Ethanol free gas vs Premium
#1
Ethanol free gas vs Premium
I own a 2012 TL base, and at my local Wawa. I have the choice of ethanol free gas which is midgrade. So would I be better paying more for the ethanol free midgrade or staying with premium? Has anyone else run Ethanol free gas and seen a difference?
#2
Senior Moderator
Ethanol has a higher octane than regular fuel, but less energy per gram of fluid compared to gas.
Super high output cars are tuned on E85 because the E85's octane is much higher, like 110 vs 93 with premium. With the E85 use, larger fuel system needs to be used as almost 2x the fuel needs to be used for the same amount of air.
#3
Burning Brakes
I would stick with the premium. There's a station near me that sells all 3 grades of ethanol free gas but their premium is $4.99/gallon. The normal premium around here is $2.35/gallon. I would love to use the ethanol free but at $2.64 more per gallon, I can't justify it.
#5
I'm in Iowa and we have $hit loads of places that have ethanol. It's terrible as it kills my mileage. I only run BP premium. It has no ethanol. When I go up to Okoboji I always fill up at the Dyno station. It's 92 octane with no ethanol. I've yet to find something closer to my house that burns as good as the Dyno stuff.
#6
Instructor
In MN all gas has ethanol unless labeled without. They call say it's for recreational vehicles only (boats, bikes, etc.). My local Kwik Trip has 91 Octane recreation for about $.15 higher than other stations with ethanol added. I think it gives me an extra 2-3 MPG over the normal stuff, so I use it.
However, lately, I have been getting little knocking, so maybe it's not quite high enough octane.
However, lately, I have been getting little knocking, so maybe it's not quite high enough octane.
#7
Burning Brakes
I have used 89 octane regularly for three years in my 3.5L TL, with and without ethanol. I've driven on many long trips at 75 - 80 mph. Never had an issue. Yes, I know what knocking is, heard it many times in the '60's and '70's. This car is a rocket, considering it weighs almost 2 tons.
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#8
Keeping TL until 2029
In Canada, I usually go to Shell. Based on my research, they don't have ethanol.
Shell V-Power NiTRO+ FAQs - Canada
Shell V-Power NiTRO+ FAQs - Canada
#9
Burning Brakes
Again, in Canada, I'm fairly certain the premium at Hughes is also ethanol free. I still go to Shell, however; for the Airmiles. A few more fills, and I'm going to Disneyland.
Now if you want to save a few bucks, check out Costco. Several months back, the Costco station attendant told me their premium was also ethanol free (which makes sense, since they take their deliveries from Shell).
Also in terms of saving money (and at the risk of steering off topic), it's worth looking at the GasBuddy app. I got it when we were on a road trip, and it was very useful for deciding whether to fill up on one town of the next. As well, it gives alerts when prices in the area are set to jump (the 12.5 cent jump a litre warning last week was right on the money).
Now if you want to save a few bucks, check out Costco. Several months back, the Costco station attendant told me their premium was also ethanol free (which makes sense, since they take their deliveries from Shell).
Also in terms of saving money (and at the risk of steering off topic), it's worth looking at the GasBuddy app. I got it when we were on a road trip, and it was very useful for deciding whether to fill up on one town of the next. As well, it gives alerts when prices in the area are set to jump (the 12.5 cent jump a litre warning last week was right on the money).
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echodigital (12-23-2015)
#10
Tried ethanol free the other day. Got home and the car was pinging/funny noises. Just like my old 3.5 TL did when not on premium. It doesn't work. Always use premium 91 octane. Lesson learned.... lol
#11
Burning Brakes
#12
Instructor
Wawa near me has 89 Octane ethanol free which will NOT work for the TL. TL requires a minimum of 91 octane, and even then it tends to ping and have to reduce timing once the engine gets hot and heatsoaked.
Ethanol has a higher octane than regular fuel, but less energy per gram of fluid compared to gas.
Super high output cars are tuned on E85 because the E85's octane is much higher, like 110 vs 93 with premium. With the E85 use, larger fuel system needs to be used as almost 2x the fuel needs to be used for the same amount of air.
Ethanol has a higher octane than regular fuel, but less energy per gram of fluid compared to gas.
Super high output cars are tuned on E85 because the E85's octane is much higher, like 110 vs 93 with premium. With the E85 use, larger fuel system needs to be used as almost 2x the fuel needs to be used for the same amount of air.
USA
76 Stations
Aloha Petroleum
ARCO
Beacon
BP
Chevron
Cenex
Conoco
Costco Wholesale
CountryMark
Diamond Shamrock
Entec Stations
Express Convenience Centers
Exxon
Hawaii Fueling Network (HFN)
Holiday Stationstores
Kwik Trip / Kwik Star
MFA Oil Co.
Mobil
Ohana Fuels
Phillips 66
QuikTrip
Road Ranger
Shamrock
Shell
Sinclair
Suncor Energy Inc
SuperAmerica
Texaco
Tri-Par Oil Co.
Valero
#13
Burning Brakes
I've used ethanol-free for my Mazda3 and saw an improvement of highway mpg (33mpg to 40mpg). But the Mazda uses regular.
if you want to experiment, check if WAWA has 93 Octane. Then fill your tank half way with it. Fill the remaining half with 89 ethanol-free. That should give you a 91 octane rating with half as much ethanol. You'll have to do the math and the mileage to see if it's worth it.
if you want to experiment, check if WAWA has 93 Octane. Then fill your tank half way with it. Fill the remaining half with 89 ethanol-free. That should give you a 91 octane rating with half as much ethanol. You'll have to do the math and the mileage to see if it's worth it.
#14
Safety Car
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Its 2 different thing. Ethanol free = more mpg.
High octane = detonation suppression.
Ethanol + high octane = less prone to knock, but a minor hit in mpg because ethanol is less energy dense vs pure gas. I believe it was 40% less energy volume per volume.
High octane = detonation suppression.
Ethanol + high octane = less prone to knock, but a minor hit in mpg because ethanol is less energy dense vs pure gas. I believe it was 40% less energy volume per volume.
#15
Senior Moderator
The fact that you went with the cheapest gas in the first place (Wawa) was your first mistake!! Stop saving pennies now and risking expensive repairs later on a car like Acura!! Read the manual, and use ONLY top tier Premium!!
USA
76 Stations
Aloha Petroleum
ARCO
Beacon
BP
Chevron
Cenex
Conoco
Costco Wholesale
CountryMark
Diamond Shamrock
Entec Stations
Express Convenience Centers
Exxon
Hawaii Fueling Network (HFN)
Holiday Stationstores
Kwik Trip / Kwik Star
MFA Oil Co.
Mobil
Ohana Fuels
Phillips 66
QuikTrip
Road Ranger
Shamrock
Shell
Sinclair
Suncor Energy Inc
SuperAmerica
Texaco
Tri-Par Oil Co.
Valero
USA
76 Stations
Aloha Petroleum
ARCO
Beacon
BP
Chevron
Cenex
Conoco
Costco Wholesale
CountryMark
Diamond Shamrock
Entec Stations
Express Convenience Centers
Exxon
Hawaii Fueling Network (HFN)
Holiday Stationstores
Kwik Trip / Kwik Star
MFA Oil Co.
Mobil
Ohana Fuels
Phillips 66
QuikTrip
Road Ranger
Shamrock
Shell
Sinclair
Suncor Energy Inc
SuperAmerica
Texaco
Tri-Par Oil Co.
Valero
#16
Senior Moderator
Yes, it is something like that. With your turbo setup you can run E85 in the future for way more power and less potential damage. Need to upgrade fuel rail & injectors because almost 2x E85 is needed.
#17
The fact that you went with the cheapest gas in the first place (Wawa) was your first mistake!! Stop saving pennies now and risking expensive repairs later on a car like Acura!! Read the manual, and use ONLY top tier Premium!!
USA
76 Stations
Aloha Petroleum
ARCO
Beacon
BP
Chevron
Cenex
Conoco
Costco Wholesale
CountryMark
Diamond Shamrock
Entec Stations
Express Convenience Centers
Exxon
Hawaii Fueling Network (HFN)
Holiday Stationstores
Kwik Trip / Kwik Star
MFA Oil Co.
Mobil
Ohana Fuels
Phillips 66
QuikTrip
Road Ranger
Shamrock
Shell
Sinclair
Suncor Energy Inc
SuperAmerica
Texaco
Tri-Par Oil Co.
Valero
USA
76 Stations
Aloha Petroleum
ARCO
Beacon
BP
Chevron
Cenex
Conoco
Costco Wholesale
CountryMark
Diamond Shamrock
Entec Stations
Express Convenience Centers
Exxon
Hawaii Fueling Network (HFN)
Holiday Stationstores
Kwik Trip / Kwik Star
MFA Oil Co.
Mobil
Ohana Fuels
Phillips 66
QuikTrip
Road Ranger
Shamrock
Shell
Sinclair
Suncor Energy Inc
SuperAmerica
Texaco
Tri-Par Oil Co.
Valero
#21
Instructor
I find when I use PetroCan Ultra 94 little to no ping, but when I use Shell V Power Nitro+ I get some ping specially when I just fueled it pings like crazy but then its gong after few seconds.
I always preferred Shell V power specially the new formula they got now vs PetroCan Ultra 94.
I always preferred Shell V power specially the new formula they got now vs PetroCan Ultra 94.
#22
So I got She'll V-power with Nitro and then added a octane booster. I felt the difference. She was zippy. But I'm trying to find out if adding maybe racing fuel. 101 octane will hurt my engine or what?
#23
Burning Brakes
I can't imagine a good reason to use racing fuel. If it's a race car you want, the problem stems from the decision you made at the dealership.
#24
Racer
I just discovered an ethanol-free gas station in my city and am on my first tank. In my un-scientific experiment so far, I reset my mpg when getting on the highway and then tested it while I hit the cruise at 70MPH. I got 40MPG during about a 5-6 mile stretch on the highway. I think the highest I've previously ever gotten on the highway was 36MPG for a few mile stretch and that was when the wind was at my back.
Overall I did a whole day of driving and averaged 26mpg mixed driving. I usually get 23mpg mixed driving long term. I'm going to drive it for a few more days and report back. Other people have said it increases performance by about 10% and I wouldn't be surprised.
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