A Current Affair creates SCs

[edible_hat]

SC rang up this morning to talk to my boss. I heard one side of the conversation, got the rest of it later.

SC is the owner of a business that has an account with us (some of his employees used to be SCs of the very rude variety, they've shaped up now. I think somebody gave them a talking too). Anyway, SC's business has two huge trucks and a car, all run on diesel. The trucks fill up on the pumps that can accommodate large trucks (i.e. the ones up the back, away from the canopy) and the car usually fills up on the under-canopy pumps. All diesel pumps are fed from the same tank.

SC claims that water in the diesel has "virtually destroyed" the car's engine. This sounds very odd to us because:
-it's the only complaint of its kind, and we have a dozen regulars who fill up on diesel from those pumps daily (mostly couriers)
-by SC's own admission the trucks were not affected, and all four diesel pumps are fed from the same tank so if there was water in there it would affect all diesel sales, not just ones off one or two pumps
-an independent testing guy comes around and tests for water weekly

It turns out that A Current Affair (one of those alleged news shows that runs stories like "how to lose weight by having vital organs removed" and "Company X is evil because it makes people pay their bills") ran a story titled something like "Are you being ripped off? How your fuel could contain up to 50% water."

So of course the would-be con artists (the same ones who actually believe that if it doesn't scan it's free) are out and complaining about water in the fuel.

[Sir Spaniard the 12th]

That's pretty much 100% bulls**t. If there was that much water in the fuel, then every car that filled up from those tanks would get about 50 metres down the road until the water hit ..whichever part of the engine it shouldn't... and the car would, for all intents and purposes, be dead until it was flushed out.

Even just 5 percent is enough to cause problems.. Since water and fuel don't mix.
Do you have a link to a page related to that story at all? I'd love to see it..

[Slytovhand]

Yeah - I used to get those occasionally. I just forward it onto the manager to deal with. No point even trying to argue with them.

Although - if said SC said they hadn't actually had any trouble, then it's moron city.....

[MystyGlyttyr]

We had a gas station that got water into it's tanks not too long ago, and there were dead cars scattered all over the road going every way away from it before they finally figured out what happened and got it shut down. If there's a substantial amount of water in the gas, there would be probably be NO question about it.

[wagegoth]

Had the water instead of gas in the tank happen to my first husband and me several years ago. We got about 1/4 mile down the road before we stopped, as our tank was nearly empty when we filled up.

Happily, the fuel company took full responsibility, and everyone was towed to the nearest available places for repair and we never saw a bill. Mistakes happen. Someone at the supplier screwed up. The sheriff's department pitched in and gave everybody rides home and took our information for the towing companies and repairmen.* The car was properly repaired and back to us the next day. Even though it messed up our day, we never screamed about suing or whined or bitched.



* A couple funny notes: First time I ever rode in the back of a police car. Full cage. Not pleasant.

My husband was riding up front. He pulled out a cigarette and lighter and asked the deputy if he minded if he smoked. The deputy smiled, said, "No, but there is about 10 pounds of black powder in that box at your feet." My husband put his cigarette and lighter away.

[LifeCarnie]

Ugghhh....Hard Copy *wack-wack*. That show redefined cheesy tabloid journalism.

I remember when it was on in the US. The lead "journalist" (I believe his name was Dallas) was so over-fake tanned that he was orange. And he talked REALLY loudly about totally irrelevant stories.

How I remember the show working:

Loud, orange guy comes on camera in studio.

LOG: "SCANDAL IN CHEETO'S LAND - STAY TUNED FOR DETAILS"

Finally after twenty minutes of scantily clad women, twisted facts on unrelated stories, and a rising urge to take steaming hot shower, the orange stained man is back.

And what is the big story? Something like the cheese stains your fingers or some other foolishness. Only it's said REALLY LOUDLY, in an urgent manner, by an orange stained man who is on televison.

So it must be a carcingen as well.

And the Cheeto's sales plummet.

Or in this case, the diesel fuel sales plummet.

That's pretty much 100% bulls**t. If there was that much water in the fuel, then every car that filled up from those tanks would get about 50 metres down the road until the water hit ..whichever part of the engine it shouldn't... and the car would, for all intents and purposes, be dead until it was flushed out.

Even just 5 percent is enough to cause problems.. Since water and fuel don't mix.
Do you have a link to a page related to that story at all? I'd love to see it..

Preach on!!!

Even if you don't much about an eternal combustion or flashpoints, you'd think at some point common sense would kick in.

[Record Store Tough Guy]

Both Daria and the Simpsons skewered this brand of trash journalism. Daria had "Sick Sad World" and I think the Simpsons version was "Rock Bottom" (but it only appeared in one episode: Homer Badman). We never actually got to see any of Sick Sad World, though, only what was coming up next.

[edible_hat]

Do you have a link to a page related to that story at all? I'd love to see it..

They know it's a crock of crap so they didn't put it on their site. Don't want to leave a paper trail after all.

The story featured two SCs who actually did get watered-down petrol, both after heavy rains. Instead of complaining through the proper channels, one picketed the service station and the other went to the police.

[StevieJD]

They know it's a crock of crap so they didn't put it on their site. Don't want to leave a paper trail after all.

The story featured two SCs who actually did get watered-down petrol, both after heavy rains. Instead of complaining through the proper channels, one picketed the service station and the other went to the police.

Of course they did.

There was a sulfur or similar problem a couple years ago with local fuel. One of the stores sold a few hundred gallons before the problem was detected.

There are people, like me, that just pump the same amount every week. I use 8 gallons a week, I let the tank run down to the need fuel light (maybe 3-4 gallons in the tank) and get 8 gallons. Happens every Sunday. There are people that fill up every time. There are people that buy $10 every time they need gas.

Bottom line how far would a "few hundred gallons" last?

Don't know?

Try over 100 customers.

If you believe the media and the reported claims for repairs.

I heard the actual number of cars needing repairs was THREE. The THREE people that were nearly empty and filled their tanks with the bad gas. Everybody else (like me) was not affected because the gas in our tank diluted the bad gas.

Typical SC

[marasbaras]

A Current Affair has always been a sucky show. It's no shock that it's watched by sucky customers.

[lordlundar]

My husband was riding up front. He pulled out a cigarette and lighter and asked the deputy if he minded if he smoked. The deputy smiled, said, "No, but there is about 10 pounds of black powder in that box at your feet." My husband put his cigarette and lighter away.

Can't say that I blame him. That would be enough to make me quit outright if I smoked.

[edible_hat]

A Current Affair has always been a sucky show. It's no shock that it's watched by sucky customers.

True. What we need is more Chasers and John Safrans.

[Sir Spaniard the 12th]

Spoken like a true 'strayan.

[Becks]

"Sick Sad World"

If only they had made that show into a spinoff. :wistful sigh:

[thehippie777]

I hate these shows...I hate Dateline...Hard Copy... I swear, a certain demoghraphic of people watch these shows & become insanly paranoid. (this includes my mother). I have a couple people claim that on Dateline they say that hotels keep all of a person's personal information on our card keys. I don't know about other hotels, but this is impossible at ours. We program the room number & how long the key should stay valid. These people would insist I erase the cards in front of them, which I did but how the crud would they know if I had actually erased them or not???


I think I would love such shows again if they did an expose on SC's...