I argued with this guy I work with that all gas is the same except for the different octanes. To me it didn't matter if it came from arco, shell, chevron or texaco, pretty much all gas comes from the same oil fields and refined in the same factories. So he tells me that no they are not the same and some are actually better then others ( premium gases shell chevron). So I take his advice and wait till my fuel guage light comes on ( to make sure my tank is empty) and try 5 gallons of 87 Chevron with Techron. I swear my car idles alot better ( i.e. the steering wheel doesn't shake as much) and there's a small small small miniscule boost in pick up, not anything noticable, but noticiable enough. What's your take on these so called " premium gases" ?

 

If you have a car that's boosted to crap like mine and is limited by the knock sensor you can really feel a big difference in the cheap and premium gas. I find that I get the best mileage and performance with Shell. If you're not boosted or don't have crazy compression it won't matter that much.

 

Also gas from arco is redined with something that when its being transfered( to the truck, then from the truck to the tanks it picks up more moisture then other gases meaning its more watered down.) Now I can not tell you all the science behind it but I have heard it from several different dealerships and car part stores. And when I run arco gas my car does run pretty ****ty. So I am going to go with that I usually try to run chevron.

 

Here's one little interesting fact I noticed: The newer gas stations, no matter the brand, tend to have better gasoline (my car is boosted and limited by predetonation sensing, so I can feel it quitr a bit). Also certain gasolines have more detergents than average. Shell V-power for example is one of those.

 

i out premium in mine one time and couldn't tell a difference.

 

with a stockcivic you will notfeel a difference