So I think I have a good pair that are hard to beat.
A “Liberty” station is on one side of the street. Their gas is $1.69.
A “Shell” station is on the other side of the street, but down the street 165 feet*. Their gas is $1.99.
That makes a 30 cent difference. So for a 15 gallon tank, that is $4.50.
There is a middle turn lane to get into both of them. Neither is particularly harder to get into or out of than the other.
Acording to Google Earth. For any of those out there that are distance challenged, if you were driving at 40 miles per hour**, the distance between the two stations is traveled in 2.8 seconds.
We had a pair like that: a Speedway that would be at $1.35 and a Citgo directly across the street that would be $1.65
The Citgo went out of business. It was kind of weird since Citgo’s not exactly “premium” gas so it’s not like a little discount place across from a Shell or BP selling magic-detergent-high-octane fuel or something.
A gas station near Bazargan, Iran: about $0.80/gal
A gas station about 400 meters away in Turkey: $8.00/gal
The bus I was on had the entire baggage area full of 10-gallons cans of diesel fuel bought in Iran before we crossed the border. I was traveling from Tehran to Erzurum.
I don’t think anyone’s going to beat Desert Nomad, but, not counting political boundaries, there’s a gas station in Goleta, CA, that currently is selling regular for $4.79. Less than 3/4 of a mile away is a station that sells for $2.49.
That one station always has a much higher price than anything else in the area. I have no idea what’s going on.
There are a couple stations on South Semoran Blvd in Orlando, FL that prey on unsuspecting tourists topping up rental cars. Suncoast Energys is showing US$5.95/gal and the Sun Gas station on the other side of the road is showing US$3.99 according to GasBuddy.
I drive past 2 Shell stations on my 6 minute commute. Before this most recent drop, the one nearest to my house was generally $.30 more expensive.
What always confounds me, tho, is when the historical difference changes. On my previous commute- approx. 45 minutes - there were a couple of stations that were almost always the cheapest - usually by < .10. And a couple were almost always the highese - again, maybe >.10 above the average. But every once in a while, the historically priciest would be the cheapest, or the historically cheapest would be at the average.
Also on my previous commute, there were 2 Shells across from each other at the same intersection. As you might expect, they were almost always the same price. But every once in a great while, one would be a penny less than the other (or was the other one a penny more?) Always thought that odd.
Final gas pricing thought - when I was a kid, my dad often said that the stations on the tollway oases were always the highest. And I though that was my experience as well. But, using Basbuddy over the past couple of years, at times the oases station on the tristate (294) is the cheapest in the area.
Around here two stations next to each other always have the same price. Two places across the street might differ by 1 or 2 cents. The one’s closest to the highway exits tend to also be higher than something just a block down the street. I can’t ever recall seeing a 30 cent difference in price though.
Just thought - the price difference would vary in significance depending on the price. So the 2 stations I pass differed by thirty at 3 a gal; I wonder if they differ by .15 now? Will check on the way home.
I just checked Gasbuddy’s map-and by fuck you’re right. :eek: Heyzeus Lord of God, could the people who run those stations really think that there are enough people out there that are that clueless?
If there weren’t, the station owners / managers would have given up that trick.
It’s not uncommon for stations near airports to charge more (particularly when it’s the one station at the airport exit), though that Orlando one is particularly egregious. I’d guess that they are, in particular, taking advantage of foreign tourists who don’t realize what “normal” gas prices in the US should be, and aren’t paying enough attention to look at the other stations as they’re heading back to the airport.
The city (or was it the state?) passed a law requiring posting the gas price on a sign at the street.
Sun Gas posted theirs low to the ground, on the southeast corner of the property well past where you turn into the station off the main road.
Suncoast Energys has their sign low to the ground along the north side of the property facing the little side road, partially obscured from view from the main road by the hedge.
On the other hand Wawa has their sign prominently posted, albeit low to the ground as well. Nice electronic sign right where you pull into the lot. Easily visible for approaching traffic.
