Top Tier - premium or product line?

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I typically run 93 octane (premium) fuel in my car. Though the car requires Regular, I feel better putting in v-power etc because of the added detergents.

My question: am I incorrect in thinking that there are more detergents in the v-power over the regular at Shell, for example. Are Top Tier fuels rated only on their premium grades or do all the grades have the additive packs of the premium fuels?

I wouldn't mind switching to regular, but I love me some detergents.
 
From their website:

"Gasoline retailers must meet the high TOP TIER standards with all grades of gasoline to be approved by the automakers as providing TOP TIER Detergent Gasoline."

toptiergas.com
 
Originally Posted By: cryption
My question: am I incorrect in thinking that there are more detergents in the v-power over the regular at Shell, for example.


Shell V-Power claims five times the EPA minimum detergents. IIRC, their regular gas has twice EPA minimum.

Originally Posted By: from Shell Website
Premium grade only references octane level, and doesn’t always equal premium quality. Shell V-Power contains the highest concentration of our Nitrogen Enriched cleaning system, a unique, patented improved formula exclusive to Shell.

With five times the amount of cleaning agents required by federal government standards Shell V-Power provides maximum protection, seeking and destroying engine gunk left behind by lower-quality gasolines even faster than regular Shell gasoline.


http://www.shell.us/home/content/usa/products_services/on_the_road/fuels/shell_vpower/about_vpower/
 
So, that would lead one to believe that at least in Shell's case - it's worth the extra few bucks for the Premium over Regular.

I wonder how that compares with the other Top tier brands like Conoco/Phillips and XOM.
 
IMO, if your car calls for regular and you're using premium, you're wasting your money.
 
I completely disagree that premium is a waste of money. Especially on a European car. The cars are designed for premium, even the 2.5, because of the better quality fuel in Europe. They (European manufacturers) de-tune the car to run on American swill.

Likewise, as you can see from Shell's webpage, the higher grade fuels have more additives then the regular fuels - thus making the $4 difference worth it.

And really - how can under $5 be wasting money when it comes to the life of your car? I'm not cheap enough for it to matter to me, so price is a null argument since I just don't care.

I do a full synthetic oil change every 3000 miles too. I document everything and usually get an extra bit of money when trading it in based on maintenance and records alone.


thanks for the insight guys! I'll continue with my premium. It was more a hypothetical question anyway lol.
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: shrooms
IMO, if your car calls for regular and you're using premium, you're wasting your money.


Sometimes yes, sometimes no.

In our Vibe we have pretty much always gotten regular, because that is what it calls for and I've always thought the same thing you mentioned: if it calls for regular don't waste your money on premium. My wife drives the vehicle, and when she got gas a coule weeks ago the station (a Shell) was out of regular fuel, so you got V-Power for the regular price. She normally gets about 300 miles on a tank. She got 350 on this tank. Nothing was different about how she drove, or the route taken, etc. She just uses it to go back and forth to work every day, almost all hwy.

Our 2010 Equinox says it takes regular, but a lot of people have been having knocking/pinging with regular (I did a little, didn't see as bad as what some others describe on Edmunds forums). Must be a computer setting they took too far to try to improve mpg. With premium it runs smooth, though still not toally "normal sounding" to some because of the direct injection. I've also noticed about a 1-2 mpg gain in this vehicle with V-power over when I used regular.

In my old truck it made no difference.
 
Funny you mention the Vibe. My buddy has a Toyota Matrix with the 1ZZ 1.8 engine like your Vibe - and he notices knock and pinging with his car on up to 89 octane. Throw in premium and it's good to go.

Originally Posted By: wallyuwl
Originally Posted By: shrooms
IMO, if your car calls for regular and you're using premium, you're wasting your money.


Sometimes yes, sometimes no.

In our Vibe we have pretty much always gotten regular, because that is what it calls for and I've always thought the same thing you mentioned: if it calls for regular don't waste your money on premium. My wife drives the vehicle, and when she got gas a coule weeks ago the station (a Shell) was out of regular fuel, so you got V-Power for the regular price. She normally gets about 300 miles on a tank. She got 350 on this tank. Nothing was different about how she drove, or the route taken, etc. She just uses it to go back and forth to work every day, almost all hwy.

Our 2010 Equinox says it takes regular, but a lot of people have been having knocking/pinging with regular (I did a little, didn't see as bad as what some others describe on Edmunds forums). Must be a computer setting they took too far to try to improve mpg. With premium it runs smooth, though still not toally "normal sounding" to some because of the direct injection. I've also noticed about a 1-2 mpg gain in this vehicle with V-power over when I used regular.

In my old truck it made no difference.
 
Originally Posted By: wallyuwl
Originally Posted By: shrooms
IMO, if your car calls for regular and you're using premium, you're wasting your money.


Sometimes yes, sometimes no.

In our Vibe we have pretty much always gotten regular, because that is what it calls for and I've always thought the same thing you mentioned: if it calls for regular don't waste your money on premium. My wife drives the vehicle, and when she got gas a coule weeks ago the station (a Shell) was out of regular fuel, so you got V-Power for the regular price. She normally gets about 300 miles on a tank. She got 350 on this tank. Nothing was different about how she drove, or the route taken, etc. She just uses it to go back and forth to work every day, almost all hwy.

Our 2010 Equinox says it takes regular, but a lot of people have been having knocking/pinging with regular (I did a little, didn't see as bad as what some others describe on Edmunds forums). Must be a computer setting they took too far to try to improve mpg. With premium it runs smooth, though still not toally "normal sounding" to some because of the direct injection. I've also noticed about a 1-2 mpg gain in this vehicle with V-power over when I used regular.

In my old truck it made no difference.



That's over 16% improvement in fuel economy. Maybe you should call the local newspaper.
 
Originally Posted By: cryption
I completely disagree that premium is a waste of money. Especially on a European car. The cars are designed for premium,


Geez, some people have poor comprehension. Read my post again. I said IF the car calls for, meaning it's DESIGNED for Regular, then Premium it's waste of money.

Quote:
how can under $5 be wasting money when it comes to the life of your car?


You actually think Premium will EXTEND car life? Then, cars using Regular have shorter lives? Again, if the MANUFACTURE, the company that BUILT the car calls for Regular, using Premium is a waste of money.
 
People write A lot of anecdotal evidence on this subject. I always understood that higher octane does not necessarily equal higher quality. They are just different. In fact higher octane fuel has LOWER energy density. So typically you'll get slightly less MPG jumping to 93.In Europe the posted octane on a pump uses a different method which produces a higher number.

In my situation I tested my Explorer as scientifically as I could.
Numerous fill ups with 87 and 93. Wrote down the mileage and then divided out to get an accurate MPG. That's how I settled on Costco 87. I found zero benefit of higher octane or higher price Shell V power.
 
Super costs about +10% more and should deliver +10% mpg gain to break even. For me, that's just 2mpg. It seems do-able considering my state of tune.
 
Is BP top-tier gas? I don't know why, but my E320 gets better mpg with BP Ultimate then with Shell V-power. I do mostly highway driving. I get 560 miles per tank with BP, and about 530 miles per tank with Shell. I tried it 2 different times, same highway driving, same speed, same weather conditions.
I also tried adding MMO to the fuel, but I saw no change at all.
 
Originally Posted By: shrooms
Originally Posted By: cryption
I completely disagree that premium is a waste of money. Especially on a European car. The cars are designed for premium,


Geez, some people have poor comprehension. Read my post again. I said IF the car calls for, meaning it's DESIGNED for Regular, then Premium it's waste of money.

Quote:
how can under $5 be wasting money when it comes to the life of your car?


You actually think Premium will EXTEND car life? Then, cars using Regular have shorter lives? Again, if the MANUFACTURE, the company that BUILT the car calls for Regular, using Premium is a waste of money.

Well stated, I saw the OP comment wanted to comment exactly this but didn't. Glad someone else stated what I was thinking. It is a WASTE of money if the car is designed for regular. And the OP statement of changing syn every 3k...well i think that is well known for a lot of us that is A WASTE of money also.
 
I'm using Top Tier (from Mobil) in my vehicles because 87 octane is the same price as the other 'no name' stations.

That's a no brainer.

However, Mobil 89 octane is 2 cents per gallon more than the competition. Still, it is worth the extra 12 cents per fill up (on the Goldwing) for the added detergents that Top Tier specifies.
 
-Most- of the name brand gasolines advertise that they contain more than the EPA minimum in detergency even in regular grades, so if your car calls for regular, use regular. Ford specifically states in their owners' manual to use 87 octane in vehicles that are speced for regular.

///

Fuel quality
If you are experiencing starting, rough idle or hesitation driveability
problems during a cold start, try a different brand of “Regular” unleaded
gasoline. Premium unleaded gasoline is not recommended for vehicles
designed to use “Regular” unleaded gasoline because it may cause these
problems to become more pronounced. If the problems persist, see your
authorized dealer.
Do not add aftermarket fuel additive products to your fuel tank. It
should not be necessary to add any aftermarket products to your fuel
tank if you continue to use high quality fuel of the recommended octane
rating. These products have not been approved for your engine and
could cause damage to the fuel system. Repairs to correct the effects of
using an aftermarket product in your fuel may not be covered by your
warranty.
 
I run chevron 87 all the time. now my camry v6 reach almost 200k miles. so I am giving chevron 89.

I recommend the gas from top tier list when fuel up your car.
 
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