What are you talking about? I have never been in a car that did have this little arrow. I just thought it was something you had to know.

(Now I'll have to check my car tomorrow morning to be sure I haven't just been ignoring it all this time.)

Wow. So that's what the little arrow is all about????

It became more common in the late 90s, 2000s. But it used to be a guessing game.

I'd rather all the manufacturers would just agree to a standard and put it one side.

I think the variance on sides is intentional, to balance traffic flow at gas stations.

(Imagine a gas station where most cars use the same entrance and have the tank on the same side. Half of the cars would need to do a U-Turn to use half of the tanks).

It doesn't matter which side the filler opening is on because the pump nozzles reach.

I have never seen anybody reach the hose over their car. Not sure why but I'd feel silly trying it. Like 'look at me I don't know which side I should have put the gas in'.

Yes, that's what I'm referring to.

I use a service called Car2Go quite often which rents Smart cars exclusively. For some reason they decided not to include the little arrow.

http://0.tqn.com/d/cars/1/0/6/9/1/ag_08fortwo_speedo.jpg

Not that it's your fault they didn't include the arrow, but when you rent a car, you want to walk completely around it anyway before driving away. Otherwise they may try to stick you with pre-existing damage that wasn't noticed the last time the car was turned in.

(I've heard it's a good idea to shoot a video of the walkaround with your phone, but that seems OTT.)

I have never rented a car where the rental person didn't do this with me. Nobody is going to remember what side the gas tank is on though a week later when you fill it up.

I've never rented a car where the rental person was even near the car when I walked it. And I rent cars every few days...maybe the lack of personal attention is an airport thing.

I usually take a few pictures, but video should work, too.

I thought you were supposed to take the pictures after you scratch the car, so that you can "prove" that the damage was there before you picked it up.

My point being, what are photos or videos supposed to prove. If the car is damaged before you pick it up, and there's some reason that you are still taking it, then you should get the agency to sign something attesting to it.

Oh, that's only if there's a borderline case. I.e. if there's something you didn't really see when checking yourself (nor remember), but can find in the pictures later, if necessary.

Even without an arrow, the tank is always on the same side where the filling pistol is on the picture next to the fuel gauge. It's on the right in yours.

Not in my car :) I think that was an urban legend that went viral over email in the early 2000s and is still kicking around.

The nozzle of the gas pump is on the right side. That's your indicator that the tank filler is on that side of the car.

Or maybe it's an indicator that the car should pull up to a pump that has the nozzle on the right, meaning the car has its tank on the left.

No, I don't think that is true in general. I think the nozzle is almost always on the right side. Unless there is an arrow, the designer probably neglected to explicitly indicate anything.

what if it's not on the left or right. something to think about

It's funny, I've been telling people about the arrow as an indicator and how it was on every car... until I realized that it wasn't on my own car... Which is actually the only car I have noticed it missing on.

I have a 1994 Toyota Corolla. It doesn't have an indicator.

Most people never notice it. I rent a lot of cars and it is ALWAYS there. When I point it out to people I'm riding with, they always seem surprised.