Just bought a 96 PSD - never owned a diesel before, and don't know what "PUC Diesel" is at our local Oregon gas stations. Diesel for commercial vehicles perhaps? It is cheaper than the regular diesel price.

 

Yes, PUC diesel is for the big rigs....You'll notice that the nozzles are bigger than the regular pumps, too. It's cheaper in most states because of taxes, they don't charge the truckers as much for fuel because of all the road taxes... Hope this helps you.

 

OK, so if a guy could modify his fill spout to accomodate the larger pump nozel, could he buy diesel for the same price as the commercial guys? Do you have to have a permit? If so, can you get one? (always looking for ways to save money)

 

Regretfully, no....LOL Those of us that drive diesel pick-ups can't get a permit to get the cheaper diesel....unless you're a licensed Truck driver, I suppose. I don't really know about that....but I'm sure they'd have something to say if you pulled up to the PUC pumps in your F2/350.

 

The big rigs use the same diesel that we use in our cars. The off-road diesel is the only diesel that you can't run and that is dyed red. Big rigs can't use that diesel either. If you have a fillneck that accepts the big rig nozzle you can fill at that pump. I do it all the time when I'm towing and truck stops are a good place to get diesel because you know it is fresh. No price difference between the on-road truck pump and the regular size diesel pump. It is hard to keep the truck pump slow enough to fill the tank though.

By the way, PUC diesel must be for public vehicles like buses, but if big rigs fill somewhere you should be able to as well. They don't get any tax breaks on diesel and pay the same price you do.

 

Here is a thread on the Open Roads Forums about the diesel pumps....

Diesel Pumps

 

That's interesting, I haven't come accross 1 state yet that has lower tax on diesel fuel for trucks. I've filled up at truck pumps up and down the east coast and between TX and CT. I guess the rule of thumb is that if it says PUC you need a permit and if it doesn't you can fill up. Truck pumps come in real convenient when you're towing a trailer.

 

I like those truck fillups, you can fill up in a quarter of the time, I just watch the volumn so I can kick it off to avoid splashback.

 

The local place where I fill up (have an account and a card - can fuel any time and get a bill every month) caters to truckers and that's all there is is the big nozzle. It does fill up quick but it's awful hard to trickle those last couple gallons in 'cause it pumps so fast. I have pretty much given up on that and just quit when the pump clicks off the second time. It's a good place to get fuel though - never gotten bad fuel there yet!!!

 

PUC price in OR is $0.24 lower than regular price. The drivers that are allowed to pay PUC price also buy a permit (annual or per-trip) for OR. If us regular folks fill up at a pump w/ PUC prices, the cashier will add the difference. On a good note, if you have a fuel tank in the bed of the truck, and it's NOT connected to the truck's fuel system in any way, you too can pay PUC price for the in-bed tank, but you must explicitly request it every time.