Find What Old Gas Station Oil Cans Are Worth

Vintage Old Gas Station oil Cans

Old oil cans are worth money to collectors.

Old gas station oil cans are a segment of what’s known as ‘Petroliana’ collectibles. The largest part of this market is vintage porcelain enamel gas station advertising signs, vintage branded oil cans are a natural addition to those collections.

Whether it is an old rusty oil can you found or a vintage full oil can for a mancave, the value for these collectibles can range from $10 for a common name brand motor oil can or up to $1000s for a rare full unopened off-brand can. (like the ARA Thrift brand)

Some of the ‘common’ can brands are Texaco Havoline, Castrol, Esso, Sinclair, Penzoil, Shell, and other big national brands.

The ‘off-brand’ metal oil cans are where the value gets pricey. These are almost always regional oil companies, with names such as Autoplane, Black Gold Motor Oil, Chieftain, Conoco, and the $6500 big boy – Golden Flash.

If you found one of these off-brand oil cans you might get a good payday, but if you are looking to buy one fill up your wallet first.

Like any collectible, condition and rarity will make or break the value of an old oil can. So will whether the can has been opened.

Examples of can conditions:


Vintage ARA Thrift old motor oil can Cans in great non-rusted condition can be worth $1000s	Old rusted Motor Oil Cans Cans in extremely rusted condition can be worth as little as $10
Vintage old gas station Texaco, Gulflube, Quaker State motor oil cans Cans in in this condition range from $50 to a couple hundred dollars.

How to find what your old oil can is worth

For the majority of cans, in fair to good condition, (maybe a little rim rust, but not much more), ebay is the easiest and quickest place to start. There are hundreds of listings and conditions cover the range from good to bad.

You can find both values; what the seller thinks the can is worth, which is the asking price, and you can also find the true realistic value by looking at what those they actually sold for.

Examples of oil cans to compare:

A note about “The New ebay:”

Today’s ebay is not the “flea-market” of it’s early years, There have been a lot of changes. The “New” ebay continues to strive to be the largest and most trusted marketplace on the Internet.

If you don’t find any comparisons on ebay the next step would be collectors clubs. Their responses may not be immediate, but, most of the time, they will be from people that are avid knowledgeable collectors and they are always willing to try to help.

As a final resort there are the collectibles auction houses, like Richmond Auctions and paid appraisers like JustAsk.com.

Double Check ebay’s “sold” listings for prices: