Is it a bad idea to leave the car on while filling/fueling up?
I’m trying to baby the starter! lol 
Don’t worry about the starter.
It may trigger a check engine light keeping it running.
not to mention the fire hazard
Baby a starter, and possibly blow up a gas station? Where do people come up with this stuff??
Tester
It’s a possible fire hazard to fuel a vehicle while the engine is running. In most states, if not all, it’s illegal to do so.
There are signs at the gas station that say to shut off the engine, for a reason.
Yes, there is a extremely big fire hazard. Your starter will be fine.
lets see. the short list of things to do while filling up.
- leave engine running.
- talk on cellphone.
- jam something into the nozzle handle so it will continue filling while you go back into car to answer phone.
- smoke a cigarette (to keep the smell outside)
- leave the lights on to keep the wires warm to make starting easier.
- have passengers light up inside the car, to make it easier to find any leaking gas fumes.
Also it is illegal in at least some states.
I once lived across the street from a gas station. I had two fires that I saw. One was someone just filling it up with engine running. The other I guess does not count, they ran into the pump knocking it over and starting a fire.
Yea it is a bad idea to keep the engine running.
Many people, perhaps most people, seem to see gas as an inert harmless substance; like water. Not true. The liquid form of gas is toxic and dangerous, but the unseen gas fumes are especially dangerous. And the fumes can spread for a significant distance in concentrations high enough to ignite.
A running car is hot, and there are “sparks” in the engine compartment of a running motor. Some motors with bad ignition wires spark such that you can hear and see the electricity spark as it jumps to “ground”.
Yes, turn your motor off when you are filling the car with gas.
- Getting in and out of the car while filling up, causing a static charge build-up. (see Mythbusters, season 1, ep.5)
The starter can take care of itself. You need to turn the car off in order to not violate fire codes.