Posted on 06/03/2004 12:18:21 PM PDT by 2nd_Amendment_Defender
High gas prices are emptying a lot of wallets these days, but don't slam the brakes on your summer travel plans just yet. Instead, watch as Bill Gephardt gets to the truth behind these pumped up prices.
Ever heard of a gas myth guys? Well, we use them when we decide what to put in the tanks of our cars and during my investigation I found a lot of you sinking way too much money into these fuel fables.
"I got a 4 banger in my truck. If I had a six-cylinder I'd go to the next one. If I had a V8, I’d go to the supreme.”
“Why?” asks Bill.
“It's a little easier on the motor."
"Higher octane makes it run better, you know what I'm saying?
“How does it make it run better?” asks Bill.
“It just uh…..I don't know, sparks better I guess.”
"Whenever I get better gasoline I'm rewarding my car, I'm saying hey, good job car here's some better gasoline for you."
One thing's clear, you've got octane on the brain. We know it costs more and it certainly sounds more important: high test, low test, premium, regular, midgrade. But what is it?
We'll take a straight chain parrafin that has a very low octane, rearrange it into an aeromatic ring structure that has a very high octane
Huh?
What all that means is octane simply helps reduce engine knock that rattling or pinging sound you hear when the engine fires too soon.
Simple as that to bust four gas myths:
1. High octane is not easier on an engine. 2. High octane does not make your car go faster 3. High octane does not give you better gas mileage. 4. High octane is not a special treat for your car.
Turns out most cars run just fine on gas with a regular octane level, that's 85 here in Utah and there's an easy way to figure out what your car needs.
"I would look in your owner's manual and use whatever octane your manual calls for."
Jeff Utley runs the Flying J. Refinery in north Salt Lake City. He says most of us don't need to give octane another thought.
"In the newer cars and for many years, cars have octane sensors in them, so it compensates for the octane," says Utley.
Did you get that?
Your car is probably smart enough to take care of all that octane stuff for you, and just in case those octane doubts come creeping back, listen to your owner's manual.
Okay, next question.
How should you decide where to fill up?
Is it Choice A:
“It's supposed to be good gas.”
“Do you think it's better than other gas?” asks Bill.
“It's all I put in my car."
Choice B:
"I stay away from 7-eleven, I hear they have bad gas."
Or Choice C:
“I go by price. I try to. It just makes sense to save money where you can, you know.”
What do you think? Is one gas better than another? The ads sure sound like it, but I wanted proof.
At the utility testing laboratory in West Valley, scientists run experiments on substances like gas and oil, figuring out exactly what's in them.
So, armed with the proper equipment, I headed out to collect some samples. I bought regular unleaded and premium from four different gas stations picked randomly: Phillips 66, Flying J, Costco, and Chevron.
Then I dropped them off at the lab for analysis. A couple weeks later.
Except for the octane grades, the fuels themselves look remarkably similar to one another. The tiny differences detected at the lab show up in the fuels additives package, also known as detergents.
“They really basically help remove the coatings and other contaminants that get inside the combustion chamber as well as clean things out.”
Gas companies don't like to talk about the specific mix of detergents they use, kind of like grandma's secret recipe. However, the federal trade commission says no one recipe has been proven better than the other.
In fact, the agency has taken action against companies that claim a switch to their gas will save you money on car maintenance.
So back to our question, how does refinery guy Jeff Utley pick a particular gas station?
“I would probably look for the most competitive station with the cheapest price.”
And like other refineries Utley sells fuel to any gas station owner in Utah who wants it, not just Flying J.
Lab owner Drew Spencer used to believe one brand of gas was better than another.
Based on what you know now, which kind of gasoline do you want to buy?
“Frankly, it doesn't really matter,” says Spencer.
And Joe, well he had it right all along.
“I go by price, I try to. It just makes sense to save money where you can, you know.”
So here it is, the Federal Trade Commission and the American Automotive Institute both tell me the formula for gasoline is the same from coast to coast. Now, I have the test results in Utah to prove it.
Gasoline companies are charging millions of people extra money for nothing. They are really ripping us off and getting away with it.
They aren't? cool! Then we should be able to run the ATF on low-lead or even blue avgas! What a savings!
A little hard to believe that NASCAR would willingly pay 6 or 7 bucks per gallon for the 112 octane stuff they're using if its no different.
Is it the fault of the the gasoline manufacturers that the myths are there? Or is it the job of the consumer to get to the truth? I haven't seen a gasoline ad saying high octane gives better mileage, etc, so its not false advertising/fraud.
Buyer beware. If your engine knocks, you need higher octane. If it doesn't, you don't, and you might try lower octane to see if it still doesn't knock. My own car only knocks at low RPM up a hill in a high gear. I avoid this situation, and use the lowest octane. The car is an '86 and still runs fine.
I've never had a service station owner recommend that I buy a higher-octane gas.
I drive a 1991 Escort and used to put in the lowest cost - but she knocked when accelerating. So, now I use midgrade, and she doesn't knock. I don't think that kocking is a good thing.
Except that if I read my owner's manual as this article recommends, I find that I should have 93 octane.
Generally, performance engines require high octane gas, correct?
Regular engines are engineered to run on any 'regular' octane gas you put in them. Same with motor oil.
The author of this article should be the next poster child for the "Little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing" foundation.
Two words: Compression Ratio.
If your car has a high compression ratio, it needs higher octane fuel to deliver the best performance.
Turbo charged (and the more rare super-charged) engines have effectively higher compression ratios, so they also need higher octane fuel, just as cars with high mechanical compression ratios.
In general, yes, modern cars do have octane & knock sensors that can retard the timing in order to compensate for lower octane fuels, but in so doing, the performance of the engine is lowered.
And if you bucked up all those dollars for a high performance engine then why would you cheap out at the pump?
Your post is true, as far as it goes. Modern cars are designed to run on 85-87 octane fuel. But...there's a catch here, which may or may not affect you.
Most cars have a knock sensor on the engine block. When ping or knock occurs, it tells the computer, which retards the engine timing just enough to stop the knock.
On level ground, there is no difference as far as fuel economy or performance is concerned.
There are situations, however, when lower octane fuel is not as good an idea. One such situation is when your driving involves lots of long uphill climbs. In those cases, where the engine is working hard, the automatic retarding of the ignition will rob your car of some power, since retarding the ignition generally reduces the power output of the engine.
A similar situation occurs when you are heavily loaded or pulling a heavy trailer. Pinging or knocking may occur here as well, since the engine is working harder. Again, the retardation of the ignition will reduce power and mileage.
Engines running under retarded ignition conditions also run hotter, which may be a factor as well, depending on conditions.
So...for most driving, the lower octane fuel is just fine. You'll never notice the difference. But, under heavy loading conditions, like the ones described above, selecting a higher octane gasoline will result in better mileage, more power, and less chance of overheating.
That is not what this article said, as well it should not have.
There is a significant difference.
You want Shell® with Platformate®.
Wait, the gasoline cos. are selling exactly what they say they are selling...assuming a 92 octane fuel really IS 92 octane and an 87-grade really IS 87....It's a matter of consumer choice, is it not? My understanding is that a 92-octane fuel actually IS harder to produce (or requires more energy input so it costs more to produce) than an 87 grade.
I know a guy who has a plain old ordinary Dodge truck and he believes fueling with 92 octane prolongs the life of his engine. This guy, I know much better than to argue with him.
I think your gripe may be with auto mfrs who'd like you to put octane into your Mercedes or Lamborghini. For those higher compression engines, it's probably right to do it.
There are a zillion things like that...if you like a Glock better than a S&W, you make that choice. If you like Bayer aspirin better than generic, have at it. Any difference?
I've worked on several gasoline & desiel truck loading stations. This is where the trucks load up to deliver fuel to the gas stations. Everyone of them, in several different states, was the ONLY truck loading station for the area. We had different injector systems for the different company additives, but every company used the EXACT SAME GASOLINE. Exxon would get a few squirts of their stuff every 100 gallons, Mobile would get a few squirts of their stuff. Always the same gasoline.
You really need to read your manual - many people are buying hi-octane when their manual dictates 87-proof. Both my and wife's Jeeps (200 Cherokee and 2002 Liberty) call for Regular gas unless it is pinging (generally only a problem in stop-go traffic in really hot conditions), then move up a grade. They claim that Supreme is more likely to cause damage if used too often... Over 85K miles between us and not a ping yet...we live in the Biloxi, MS area and the Summer is really hot and heavy and there is a bit of stop-go on Casino Row during certain hours...
Here's a little experiment anybody with a dirtbike or 4 wheeler can try. Go get the highest octane gas you can, like Sunoco Ultra 94 for example, and then go to a small airport and get some LL100 <- that's aircraft gas called "low lead 100" and it's 100 octane. Try doing some hill climbs and note the stall point in whatever gear it won't keep climbing with. Then do the same climb with 50% LL100. Your stall point will probably go up an entire gear. If higher octane gas was a mirage, why is that?
As engines age their effective compression ratio increases due to carbon deposits in the cylinder & on the pistons.
Essentially, the built up crud inside the engine forces the fuel/air mixture inside each cylinder to get squished into a smaller volume, raising the compression ratio.
Start with an 8.5:1 compression ratio, subtract a small amount from each (Exaggerated, but I'll use .2) of the volume from each side to get 8.3:.8 = 10.3:1 new compression ratio.
The crud reduces starting volume too, but it is more important how much volume is missing when the piston is at the top of its stroke and the fuel/air mixture is at its densest.
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