leedogg

If I were to fill half a tank of Shell with half a tank of Chevron, what is the impact of this?

a) doesnt matter
b) not a good idea
c) you get the benefits of both detergent types

erdoc48

I figure 'A'- as long as you're using 91 octane, the rest doesn't matter. If there is a specific benefit to using a specific brand of gas, you probably won't notice it unless it were a difference in the life of the engine by a few thousand miles, that is of course after the car has > 300K on it.

I hate cars

Agreed. The octane is the most important.

I actually mix the two you mention, Shell and Chevron. I may do a month or more on each but I make sure to use both as equally as I can.

I'm sure the chemistries won't compete with one another but I prefer to run one for a while then the other. I'm 99.99% sure you would never have a long term issue mixing them 50/50 for the lifetime of the car either.

I haven't done much research on the different types of detergents but I know different detergents clean different parts better or worse.

The "techron" in Chevron is a great cleaner and the "nitrogen enriched" (marketing crap) Shell detergents are supposed be top notch too.

Supposedly some of the nitrogen stuff survives combustion and in the form of blowby past the rings can help keep the crankcase and PCV/intake clean, especially important on direct injection cars. Again, haven't done enough research to know if this is internet BS or true.

Just make sure to use a top tier station and you will have high enough levels of detergents and cleaners that you should never have to use a fuel system cleaner.

d-townhakuzo

I put is half Texaco with techron and Chevron with techron. Both are 93 octane...I never see 91 octane in Dallas anymore.

chinkwapin

iTrader: (1)

i mix fuels sometimes but try to stick with chevron as much as i can

i'd go with "A"

Yonkers914

iTrader: (1)

I always put 93 octane from shell but sometimes ocassianly put some 93 octane from Hess as it's dumb cheap on the way back from school lol. No signs of anything diff. yet.

donaldso718

What is the best brand gasoline? I usually go to BP since it's close to me. But some of my friends with Bimmers say shell and sunoco are the best.

My friend had his 335 repeatedly serviced for long cranks, and they told him that the BP gas he's been using was causing it because it had too much ethanol in it. Not sure if it's bad for other brand cars though.

leedogg

Good input I hate cars. I usually try to avoid blending fuel brands though. Wasnt sure what the impact on the detergents would be...

Donaldso, Shell and Chevron/Texaco seem to be the consensus best gasoline brands. Chevron/Texaco is my current favorite as I seem to get better mileage with that (my bet is they dont use as much ethanol)

djtanveer

so we all know that shell offers a gas called v-power and chevron offers one with techron. so if we combine the two do we get v-tec gas???......lol... sorry i guys i couldnt help myself.

thisaznboi88

iTrader: (7)

gahahhahah NICE! I just put Chevron but if I can't find one and I am low on gas then w/e I can find that top tier.

01tl4tl

tier 1 brands (search internet for exact brand names) are the way to go- they have twice the govt min standard for cleaners in fuel and acura suggest using them

other brands have only the govt minimum cleaner added- who knows how much that is?
the cleaners are largely to remove crud left by ethanol added gas!

ethanol is a set amont of 10%, the max car makers said the engine can handle-- when made for old school gas with MTBE added- but that was bad for the Earth so its been discontinued in gasoline and ethanol used

If you want real effect of different brands dont mix- burn a tank then the other or a month then switch
You get as much or more effect with good fuel cleaner like redline or seafoam

N.I.toHTown

Dont flame me but is Supermarket Gas just stupid to put in the car? like Kroger or HEB? still says 93 octane, but doubt it has additives.

N.I.toHTown

But this is hopeful
http://www.tennessean.com/article/20...tarting-Monday

Souljah

wish we had 93 in CO

N.I.toHTown

They run a 102 octane in the UK (using RON Numbers) which is equivalent to about 97/98 octane (Using the Average of RON + MON)in the US. wonder how that would run in the TL!!!

SSMTL04

i use Shell's vpower here!!

I hate cars

I monitored mine for knock while slowly raising the octane. Knock disappeared completely around 96 octane. So in theory you could gain a little power and mpg up to 96 octane assuming all TLs are tuned about the same and in the same climate which they aren't.

01tl4tl

every gas brand contains the govt minimum cleaners- meeting tier 2 standards

Tier 1 gas has double the govt minimum cleaners added- what acura says to use
You can use any brand as long as its 91 or higher- if 93 is what they sell in your area
If you use oddball gas, DO use redline or seafoam in the gas to clean up crud
Glaze and carbon buildup are bad- happens everywhere in the engine

BradE

It's fine. The gas is supplied by a major manufactuer in most cases, grocery store chains aren't in the petroleum refining business.

donaldso718

How is Lukoil for all the NJ people out here? Must be crappy since it's always the cheapest gas I've seen in NJ. Nonetheless I still fill up whenever I pass through NJ.

leedogg

fyi, i believe the primary difference between the brands are the detergents used in the gas and the age of the gas.

JackSampson

iTrader: (2)

Are you Freaken Kidding me? Did you just get your license? Not to be too mean but come one. I can't believe the oil giants would change the formula so you would have to use the same brand all the time. Same thing with oil. Oil is oil. Nuff said.

nfnsquared

You got a source for that statement?

greco9885

iTrader: (1)

stay away from "us petroleum" and such brands. stick to the franchises. around by me about 2-3 years ago a gas station owner got arrested for selling 87 as 93 octane.

01tl4tl

yes- twice the min govt - see `Tier 1 brand gas` in an internet search,, describing what it means

nfnsquared

Maybe so, but I'm having trouble finding the reference.

dohcvtecsi

don't think it matters as long as the octane is the same....chevron is the best imo

nfnsquared

http://www.toptiergas.com/deposit_control.html

Deposit Control Standards

The standards developed by the four automobile manufacturers (BMW, General Motors, Honda, and Toyota) for TOP TIER Detergent Gasoline are described below. This technical document describes the deposit control performance of unleaded gasoline at the retail level that minimizes deposits on fuel injectors, intake valves, and combustion chambers. These standards comprise the requirements for TOP TIER Detergent Gasoline.

Standards

1.1 Retail Gasoline Performance Standards. The deposit control performance of unleaded gasoline conforming to section 1 of this document shall be met at the retail level in all grades of gasoline sold by a fuel company in all marketing areas of a selected nation. In addition, conformance to the standards shall mean gasoline sold in the selected nation shall not contain metallic additives, including methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl (MMT).

1.2 Deposit Control Additive Requirements. The deposit control additive used to meet the performance Standards described in 1.3 shall meet the substantially similar definition under Section 211(f) of the Clean Air Act. Also, the additive shall be certified to have met the minimum deposit control requirements established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 40 CFR Part 80. Lastly, the additive shall be registered with the EPA in accordance with 40 CFR Part 79.

nfnsquared

^^^^Plenty of statements claiming that Top Tier gas has higher detergent levels, but I can't find any statement that says Top Tier gas is required to or has twice the EPA recommended detergent level.

Turbonut

iTrader: (1)

I agree. From what I can see, to achieve the Top Tier rating, the company only needs to provide the minimum detergent levels that are required, but it certainly doesn't indicate, or suggest, it's twice the level of non Top Tier provider.

Here's a list of the Top Tier stations:

76
Aloha Petroleum
Chevron
Chevron Canada
Conoco
CountryMark
Entec Stations
Kwik Trip / Kwik Star
MFA Oil Co.
Mileage Stations
Petro-Canada
Phillips 66
QuikTrip
Road Ranger
Shell
Shell Canada
Sunoco Canada
Texaco
The Somerset Refinery, Inc.
Tri-Par Oil Co.
Turkey Hill Minit Markets

For those that are interested you can read the following, but I got a headache and never finished:
http://www.toptiergas.com/deposit_control.html

01tl4tl

I dont make this stuff up- just dont keep links to everything I read
Tier1 is twice the govt minimums of cleaner added to the mix

Dont use it if you dont want, but mileage will suffer

nfnsquared

I'm not saying you are, I'm just asking you to back up your statement with proof....

Turbonut

iTrader: (1)

Not to gang up on you, but most of the gas I've used in all my cars aren't even on the list of Tier One suppliers, and the mileage remains the consistent whether I use Shell, Hess, Exxon, or whatever.

Turbonut

iTrader: (1)

Well, I guess there are 3 tiers:

Tier 1 Fuels, which contain additives that actually clean up engines.
Tier 2 are fuels that tend to keep engines clean, but not to the degree that Tier 1 fuels do.
Tier 3 gasolines contain only enough detergents and other additives to meet government regulations.


Now all we need to do is find the criteria ofor each tier.

leedogg

I found an informative article on cheap/bad gas here:

http://www.aa1car.com/library/us10325.htm

Turbonut

iTrader: (1)

Interesting, but generalities throughout the article. Just think about the situation, how many people have had a problem with the fuel, or injectors themselves with all the miles being driven each year? I've driven probably close to 2 million miles and can't count the number of vehicles I've worked on, and never had a fuel/injector problem. Have had fuel pump issues, filter problems, and bad fuel that had a high water content that was dispensed from old inground tanks. Not saying that a problem never exists, but they are few and far between, something like using the most expensive synthetic oil compared to regular Dino, no oil related problems.

Years ago I was called to a friend's house to see what the problem might be with his car. It would start after some cranking, then die. After some checking I came to the conclusion that the attendant had filled the car with diesel fuel, not gas and that was correct. Cost the station a few dollars. Now that's a problem.

In closing, I must say, that the Acura (premium) and the 2008 (regular) knock around car drinks gas from most any station, although I am selective as I won't go into a 2 pump station where the building is falling apart and the gas is dirt cheap, but the modified Mazda sees only Shell or Exxon. Looks like I use one Tier 1 and then whatever.

Good luck

InWI

Exxon Mobil not on the top tier list????

I hate cars

I know I asked you this once before but are you running a turbo rotary or NA?

I agree with most of these statements. Top tier has a minimum and I remember reading that SOME brands have up to twice the minimum detergents but I don't think it's a requirement.

I really agree that fuel system problems due to deposits are a thing of the past. You should never have to use a cleaner assuming you've run a top tier gas for some or most of the car's life. Of course the rare case of water or bad gas happens.

I had to fill up at a Chevron station I pass on the way to work everyday becuase I was past the 0 miles to empty. I've only seen one car at the pumps in a year because the prices are a dollar higher than anywhere else. As I pumped I smelled a "different" smell. I ended up only putting 2 gallons in because of the smell. Car pinged and ran like crap so bad that I mixed it with a few gallons of 87 octane from the fleet pumps at work and it ran better. Or in other words, buy from a busy gas station, your chances of getting bad gas are much less.

There is not going to be an instant mileage change using the same octane due to detergent levels. This is something you might see in 100,000 miles or more after the detergents have had a chance to do their thing or not do their thing.

jguerra23

I mix when i run low and I am not close to a Sunoco, usually mix with Mobile 1. both 93 octane. Never had a problem.

erick3

I'm not really sure, but I really do feel that some brands are better than others. I've had to mix 76 gasoline, Shell gasoline and Chevron gasoline within the past year, and I HONESTLY feel like Chevron cleans and provides the best power. I really, really, really feel a difference; I swear I'm not crazy! lol

I wonder, do you guys think that different brand 92 octane gasoline is weighted differently? Maybe switching/mixing different types of gasoline isn't bad because...they're weighted? Like water and olive oil, but obviously, not to that extreme. No?