Dear friends:

This question is for people living in Northern California or California in general.

I live in San Jose (North CA) and can only find 2 (out of 20-30) gas stations that have diesel fuel. I wonder whether it's risky enough to take a trip to Reno, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Seattle etc... by driving a diesel car, considering the fact that it may be hard or impossible to find any gas station that has diesel fuel during the trips (mostly on highways) ?

Thanks for your info.

Best regards,

Eric

It's always possible to find diesel along interstates.. thousands of trucks drive the highway daily.

Every grocery store, Wal Mart or Costco is a potential filling station when you own a MBZ diesel. On occasion, I've burned WalMart's cheapest vegetable oil (soybean/corn blend), olive oil, and canola in Marlene. Regarless of the feed, she runs great on SVO (straight vegetable oil) with a lot less klatta, klatta diesel racket and the exhaust smells just like you're downwind of a Popeye's.

Unfortunately, SVO isn't really a full time alternative for fuel since it's over $3.50/gal.

Regards,
R Leo

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Never a dull moment at Berry Hill Farm.

Eric,

With your MB Diesel, you have at least a 500 mile range. Even in the desert, Diesel stations are not that far apart.

I've driven my MB diesel in 49 states and the only place I had trouble finding Diesel fuel was in Alaska. And that was because I was pulling a camper trailer that reduced my mileage.

In an emergency, you could always burn gasoline with a quart of engine oil mixed with 5 gallons.

P E H

That is the beauty of these diesel engines, they will run on just about anything that will burn.

__________________
1999 MB SL500 (110,000 mi)
2004 Volvo V70 2.5T (220,000 mi)
2014 Tesla Model S 85 (136,000 mi)
MBCA member

We've traveled thru Washington, Idaho, Oregon & Utah and haven't had any real problems finding diesel. Only time was late in the evening in some small town in Oregon where the stations with diesel were closed. Try to plan your fill-up stops ahead and at larger cities, and you shouldn't have any problems.

__________________
past MB rides:
'68 220D
'68 220D(another one)
'67 230
'84 SD
Current rides:
'06 Lexus RX330
'93 Ford F-250
'96 Corvette
'99 Polaris 700 RMK sled
2011 Polaris Assault
'86 Yamaha TT350(good 'ol thumper)

You have Flying J, Petro,plus all the other regular fuel stops.
On the road I carry 5 gallon extra Diesel,5 gallon water, and a spare set of Fan belts,spare hoses, and two set's of oil and fuel filters.
Most truck stop have a "Special"island for auto's. The reason for this is that their Truck nozzels are large diameter and pump high volume.
Both of the above have web sites and will show location and price of fuel.
Charlie

Reno and I-80 going from CA to Reno has plenty of gas stations with diesel.

I wouldn't recommend adding any gasoline to your diesel. I've read it takes a very small amount to disable your engine.

__________________
2004 VW Jetta TDI (manual)

Past MB's: '96 E300D, '83 240D, '82 300D, '87 300D, '87 420SEL

You won't have any problems getting to Reno. I've driven to Lake Tahoe numerous times in my diesels and there are lots of stations all along Interstate 80. In addition, there are a fair number of diesel stations all around the Lake itself. Remember that diesel pickup trucks are pretty common in rural and farm country so the percent of gas stations that carry diesel is probably higher than in more urban areas like S.J. In fact, the price is often a bit cheaper too.

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LRG
1987 300D Turbo 175K
2006 Toyota Prius, efficent but no soul
1985 300 TDT(130K miles of trouble free motoring)now sold

If you see something like the image below, there's Diesel. I found plenty (about every third exit) on the 101 from LA to Templeton. I Didn't have to fill up, but did twice to see what milage my 240 was getting. 25mpg with lots of grades, 40mpg with only a few. On a trip to Hemet which was nice and flat i got 44mpg. Also on the 101 all the diesel i found was at regular stations, No huge truck nozzles.

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Eric:

We used to live in Nevada City and there were few options for diesel fuel there. I got a CFN (Commercial Fuel Network) card because my local bulk fuel dealer used them at his cardlock station. I could fuel any time of day or night. I also got a directory with the card that listed all the stations in the western states. I used to be able to fuel in the east bay, Redding, Tahoe area, you name it. Since those days, I've found that diesel is much easier to find, especially on the interstates. I have no qualms about taking off across country in a diesel automobile. If I'm not sure about the next available diesel stop, I just start looking for it a little sooner.

Cheers,

Wes

Dear friends:

Thank you all for your precious information and tips. I'm feeling better now :-)

Best regards,

Eric

R Leo and VirginiaDude,

LOL, you'all are trying to convert us aren't you. Trying to get us hooked on the SVO/WVO drug. Yup, I'm starting to think the gallon of Canola oil I've got in the kitchen could be put to better use....

Sholin

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What else, '73 MB 280 SEL (Lt Blue)
Daily driver: '84 190D 2.2 5 spd.

WVO/WFO/SVO for fuel is just a darned good idea. Here's why:

1) No net CO2 gain (less greenhouse gasses)
2) One less thing in the waste stream headed for the landfills
3) Reduced personal economic impact from fluctuating fuel prices
4) Lower cholesterol (canola only)
5) Enjoy corn oil goodness while motoring
6) MBZ OMs are the easiest SVO conversion you can do (pour in oil, start engine, drive)
7) The just seem to run better on SVO (anecdotal)

R Leo

__________________
Never a dull moment at Berry Hill Farm.

Yeah, I agree with all those suggestions. I carry a gallon of power service diesel purge in the trunk and put in a splash with every fillup. I guess I could probably burn that in an emergency, but I do like the idea of keeping a gallon of veggie oil handy.

Once I get a bigger house built with space to do my own WVO prep, I'm going to do this too.

Plus, I get 40 mpg (190D 2.2, not the 108 car), so I could probably afford SVO/diesel mix straight up.

Sholin

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What else, '73 MB 280 SEL (Lt Blue)
Daily driver: '84 190D 2.2 5 spd.