As I stand outside in the whipping wind with temps below zero filling my gas tank, I often think, I’d gladly pay a little extra per gallon if someone would pump the gas for me and I can stay in my warm car.
So how much more do you think we’d have to pay per gallon to have this luxury service?
Many places offered that service, in NJ it is still mandatory. Yay us, we do something right.
I recall the upcharge for full service being about 10-15%
In 1975 I was in high school, working at a self-serve gas station. It was an Exxon station, and the price per gallon was 55.9 cents. Meanwhile, the price at full serve stations was also 55.9. People would pull up to the pump, see the price and that it was self-serve and they’d be pissed off! They’d approach my little house and scream at me. I just sat there and laughed.
Personally, I prefer to pump my own gas. If a full serve and self serve station were on neighboring corners and the price was the same, I’d choose the self-serve.
Full service gas stations are everywhere. Some are smaller independent stations where the price is equal to or lower than self-service big brands.
I would say that, in my experience, this varies quite a lot. They may be “everywhere” in some areas, and scarce-to-nonexistent in others.
In my area (suburban Chicago), I haven’t seen a gas station that offers full service in at least a decade. Googling indicates to me that there are a handful of such stations in Chicago.
There is a BP (formerly Amoco) station near me, which maintained a single full-service pump, along with the self-service pumps, for many years, but they switched that pump to self-service a decade or more ago.
As far as I know, we don’t have any full-service stations here. If we do, there aren’t any within 15 miles of me. When I Google full-service gas stations near me, I get gas stations that offer vehicle repairs. 
I’ve only ever seen this in New Jersey or Oregon. Possibly encountered at some point, not recently, a random station or two outside NJ (but in the vicinity of) that had a specific, single, marked “full service” pump, or there was a button somewhere you could push to summon the full service attendant (who was just the regular cashier).
If you’re seeing a lot of them, it must depend on area. I haven’t seen a full-service gas station in many years. When I did a Google search, I found an article saying that Petro-Canada still had 200 full-service gas stations across the country. Then I noticed the article was from ten years ago. When I did the same search just now at their website, filtering on “full serve only” it found … exactly zero.
I’m stuck with only full service in Oregon. I’d say 10% of the time I appreciate not having to get out. The rest of the time, it’s annoying to have to wait for the attendant to come, then wait again when it’s done filling. Self service is way quicker.
In the 80s and 90s when I was driving long distances a lot (and often trying to figure out What Exit to use) I saw the full service option in a lot of stations. Maybe they’re were more common near Interstates.
Obviously in NJ, all stations pump gas all the time. Some attendants got snippy if you pumped your own.
One Petro Can near me used to have self service on one side of the building, and full serve on the other. The full serve side got shut down years ago when they did some other renovations.
We used to have a few independent full-serve places around. One shut down, another is now self-serve. There’s only one full serve left that I know of, but it is pretty consistently cheaper than the competition. So, yeah, the economics makes little sense.
I knew of exactly one station with a full service pump (in Niles) but it closed within the last few years.
Sounds like they’re kicking around the idea again of allowing self-service in other than rural areas.
They might be ok for cars, but the couple of times I’ve been through on my motorcycle they’ve spilled gas on the bike and once on me. I no longer will get gas in Jersey because of that. I did get gas once in Rhode Island on the bike and the guy knew how to fill up a bike. The only time I’ve been to Oregon they just let me do it myself.
I haven’t seen full service in Maryland since the 1990s, though I do see signs saying if you need it to call the clerk.
In my county, in upstate NY, there is exactly 1 full service gas station.
I believe that those signs are posted (and the service offered) to place gas stations which don’t otherwise offer full service into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
I’ve had NJ gas jockeys either decide to round it off when it stops at something like 3¢, thereby spilling it down the side of the car as it overflows or not tightly screwing the cap back on, thereby causing the check engine light to come on at some point; not the biggest deal but it is annoying.
Which is funny as I’ve been filling up in NJ for 35 years, 14 of those doing over 20,000 miles per year.
Overflow: Never.
Gas cover: Once
Guess I’m very lucky.
Same in OR, never had an overflow. I’ve never even seen an attendant round off here. You pay in advance, either by handing them your card or cash. If it’s cash, they set the amount on the pump and it stops automatically. If it’s a card, who cares where it stops?
Maybe NJ’s different. Maybe in the outer reaches of Oregon there are old pumps that don’t automatically stop. But multiple spills sounds like exceptionally bad luck, especially for someone who doesn’t live in a full-service state.
I live in an area where the weather is pretty bad at least 6 months a year, but I would rather do it myself. It’s faster.