If something seems too good to be true, it usually is

Published 12:00 am Saturday, March 12, 2005

At $1.89 a gallon for self-serve regular, the Southern station around the corner doesn’t stand a chance. Nobody does.

With the price of gasoline in Suffolk pushing $2 a gallon – and far more than that in other areas of the country – motorists are constantly on the look out for the lowest prices.

There are none out there, however, that can match the price advertised by the BP station at the corner of Saratoga Street and Hall Place – $1.53 a gallon.

Email newsletter signup

Unfortunately, the station served up its last customer about six years ago. Still, that doesn’t stop bargain-hungry drivers from doing double takes or even pulling up to the pump.

The situation is a source of amusement for Richard Clark, who has operated Clark’s Body Shop for 36 years on the same corner.

&uot;They shoot by every day and hit the brakes and do a double take,&uot; Clark said. &uot;There was a guy from Florida who brought his nephew in recently to have his car fixed and he said, ‘You wait here, I’m going to go over there and get some of that gas.’&uot;

Clark said he doesn’t know why the former station’s owner hasn’t taken the sign down, but its fine with him if it gets people to stop and gives him an occasional chuckle.

Oh yeah, the $1.53 is the full service price.

andy.prutsok@suffolknewsherald.com