Putting A Lid On Bad Gas Caps

DETROIT--Bad gas caps are being panned in Service Tech Magazine. The piece says at least 17 percent of vehicles on U.S. highways have missing, misused or faulty fuel caps--resulting in 476,000 tons of vaporized hydrocarbons, 147 million gallons of vaporized gas and the waste of more than nine million barrels of crude oil each year.

Service Tech Magazine, a controlled-circulation membership publication of the Service Technicians Society, cites research by RAM Products Ltd. in presenting the piece.

Not only is the impact on the environment severe, but faulty gas caps also cause accidents and deaths, according to the publication.

“(The studies) by RAM Products, in accordance with State Farm Insurance, American Family Insurance, Allstate Insurance, and Travelers Insurance have shown that the incidence of fires in vehicles accidents could be reduced by as much as 10 to 50 percent if proper gas cap use was followed; subsequently, this could help in lowering accident injury and fatality rates,” the article states.

In the late 1960s the Consumer Products Safety Commission called for the “turn until it clicks” design to ensure a tight seal, but the article points out that in those days full-service gas stations were the rule and the caps were applied by professionals. However, over time the service stations dropped service and adopted self-serve. “This leaves the practice of tightening gas caps in the hands of the end-user, causing room for error,” the piece says.

The clicking aspects of the cap designs require a certain amount of wrist twist to make tight--posing problems for numerous motorists; the Arthritis Foundation puts gas caps on its Top Ten list of the most difficult consumer products to use.

“The importance of gas cap safety has been overlooked by both the federal government and by the public, says Richard P. Shaw, RAM’s president. “This critical safety device has been left to discretionary use by the general public,” he arns. “It is being abused as we speak at service stations worldwide as drivers fill up their gas tanks. As many as 17 percent of these drivers leave their gas caps loose enough that they serve no purpose, presenting an immediate health, environmental, and safety issue.”

Shaw says that correspondence he has received from Vice President Al Gore and U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold of Wisconsin indicate that the federal government is aware of the gas cap crisis, but action to improve or resolve the problem has not been taken.

The piece can be viewed in its entirety at www.ramprods.com. For more information, contact www.sts.sae.org.