A Fort Erie woman who is staring down potentially expensive car repairs as the result of "bad gas" purchased at a Welland fuelling station appears to have plenty of company.

Since Jennifer Fanning went public with her complaints, she has started a Facebook group — Victims of Welland Mobil Gas — and the group already has 25 members, all of whom experienced similar issues.

All of them purchased gas at the Mobil Gas Bar, located at 446 East Main St.

"We're talking about a class action (lawsuit)," Fanning said Monday. "The owner (of the station) is refusing to give us insurance information. We need that information to go through our insurance."

Like Fanning, Kimbra Claveau of Welland purchased gas at the station. She then ran into mechanical issues almost immediately.

"I just stopped and got $10 worth of gas," she said. "The station I usually go to was busy."

She said that when her mechanic at John's Bug Shop drained the fuel, it was found to be 80 per cent water.

"They told me it would take 40 bottles of stabilizer to get rid of the water," she said.

Like Fanning, she had purchased her gas on Nov. 26 and wound up being without her vehicle for a few days. And for Claveau, who runs her own cleaning business, being without a vehicle meant lost business. Repairs to her vehicle set her back $300 and the lost business has mean she has no money to pay her rent.

"It was $300 damage for $10 worth of gas," she said.

No telephone number is listed for the station. When Niagara this Week visited the station on Friday, a reporter was told that the manager wasn't available for comment as he was out of the country.

On a second visit Monday, a reporter was told the cause of the problem is currently under investigation.

When asked to speak with the manager, or owner of the gas station, the employee said company policy prohibited him from sharing contact information.

The employee said he was unable to provide any more information at the time, but did say that when the cause is found, Mobil will make a statement to the public and the media would be alerted.

Matt Butcher, service manager at Cardinal Kia — the dealership looking after the repair of Fanning's 2019 Sedona van — said Fanning's vehicle was one of four that have been brought to the dealer after purchasing gas at the Welland filling station.

"We'll need to drop the fuel tank, clean the fuel lines, clean the injectors."

Butcher said an estimate of $1,600, including taxes, has been submitted to Fanning's insurance company.

"But some insurance companies use their own appraisers," Butcher said. "We're waiting for the appraiser to come. Unfortunately, only one of our customers has had their vehicle repaired."

Fanning has already spent $315 on repairs.

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

Everything started when Fanning visited the station on Nov. 26 to fill up her van after picking up her dog from the vet.

"(The next) morning I went to turn the car on and it wouldn't turn on," Fanning said. "I could turn on all the lights and everything, so it wasn't the battery."

Everything appeared to be working fine until she went to pick up her kids at school. Driving home, she noticed problems with the van once again.

"It wasn't running properly," she said.

Then, the following day, it happened again.

"I went to start the car in the morning, every light on the dash came on. I filed a complaint with the company because I thought it was a Kia problem."

The car was again towed to Cardinal.

In a worst-case scenario, Fanning's engine may have to be replaced if it is found to be hydro locked, a condition that results from water or any noncombustible liquid getting into the cylinders. The resultant flooding results in a loss of compression and a "locked" engine.

The station, which opened two months ago, has remained open but signs taped to the pumps said only "clean gas" was being sold.

Keri Scobie, a spokesperson for Imperial Oil, which lists Mobil retailers as among the businesses it provides wholesale fuel to in Canada, said that the company is trying to get to the bottom of what the problem might be. Tests are being conducted to determine the problem.

"We're still looking into the root cause of the situation — as it may be an issue with the tanks at the station and not an overall product quality issue," Scobie said. "In any event, an investigation is currently underway and we're working to get this resolved for our customer."

On Monday, Scobie said nothing has changed and that tests were continuing, but that Imperial is aware several customers of the station have been affected.