NEWS: Gasoline in Some Markets Believed to Damage Cars

As if rising gas prices weren't enough, residents of the Louisville, KY area now have to contend with the pricey fuel apparently causing hundreds of dollars of damage to their cars. Hundreds of motorists have found themsevles stranded in recent days when their cars ran out of gas, despite their fuel gauges showing sufficient fuel in the tank.
Marathon Ashland has reported that gasoline from their distribution center is to blame for the problems in Kentucky and Indiana. The fuel was somehow contaminated with sulfur. They have offered to reimburse drivers who suffered fuel-gauge failures for repair costs.

Courier-Journal.com
CourierJournal.com

The problems aren't exclusive to any particular make, model or year of car. They also aren't exclusive to Louisville; similar problems have been reported in dozens of cars in Erie, PA

The story is the same, though: hundreds and hundreds of drivers are driving with what fuel gauges are showing as quarter to half full tanks, but they are finding themselves stranded in the middle of the road as the gas runs out. Mechanics are telling the same story in regards to what is causing the malfunction: something about the gasoline in these markets is damaging the sensor in the fuel pump.

What's even worse is that some motorists who have had their pumps replaced since this started nearly two weeks ago are finding themselves stranded again; the replaced pumps are still failing.

Kentucky AAA is estimating around 100 new reports per day are coming in to their offices over the last week to week and a half. Nearly all reports involve late model American-made cars, and no particular gas station chain seems to be the culprit.

The repairs cost between $200-900 dollars to replace, and no company or government agency has yet stepped forward to assist drivers with the cost.

Related Stories:
Erie, PA


[Edited on 21-5-2004 by Banshee]

oh nooooooooo

I believe this...........and I dont wanna! I want to be all HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY........cuz I like my car.

This would make SENSE though in a way, a WAR over oil and gas? so the people getting it out of the ground fool with it so its NOT any good? so it wrecks what its intended for??? OMG! could be an Arabic plot???

maybe it being PUT into the fuel coming from the USA just to MAKE the Arab fuels all the more NESSESARY?

Good post Banshee.......yikes

Makes perfect sense if it only affects late model american cars, because it sounds like a forced upgrade to a newer car. It doesn't help the economy if someone pays off their car and tries to drive it for forever.

Besides, who else has noticed the case of the disappearing gas stations? With the oil company mergers and the requirement to balance competing gas stations by trading stations, it seems rather than swapping company logos, they just ditch the station altogether which in turn lowers capacity to serve gas to the average consumer. Also, refinery capacity seems to be capped. Its sort of like the trick the electric companies used by shutting down some of their capacity. Can't use crude oil until its refined, and that job is on our end , not OPEC's.

It reeks of sheer greed.

Update:
Marathon Ashland is the culprit, as gas from their distribution center was apparently contaminated with sulfur.
They are reimbursing customers for repair costs on fuel-gauge failures.

LOL I was just joking about how Everything was bush's fault....Including my car running badly....guess I was right after all....

damn that bush lol

Just read the other posts. Oh no.....last week there was a mention of the gas in Alaska, the famous pipeline. This oil as such a high content of sulfer, that is being sold to Japan, and mostly to China. Its not good enough to be refined for the USA. The sufler still lingers during refining. Wonder if its being filted to us now? My car is a older car, but kept up like a fine clock, I have been getting bad readings, and even was staled on the freeway, first time in my 40 years of driving. Replaced all fuses and it runs, but did this before, so this could be a new problem in our 2.37 per gallon in California.