Any particular brand of gas for your PiP?

The U.S. Energy Information Administration does not collect data on the source of gasoline sold at retail outlets. Several factors make it difficult to determine where gasoline at a local station originated:

• At a local station, a company may sell gasoline that was not produced by its own refineries.
• The source of the crude oil used at a company's refinery varies daily. Most refiners use a mix of crude oils from domestic and foreign sources based on the oils' cost and availability.
• Gasoline from different refineries, owned by different companies, is often combined for shipment by pipeline. Many companies may purchase gasoline at the same bulk terminal.

 

I much prefer non-ethanol. Ethanol is generally harder on ICE, creates much pollution in the synthesizing process and contains less energy. If the technology was proposed today, the science would argue against it. BTW, I grew up in the San Franando Valley-- what happened to Union Oil. They developed the LA And Santa Maria fields.. Used to sell only USA gas. Belly up or bought out? There for a visit and did not see any.. I use independent Kwick Trip in WI. Non ethanol.

 

There are still some Union Oil of California/76 Stations around; the company got eaten by Chevron. If you go to Dodger Stadium, you can still fill up at the Dodger 76.

Union Oil was responsible for the Santa Barbara Oil spill in the late 60s, which I think forever doomed the company name, at least here in California. They redeemed themselves in the decades following the disaster, but they got little credit for it.

 

Can't believe the changes in 30 years! Reagan to Brown--although Brown was also governor before I left. Something about a penny. And then there is Vin Scully--I grew up on Drysdale, Koufax, Hodges , Padres. College on Garvey, Lopes, Cey and Russel. Great heritage--but Scully tops them all and he is still going . . . .but I digress. Non-ethinol gas--if you can get it.

 

Wow! Another Scully fan...I grew up listening to him and things like the Drysdale 58 2/3rds scoreless streak. Giant announcers up here not even close to Scully.

 

I'm glad you found and posted this because I've heard this many times over the years. It makes no sense to have any brand loyalty for a local retailer based on what the national brand does, IMO. The best ways (and only?) to reduce imported oil ... or middle east oil are: 1) use less*; 2) drill more domestically; 3) tank the economy. Not buying at a specific brand of station will make zero difference IMO.

* Hence why I bought a PIP...the only thing I can really change, IMO. I started by saving around half moving from a ~28 mpg car a decade+ ago to a Prius. Now I'm saving about 88% more.


Mike

 

here's what i don't understand: if the local retailers are so divorced from the national brand, why do we have local brands at all? what on earth does a "brand" at the gas station mean anyway, if it doesn't mean where the station gets its gasoline from?

 

I think of gasoline as a commodity. It's like bananas or oranges at the supermarket. You're not buying Costco branded bananas or Safeway branded oranges. You're buying oranges that those stores sourced from some farm. Sometimes they go to X farm. Sometimes they go to Y farm for whatever reasons. Same with gasoline, the local stations buy from refinery X or refinery Y.

According to the article, the US is using twice the amount of gas that it is producing. If everyone only bought gas from stations that source from US refineries then they will soon run out and have to go to foreign oil refineries. Hence:

The only difference that started up in the 90's were the additives that major brands started adding to the gasoline that is claimed to help scrub clean your fuel injectors. I haven't noticed a difference so far in my 15 years of driving. Why do I need additives to clean my gas? That's what my fuel filter is for. But I understand, it's like changing oil at 5000 miles instead of 10000 as recommended on your PiP. It's cheap peace of mind for those who need it.

 

I think there will be exceptions but following the brand would be the rule.

 

That's truly amazing! You are getting 156 MPGe on electric miles and 64 MPG on gas miles.

 

Yeah E10 is horrible. But that political fight is for a different thread. Regardless all us in most major areas in cali are stuck with a less efficient lower HHV gasoline that gets us lower MPG and costs more.

 

I think the gas part isn't very accurate because I think it truncates the gallons...so it could be 2.5 gal or maybe even 2.9. But it is tracking kwh about right, based on my monitoring charging kwh sometimes.

Mike

 

Back in the mid to late 1800's there were lots of fires and explosions due to poor (unstable?) refining formulas of kerosine. One guy figured out the proper way to refine so that kerosine lighting was safer and more affordable and called this formulation "Standard Oil." He then went on to cut exclusive deals with the railroads to cheaply deliver only his gallon containers of Standard Oil and it became the only name brand people would trust...it was safer and cheaper. So back then the brand really did matter. (At the time there were sometimes multiple private railroads serving the same areas...so the guaranteed railroad cars full of kerosine cans, even at below market shipping rates led to big railroad efficiencies and consolidation and railroad monpolies as well.)

He then went on to make this the largest monopoly on the time (prior to laws against this)...before cars were even a big deal. The government then went on to break up Rockefeller's Standard Oil in 1911 into geographical parts. These became Standard Oil of New Jersey, Standard Oil of NY, Standard Oil of CA and a few others. Those each eventually changed their names to Exxon, Mobil and Chevron.

Mike

 

I did a sanity check with the "Fuel Saved Approx". 1,001 electric miles / 15.7 gallons = 63.76 MPG. The car is calculating the number of gallons saved based on your actual gas mileage, ~64 MPG.

 

Yes, so if my gas usage is really 2.9 gallons I would be at only 44 mpg on gas. I really need to use up some more gas so I can get a more accurate reading!

Mike

 

I don't think you understood what I meant.

If your actual consumption is 2.9 gallons, the approx fuel saved would show 22.7 gallons (1,001 miles / 44.14 MPG).

The fact that it said you saved 15.7 gallons, means you are actually getting 63.76 MPG on gas.

 

I don't think this is the way it works honestly. Compare it with your own numbers.

 

I know...but it doesn't seem right. My actual gas usage is about 52-56 mpg based on previous trip measurements before I reset this trip. Those cummulative trips were 5-10 gal each. I've been trying to figure out, what exactly is the data collection used and the math for the EV ratio screen.

Or do they just calculate one from the other with the rounding/truncation error included? It seems a little odd and too precise.

Mike

 

Ok, got it. That way of calculation was precise when my PiP was new with fewer miles. Now, the numbers changed a bit. 53.x vs 55 MPG.

 

the kWh part includes regenerative braking. reset it and go for a drive, you'll see.