It pains me to say this ...

[Mike_TX]

... but I may have to admit there IS a difference from one gas brand to another.

I've maintained for years that Regular gas is Regular gas, and one is as good as the next. Yeah, some brands may toss a packet of additives into the Premium gas when the tanker truck picks it up at the depot, but the basic juice coming through the pipeline is the same stuff that everyone uses.

But lately I'm sensing a subtle difference, depending on whose gas I use. Specifically, a very slight difference in the engine's response at the transition from coasting to light throttle. Like when you're coasting down the street, then need to add in a little bit of throttle to maintain speed.

When I do that with some gas brands, I get a slight "bump" in the drivetrain as it goes from no throttle to light throttle, almost like a little slack between the engine and transmission, whereas with other brands I get a smooth transition, resulting in overall smoother driving.

And the surprise is that some higher-end top-tier gas, like Costco and Shell, give me the clunkiest driving, whereas I actually get the smoothest driving out of Walmart gas.

I know that flies in the face of everything holy and good, but I have to call them like I see them. Don't judge me.

 

[MerlintheMad]

Don't make provocative posts and you won't be judged!

I doubt your "findings". The "bump" could be instantaneous response from a sporty drivetrain. Whereas crud for gas is "smooth" because it is not allowing that instantaneous response. Then again, it could all be coincidental to transmission operation.

Top Tier gasolines got that way for a reason. It doesn't make sense to go with a cheaper grade gasoline just because of a "bump". What kind of acceleration difference is there? If the cheaper gas seems smoother but flatter, then I'd go with the "bump" gas. And then again, any differences might only show up over extended running time as a cleaner or dirtier engine. Etc.

 

[Ty Davis]

... but I may have to admit there IS a difference from one gas brand to another.

I've maintained for years that Regular gas is Regular gas, and one is as good as the next. Yeah, some brands may toss a packet of additives into the Premium gas when the tanker truck picks it up at the depot, but the basic juice coming through the pipeline is the same stuff that everyone uses.

But lately I'm sensing a subtle difference, depending on whose gas I use. Specifically, a very slight difference in the engine's response at the transition from coasting to light throttle. Like when you're coasting down the street, then need to add in a little bit of throttle to maintain speed.

When I do that with some gas brands, I get a slight "bump" in the drivetrain as it goes from no throttle to light throttle, almost like a little slack between the engine and transmission, whereas with other brands I get a smooth transition, resulting in overall smoother driving.

And the surprise is that some higher-end top-tier gas, like Costco and Shell, give me the clunkiest driving, whereas I actually get the smoothest driving out of Walmart gas.

I know that flies in the face of everything holy and good, but I have to call them like I see them. Don't judge me.

My local Walmart gasoline is ethanol free.
Is yours? If it is, might that account for some of the difference?

 

[DiabloStinger]

You would have to test in exactly the same atmospheric and temperatures to write something like this.

Otherwise it is just user bias... That is how science works.

 

[Mike_TX]

Don't make provocative posts and you won't be judged!

I doubt your "findings". The "bump" could be instantaneous response from a sporty drivetrain. Whereas crud for gas is "smooth" because it is not allowing that instantaneous response. Then again, it could all be coincidental to transmission operation.

Top Tier gasolines got that way for a reason. It doesn't make sense to go with a cheaper grade gasoline just because of a "bump". What kind of acceleration difference is there? If the cheaper gas seems smoother but flatter, then I'd go with the "bump" gas. And then again, any differences might only show up over extended running time as a cleaner or dirtier engine. Etc.

Yeah, I know. Guess I was just in the mood to get beatenup. lol.

Honestly, I can't discern any acceleration difference, and for me a smooth, seamless driving experience is more important than an extra tick on the 0-60 anyway. But I can get a little annoyed with a car that seems to have developed drivetrain slack ... and if it's just the gas I'm using, it's an easy fix.

 

[Mike_TX]

My local Walmart gasoline is ethanol free.
Is yours? If it is, might that account for some of the difference?

No, all the stations around here are 10% ethanol.

 

[Mike_TX]

You would have to test in exactly the same atmospheric and temperatures to write something like this.

Otherwise it is just user bias... That is how science works.

Absolutely. It's just a non-scientific impression. But it's what matters to me.

I might add that mine is a 2.0T Premium, hence the Regular gas reference. Running strictly Premium gas might have the same effect.

 

[Peeso33]

Do a blind test. Next time have a family member gas up for you, but don't have them tell you from which gas station.

 

[MIGULZZ]

 

[GenesisG70]

I only put premium and one day put cheap gas and the car response was clumsy and power went down, since then decided will only use premium for my Turbo cars and super cars, few cents are nothing.

 

[Blamo]

For what it's worth. I have been testing premium(91) vs regular(87) in my 3.3TT. I drive two hours of highway each day with little in town and no stop and go......at times I do notice that with regular throttle response is a tad worse but not crazy. As for fuel efficiency, I get about (average) 8.2L/100km in premium(91) and 8.7 with regular(87)
This is just my findings and nothing scientific so make of it what you will. In the end I will not take a side on the battle of premium(91) vs regular(87)...your car, do what you will.
- I based this off of an average of 5 fill ups of Costco fuel for each fuel type with two full tanks transition from premium(91) to regular(87) to ensure it was flushed-ish.

 

[NS_Stinger]

Good discussion here but guys you need to refer to the octane versus terms like "regular" or "premium" because it differs in every area. Regular in my area is 89 octane and so called "premium" is still only 91 octane.

 

[MerlintheMad]

Regular around here is 85. Mid is 87. Premium is 91. We are high altitude though.

 

[Chark]

I only put premium and one day put cheap gas and the car response was clumsy and power went down, since then decided will only use premium for my Turbo cars and super cars, few cents are nothing.

Premium is $0.60 more per gallon in my area, so it's about $10 more per tank. That's not a few cents. And Ohio just passed another $0.10/gallon tax increase that takes effect next month.

 

[AV8R]

Once you have run it on a tank of premium work out if your get more miles to the tank. I do and I’m running 98RON.

 

[GenesisG70]

Premium is $0.60 more per gallon in my area, so it's about $10 more per tank. That's not a few cents. And Ohio just passed another $0.10/gallon tax increase that takes effect next month.

Wow that makes sense but for me 10 or 30 more per tank is still nothing...

 

[Mike_TX]

Good discussion here but guys you need to refer to the octane versus terms like "regular" or "premium" because it differs in every area. Regular in my area is 89 octane and so called "premium" is still only 91 octane.

Yeah, I haven't looked in a while, but I believe we're 87/89/91 here.

 

[Mike_TX]

Premium is $0.60 more per gallon in my area, so it's about $10 more per tank. That's not a few cents. And Ohio just passed another $0.10/gallon tax increase that takes effect next month.

Yep, ours is usually about 50 cents to go to Premium from Regular. When my car runs perfectly fine on Regular it hurts my feelings to pay $8 more a tank for Premium. Over the course of a 15,000 mile year, that adds up to $300-350.

 

[Mike_TX]

By the by, I didn't mean to start a Premium vs Regular thread, since I think that's been beaten to death. lol. I was just baring my soul and admitting that I can feel a difference - small thought it is - between brands of gas, when I've stated before that it's all the same.

 

[Jacques]

In my area (St. Louis metro), it's 87/89/91-93 (depending which gas company). There's about a 34 cent "price spread" for gas (ex: regular $2.31/gal - regular $2.54/gal) depending where in town you gas. Regular to Premium price difference is around 40 cents. The extra $5-6 is fine by me to put in premium. I don't have a preference of gas stations though...I gas Costco, Walmart, QT, Mobil. I try to avoid Circle K (used to be Shell until recently rebranded) and Phillips 66. The former has mostly regular-only stations, the latter has the 91 octane, no 93.