If I borrow my neighbor's pickup, should I fill the tank?

September 28, 2022 2:32 AM

This is the perfect time for planting junipers and boxwoods, and i've set aside the next two days to do just that. This involves borrowing my neighbor's pickup, which probably costs about $75 to fill, for a couple 5-mile trips to the nursery. Can I just get him a 12-pack a good beer instead, or would that be too declasse?
posted by BadgerDoctor to Human Relations (39 answers total)

Fill the tank.
posted by pearlybob at 2:39 AM on September 28, 2022 [92 favorites]

And if it was nearly full when you got it, get the beers as well.
posted by some little punk in a rocket at 2:44 AM on September 28, 2022 [38 favorites]

Full tank and a 6 pack of whatever the lender likes to drink.
posted by bilabial at 3:55 AM on September 28, 2022 [12 favorites]

Yeah, I think a full tank is the minimum. Bonus beer is better.
posted by GenjiandProust at 3:59 AM on September 28, 2022 [10 favorites]

Replace the gas that you use. If it was on 1/2 tank when you got it, fill it back up to half a tank before you return it. And get the beer as a thank you (assuming you know he likes beer.)
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 4:31 AM on September 28, 2022 [7 favorites]

Fill the tank, especially since you’re using it over two days. Consider that it’s a future investment on the relationship
posted by raccoon409 at 4:41 AM on September 28, 2022 [23 favorites]

I mean, it would cost $75 to fill it if he gave it to you with the tank mostly empty, which seems unlikely. So while I get being reluctant to spend $75 for a few miles of driving, are you really going to pay that much? I doubt it.

Fill the tank regardless, it's the classy thing to do.
posted by soundguy99 at 4:48 AM on September 28, 2022 [16 favorites]

Alcohol is not a great gift for a significant number of people (they're in recovery, or they're picky, or it's complicated, or etc.), so, unless you're quite familiar with his drinking habits, I probably wouldn't go that route.
posted by box at 4:50 AM on September 28, 2022 [16 favorites]

You have a neighbour who lets you borrow a truck for days?! Definitely fill that tank right to the top, and get the man some good cookies too.

I dearly wish for a neighbour who owned a truck. I just had to buy a dryer and the fact that I couldn’t find someone to loan me a truck in a hurry meant that instead of $100 to pick up a used perfectly good dryer directly from a random person who was renovating, I considered wagering $400 for a “repaired” dryer from a chop shop or $800 for a new one from a big box store!

Trying to weigh options for 10 days with online flakes and swindlers, and figure out delivery during business hours, all while the heap of laundry grew and I was on work deadlines? That was an absolute misery.

Paying $50 worth of gas to a friendly neighbour to just do it myself right away would have been a blessing from heaven, and would have saved me DAYS of hassle.

I ended up paying $150 to a random person for her perfectly good old dryer (incidentally the identical model to mine!)… plus she asked an extra $50 for her to bring it over in her own truck. Trucks are never free!
posted by nouvelle-personne at 5:21 AM on September 28, 2022 [12 favorites]

I'm inspired by the generosity in this thread overall and am inclined also to say fill the tank. However, if this were my neighbor, there is a long history of reciprocity and I would inform my decision based on that.
posted by 10ch at 5:25 AM on September 28, 2022 [5 favorites]

How much would it cost to rent a truck for two days or have the trees delivered? Filling it up is probably a bargain. Plus, it's the right way to show your appreciation.
posted by evilmomlady at 5:44 AM on September 28, 2022 [8 favorites]

The IRS mileage rate is currently 62.5 cents per mile. If you're making "a couple 5-mile trips to the nursery", thats either 10 miles (62.50) or 20 miles (125.00), depending on whether that 5 is round trip or one way. Either way, topping off the gas tank is the right thing to do here, as compensation for the gas and wear and tear you've put on the car.
posted by chrisamiller at 6:02 AM on September 28, 2022 [2 favorites]

Fill the tank.
posted by nkknkk at 6:10 AM on September 28, 2022 [2 favorites]

I mean... how much would renting a truck for two days cost? Here in LA, it would be more than $75. I'd just fill up the tank. Cookies would be a bonus.
posted by Temeraria at 6:10 AM on September 28, 2022 [4 favorites]

how much would renting a truck for two days cost?

Plus, you still have to fill up the tank of the rental when you're done.
posted by AzraelBrown at 6:15 AM on September 28, 2022 [9 favorites]

The IRS mileage rate is currently 62.5 cents per mile. Thats either 10 miles (62.50) or 20 miles (125.00), depending on whether that 5 is round trip or one way

The math here is off: ten miles is $6.25 and twenty miles is $12.50. I agree with putting a least $25 in the tank since this a truck and not a small car, more if you can afford it.
posted by soelo at 6:26 AM on September 28, 2022 [9 favorites]

It'll only be $75 to fill if they lend it to you on a near-empty tank and you empty it on those 5-mile trips, first off. You just need to top it off so I bet you're not looking at that much.

Also, yes, beers as well. But if it fully costs $75 to fill then you are excused from the beers.
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 6:30 AM on September 28, 2022

Response by poster: Not meaning to thread sit, but do men give men cookies?
posted by BadgerDoctor at 6:32 AM on September 28, 2022 [5 favorites]

Renting a pickup truck for two days would cost at least $75 where I live, and not needing to deal with Uhaul/zipcar/etc is a big plus. Plus maintaining good will with your neighbor (whether or not you'll ever borrow it again) is worth the $75.
posted by needs more cowbell at 6:32 AM on September 28, 2022 [3 favorites]

Lending someone your vehicle is kind of a big deal. A lot of people won't do it just for insurance reasons but regardless, they are letting you into their personal space. And keeping a gas tank full is another thing you have to plan for in a sometimes busy day. Absolutely return it with a full tank.
posted by BibiRose at 6:42 AM on September 28, 2022 [14 favorites]

When you want to borrow the truck again for next year's nursery run, he'll remember the precedent you set this year. If filling the tank doesn't break the bank, it sounds like a good idea.
posted by happy_cat at 6:56 AM on September 28, 2022 [9 favorites]

I give cookies, but mine are the very best cookies you have ever had (it just Torres Chocolate Chip, of course).
posted by zenon at 7:13 AM on September 28, 2022 [1 favorite]

While you're filling the tank, also use the washer squeegee thingy and give the windshield a good scrubbing.
posted by niicholas at 7:26 AM on September 28, 2022 [8 favorites]

For what it's worth, in my truck loaning world, cookies and other food and sweets are not really currency. Gas, favors-in-kind, showing up when I need ya - that's what a truck loan is worth.

In the midwest where I grew up, garden vegetables, venison, sausage, favors-in-kind, showing up when something went wrong, or (over time) being forgiving about an uncomfortable neighborly situation were all fine currency.

To kind of calibrate you here, the fact that gas is very expensive right now is MORE reason to fill the tank up. You're receiving an act of generosity in a time when generosity is extra expensive. The right thing to do is to reflect that back. Nobody wants to trade favors with a cheapskate.
posted by fake at 7:56 AM on September 28, 2022 [39 favorites]

I endorse the "don't be penny-wise, pound foolish when it comes to favours" camp.

When my neighbourhood was truly middle-class (BBQ were BYOB *and* BYO meat for the grill, but also epic potlucks) and people drove Civics, Caravans, and used pickups, mostly owned by people who actually used them for work or side-job purposes, and vacation talk was about camping trips and maybe a road trip, lots of favours were done like this.

It would have been understood that you fill the tank, both as a thank you and as part of being able to afford putting in trees from a nursery and saving the delivery/rental fee.

If you were, however, a parent of twins picking up a used washing machine because yours broke, your neighbour would lend you his truck and his dolly, and would fill up the tank before you borrowed it, so that refilling it would be really just the gas you used. The using it for a few days might confound this, but what I'm saying really is that there are needs and wants and a community that is pretty finely tuned to that kind of will work it out.

This is basically "cheerful math," not that people were like, accounting for every penny but there was a spirit of getting resources where they were needed, and being grateful and generous where they were a convenience. Now that I think about it I am missing those days.

Now my neighbourhood, due to seniors downsizing and real estate going crazy, is upper middle class disguised as middle class, and there are a lot of fancy new trucks and Lexus SUVs and trips to Cuba and/or home to India, Singapore, etc. No one loans trucks really but if they did I think it would be refilling the tank plus like, a fancy tray of nuts and dried fruit.

So calibrate to your circumstances but I would err on the side of generosity with the gas.
posted by warriorqueen at 8:26 AM on September 28, 2022 [10 favorites]

Men give other men cookies. It could be a box from a bakery, or you could get all alpha male and make some really awesome cookies yourself.
posted by The corpse in the library at 8:43 AM on September 28, 2022 [7 favorites]

I am a pick-up owner that has lent it out to friends for the day to move crap. Depending on the truck, the tank on certain F-150s is 36 gallons. To fill that up at $3.5/gallon is $126. Mine is a 25 gallon tank. I do run it down to the nag that says I have 50 miles left then the 25 mile nag. Turns out I have 50 miles after the zero nag. Depending on the dirction of the price of gas, I either run it down to close to empty or fill it often. If pricing are dropping, I run it down. If I can save 30 cents a gallon for say 22 gallons, that is $6.60. Do that once a week and you have close to $350.

My point is do not commit to filling the tank. Commit to putting in at least some dollar amount. $75 is reasonable. When NY gas prices were close to $5.00/gallon your card authorization would often be $100 and you would end up with 3/4 full tank.

One friend who borrows my truck can easily afford to buy a truck and use it twice a year. He fills it up and buys me dinner. Another friend who is not so wealthy replaces the gas he used and might buy me some pizza and beer.

Another friend just replaces used gas and gets it washed inside and out.

Whatever you are comfortable with will be seen as appropriate and appreciated by a person who is willing to lend you their truck for a day or two.

(As for cookies, huh? If I am on the wagon for alcohol which I am not, I could just as easily be avoiding sugar or gluten or any other food allergy. No need to get anything extra. Just whatever you think appropriate with the gas.)
posted by JohnnyGunn at 9:05 AM on September 28, 2022 [10 favorites]

I was always taught that when you borrow a vehicle, you return it cleaner than it was when you borrowed it and with a full gas tank.
posted by DrGail at 9:15 AM on September 28, 2022 [6 favorites]

Yes, you should fill the tank.

Or look at Home Depot, where you can rent a truck for $19 a hour and buy $10 worth of gas. Maybe consolidate a few trips and get it done?
posted by The_Vegetables at 9:17 AM on September 28, 2022

Yeah, I agree with the answers suggesting there isn't one correct answer here - it really depends on your relationship to the neighbor, region of the country, class, etc. The answer is different if this neighbor is a friend, who you've already done favors for, and who has already done favors for your in the past - vs. if you barely know this neighbor.

I dunno, I was raised that it's good to accept gifts when offered, but to then return the generosity in a different gift. So assuming you are friendly with this neighbor, I'd probably put in $10-20 more gas than I used (depending on how many trips we're talking about), and then offer some of your green-thumb gardening skills - perhaps they too would enjoy some junipers and boxwoods in their yard? Or sure, if you're good at baking, a baked treat would be nice. But this all assumes you have a real relationship with this neighbor (and know their preferences for food/drink/etc).
posted by coffeecat at 9:35 AM on September 28, 2022 [1 favorite]

Truck owner here. I frequently let people borrow it, but if someone returned it without at least replacing the gas they used they would never get to borrow it again.
I don't require any beer/cookies extras if gas is topped up, but if I need something in the future (check in on my animals while I'm gone? Help me lift some heavy stuff?) I will ask.
posted by genmonster at 10:15 AM on September 28, 2022 [8 favorites]

Fill the tank AND be available for similar neighborly favors. A small gift is nice but not strictly necessary if you already have a reciprocal relationship.

Not meaning to thread sit, but do men give men cookies?
If your neighbor gave you cookies, would you be surprised and delighted? If so, yes, cookies are fine. More cookies for everyone!
posted by momus_window at 10:16 AM on September 28, 2022 [2 favorites]

You can get an in town U-Haul for about $20 bucks a day (or so the advertising on the side reads). Still have to fill it up, but it will be full when you get it so only topping off the miles you drove. Still comes out to $50 bucks or so and there are probably taxes. Some trucks have really big tanks compared to cars, if it's on empty to start with, it could be a large bit of money depending on where you live. I might go with putting $50 in the tank and beer and some sort of snack/meal or picking up something they want on your way back.

Also possibility depending on situation, are you swapping your car for those two days? How much of a slight inconvenience is not having the truck?

Oh, and if there's any sort of mess, sweep or hose out the bed before returning.
posted by zengargoyle at 10:40 AM on September 28, 2022

My man bassist makes freaking awesome man cookies and he shared them with me (also a man)

Fill the tank.
posted by Sauce Trough at 10:51 AM on September 28, 2022 [5 favorites]

The rule for borrowing cars is that you should never expect them to be returned with a full tank, but you should always endeavor to return them with a full tank. The goal is to always show generosity and reciprocity, but to allow room for those who are unable to repay (immediately or ever) to still ask for help when needed. The flip side of this is that if you really cannot afford to fill the tank, you can offer some other thanks, even if it is only verbal, and that is also okay.
posted by Nothing at 2:03 PM on September 28, 2022 [5 favorites]

How much would it cost you to rent a truck for two days?

Fill the tank.
posted by latkes at 2:14 PM on September 28, 2022

Man-ecdata:

My man husband who looks like real-life Ron Swanson frequently gives my army/navy vet, retired-cop man uncle cookies as a thanks for small favors.

Uncle prefers pumpkin chocolate chip, thank you very much.

If we ever borrowed his manly truck, we would also fill the tank when we were done.

(Full disclosure: I am not a man, but it turns out half my ancestors were.)
posted by armeowda at 4:48 PM on September 28, 2022 [6 favorites]

I have a pickup. I don't loan it to any of my neighbors, but if I did I would expect them to fill the gas tank (or something equivalently reciprocal in some way) and not return it super dirty. Remember, the cost involved isn't just the gas usage, it's also that there is some wear and tear, perhaps some inconvenience (they can't use it on the days you have it borrowed), and a slight level of risk that it will get damaged or break down while you are borrowing it and then that would all have to get figured out. Pickups are actually fairly expensive to own, so it's a real favor to loan it out.

Not meaning to thread sit, but do men give men cookies?

Yes! Bonus points if you baked them yourself.

You can get an in town U-Haul for about $20 bucks a day (or so the advertising on the side reads). Still have to fill it up, but it will be full when you get it so only topping off the miles you drove. Still comes out to $50 bucks or so and there are probably taxes.

They also charge you $1.09 per mile, so add that in as well.
posted by Dip Flash at 4:54 PM on September 28, 2022 [6 favorites]

Some truck owners would really prefer that you not just run out and buy gas for them for one reason or another, so it certainly wouldn't hurt to ask "where do you usually buy gas" and they will let you know if there is a specific station or grade of gas to use. If they tell you not to buy gas for the truck I would buy a gift card and give them that.

If you don't know of a specific gas station preference, I'd go with a grocery store chain that also has gas. You still need to purchase (or bake, baking is even better) the cookies yourself though, even if you are giving a gift card to a place where they can buy cookies.

Do buy the gas and take care of the errand of visiting the gas station at the same time if that's what they would want though.

Clean all the windows too.
posted by yohko at 7:22 PM on September 30, 2022