[ember1205]

GM specifically recommends the use of Top Tier Detergent fuel which seems perfectly reasonable to me. The engine in my car is a Direct Injection motor and the higher / better quality detergents in the Top Tier fuel would seemingly help to keep it a bit on the cleaner side internally.

Most of the time, I am easily able to hit a Costco to fuel up and their Kirkland brand is a Top Tier fuel. Given that it's also generally the least expensive option for me, I have no issues at all regularly filling up there.

My question is how much impact will using non-Top Tier fuel have? Are there any studies or reports that show the actual difference either in these engines or ones very similar to it. And what about more occasional use of non-Top Tier fuel? How much impact does that have?

I'm interested in understanding this because occasionally it just isn't practical to be able to get to Costco and there is a BJ's that's MUCH closer to home with similarly lower costs for the fuel. This morning, for example, I was pretty much on fumes and headed entirely the opposite direction from Costco. So, stopping at BJ's made the most [financial] sense because any of the Top Tier stations in the area were at least $.40/gallon more expensive.

If anyone has links to any reports or anything that has been done around this that would be relevant and useful (one common theme I keep saying is citing "19 times fewer deposits" which is a metric I call bullshit on - there's no way to measure that), I'd be curious to see them.

[396ssrat]

Be nice if gm would reveal what stations do NOT sell "top tier" fuel. Even Arco
is a top tier fuel which I'd suspect is what is sold at Costco.

[HCI2000SS]

I've wondered and looked into this myself. Bottom line I don't think there will ever be a satisfactory answer. Personally, I run top tier fuel for peace of mind, since I will never truly know how much of a actual different it will make. And if it brings me a certain level of peace and happiness then it seems clear that's what I should do lol

[kropscamaro16]

i only use shell v power and i use a lucas fuel treatment about every 3 months or so who knows if all that shit is actaully worth it but i dont drive my car much on streets mostly track use so

[ember1205]

Originally Posted by 396ssrat

Be nice if gm would reveal what stations do NOT sell "top tier" fuel. Even Arco
is a top tier fuel which I'd suspect is what is sold at Costco.

This isn't a "GM thing", so it really isn't for them to maintain the details. You can see it all here, though: https://www.toptiergas.com/

[ember1205]

Originally Posted by HCI2000SS

I've wondered and looked into this myself. Bottom line I don't think there will ever be a satisfactory answer. Personally, I run top tier fuel for peace of mind, since I will never truly know how much of a actual different it will make. And if it brings me a certain level of peace and happiness then it seems clear that's what I should do lol

Yeah, that seems to be sort of how I'm leaning with this as well. The general consensus I am finding around a few things seem to be:

- The current generation LT1 overall runs cleaner than previous iterations of the DI engines
- Top Tier gas has better quality and concentration of detergents
- DI engines tend to suffer from buildup on the back side of the valves which is what Top Tier gas is implied to help with, but gasoline never touches that area which is why the buildup occurs in the first place (it doesn't regularly get washed off).. So.. Huh?

As I mentioned, generally regular use of Top Tier gas is ok by me because Costco is on that list and it's the cheapest fuel around (and relatively accessible for me). I'm just curious about the possible impacts of having to mix a tank in here and there from BJ's when I simply can't get to Costco...

[dpevans]

I have been told in the past that all gas, diesel, and other fuel products are stuffed into a pipeline and when you purchase a "gas" product you get what comes out and there is no guarantee of where that gas was produced. I believe the definition of top tier is to purchase from a reputable dealer. So unless you live near a refinery you're getting what every they dump in the pipeline. Some upcharge for mixing in additives at the terminal before delivery but other than that it's all the same gas.

[Nothing like an SS]

I know here on Long Island, all of the stations get refilled from the same distributor, so, brand be damned, they are all the same

[ember1205]

Originally Posted by dpevans

I have been told in the past that all gas, diesel, and other fuel products are stuffed into a pipeline and when you purchase a "gas" product you get what comes out and there is no guarantee of where that gas was produced. I believe the definition of top tier is to purchase from a reputable dealer. So unless you live near a refinery you're getting what every they dump in the pipeline. Some upcharge for mixing in additives at the terminal before delivery but other than that it's all the same gas.

Top Tier Detergent Gasoline specifically refers to the additives in the fuel. Every fuel company sends a truck to the port to fill up and they all get the same fuel. The difference is determined by the quality and amount of specific detergents that are dumped into the tanker truck during the filling process.

[SSDan]

Originally Posted by dpevans

I have been told in the past that all gas, diesel, and other fuel products are stuffed into a pipeline and when you purchase a "gas" product you get what comes out and there is no guarantee of where that gas was produced. I believe the definition of top tier is to purchase from a reputable dealer. So unless you live near a refinery you're getting what every they dump in the pipeline. Some upcharge for mixing in additives at the terminal before delivery but other than that it's all the same gas.

Originally Posted by Nothing like an SS

I know here on Long Island, all of the stations get refilled from the same distributor, so, brand be damned, they are all the same

Originally Posted by ember1205

Top Tier Detergent Gasoline specifically refers to the additives in the fuel. Every fuel company sends a truck to the port to fill up and they all get the same fuel. The difference is determined by the quality and amount of specific detergents that are dumped into the tanker truck during the filling process.

My son is a petroleum engineer and has explained gasoline refining to me. All gas is refined to the same federal standards and only two octanes are produced on the east coast - 87 & 93. Other octanes such as 89 and 91 are just blends of 87 and 93.

The additives are added into the tanker at the point of fill at the refinery. Top tier companies each use their own proprietary blend of additives. Some non top tier stations use some additives and the El Cheapo stations use none.

So Ember has the straight scoop for the what and how of top tier.

Ember - I would say that the occasional use of non top tier is fine. Just keep using that Costco gas as much as possible.

[Village Idiot]

I dont know if it’s just a coincidence but the two times I was in a pinch and had to throw GetGo gas in my car I always had a loud tick on cold starts the next time I drove it. Almost like an injector was sticking or something. Never happened with BP, Shell, or Exxon gas.

[ember1205]

Originally Posted by SSDan

My son is a petroleum engineer and has explained gasoline refining to me. All gas is refined to the same federal standards and only two octanes are produced on the east coast - 87 & 93. Other octanes such as 89 and 91 are just blends of 87 and 93.

The additives are added into the tanker at the point of fill at the refinery. Top tier companies each use their own proprietary blend of additives. Some non top tier stations use some additives and the El Cheapo stations use none.

So Ember has the straight scoop for the what and how of top tier.

Ember - I would say that the occasional use of non top tier is fine. Just keep using that Costco gas as much as possible.

I forgot about the blending piece - good reminder.

I'm kind of in that mindset that "occasional" should be fine. I guess what I'm really striving for is how to get to a reasonable definition of "occasional."

My car has had a total of 254 gallons of fuel put into the tank. I can't account for the first 19 gallons because I don't know what the factory plus dealer put into the tank. Of the remaining 235 gallons, 54 gallons were from BJ's while all of the rest were from Top Tier stations (one Citgo for 15.5 gallons and the rest from Costco).

My driving is predominantly around town with a few longer drives built in when I took the car to visit my parents. Am I already at the "occasional level" or am I using too much gas from BJ's so far?

[2SS Capt]

Originally Posted by ember1205

I forgot about the blending piece - good reminder.

I'm kind of in that mindset that "occasional" should be fine. I guess what I'm really striving for is how to get to a reasonable definition of "occasional."

My car has had a total of 254 gallons of fuel put into the tank. I can't account for the first 19 gallons because I don't know what the factory plus dealer put into the tank. Of the remaining 235 gallons, 54 gallons were from BJ's while all of the rest were from Top Tier stations (one Citgo for 15.5 gallons and the rest from Costco).

My driving is predominantly around town with a few longer drives built in when I took the car to visit my parents. Am I already at the "occasional level" or am I using too much gas from BJ's so far?

I would say when you can't buy Top Tier gas, put in the minimum that you need to get where you are going and until you can get Top Tier... Or what I would do, is pay the higher price for that fillup (Is $5-$6 worth the risk) and hit Costco whenever it is convenient...

Throwing a bottle of Techron Fuel Cleaner in once in a while wouldn't hurt anything either... Remember the detergents in Top Tier do more than clean the valves (which in our engines never get sprayed on) they also keep your injectors and the rest of the fuel system clean as well...

[HCI2000SS]

Originally Posted by ember1205

Yeah, that seems to be sort of how I'm leaning with this as well. The general consensus I am finding around a few things seem to be:

- The current generation LT1 overall runs cleaner than previous iterations of the DI engines
- Top Tier gas has better quality and concentration of detergents
- DI engines tend to suffer from buildup on the back side of the valves which is what Top Tier gas is implied to help with, but gasoline never touches that area which is why the buildup occurs in the first place (it doesn't regularly get washed off).. So.. Huh?

As I mentioned, generally regular use of Top Tier gas is ok by me because Costco is on that list and it's the cheapest fuel around (and relatively accessible for me). I'm just curious about the possible impacts of having to mix a tank in here and there from BJ's when I simply can't get to Costco...

Yeah on the rare occasion that I've ran a non top tier fuel, I simply don't push the car real hard just incase. Does it matter...who knows, but it makes me feel better. I also run a bottle of Techron before each oil change as well. It's just all added insurance