gasoline

[Tractorat]

I thought I would pas this along. I got it from my son in law (who is a top Mercedes tech.



Anyway, my 1994 Chrysler has not been running as well as it could be. When I would go up a hill in overdrive (on the freeway for instance). If the rpm's were low, it felt like it would miss rather than downshift. So, I started running mid grade and sometimes supreme gas. And the problem went away.





I asked my son in law about that. He said that they have been testing gas samples around the area and found that , in some cases, the gas was 25% ethanol). (its supposed to be 10% or less). Not only will the high ethanol content make your car run bad, it will cause damage to the engine. He says they found that Chevron seems to be the best at keeping the octane under 10%. Its not the fault of the gas station, its the refinery trying to make better profits.



I don't know if it is the same in your area. But this is what it seems like it is in Seattle



TRat

 

[JKreiss]

Definitely something to think about. I have a Seville i bought for the wife and honestly i thought it was acting a bit off here in the last few months. I did a full tune up on it and it still wasn't right. I think next fill up i'll throw premium in it and see what happens. I always wonder about that sort of thing. Good looking out on your son in laws part.

 

[Wingate]

WOW!!. . 25%???. . THis is all starting to make sense!. Have seen the same thing several times recently... We recently went on vacation into another state... (Oklahoma) and the perfect running car and boat have both suffered from the different fuel.

Noticed the same issue after visiting the same place two years ago... the brand new jet-skis were harder to start, and once back in Texas, I actually had to drain the fuel due to the fuel deteriorating within 3-4 weeks. To the point to where brand new fuel injected 4-stroke Sea-Doos would not start.

My son-in-laws Hemi powered Durango lost the O2 sensor on the way home. . (about an hour after filling up in Oklahoma!!!!. . This year, the Yamaha 4-stroke pontoon boat engine was hard to start and didnt seem to run as well while there... We ran it pretty empty and it got re-filled back in Texas...

Not sure exactly WHAT is going on. . but something is definitely happening. .

Glad to hear others are looking into this...

 

[Tractorat]

Well, Ive been putting chevron into my chrysler for a couple of weeks now. It runs a lot stronger. I havent checked the gas milage. But, I dont have to manually downshift when Im going up hills. And it just feels better.



Now, I'm not pushing chevron. I usually dont buy their gas because, in my neighborhood, its a little out of my way. And it is probably different in other parts of the country. Maybe even the same outcome, but with different gas suppliers. But Ive sure noticed a difference. I would like to hear of the state conducting some tests



TRat

 

[BIGNASTY]

I dont know about 25% Im sure that the AQMD,DPWM,BE would have something about that. Its not like they can getaway with adding more without someone knowing about it. The BOL has a list of products and amounts and are Very closely monitored. When we load if anything is out of tolerance it prints a strange looking BOL and its sent to the terminal tech the truck wont leave the rack until the load is fixed.

 

[Tractorat]

I dont know about 25% Im sure that the AQMD,DPWM,BE would have something about that. Its not like they can getaway with adding more without someone knowing about it. The BOL has a list of products and amounts and are Very closely monitored. When we load if anything is out of tolerance it prints a strange looking BOL and its sent to the terminal tech the truck wont leave the rack until the load is fixed.

I dont know about such things. All I can tell you is what was told to me by a source that I know is reliable. Take it for what it is worth and make your own decision. For my part, I've noticed a huge difference in how my car runs since I've started using gasoline from only the stations that I've been advised are closer to what the mix should be. In a couple of weeks, I'll probably go back to my local shell and 76 station just to see how my car performs. If it goes back to what it was a few weeks ago, I won't go there again.



TRat

 

[Tractorat]

One of the local car talk shows in Seattle (Gregg's Japanese car talk) mentioned this issue this morning. They said it is even more of an issue for cars made 2004 and later.

 

[BIGNASTY]

question

One of the local car talk shows in Seattle (Gregg's Japanese car talk) mentioned this issue this morning. They said it is even more of an issue for cars made 2004 and later.

Just a question was the bad gas you got form an ARCO? just a thought Arco can drop the price of their fuel WHY because Arco/Atlantic Richfield /BP what ever they want to call themselves this week has and always will use the cheapest additive they can get away with. As for the base product of gas it's all the same when it comes up the pipe line. So to say this kind or that kind is better its the additive that's in question not the gas. Last year or the year before when your area had all the flooding I went up to the area to pump out the tanks in the ground that were full of water and put new fuel in . I dont know for the likes of me how Washington with all the rain keeps the water out of the fuel tanks could it be that maybe you just got a load of water? You said that you used Chevron and it works fine I find the same thing down here.

 

[guldam]

I have a boat I built for fishing in the ocean. I have a 140 hp Suzuki fourstroke that is fuel injected, and I have a Yamaha High Thrust 8hp with carb, for trolling and getting home if the big motor dies. Each motor has it's own fuel tank. Either tank can be switched over to the other motor.

I try to keep the gas fresh, but I struggle to get out on the water sometimes since around here the ocean is too rough most of the time. And so the boat does a lot of sitting. I run fuel stabilizer and I run Techron. Before running the stabilizer and techron, the Yamaha would get all gummed up and not start or start and die. It took two bottles of techron to clean out all the gunk. Mechanic at the Yamaha dealership said it was the ethanol that was giving everyone fits. He recommended tear apart the carb once a year and cleaning it, and running stabilizer.

It's crazy, my get home motor is supposed to be the extra reliable one. It has hardly any hours, but I have to treat it carefully or risk not getting home off the ocean one day.

Funny the Suzuki doesn't seem to mind it.

GulDam

 

[Troubleshooter]

Interesting. I was over at the Stihl dealer yesterday to pick up a brushcutter and he warned me to use 91 Octane, because the 87 and even some of the 89 Octane gas was adding too much ethanol and causing engines to run rough and / or gum up.

 

[Skydiver]

The Techron works. I buy it by the case when it's on sale. I run a couple of bottles in my gassers right before I change the oil. Don't want any carbon or coke deposits that may have passed the rings to remain in the oil.
I only burn ethanol if no real gas is available.

 

[Tractorat]

Just a question was the bad gas you got form an ARCO? just a thought Arco can drop the price of their fuel WHY because Arco/Atlantic Richfield /BP what ever they want to call themselves this week has and always will use the cheapest additive they can get away with. As for the base product of gas it's all the same when it comes up the pipe line. So to say this kind or that kind is better its the additive that's in question not the gas. Last year or the year before when your area had all the flooding I went up to the area to pump out the tanks in the ground that were full of water and put new fuel in . I dont know for the likes of me how Washington with all the rain keeps the water out of the fuel tanks could it be that maybe you just got a load of water? You said that you used Chevron and it works fine I find the same thing down here.

No, I usually buy Shell or 76. They're just down the street from me. And, until the local Shell station got bought out a couple of years ago, the local station was usually quite a bit less expensive than others in the area. But, I always try to buy top tier gas for my cars.



No, the ethanol testing that my son-in-laws company was involved with is correct. Not a sales pitch. I dont know what it is like in other parts of the country, or how the mix is. I dont have a clue if the high ethanol content is on purpose, or if it is just a matter of not getting a good mixing at the refinery (a theory I heard on the radio). But I'm going to continue to get chevron for the next few weeks and see if I continue to get the better performance (and then check to see if going back to shell or 76 makes a diff. )