Nice

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Think you need to change your rose tinted spectacles for proper ones.

This might help:-

[Edgar Iredale]

The pumps I remember were fitted with large dials reading gallons and fractions. As far as I remember the price wasn't shown except as so much per gallon.

If it was a really out of the way garage it might still have had a tank filled by hand pump to the gallon marks and drained out into the car.

At 2.00am on the A5 in early January two gallons was nice and simple. Not that two gallons was ever enough in an old Land Rover. 10 bobs worth would confuse everyone. (And how would you work out mpg with petrol at different prices each time some was bought?)

Those were the days.

Buying by the pound (money) came later.

I'll admit buying by value was nice and easy once suitable pumps were available. But these days it's the price for whatever I can get in the tank.

Edgar

[Bill]

In message , "Dave Plowman (News)" writes

Well, I seem to remember that the petrol we bought was called "Regular" and there was a higher grade for exotic vehicles.

I'd looked at the AA's pdf referred to in the other reply. I'm not convinced it is accurate, even though they ought to know.

[The Natural Philosopher]

regular was 4 star and premium was 5 star - usually 100+ octane

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Well the bog standard 95 octane petrol today is called premium - but you can't buy a lower grade in the UK.

It probably also might have depended on the maker in those days.

Regent Regular was their commercial petrol - ie the lowest octane they sold. Most '50s cars wouldn't have been happy on it. Super was the most used. Then came Supreme, which was the 100 octane stuff. I remember that being 5 bob a gallon when it arrived, round about 1960.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Think they only give the price for one grade. The most common for cars. When there is a choice.

[News]

In message , Bill writes

It looks about right to me, and I started buying petrol in 1968 when memory tells me it was around 6/8 [1] a gallon, or roughly three gallons for a pound. The AA shows 74d at that time. Even then, there were price wars and free stamps etc. so shopping around was worthwhile. Doubtless pump price varied by location too, so the AA price will only be an indication.

[1] That was two stroke, so four stroke without the 'squirt' would have been pennies cheaper. ISTR by the time I graduated to a car, the price of four stroke had caught up, and was also 6/8 gallon.

[harry]

I recall they used to have a sign "Ask me for £1's worth" to save the jou rney for change. Just over four gallons.

[harry]

I was in Venezuela a couple of years back. Petrol was six pence a litre. Everyone was driving old Yank cars with huge engines.

You could take a taxi between towns.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

But. Retail price maintenance was in force throughout the '50s and into the '60s. So all garages in the same area charged the same for a gallon. I say area, because some like islands etc where transport cost were higher may have been more. But I dunno for sure.

So the AA chart is more likely to be accurate for when RPM was in force.

[fred]

The earliest price for petrol I can remember was Five and tuppence halfpenny. I was happy buying it anywhere till I discovered Esso were charging more. I was so incensed I didn't buy Esso petrol for years after

[fred]

You worked out your miles per gallon very simply. Brimmed the tank. Noted t he mileometer. Ran till near dry. Brimmed the tank again and took a note of the quantity required to do so. Divide the quantity into the difference in the mileometer and Bobs your uncle.

Same as today though I do find the computer on my car is quite accurate wit h its consumption figure any time I checked it via the above method.

You must have a good few years on me. I only remember electric fuel pumps :

-)

[Edgar Iredale]

Yes, it was a silly comment.

[News]

In message , fred writes

So you didn't get a tiger tail or bullet holes?

[Tim Streater]

Or four bums? Oh no, that was paraffin.

[News]

In message , Tim Streater writes

I had to think about that for a moment :-)

[bert]

3/11 - 5 gallons for a quid. ISTR National Benzol was a little bit dearer.

[Andy Burns]

Tesco diesel 97.7 last night, petrol still 99.9, crude prices seem to do an up-tick last week, so might not last much longer ....

[Terry Casey]

They look a bit on the high side to me.

When I was at primary school from 1949 - 1955 I used to pass a garage on my way to school.

I can't remember when I first started taking in the price but I think there was some re-organisation or new pumps installed but the price on one particular pump was very prominently at about my eye level.

The pump was the odd one out as it was at 90 degrees to all the others with an overhead pipe which swung out over the side road I walked down to serve petrol at the roadside, rather than the forecourt, so the price was no more than a couple of feet away from me and it was virtually impossible for me not to see it!

The lowest I can remember was 3/10? and, over time, I noticed it change slightly by a penny or ha'penny at the time.

By the time I left that school it was 4/1? a gallon (49.5d) five-pence less than the AA's figure

That was in Grays, Essex and there was no competition I can recall in the town itself, the nearest being about a mile and a half away.

[Tim Lamb]

In message , Terry Casey writes

Not very far from the refinery then! About 10 miles to Coryton?

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