Community Forums

Tcloud7 · 07-18-2009, 01:10 PM

I was talking to a lady at the Goodyear store(wingfoot) and she was telling me Goodyear owns wingfoot and Pilot.
For was its worth..

Don and Barb

mrblanche · 07-26-2009, 07:49 PM

Flying J had many problems, not the least of which was an extremely stingy attitude toward their trucking customers. They created havoc in their customer base twice by discontinuing their acceptance of the most accepted truck fuel cards.

But you're right about Pilot, too. In many of their locations, they were a "tick," sucking customers from nearby major truck stops by underselling them by a penny or two per gallon. Flying J did that when they first started their expansion, gaining customers by low prices but losing them by poor service, small parking lots, and lousy restaurants.

Pilot bought out Mapco, which had some pretty nice truck stops. The first thing they did was close the restaurants in all of them and sell the space to franchisees who put in fast food operations.

robodoc · 12-20-2009, 04:42 AM

I'm new to the DP world and stopped at mostly pilots on our trip from MO to FL. Prepaying got old, so what are the "RV" recommended fuel providers.

Robodoc

read & learn · 12-20-2009, 05:21 AM

Welcome to iRV2 robodoc
I feel Flying j is one of the best for RV friendly of the fuel stops.

hardy1000 · 12-20-2009, 06:19 AM

I agree with Read & Learn, Flying J is an RV friendly fuel stop.

GaryKD · 12-20-2009, 09:45 AM

Hi Robodoc,
Welcome to iRV2. It's the J for me. After planning my trips, the GPS is loaded with the J fuel stops I will use. As others have posted, for a coach towing a toad, you just can't beat the J (truck islands) for an easy in and out. Only one trip into the store to get my receipt (using the RV Fueler Card to turn on the pump). Their actions have stated they want our business. I will give them mine.

Our Time · 12-20-2009, 10:00 AM

For GaryKD. I have a J card and use there required Mastercard but I can never get the pumps in the truck lanes to turn on. What are we doing wrong? Do they still require a Mastercard in the truck lanes?

FATMANAR · 12-20-2009, 10:53 AM

We have a Pilot and a Flying J across the interstate here in Russellville,Ar. The boy filling my LP tank the other day said they were both going to stay open and that they, Flying J, has already started raising prices. Both stations stay as busy as they can be...

GaryKD · 12-20-2009, 11:59 AM

Hi Chuck & Mary,
You may be doing nothing wrong. The process I follow is:
1. Insert my J RV Value Card
2. Follow the on screen (usually hard to read) prompts.
3. one of the prompts is to insert the payment CC
4. There are more prompts that I just make up the answer.
5. The pump turns on.
6. Fuel is dispensed.
7. Pull forward to allow the next in line to fuel.
8. Go into the store to get my receipt.

The above mentioned process works in almost all states and Js. It does not work in Indiana. Indiana has commercial fuel tax laws that do not allow private coaches to fuel at the truck pumps without first going into the store to get the pump turned on. There are also some Js that are privately owned (not many). These Js can make their own rules about when their pumps are turned on via the card reader. An example of this is the J in Las Vegas. Only a certain card used by commercial trucking companies will turn on their truck pumps. Everyone else must go into the store.

The bottom line is almost all the Js I have been to follow the above mentioned process to turn on the truck island pump. If the process does not work, I go to the store to get the pump turned on and ask what is the process for doing it myself.

If you can use the RV island there should be no problem. However, with 62 feet of coach and toad, combined with RVers who could care less how much time it takes for them to fuel or how long the line is in back of them, I always use the truck island.

Gary - K7GLD · 12-20-2009, 12:03 PM

The passing of Flying J is a shame - and as has been suggested, we'll likely see the J descending into Pilot's model, rather than the other way around...

Bill Adams · 12-20-2009, 12:07 PM

The Flying J Mastercard is no longer a required option. As long as you have your Flying J card you can still use any credit card (maybe not Visa) and you will get the cash price plus the 1 cent RV discount.
Some States such as IN (mentioned above) as well as AZ and OR have different rates for RV's and trucks and this requires that you take your info to the fuel desk to get the pumps started. In AZ the RV pays 8 cents less and in OR the RV pays 24 cents more. In States where trucks and RV's pay the same price you should be able to activate the pump at the pump. Trying to get a 60' vehicle in the RV pumps is no fun but even worse is the 1/2 hour it takes to fill that 150-200 gallon fuel tank with an automotive nozzle!

GaryKD · 12-20-2009, 12:21 PM

For those thinking the J will become a twin of Pilot, think again. Imagine yourself the CEO of making this decision. When one company purchases another company usually it is not to clone itself. Usually is it because the purchasing company sees the purchase as an expansion of the markets they want to be in, in the future. With the J franchise comes a ready made expansion of Pilot's target markets. There is no cost for Pilot to continue allowing the J to do what it has always done for it's RV customers. The physical plant, processes and business model are already in place.

georgetown350 · 12-20-2009, 01:46 PM

I agree with Gary KD. I think all that will change are the pockets the money goes into. To costly and needless to change name and operations of Flying J.

Gary - K7GLD · 12-20-2009, 05:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by georgetown350

I agree with Gary KD. I think all that will change are the pockets the money goes into. To costly and needless to change name and operations of Flying J.

Can we think of, or provide many instances where the new outfit taking over left the original method of operation substantially unchanged after the takeover?

I'll start with one closer to home for me - Mercedes taking over Chrysler - did we end up with "the Mercedes of trucks" - or a company drained of assets and ultimately busted...