Premium gas

As an outsider looking in (I've shopped Tacomas, but never bought one), many of the mainstream reviewers complain that the engine and transmission are not up to par with the competition. If you're a Toyota aficionado, and you can get your truck to have improved drivability, I can see why people would want to do that, as there is certainly "something there" when it comes to transmission logic.

 

a rare sunny day in the Puget Sound. I miss that area. Lived in Tacoma for a few years when my dad was stationed at Bremerton. Was in 1st and 2nd grade so I was a bit young. but had fun exploring the forests.

 

Imo, if in warranty, and the engine, and transmission has an issue, the truck needs to go back to the dealer to find the problem. You shouldn't have to pay out of pocket to correct it.

 

Not everyone has a stock truck they drive on road in suburban America. Not everyone even cares about warranties. Some people just want to fart around and have fun.

 

Hey, I was stationed in Bremerton as well. Unlikely at the same time as your dad.

 

Yeah this is naches . We were almost to moon rocks

 

Death Valley ?

 

To the original question
ive tried a tank full of Premium..
noticed nothing in the way of sound, power nor pull.

My mileage seemed to dip about -0.9mpg
tho.

 

If its the same as my truck...keep running premium, it'll get worse.

 

Out of curiosity; are you in a west coast state or province?

 

No, good old Connecticut where we have only E10 fuel grades, but the gas is very fresh. I can tell you the quality of mid west fuel sucks.

 

I have a 2023 MT Tacoma. I got the manual because I enjoy driving them far more than auto transmission vehicles. When I took delivery, the dealer put a full tank of regular gas in the truck. Thereafter I switched to premium. It took 3 fillups, but at that point the engine pretty abruptly changed and started running noticeably smoother. This is with the standard factory tune. I was waiting for this because, as I understand it, the ECU will quickly modify the timing if it detects detonation and consequently it can safely use regular gas. The ECU will not immediately respond to higher octane fuel; but if it is consistently getting it the ECU will eventually alter timing to eek out a bit more power.

I can't say how noticeably this is with an automatic, but manual drivers get a good feeling for how a vehicle is running and almost unconsciously we change our shift points based on how the truck is responding to throttle, how the engine sounds, and the vibrations we feel in the shifter. Will premium gas save money - almost certainly not. If I see a mpg increase it will likely be very modest. But the truck is more fun to drive with premium and just feels like it is running at the top of its game.

If you are old enough you remember setting an engines timing by moving the disk that held the points back and forth slightly until you got it 'just right'. This is what the ECU is doing in VVTi vehicles.

If cost per mile was a primary concern, I would never have bought a Tacoma.

https://www.autos.com/car-maintenance/choosing-the-right-octane-level-for-your-car

 

VVTi is cam timing not ignition timing.

 

The gen 3 ECU controls ignition timing in consort with valve timing. The ECU uses many real-time inputs to set proper timing (both valve and ignition). The inputs include knock sensors which are influenced by fuel octane.

 

If the extra $5 or $10 a tank is worth it to you that's great but to me it's not.

 

That's a completely fair judgement to make. Running premium gas does boost the cost per mile. But in my experience it also makes the truck run smoother and just a little more spirited. The tradeoff is worth it to me.

 

Imo, I don't why you need premium to begin with. Many run just fine on regular, and some like mine run worse on that higher octane. Imo, its gotta be all mental where more is better.

 

I have tried various fuels (87, 89, 93, cheap, top tier) and was unable to observe any difference, and that included monitoring the engine parameters like ignition advance per load.

I only did this over one tank of fuel however. I'll have to run three tanks and see how it turns out.

FWIW, with fuel costing $3.5 for 87 and ~$4.5 for premium, my truck would need to go from 17.5mpg to 22.5mpg in order to break even on premium fuel.
-With fuel costs and even gaining 1mpg it would still be cheaper to get a tune than to run premium, and the effect would be FAR greater.

 

Most of us are making no claim that running premium actually saves money. We experience a better running truck. Depending on what you value most in your driving experience, it 'might' make sense to buy premium gas. Furthermore, here out west, the delta between regular and premium at Costco (a top tier gasoline) is currently 34 cents a gallon.

Modern engines with sophisticated ECUs make adjustments to accommodate fuel octane. The goal is to minimize harmful emissions, prevent detonation, and preserve the life of the engine. A gen 3 Tacoma, when given premium gas consistently will gradually advance the ignition timing (and also modify valve timing) which can be experienced as slightly more power (maybe less defined dips in the torque curve) and seems to run smoother. For me, with a manual transmission, the difference is night and day and well worth the additional expense.