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Use of wrong fuel
is rare at stations

Question: On Jan. 29, during flash rain storms, I was driving on Dillingham Boulevard, town-bound, when I noticed that I was low on gas. I pulled into a Tesoro station, near Waiakamilo Road, and filled with what I thought was premium gas. My car died shortly after I left the station. I thought it was because I had gone through huge pools of water. I had to wait nearly two hours in the stranded car, in the downpour. By the time my car was towed to my car dealer, mechanics had already gone home. The following Monday, I was told my car had stalled due to diesel in the tank. I was dumbfounded and embarrassed. But the repair people said what happened was "not uncommon. Just last week alone, we had to flush the fuel system on two cars. You would be surprised to learn how many cars we have to flush out in a year." I felt relieved, but the experience cost me $950, including the tow charge. I have been reviewing the act of my stupidity, and nowhere did I see a sign that said I was filling with diesel. The fuel pump looked the same and the nozzle was the same size. The only difference I noticed, in the rainstorm, was that the price was three to four cents more expensive than premium gas. Now, if such incidents are not uncommon, how many such incidents happen throughout the Island in a year? Why doesn't the industry, the fuel suppliers, do something to make the diesel pumps look different and/or make the diesel nozzles a little larger so they won't fit the gas tanks? Can't the state mandate the service stations to implement it?

Answer: State and Tesoro Hawaii Corp. officials separately looked into your complaint.

Tesoro Hawaii also said there are a number of safeguards in place to prevent consumers from using self-service pumps from dispensing the wrong type of fuel, including in labeling and nozzle sizes.

Based on your complaint, a state inspector found the diesel pumps to be clearly labeled and the diesel nozzles larger than the regular gas nozzles at the station in question, at 1529 Dillingham Blvd.

The state Department of Agriculture's Measurement Standards Branch is responsible for making sure gasoline and diesel pumps are clearly labeled. The inspector found no violations, said spokeswoman Janelle Saneishi.

His findings, according to Saneishi: Pump stations 1, 2, 3 and 4 were set up to dispense gasoline or diesel fuel through separate hoses and nozzles. All four diesel pumps were labeled "Diesel" with green and white labels near the diesel nozzles. The diesel nozzles were fitted with green hoods to match the labels.

The inspector also found that the diesel nozzle tips were larger than the gasoline nozzle tips to make it difficult for a consumer to place a diesel nozzle into the fuel tank of a car that uses gasoline, Saneishi said.

She added that the department had not received any similar complaint about the labeling of diesel pumps at this station or any other station in the state.

Meanwhile, Eric Lee, regional manager of Tesoro Hawaii, also looked into your complaint to see how you might have been misled and if Tesoro needed to make any changes to its signage.

He pointed out that, at least for Tesoro, it's rare for customers to inadvertently fill their vehicles with diesel instead of gasoline.

The company has received only three such reports over the past five years, he said, which is "a relatively small number in comparison to the millions of self-service transactions each year" at its 35 stations in Hawaii.

Lee provided photos that showed that the diesel pumps at the Dillingham station have larger nozzles and are "clearly labeled so that there is no confusion for customers."

Lee explained that in addition to the "diesel" labeling, "Tesoro follows an industrywide practice of color-coding the diesel nozzles and sign with green to differentiate it from the gasoline nozzles."

It also is the practice for the petroleum retail station industry to use larger nozzles for diesel to further distinguish it from gasoline nozzles.

There is also a "built-in, second-tier safeguard to prevent pumping the wrong type of fuel," Lee said. Customers are required to press a button to indicate the type of fuel they would like dispensed into their vehicle.

"Tesoro does make every effort to prevent mishaps like this from occurring," he said.

However, noting that "we also understand there will be occasions when these safeguards are not sufficient," Lee said Tesoro is willing to look at ways it might be able to compensate you for what happened and said you can contact him.

Get ID cards in Waianae

Staff from the State Identification Office will be at Hale Ola Ho'okapolea, 89-137 Nanakuli Ave., from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Saturday to process applications for state ID cards.

Priority will be given to those with completed applications and required certified documents. Applicants may obtain application forms on-site, but to get applications ahead of time, call 587-3111 (recorded message) or check the state Web site at www.state.hi.us/hcjdc/sid.htm to find out what the requirements are.

The cost of an ID card is $10 for people 65 years and older and $15 for all others, cash only.

Auwe

To the numerous drivers (at least six) that I observed ignoring a school bus stop sign on Kamehameha Highway in Kaneohe recently. When a bus has the stop sign extended and flashing, it is illegal to pass by it in the left lane because children may be attempting to cross the street. Such disregard for the lives of our keiki is inexcusable! -- Stacy J. Warner, Kaneohe

Motorists are required to stop for a stopped school bus with flashing lights if they are on the same roadway in a residential area in the lane occupied by the bus, or in any lanes adjacent to it, regardless of the direction they are traveling (Hawaii Revised Statutes, Sec. 291C-95).

Regardless of the direction of traffic, drivers "shall stop" not less than 20 feet from the school bus and not proceed until the bus begins to move and all its visual signals are turned off.

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