After nearly 50 years, Jones Germantown Auto Service is leaving the gasoline business.
The old pumps that lined the front have been jerked away from their concrete pedestals. The large underground fuel tanks have been unearthed from beneath the asphalt and carted away.
Owner David Jones did leave the name as Germantown Auto Service – even though the G-A-S initials no longer apply to the business on the south side of Poplar in the suburb’s central business district.
But customers who have depended on the station with its two repair bays for almost five decades need not panic. The station is just abandoning the gasoline aspect but continuing to offer repairs from brakes to radiators to oil changes to patched tire punctures as it has since Jones opened the shop in 1972.
“We’re kind of a dinosaur now,” Dave Jr., the owner’s son, said of what they do.
Gas stations have changed a lot since the senior Jones opened in Germantown as a 19-year-old father with a new son and a wife to support. Two or three repair bays were part of a gas station operation in those days, along with attendants who pumped your gas and checked your oil.
Today, customers pump their own gas, pay for it at the pump or go inside a convenience store to pay for the gas and pick up a snack.
The transition to simply a repair service operation came when the business reached a crossroads of aging pumps, the cost to upgrade and offering gasoline at an affordable price.
The shop was boarded up when the senior Jones bought the building in 1972 after working a few years at another service station. At that time, the station at the edge of Germantown’s central business district was one of three gas stations in a 15-mile radius, and “there was no such thing as self-serve.”
“When I bought the place, it was a gas station that did mechanic work with a few U-Hauls,” he said.
For years, there were fields from Interstate 240 eastward until drivers reached the service station. South of Interstate 40, Germantown Road and Poplar held the first corner of convenience stores. Poplar was a three-lane road and although people didn’t ride their horses through the suburb the original horse speed limit signs remained.
“As time evolved, we turned into an automotive repair shop with U-Hauls and gas,” said Dave, the son who took over day-to-day operations in the last five years.
His father is still there several days each week.
On Tuesday, fresh concrete was poured where pumps once stood. The front lot will be used for minor repairs and parking of cars waiting for work – long a challenge on the small lot. Over the years, the widening of Poplar several times encroached on the station’s parking and the distance from the outside lanes got closer and closer to the pumps.
With the renovations, they were forced to close and have reopened. Next week, they plan to be on their regular schedule.
For the family business, gas no longer made sense.
“The reason we are getting out of it is the profit was not there anymore and it was time to renew the tanks and the pumps,” the senior Jones said, “It wasn’t worth the money to put in there to do that.”
Additionally, he and his son recognize grocers, like Costco and Kroger, sell gas for less since they have other revenue options.
“They sell it a lot cheaper than I can buy it for,” said the father. “I’m gonna miss my customers I still pumped gas for.”
Over the years, the station handled several kinds of gas, starting as an Esso station and then a Union 76. Amoco was the station’s gas until Amoco merged with BP.
About 50 years ago, drivers were loyal to a certain brand of gas, but then regulations changed.
“People started shopping price for gas instead of brand of gas,” the younger Jones said. “Gas is the most-shopped consumer product in America.”
In the last two decades, fixing cars became the primary reason people visited the site. Little has changed to the original building. The canopy where the pumps used to sit was replaced once, and the father and son never really considered adding a convenience store.
“In our business, we don’t have the competition like we used to,” his father explained. “It used to be every service station had a mechanic. Now it’s hard to get your car worked on somewhere.”
In a week, they fix about 60 cars, and work on about 15 per day, not including general quick repairs such as tire patches. The average vehicle is there 24 to 48 hours.
“We try to do everything the same-day repair because people don’t like to be inconvenienced without their car,” Dave Jones, the son, said. “A lot of people, that’s their sole mode of transportation.”
Another thing that will remain from the change is Rick Bradham. For 30 years, Bradham has worked for the Joneses as a mechanic at the station. He and David Sr. have worked together since about 1990, Bradham came to work for Jones when he was about 20 years old. Bradham took a two-week trip last year, and the two joked the 14 days was the longest they’ve been apart.
Dave Jr. grew up around the station and realizes their business is niche.
He recalls coming to the shop as a 12-year-old to work during the summer. At 18, he got his associate’s degree and spent some time at Ford Motor Company before returning to the shop at 28. For the last 22 years, he’s been there.
And 49 years in business brings about plenty of stories. One time a man dropped off his truck, gave David the keys and told him he was going into the military service. They haven’t seen him since.
Another time a customer didn’t have money to pay for the repair so he gave a shotgun in exchange for service. Today, less people pay with cash, and most pay with card, another change from the days when the father opened for business in 1972.
“Some of our customers are six-generations deep,” Dave said.
With the changes made, they hope to continue to serve generations to come.