Originally Posted By: Donald
Well we know or can find out what the EPA requires, maybe. But what about Top Tier? Who defines "Top Tier". Different areas of the country?
I do not believe they are all using the same additive. Certainly Chevron talks about Techron being in their gas. I suppose they could have cleaners in addition to Techron.
And what does EPA specify: a quantity, like 1/4 OZ per gallon? How about if some cleaners are better and/or more concentrated?
Not knocking their gas, but its marketing hype. Like "up to 90% off sale". As long as nothing is 95% off, their sign is valid. Most could be 5% off.
(Note the 1/4 OZ is an example, I have no idea what it really is).
Top Tier is an industry performance standard that has been pretty strongly driven by GM. Different retailers can use different add packs, as long as the end result is that the fuel meets the Top Tier performance standard for deposit prevention, as established by the Top Tier licensing folks. If they change their add pack, they have to go through all of the testing procedures again to get it Top Tier classified. Top Tier is not just a marketing mimic as it is tied to specific performance using recognized test procedures.
Top Tier Gasoline
I too have only seen 76 as pushing their gas as Top Tier, but many others are also Top Tier, such as Shell, Chevron, and Mobil. See the site above for more info.
Arco claims to exceed the Top Tier performance standard, but they probably do not want to go through the expense of testing and paying the licensing fees (which is per station, so it can add up pretty quick). Sorta like an oil meeting or exceeding Dexos but not wanting to pay GM to put the mark on their packaging.
