Am I Crazy?

[bednobs]

or did you used to be able to fill your tank with petrol without having to squeeze the trigger all the time? I swear you used to be able to clip the trigger somehow, so hands were free. am i right? No-one else seems to remember

[Zacs-Master]

Yes and you still can if you slightly turn the nozzle round. To enable people to keep a track of how much money they're spending, some garages have slowed the rate at which petrol is dispensed so this may be the cause but, as I say, I find that twisting the nozzle round slightly still allows a constant flow.

[SlackAlice]

Your not crazy............yet!
Yes, you used to be able to lock the trigger and leave the nozzle hands free.

All it really means is that you and I are older than many others.

[sddsddean]

Trigger locks have been taken off car pumps, as 'they' think we can't be trusted to use them. Most truck pumps still use them ('cos we are normally putting in a couple of hundred litres!). You can always put something in the trigger guard to jam them open. You need something about the size of a credit card, but a little bit stiffer. When the tank is full, the pump should stop even if the trigger is locked on.

[woofgang]

"should" is the operative word. I no longer trust them with my car (Rav4) When i fist got it, I was forever overflowing the tank because auto shut off didn't work. It had with my previous car (Jeep cherokee) so I presume its to do with the car and not the pump

[tonyav]

Auto shut off doesn't work on a Nissan Juke either.

[TWR]

Yes, this was the case when filling HGVs Bednobs, I would think it would be a safety issue today, should the locking clip become faulty there would be fuel on the forecourt, then it becomes a Fire hazard.

[derekpara]

Yes, TWR, and a lot of spilled fuel on the forecourt means temporary closure and loss of business !

[Bazile]

Another thing i've noticed is that the trigger keeps clicking off when i'm filling up ( the handbook says insert pump up to the first notch - perhaps it needs inserting up to the second notch ? )

[Barks]

Another reason why the trigger lock is disabled or removed is to ensure you are electrically grounded through the pump so any static electricity that might build up from the movement of your clothes etc is dissipated and can't ignite the fuel vapour

[SpikeyBush]

Many of the diesel pumps in rural Ireland still have the facility to lock the pump trigger in the 'on' position. That's why my parents enjoy coming over to visit me as it reminds them of England in the 1950s. Not just the diesel pumps but the whole country.

[Iggle Piggle]

I have a metal pin off an old fire extinguisher on my key ring to fit in the hole in the pump trigger. Works like magic in my local garage, and I get some funny looks when I sit in the car with the fuel pump running. Watch out, it doesn't work so well on some combinations of pump and car and the miserable git in the shop sometimes tells me off over the Tannoy ...