If a car bumps into you, your car will be less likely to move and bump into something. So it does make sense. And doing that is often easier than setting/releasing the parking brake. That said, if I’m waiting in line with my automatic equipped truck, I just put it in neutral and hold my foot on the brake pedal. I’m willing to take on a few risks I guess.
What’s not to like?.. The membership fee ! Although we don’t have any Costcos in my Area unless we would go to Canada and border crossing has become so tedious it would not be worth it even if the gave me free membership. Not to mention the bridge tolls. Also Canadian gas is much more expensive.
Hmmmm… I guess that you must live in a state that has very lax consumer protection regulations.
In NJ, state regulations prohibit membership in a club or organization as a requirement for buying gasoline or pharmaceuticals. As a result, anyone can buy gas at Costco, as long as they are solvent enough to have a Visa credit card or a Visa-affiliated debit card. (Cash is not accepted at their gas stations.)
Similarly, when entering a Costco warehouse in NJ, at the point where you are supposed to show a membership card in order to be admitted, simply saying “I’m going to the pharmacy” gets you admittance to the warehouse.
And, the rebates on their already low-priced merchandise are so generous that my annual rebate check is usually about 3 times what I pay for that annual membership.
Where I live we have the busiest Costco in North America, and it’s got 8 gas pumps that are always busy. Membership is about $50 basic but we have the Executive membership for $150 or so which gives us very good rebates at the end of the year. It more than covers the membership fee!
We typically buy $8000 dollars worth of stuff per years consisting of groceries, clothes, gas, drugs and cosmetics,liquor, automotive stuff, books and plants.
… and, let us not forget that the Costco credit card gives you a rebate of 4% on gasoline purchases–no matter where you buy that gas. (Restaurant and travel expenses garner a 3% rebate, stuff that you buy in the warehouse results in a 2% rebate, and everything else gives you a 1% rebate.)
I use that card to pay my utility bills, at the veterinarian’s office–where some of the bills have been very high over the past year–and anytime that I dine out, I also use it. In a typical month, the bill for that card is somewhere between $1,400 and $1,800, so the rebates add up very quickly!
The short answer to the original question is, “Why not?”
The long Costco discussion is fun, too, because so many of us seem to have similar experiences. Around here you mostly wait in line, unless maybe at 8:30 pm. But at 8:30 I’ve had dinner, maybe an after dinner drink, and my butt is pretty firmly stuck to the couch. So, when we go to Costco during the day I often drop off my wife near the door and then go do the gas line thing. With cell phones it’s pretty easy to find her later in the store.
We only have Sams Club and BJs in Western NY and I don’t belong to either one. Grocery prices are very competitive here and Neither Walmart, Target , BJs or Sams club can compete with the sale prices of our other Supermarkets except in a very narrow range of products or in sizes that don’t make sense for 2 people to buy. Also, one of our supermarkets gives gas discounts for buying groceries so I get between $0.50 and $1.20 off every time I buy their gas and I use a credit card that gives me 3% back on gas.
I think they have that rule in Minneapolis too but I think everyone except extreme environmentalist just ignore it, especially if its ten below out.
At any rate it doesn’t matter. Do what you want. The only thing is the security issue, at least with my cars. If you put it into park, the doors unlock until you put it into drive again. So do you want to sit there with your doors unlocked? Just depends on where it is, plus its activating the door locks every time.
I shut my engine–if it does not do it itself–at any “window” service, simply to be nice the the employee who serves me: bank, food, coffee, etc.
Prius shuts off engine after a few seconds of idling, and more and more new vehicles do the same. You use less gas restarting that you do idling. Calculation: if you will be stopped 30 seconds or more, shut engine.
I guess you have never had your car stall on you in the bank drive up with a trailer full of lumber. If you did, you’d never shut your car off for fear of it not starting again. Very embarrassing to have to get a tow truck at the bank. Fuel pump again.
I know what you mean. Many years ago, in my late teens, I had a Chevrolet which stalled and would not restart just at the ticket office of a drive-in theater. Only one lane for that one and many horns blaring! Luckily the folks I was with and the attendant pushed the car off to the side and let the rest of the customers through.
It turned out to be a faulty carburetor, but it took to the next day to retrieve the car and fix it. The actual cost of the rebuilt one barrel carb was only $18, but the tow and taxis added up to quite a bit.