[Crankpin]

Most shell pump guys are not very well trained to remove oil filters etc...they can handle 2-wheeler oil changes better. However, the Shell pump on the Mumbai-Pune highway before the expressway starts (opposite Indira I guess) has well trained technicians to change car engine oil filters and other basic stuff.
I always try filling up at Gogate pump which is next to the Indian Oil pump on Karve Road.

[noopster]

Adding Chandere HP pump at Sus village to the list of trusted pumps. Have been filling here for the past couple of months since it falls on my commute route and- wonder of wonders- is on the list of pumps that offers 3% cashback on Amex cards. The pumps at Bavdhan (where I live) and Hinjewadi (where I work) are almost always crowded and this is much better.

[freedom]

Scam Alert - BPCL pump off RTO.

Last week of Dec 16

Went to BPCL pump off RTO. Got down from the car.
Clearly said "Saadha Petrol autocut" (Normal petrol till auto-cut)
There were 3 attendants and one of them pulled up the petrol nozzle. Reset the meter, pressed some buttons and asked me to confirm 0.
I said OK and he put the nozzle in the tank and started the flow
Everything normal till now

I hear a "Kat" sound at 500 and the fuel dispensation stops. I ask him why did you set it to 500 when I had asked for a "full tank".
He just nods his head without any eye contact.
I make him stop then and there. Ask him to "go slow" and do one thing at a time and ask for my confirmation before going onto the next step.

I make him reset the whole thing. Make it 0 and start again. This time the dispensation runs all the way to auto-cutoff
While we were having this 2nd round of fueling another person came in and asked "Cash or Card". I kept watching the counter and said card.
In another 15 seconds someone else comes and asks if I want to try the "pain polish", ask him to go away (very polity) without taking my eyes off the counter.

This is a second or third time that these guys have tried to do the 500 trick to me. The problem is there is no "proof" against them. I have complained to BPCL in the past.

I know the modus-operandi and can get away for the scam, but I really pity for people who may just be sitting in their car and trusting these crooks.

This doesn't happen every time. Infact, I really like their service and the spacious no clutter facility.

I am a regular at BP LBS Road pump or HP pump at Model Colony (Autolines). Both these places are on top of my trust list.

Autolines even has a person to do a windscreen wipe down.

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by freedom

Scam Alert - BPCL pump off RTO.

I hear a "Kat" sound at 500 and the fuel dispensation stops. I ask him why did you set it to 500 when I had asked for a "full tank". He just nods his head without any eye contact. I make him stop then and there. Ask him to "go slow" and do one thing at a time and ask for my confirmation before going onto the next step.

This is a second or third time that these guys have tried to do the 500 trick to me. The problem is there is no "proof" against them. I have complained to BPCL in the past.

I know the modus-operandi and can get away for the scam, but I really pity for people who may just be sitting in their car and trusting these crooks.

I had the same experience with them last month (Jan). They dispenser stopped at Rs 300, and the guy told me it was an power failure. I asked him "How can the power cut off exactly at Rs 300?!" And he gave me a sheepish look. I made him reset the dispenser and restart the process. This time around it auto cut off when the tank was full.

Thing is, they were trying to distract me with something or the other but I kept an eagle eye on the machine till the point it shut off, the nozzle was removed and the tank cap put back on.

At the end I was trying to figure out what the modus operandi is.

I NEVER sit in the car whilst refuelling and always monitor the process. There are 2 reasons:

a) Inadvertently filling the wrong fuel i.e diesel instead of petrol
b) Cheating

Unfortunately most owners don't step out of their cars and some rogue petrol station attendants/staff take full advantage of it.

[akshay81]

Originally Posted by freedom

Scam Alert - BPCL pump off RTO.
I am a regular at BP LBS Road pump or HP pump at Model Colony (Autolines). Both these places are on top of my trust list.

Autolines even has a person to do a windscreen wipe down.

+1 for Autolines. I have never faced any issue / scam with them.

Have never been offered windscreen wipe down. May be next time I will demand for it.

[ksameer1234]

Originally Posted by freedom

Scam Alert - BPCL pump off RTO.

I have only filled petrol here once and my experience has been same. One, they never seem to have card machines working. Two, I consistently used to get 45-46 kpl with my Activa and the once time I filled from this pump, my efficiency dropped to 41 kpl. Now it was a pretty standard week for me and +/- 2 kpl is understandable but this is too large a drop.

Do you think this pump would be shortchanging customers? That too when situated bang opposite RTO!!

[freedom]

Originally Posted by ksameer1234

Now it was a pretty standard week for me and +/- 2 kpl is understandable but this is too large a drop.
Do you think this pump would be shortchanging customers?

I never had an issue with the quality of fuel at the BPCL pump opp RTO. Infact the fuel quality and the big uncluttered area with parking/toilets/air etc is above average for pumps in city area.
What I absolutely hate is the staff and especially the pump attendants. They are a bunch of crooks.
Just be extra vigilant check 0 and ask them to take it slow. This is especially critical in a 2 wheeler queue where everyone is in a hurry to fill up and move on.
I don't think the fuel is bad. Fuel economy going down may be related to other factors. Do a tank full at HP Autolines or BP Shastri Road, Navi Peth to rule out the bad fuel part.

[comfortablynumb]

Originally Posted by freedom

Do a tank full at HP Autolines or BP Shastri Road, Navi Peth to rule out the bad fuel part.

True, these 2 pumps are always in my preferred pumps list, along with Select Automobiles (BPCL pump on Karve Rd opp. Ranka Jewellers).

Cheers,
Vikram

[ksameer1234]

Originally Posted by freedom

the big uncluttered area with parking/toilets/air etc is above average for pumps in city area.

I also like the layout and spaciousness which is indeed very good.

Just be extra vigilant check 0 and ask them to take it slow.

Yes, this and attendants filling only 100 when asking for full tank and then trying to start from 100 without reset.

I don't think the fuel is bad. Fuel economy going down may be related to other factors.

The activa is a 7 year old beat up one so I won't claim my observations to be conclusive in any manner. But I really disliked the fact that I had to pay cash. I totally prefer cards over cash now.

Do a tank full at HP Autolines or BP Shastri Road, Navi Peth to rule out the bad fuel part.

Thanks for the heads up! However, both of these aren't on my daily route. I'll keep these in mind though.

[feluda86]

Shell Petrol pumps near Kasarwadi, Mundwa and the new one on Kharadi By-pass road are good.
I do not trust the fuel quality of HP and BP pump, especially diesel.

[advaitlele]

I recently did tankful at Shell pump near Dange Chowk. Found reasonably good. No distracting methods.
Of course, he tried to sell engine oil saying current oil is in bad condition. I politely refused. Same happened at Shell, HJW. The Car was serviced just three months back and had run around 3k KMs after that.
No problems with the attitude of fuel though.

[pandey.jai]

Sorry to resurrect this old thread - I wanted to know which are the trusted and/or COCO petrol pumps near Viman Nagar. I've driven to the Shell petrol pump on Kharadi by-pass for refuelling the car but would also like to know if there are any good pumps nearby.

[comfortablynumb]

Originally Posted by pandey.jai

Sorry to resurrect this old thread - I wanted to know which are the trusted and/or COCO petrol pumps near Viman Nagar. I've driven to the Shell petrol pump on Kharadi by-pass for refuelling the car but would also like to know if there are any good pumps nearby.

There are no COCO pumps near Viman Nagar. The nearest ones are BP COCO opposite Sangam Bridge RTO and IOC COCO near Mal Dhakka Chowk.

I used to frequently fill petrol in my bike at this BP pump on Nagar Rd, approximately opposite Unnati Motors, and didn't have any bad experience. Not too crowded, doesn't refuse cards and no obvious fuel quality/quantity issues faced.

The BP and HP pumps at the start of North Main Rd (on Bund Garden side) are also reputed to be good.

Cheers,
Vikram

[procrastinator]

Hey Pune bhpians,

Can you recommend any petrol pump nearby Magarpatta or Hadapsar?

I have been to Shell twice with attendants attitude not so positive.
I have once tried Bharat Petroleum (Ekvira Petroleum) on Solapur Road.
Car seems to behave fine and will be able to know about quantity in next tankful.
The challenge is space here and getting in/out of pump with mind boggling traffic. Never mind

Any pumps nearby Kharadi or Camp will do too.

Thanks in advance.

[ruzbehxyz]

Originally Posted by adya33

Hello people since we all need to refuel our cars/bikes regularly I thought it will be a good idea to post about your bad experiences with petrol pumps and petrol pumps which you trust.

I'm surprised not to see any Shell pump in the list. I have mostly heard positive reviews from my friends in Pune in terms of fuel quality.