Gulf Oil Products

[Flying_A]

Hey guys, Rarely is Gulf Oil Co. ever talked about here but was wondering if anyone had any insight on the brand. I have never seen it in the flesh personally... Knowing it is a large oil with not a whole lot of brand awareness (at least on the West Coast), out of curiosity, do they make a high quality product? What other brands would you compare them to in terms of their position in the market? On paper they look pretty decent... Link to PCMO products: http://www.gulfoilltd.com/products_services/gulf_lubricants/motorist_oils/ Gulf PDS's: http://124.30.44.229/GulfOilSearch/

 

[Brons2]

I thought Chevron had bought them out, but as it turns out, that was only in the US...

Quote:

Gulf has experienced steady growth and continued to do so after the company was bought by Chevron for its US operations in 1984. In other parts of the world (non-US) Gulf Oil is widely recognized under the flagship - Gulf Oil International Ltd. The Hinduja Group, a private Indian business family acquired the rights to the Gulf brand after the company was acquired by Chevron in the US.

I have been seeing more Gulf stations around lately. I had not seen one in 20+ years. Also billboards "The legend is back" around town. Maybe there was a non-compete (with Chevron) period in the US which has now expired?

 

[Brons2]

Apparently in the US, the Gulf brand is owned by Cumberland Farms, Inc. As to their reappearance in this market as an operator of retail gasoline stations, http://www.gulfoil.com/portals/0/content/pdf/Gulf_Oil_returns_to_Texas_7-19-11.pdf

 

[Bluestream]

I think its kinda like Texaco; yesterdays brand...

 

[Flying_A]

Originally Posted By: Brons2

Apparently in the US, the Gulf brand is owned by Cumberland Farms, Inc. As to their reappearance in this market as an operator of retail gasoline stations, http://www.gulfoil.com/portals/0/content/pdf/Gulf_Oil_returns_to_Texas_7-19-11.pdf

I saw that... They had the CEO on Fox News this morning and being a racing enthusiast I've seen the logo on old Porsche's and other classic European cars forever it's just I've never actually seen the brand anywhere. Being that I'm not even 30 yet, I was interested in learning more about them. Being that it's US owned, I would like to support them.

 

[Joenpb]

I always thought Gulf turned into 76.

 

[Brons2]

Originally Posted By: Joenpb

I always thought Gulf turned into 76.

There weren't any Gulf stations in California at the time of the Chevron buyout. The Gulf stations that did exist became Chevrons.

 

[simple_gifts]

I believe only the gas distribution rights in the Northeast are owned by Cumberland Farms.

 

[Flying_A]

Originally Posted By: Bluestream

I think its kinda like Texaco; yesterdays brand...

Looking through the engine approvals and data sheets it looks pretty legit. No one has experience with their oils?

 

[Drew2000]

Cumberland Farms bought the nation-wide Gulf trademark rights from Chevron in 2009. They are aggressivly pushing into new markets. Gulf is only a brand-name now in the US. They buy commodity-fuel from other refiners globally. They do own bulk terminal storage in the Northeast. I would not be surprised if their motor oil is sourced from Warren or another independent blender. Cumberland is also launching another brand, "Wave" gasoline stations. http://www.cumberlandgulf.com/press/news.aspx?ID=117 http://www.cumberlandgulf.com/press/news.aspx?ID=115

 

[Wilhelm_D]

Originally Posted By: Flying_A

Rarely is Gulf Oil Co. ever talked about here but was wondering if anyone had any insight on the brand. I have never seen it in the flesh personally... Knowing it is a large oil with not a whole lot of brand awareness (at least on the West Coast), out of curiosity, do they make a high quality product?

They don’t make any products. Gulf used to exist in two separate unequal parts. In the West they were an actual oil company with their own R&D and production. In the East they were a brand name of Cumberland Farms. The products were sourced separately and the gasolines differed in formulation. This arrangement allowed them to provide national credit cards and advertising. When Chevron bought the oil company, Cumberland maintained the branding in their market area and eventually obtained the rights to the name entirely. They apparently are expanding. A similar situation exists with Pure, which is now a consortium of oil jobbers and is also expanding in the south.

 

[A_Harman]

We had a thread here about a year ago discussing Gulf Competition oils. These are ester-based, and many people were interested in them because of that. I think some of the Canadian posters said they could get it at ~$15/qt. Looking at the pds's in the link above, it looks like they are good oils.

 

[CATERHAM]

Yeah, it was one of dparm's posts.