When I buy a tank of gasoline, how do I know for sure what I'm getting. I see these big gas trucks pull up to a gas station and drop their load. These trucks come from the same depot and go to lots of different stations. Now, I know that some gas companies have their own trucks, but many do not. I'm wondering if those cleaners and additives are really there....or not. Things must be working pretty well, because there are a lot of people driving around with little or no gasoline problems. So how do I know, for sure?
How do you know?
- Thread starter LarryL
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It is like finding a real estate agent you trust. Rely on your instincts. Well maintained and run major service stations are you best bet.
I find I even get better milage using a major brand than the discount stations. The additives are there. In North Carolina we have a state agency that checks the pumps for accuracy, the octane for accuracy, even the oil they sell for accuracy. Seldom do they find a problem but when they do they act on it and it get known by the public.
I find I even get better milage using a major brand than the discount stations. The additives are there. In North Carolina we have a state agency that checks the pumps for accuracy, the octane for accuracy, even the oil they sell for accuracy. Seldom do they find a problem but when they do they act on it and it get known by the public.
Larry
There has been a fair amount of discussion on this subject. Of course the problem with finding it is picking the best search parameters. I think a good start is this thread from last summer:
http://theoildrop.server101.com/cgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=5;t=002231#000009
This thread included some inside info from Fueltankerman and the discussion addressed a number of aspects of refining, distribution and additives. There have been another few threads surrounding "Top Tier" gas that are also germane, and you might want to search those out.
My reader's digest summary of various threads of the last 6 months is that:
Gasoline is highly regional, based on factors like environmental regulation, climate, and time of year.
A lot of it is commodity product with different additive packs. Less consensus on whether the additives exist in sufficient quantity to make real differences.
Buying from a high volume dealer with well maintained tanks will probably yield better results than based just on "Brand".
Some people believe that some engines prefer specific brands.
Buying higher octane than required by the engine neither helps the car nor buys an inherently higher quality product.
Terry Dyson and Molakule have both posted some great stuff on this although I do not think that they claim to be fuel guys as much as lube guys. One of the things that I believe they support is the idea that current North American gasoline formulations are not sufficiently additized. Many board members will recommend usage of a Fuel additive like Fuel Power FP60 along with the cheapest gas of sufficient octane for your vehicle.
There has been a fair amount of discussion on this subject. Of course the problem with finding it is picking the best search parameters. I think a good start is this thread from last summer:
http://theoildrop.server101.com/cgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=5;t=002231#000009
This thread included some inside info from Fueltankerman and the discussion addressed a number of aspects of refining, distribution and additives. There have been another few threads surrounding "Top Tier" gas that are also germane, and you might want to search those out.
My reader's digest summary of various threads of the last 6 months is that:
Gasoline is highly regional, based on factors like environmental regulation, climate, and time of year.
A lot of it is commodity product with different additive packs. Less consensus on whether the additives exist in sufficient quantity to make real differences.
Buying from a high volume dealer with well maintained tanks will probably yield better results than based just on "Brand".
Some people believe that some engines prefer specific brands.
Buying higher octane than required by the engine neither helps the car nor buys an inherently higher quality product.
Terry Dyson and Molakule have both posted some great stuff on this although I do not think that they claim to be fuel guys as much as lube guys. One of the things that I believe they support is the idea that current North American gasoline formulations are not sufficiently additized. Many board members will recommend usage of a Fuel additive like Fuel Power FP60 along with the cheapest gas of sufficient octane for your vehicle.
Thanks peterr. I've followed your advice and I think I'm going to stick with the local Costco station. It's cheaper, but more important, there is always a line and it's constantly busy with about two dozen pumps.
And from the reading my next decision is going to be additives. Do you think that a plan like Chevron ProGuard every oil change (5k miles) would be worth the trouble.
And from the reading my next decision is going to be additives. Do you think that a plan like Chevron ProGuard every oil change (5k miles) would be worth the trouble.
Larry
Hey I'm no expert, but there are lots of them on this board who are willing to share, so looking through some past posts on gas will help.
Here in Canada we only have Chevron stations out West, so I don't see the product here in Central Canada. As such I don't have experience with Chevron ProGard, but the Chevron Techron Concentrate Fuel System Cleaner additive is generally well regarded as a once-every-few-thousand-mile treatments. I believe that Progard line is a diluted version of Techron and may not have sufficient concentration. The Techron Concentrate does seem to be one of the better commonly available over the counter treatments.
What you will find is a general consensus on the use of Fuel Power as a regular gasoline additive. People much more knowledgeable than me praise it. I have been using it for a few months in my cars. The impact on my 89 Porsche is not so dramatic, but it is a more obsessively maintained (if oil hungry) car. Perhaps there actually is more detergent additive in the 91 octane gas it's high compression engine requires. My girlfriend's Honda Civic is a severe duty vehicle. Usual trips are about 2 miles. Never gets up to operating temperature. Rarely ever on the highway. A nightmare for the engine. One tank treated with the shock dose of Fuel Power in a tank of regular 87 octane gas and it was noticeably smoother. I am also running LubeControl in the Honda. Am waiting to use it in the Porsche post Auto-RX treatment.
Do a search for FP or Fuel Power. It is also really inexpensive when you think of it on a per tank cost.
Hey I'm no expert, but there are lots of them on this board who are willing to share, so looking through some past posts on gas will help.
Here in Canada we only have Chevron stations out West, so I don't see the product here in Central Canada. As such I don't have experience with Chevron ProGard, but the Chevron Techron Concentrate Fuel System Cleaner additive is generally well regarded as a once-every-few-thousand-mile treatments. I believe that Progard line is a diluted version of Techron and may not have sufficient concentration. The Techron Concentrate does seem to be one of the better commonly available over the counter treatments.
What you will find is a general consensus on the use of Fuel Power as a regular gasoline additive. People much more knowledgeable than me praise it. I have been using it for a few months in my cars. The impact on my 89 Porsche is not so dramatic, but it is a more obsessively maintained (if oil hungry) car. Perhaps there actually is more detergent additive in the 91 octane gas it's high compression engine requires. My girlfriend's Honda Civic is a severe duty vehicle. Usual trips are about 2 miles. Never gets up to operating temperature. Rarely ever on the highway. A nightmare for the engine. One tank treated with the shock dose of Fuel Power in a tank of regular 87 octane gas and it was noticeably smoother. I am also running LubeControl in the Honda. Am waiting to use it in the Porsche post Auto-RX treatment.
Do a search for FP or Fuel Power. It is also really inexpensive when you think of it on a per tank cost.
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