Gasoline ???

[Sal Lubrano]

Is there a difference between the 93 octane at one gas station and another. I have some stations near me that don't even have a name and there gas is 20 cents cheaper than a mobile. Also would there be a difference between a Hess, Mobile, Costal ect...
Thanks
Sal

 

[ANDYS87]

There shouldn't be a difference....BUT....I only buy my gas from MAJOR gas stations (ex: Mobil, Sunoco). The dumpy little stations can have old tanks that let water/dirt in. Or they can be rip off's and try to push low octane for the premium price(even though illegal). I live in Western New York state, and arounds here Indian reservations are common. They do not have to pay state taxes, so they offer cheaper gas. BUT....they are not regulated by the state, so they can be selling anything from low octane to urine. I do not trust them. A friend of mine got a nice tank of watery gas from them. I also know of someone that got muddy gas from them. My friend works at a dealer and dropped a tank that was full of mud on the bottom. The user swore by cheap Indian gas......atlleast until then.

 

[Hacksaw]

Yep, it's pretty close station to station. There is the "Top Tier" additive package that several oil companies brag about. I don't know how much of that is hype, and how much is true. ALL gasolines at the pump were required to add detergents to their gas by the EPA a few years ago.

 

[84TXGN]

certain companies use different amounts of additives. Thats usually why the gas prices are a little lower. I use exxon/mobile or shell in my car. I have tried other gas companies and had a little knock at the top end with them. It wasn't a one time thing either. I check it a few times.

 

[bruce]

Is there a difference between the 93 octane at one gas station and another.

I have some stations near me that don't even have a name and there gas is 20 cents cheaper than a mobile. Also would there be a difference between a Hess, Mobile, Costal ect...

If there the same brand there shouldn't be. If they're different brands, then the raw gasoline is the same, but the additive packages vary from brand to brand.

It usualy boils down to the detergents, and they're what keep the back of the intake valves *clean*. Clean being a realitive term, they all have some carbon that accumulates on them, but with the better detergent packages it should be less.

IMO, it's like the old Fram adds, pay me now or pay me later. More carbon means more flaking off, and that means the possibility of holding an exhaust valve open and burning it.

Also, IMO, it seems that buying gas from a busy station is a good idea, since it's much less likely to be *old*. The aromatics *boil* off rather easily.