Gasoline brands, myth or fact?

http://pure-gas.org/index.jsp?stateprov=WA

 

I use Sammy's(Sam's Club) premium gas. They get it from Shell. Then add the Lucas fuel additive in the old cars. IMO the additive makes a difference for performance, crap gas stability,(alcohol) top end cleaning and probably better fuel economy.

 

Jedi - I use the pure gas website (above), but Marysville and Issaquah are the closest to the Seattle area. I checked the mileage in my '07 pickup with a couple of tankfulls and it seems to get about 2 mph better. But for a regular vehicle it's not worth driving to one of those stations, or paying the few cents per gallon premium. The Issaquah station is across the street from the Triple X - a good location for all the classics that show up at the XXX. I often just fill up one or two 5 gal. cans, plus satbilizer, and refill the Ferrari at home.

 

It would be difficult to measure any mileage increase. The primary reason not to use the alcohol spiked stuff is for cars that may sit a lot between drives. The alcohol can seperate and attack rubber bits in the fuel system....fuel lines, fuel pump, etc. Dave Helms and Rifledriver have spoken about the problems many times. Strike up a conversation with our good friend Carlo about it next time you drop by his shop, he will confirm it.

It is not much of a problem in a newer "daily driver". Someday the gov't will get some sense and end this alcohol in gas thing....probably after we are all long gone.

 

Thanks for the great info guys!

Jedi

 

Doubtful

 

Plus, ethanol & aluminum tanks don't mix!

 

no one has mentioned the existance of "boutique fuels", in 2006 the feds created federal emission zones which required fuels be blended to meet regional emisson standards to better help with effects on the enviornment...( we're from the gov't to help ). It causes the fuel blends to be changed seasonally to meet the local region requirements The recommendation for a single brand being being better is on shakey ground... one region's fuel may be crap across the board while in another region it could be good ... these boutique blends add a lot of cost to the fuel and add to the scarcity.. the refineries have a hard time delivering the correct fuel to the correct region... on occasion the gov't has had to recind their mandate in time of scarcity due to interruptions within the refineries...( mostly weather related and in an effort to supply basic fuel just to keep things running )... one can look up the various fuel regions and see what the requirements for blended fuel in their area

 

I think you are speaking of "reformulated" gasoline, that program started in the mid 1990s.
http://www.epa.gov/otaq/fuels/gasolinefuels/rfg/index.htm

 

Beside the possibility for ethanol to cause corrosion, the other downside is that there are les mpg from a similar unit of volume of ethanol than from gasoline.

The only "benefit"from ethanol is that it does burn cleaner.

 

Detergent levels:

http://www.scrippsnews.com/node/61764

Though not tested I've read somewhere else that Chevron is pretty good in detergent levels too.

-- Among samples of regular unleaded gasoline (those with an octane rating of 87), Exxon had the highest level of additives (20.0 milligrams per 100 milliliters), closely followed by BP (17.2 mg) and Shell (16.2 mg). Trailing substantially were CITGO (6.0 mg) and Pilot (5.8mg).

-- Among premium fuels (92 or 93 octane), Shell took the top spot (31.0 mg), followed by BP (26.4 mg) and Exxon (21.2 mg). CITGO (9.4 mg) and Pilot 92 (8.8 mg) lagged behind the other three brands -- including the trio's regular gasoline samples.

 

Hi, I am not sure if this is related to gas type or something else. Someone said it might be the clutch slipping but after 3000 rpm it drive perfect but on lower gears or high gear if the rev is 2000-3000 the acceleration is has some hesitancy but after 3000 it is fine. I used to put 94 octane and the last couple of times i put 98 octane and this started to happen. Now I am back on 94 octane and it seems to have less of the slugish/cutting effect. Can any of you shed some insight on this. I am not a mechanical person so please keep it simple thanks!

 

If the clutch is slipping you will see / hear the revs rise in a non-linear fashion without there being a corresponding increase in speed, and it will be more noticeable in the higher gears and when climbing hills or inclines. Unless you're hearing "pinging" due to pre-ignition, your issue does not sound like anything having to do with fuel, and I don't think there's any way that the higher octane rating could be the cause.

 

Back to the subject of gasoline: Our monthly drive to visit my son and family, 136miles. Same route, same car, 2007 VW Passat 2.0T. We typically show 29-30mpg with BP mid grade. Used Shell (I believed was top tier fuel), only returned 26mpg! Filled up in Ohio with BP,returned 30mpg on home trip. Sunoco never returns good mileage either.



Ago

 

To elaborate on a few points. The base gasoline that comes out of a refinery and travels in a pipeline is all the same. Oil companies trade this commodity all of the time to get fuels to distribution centers the most economical way possible.

The distinction between what goes into the gas tank of your car is the additive. As with motor oil, there are only a few companies that make all of the gasoline additives. All od these additives are very expense. In the past the major brands always had higher additive treat rates than the economy brands. Also, high octane grades of gasoline from the major brands had the highest treat rates of these additives.

So after working in the industry for nearly 20 years my rule is to use ANY name brand gasoline.

 

So I guess that would explain the fact that my neighborhood Exxon station has always had gas delivered by a generic tanker truck labeled "Southern Fuels". Presumably then, Southern Fuels adds the appropriate Exxon additives at some point before filling the tanker, right?

The other possibility is that Southern Fuels exclusively services Exxon / Mobil dealers. It's tempting to follow the truck to see if its next stop is at a non-E/M retailer, but of course who has time for that?

 

If the Shell contained ethanol and the BP did not, that might explain the difference.

 

I only put 76 or shell into my mustang. 91 octane. I have tried almost all alternatives but for some reason this is the only gas that lets my engine run smoother and not give me engine knocking. I dont care about mpg but I do care about smoothness and speed. These two companies make it feel as if it gives my car a nice small boost. Reliability is good. in 2.5 years the car has always started and never had engine related issues

 

I never use CITGO.

 

Had to use Arco once in my C5 Vette, hard starting and ping. Crap gas.
I use in this order : Chevron, Shell, 76. There is a difference, additives.

Also use Techtron fuel injector cleaner just before oil change.

 

Thread revived from the dead?!?

But I just wish I could buy non-ethanol somewhere closer than ~30 miles away and at a more reasonable rate. But at least I CAN get it.

 

Dinodan,

That thought crossed my mine also: Both pumps have stickers that say: COULD contain up to 10% ethanol.



Ago

 

Given the legislative pressure from the EPA's Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) to foist 7.5 billion gallons of ethanol on the public each year and the fact that U.S. gasoline consumption is slipping, both the Shell and the BP pumps PROBABLY contained the max 10% ethanol mix.

The topping out of U.S. gasoline consumption is the reason ethanol producers are now rolling out 15% ethanol-laced fuels (E-15) in some areas. Fortunately, E-15 is required to be prominently labeled. Unfortunately, E-15 is likely risky for pre-2012 cars.

 

Back in the mid 70's I worked at an Amoco station and when a fuel delivery was made on my shift I would have to check the contents of the tanker against the manifest. It was not unusual to see the tanker had picked up from three different refineries. back then they bought from the cheapest one on that day. Don't know how it is now.