My high school pal Greg and I had picked up the rental car at JFK, driven three hours north toward Boston, and now the fuel gauge was almost on “E.” I pulled off I-95 and into the service plaza, looked down at the gauge again, and headed for the gas pumps.

“Hang on. I think the gas cap is on the passenger side on this car,” Greg said, as I drove toward a pump that would be on my left.

“No, it’s on my side,” I said confidently.

“How are you so sure?” Greg asked.

Turns out I was absolutely sure because of a little trick you might not be aware of. Many (maybe most) late model cars have a little arrow on the dashboard fuel gauge. It points to the side of the car with the gas tank “door.”

“Wow, that’s good to know!” Greg said.

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