I had read in the Gen II forum the articles in regards to this. What is everyones experience with MPG and gas brand in the 2010? I have only been filling up with Arco (87 Octane), but in reading past articles, it seems Chevron and Shell are probably a better choices. I should be filling up today at some point... I am going to throw Chevron in the tank today and see what happens.
I have put NOTHING but Shell in my car so far. If I had to go with anything else it would be Chevron. 87 octane by the way.
Interesting question, but the answers probably won't mean much. Anybody can tell the brand of the station they filled in, but not the brand of the gas. Its origin can change and is not fixed.
All the gas here is refined at port Elizabeth NJ, I don't think there is any difference except price and a little snake oil called name brands.
Ideally, I get gas at a place that has a lot of customers and a tanker filling the stations tanks. That usually is the lowest price place. I've read that gasoline with 10% ethanol has a shelf live of about 90 days. I would rather get inexpensive fresh stuff. Now that we're back on a regular routine and filling up once a week instead of twice a week, getting fresh gas probably isn't an issue, but why would I opt for the stale stuff?
In some other posts, people have posted increased MPG using Chevron and Shell brands. I am giving it a trial run. See if there is any difference. I typically use Arco.
ummm ... I avoid stations where I see the tanker - its pumping high volume is just kicking up the sediments in the tank ... p.s. OP, you really need to add costco / sams ...
I actually go with the cheapest brand I can find that's not out of my way. But, I'm a Chevron retiree (for my second career) and they give me a 10 cent a gallon 'rebate' so it's generally close to competitive with other brands. I figure it helps my Shove-on stock to buy from them as well.
BP always here due to my 5% cash back on each gallon. Although with a Prius now I don't get as much cash back because I fill up less. 10% ethanol also robs our gas mpgs, just wait when they pass the E15 legislation later this year!
I've been told that when gas is pumped cross-country through pipes, it is unbranded. Once it gets to storage tanks or tankers, there may be some slight variations in additives introduced, but minus the octane rating, state requirements, and seasonal differences, gas is gas. I imagine that confusion about this issue may have more to do with marketing than product differences.
From what I understand, the custom additives are the differences between brands. Some are probably better than others. A few years ago, I took my BMW in for service and explained engines problems and poor mileage that I was having. The service manager's first question was "Are you using Mobil gas?" and since I was, he explained that Mobil gas was poor. In my Prius, I also find that Mobil gets significantly worse mileage than Shell. I have also done well with Gulf. For what it's worth, here are the brands that are rated Top Tier by Toyota and many other manufacturers based on effectiveness of the additives (Top Tier Gasoline): QuikTrip Chevron Texaco MFA Oil Co. Conoco Phillips 66 76 Entec Stations Shell The Somerset Refinery, Inc. Kwik Trip / Kwik Star Aloha Petroleum Tri-Par Oil Co. Turkey Hill Minit Markets Mileage Stations Road Ranger CountryMark Chevron Canada Shell Canada Petro-Canada Sunoco Canada I have no idea how they compare on MPG (if that is the only concern) or anything else, but I think I'll start with the brands on the list. Of those, Shell is more readily available in my area. I will have to try Texaco or Chevron if I happen to be passing one when I need a fill up.
I heard somewhere from a former inspector of oil refinery that in this country there are onlytwo kinds of gas one is the BP Amoco refines it's own and the rest gets it from the same refinery. So it's either you get bp gas or not. And for costco, they get bp amoco gas. I noticed from my other cars, non hybrid, that I get better mpg than getting other brands.
Other than additives, dyes and detergents, gasoline at the same octane rating has little difference between brands in the US. It is sold as a commodity which is stored in the same tanks and sent through the same pipelines. So, you aren't buying "bad" gasoline from Costco or Arco. Conversely, you aren't buying "special" or "good" gasoline from Shell, Mobil, Chevron, etc.
