stations as an 'almost loss leader'.

Perhaps if they changed the sign to "5 litres in a plastic can or 20 litres in a metal one per grocery item purchased" then everybody would be happy!

[GORDON STREETER]

Originally Posted by Denis Bassom

Petrol stations don't make any money selling petrol!

I quite agree having run a filling station for 20 odd years.
After the health and safety and weights n measure mobs take loads of money it's impossible to earn a decent wage unless you flog everything else. You have to pay load for load and a good percentage that you sell goes on accounts that you may not get the money back quickly (or at all) !
Big sites on main roads are the only ones that can survive but the smaller village garages (like the pubs) are few and far between now with most turned into houses unfortunately

[greenamex2]

Originally Posted by GORDON STREETER

most turned into houses unfortunately

The one I worked in is now houses, the one round the corner to me is being built on as we speak.

[Colin McKay]

My first job was as a garage manager, for Ultramar (Q8) and later Heron in the 70's. During a quiet hour at work I Street-Viewed the dozen or so garages I ran, none are still selling petrol and most don't exist at all. Remarkably, our local village garage still has 2 pumps and Sue comes out to fill your tank for you. They even have free air! Not many like that left.

[GORDON STREETER]

Originally Posted by Colin McKay

Remarkably, our local village garage still has 2 pumps and Sue comes out to fill your tank for you. They even have free air! Not many like that left.

My village garage in the UK (that I used to run) is the same thankfully.

[andy robinson]

Got collard today, in the middle of filling 9 jerry cans using 2 pumps @ same time
Came & said shell policy is 2x20 ltr, but were kind enough to let me finish.

How long does everyone recon before petrol starts to 'go off' as I leave it in the car for up to a couple of weeks, any longer & I pump it out for my road car

[Mike Bell]

Originally Posted by andy robinson

Got collard today, in the middle of filling 9 jerry cans using 2 pumps @ same time

That's just plain greedy

Impressed by the multi-tasking though..........

[Lancsbreaker]

Originally Posted by andy robinson

How long does everyone recon before petrol starts to 'go off' as I leave it in the car for up to a couple of weeks, any longer & I pump it out for my road car

I guess it "may" start to go off....but in the last couple of weeks I dug out a couple of cars (A Suzuki Vitara and a Fiat Marea) that had been parked up in my unit for around six years.....hooked up to a decent battery both started within a couple of seconds, if that, and ran fine........so if the fuel does go off, it isn't that critical Both these cars had been bought from salvage auctions over six years ago, so the fuel could conceivably have been up to 7 years old........