Sam's Club gas vs BP gas

Fill up at Sam’s all the time. Couldn’t care less that’s it’s not top tier. I literally save at least 5 bucks a tank compared to anywhere nearby
 
I'll reply to this post if I happen to notice any changes by using Sam's Club gas.
It seems unlikely I'll have any problems with it.
 
It depends on the blender or petroleum refiner they use for that month. Most gas today has enough good additives. And Sam's probably turns the gas over so much there's always a fresh supply. Wouldn't worry about it.

That's not quite how the fuel market works. Most fuel is moved as a commodity through a combination of pipelines, rail, and barges, although being near a major refinery may change things up. I happen to live near a major refinery (Chevron Richmond), but even then I can't be sure because two major pipeline companies and a different refiner have fuel terminals within a mile of there. There is so much mixing of fuels, and the pipeline companies have the incentive to minimize transportation the best they can since their only responsibility is to get the specified grade of fuel to the customer and not the exact fuel that came from a specific refinery.

There is just so much that just can't be controlled. There could be the same commodity grade from several different refiners mixed in the same tank. That's just kind of the way the system works. But years of marketing has made people think that Chevron, Mobil, Shell, or whoever are vertically integrated companies where the fuel they make is exactly the fuel that goes into your car. Heck - in my state Shell has ceased all refining operations and now has to buy its base fuel on the spot market.

The only thing that really brands a fuel these days is the additive, although there are some exceptions like specialty fuels (100 octane race is one). Top Tier only cares about two things - that the fuel meets the required commodity standard and that an additive they promise to use is used in at least the specified concentration.
 
I just realized today that Kroger's gas is only 1c more than Sam's Club gas. I used to get my gas at Kroger's until I got the Prius 2 years ago, then thought I'd switch to BP, pay more, and get additive that clean the fuel system so I won't have to add fuel system cleaners.

How do you feel about Kroger's gas?

But at least for a year I will shop at Sam's Club and go for the money saving items while I can.
 
I just realized today that Kroger's gas is only 1c more than Sam's Club gas. I used to get my gas at Kroger's until I got the Prius 2 years ago, then thought I'd switch to BP, pay more, and get additive that clean the fuel system so I won't have to add fuel system cleaners.

How do you feel about Kroger's gas?
It’s gas. I’ve used it without issue many, many times.

Stopped grocery shopping at Kroger cause their prices have gotten completely unreasonable lately. No longer gas up there either.
 
At the moment GasBuddy says Sams and BJs are under $3 which is 41c cheaper than the others in the area. Which explains the huge traffic jam at the Sams pumps recently.
 
At the moment GasBuddy says Sams and BJs are under $3 which is 41c cheaper than the others in the area. Which explains the huge traffic jam at the Sams pumps recently.

That could do it. Gas is a bit more expensive in my area, but my closest Costco station has ridiculously long lines. The closest gas stations from there are about 70 to 75 cents more per gallon.
 
That's not quite how the fuel market works. Most fuel is moved as a commodity through a combination of pipelines, rail, and barges, although being near a major refinery may change things up. I happen to live near a major refinery (Chevron Richmond), but even then I can't be sure because two major pipeline companies and a different refiner have fuel terminals within a mile of there. There is so much mixing of fuels, and the pipeline companies have the incentive to minimize transportation the best they can since their only responsibility is to get the specified grade of fuel to the customer and not the exact fuel that came from a specific refinery.

There is just so much that just can't be controlled. There could be the same commodity grade from several different refiners mixed in the same tank. That's just kind of the way the system works. But years of marketing has made people think that Chevron, Mobil, Shell, or whoever are vertically integrated companies where the fuel they make is exactly the fuel that goes into your car. Heck - in my state Shell has ceased all refining operations and now has to buy its base fuel on the spot market.

The only thing that really brands a fuel these days is the additive, although there are some exceptions like specialty fuels (100 octane race is one). Top Tier only cares about two things - that the fuel meets the required commodity standard and that an additive they promise to use is used in at least the specified concentration.
Years ago a former co-worker of mine told me how he used to be a manager of a gas/service station...As you already said - the gas they had gotten may have been refined by a 'rival' - it's the additive pack that differentiates BP/Amoco to Exxon/Mobil to Shell to Kwiktrip/Kwikstar etc etc.

I cannot recall if he said the additives were added to the fuel at the bulk storage terminals, or at the gas station itself?
 
Top Tier fuel must contain a minimum of 8 times the fuel cleaner than standard fuel. Standard fuel still meets EPA min for fuel cleaning. I usually run BP/Amoco and am shocked they have fallen off at this time.
 
I've ran nothing but BP gas in my Prius since I got it 2 years ago. BP supposedly contains additives that clean the fuel injection system.
I joined Sam's Club a few days ago and today I filled up with their gas which is about 25c a gallon cheaper than the city average.

Is this gas as good as BP gas? I spoke to people gassing up there and they spoke well of Sam's Club gas.

It does what is required, for less.
 
Top Tier fuel must contain a minimum of 8 times the fuel cleaner than standard fuel. Standard fuel still meets EPA min for fuel cleaning. I usually run BP/Amoco and am shocked they have fallen off at this time.
Not sure why, but my F150 seems to run better on the local flavor (2 BP stations & 1 Amoco - all owned by the same group and within a few miles) when compared to the Costco, or Kwik Trip 87 octane that is also nearby.

:unsure:
 
Years ago a former co-worker of mine told me how he used to be a manager of a gas/service station...As you already said - the gas they had gotten may have been refined by a 'rival' - it's the additive pack that differentiates BP/Amoco to Exxon/Mobil to Shell to Kwiktrip/Kwikstar etc etc.

I cannot recall if he said the additives were added to the fuel at the bulk storage terminals, or at the gas station itself?

I used to believe that there was no specific requirement other than the fuel sold at retail had to include the EPA mandated minimum. However, someone pointed out that federal regulations require that fuel can't leave the fuel terminal without the EPA mandated minimum (aka "lowest additive concentration"). Even Costco, which has a system that injects additives upon delivery. So they apparently get fuel delivered that meets the minimum requirements before it gets there, and they dump more additive on top of that.

And brand names are just brand names for marketing reasons. Valero the refiner is now separate from Valero the retail brand.

That being said, I live near the Chevron Refinery in Richmond, California. They have their own fuel terminal there, as well as being near three other terminals (TransMontaigne, Kinder Morgan, Phillips). I think I can reasonably assume that they (more often than not) are delivering gasoline that they refined since it's a lot less distance to transport it and the commodify fuel business is about logistics. Not that it really makes a difference because they just make it to a commodity grade and are send a lot of their fuel out via TransMontaigne or Kinder Morgan where it's mixed with other fuel of the same commodity grade. And of course when they have a shutdown (planned or otherwise) they still have customers who need fuel, so they obviously buy it on the spot market.
 
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