Best gas for these 3rd gens?

Ok so Ive been researching the OVTune and people are out there talking about 87 tune and 93 tune and what not. I always run 93....I always use Shell 93 V-Power NiTRO because it seems like its the cleanest one, or when Im at Exxon (here most of the time tbh) they have that Synergy SUPREME+. I do it because they seem to be the cleanest and Ive always heard that better gas makes for a cleaner engine. Ive tested that Shell V-power nitro lasts longer than Valeros 93. I can post details about that experiment (I am a scientifically inclined man) if you'd like. Anyways, bandit off road mentioned that the way these trucks were designed they dont get any more power out of 93 octane than they do 87/89. Is there any actual reason to spend the extra couple bucks on it? Will my MPGs decrease with the cheaper gas? Will I get less power out of it? Will my engine gunk up and explode?

 

Unless you have your truck tuned to run a higher octane, you won’t see any power gains. That said, many people have noticed (on the stock tune) that these trucks run better on higher octane such as less knocking in the engine, smoother engine idle, etc.

 

87 octane "top tier" gasoline is what Toyota recommends and it works well for me me, living close to sea level.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Top_Tier_Detergent_Gasoline

I don't have the OV tune however, since my truck has sufficient power with the stock tune.

 

Octane has nothing to do with power. The only benefit comes from ethanol free gas, but to me it's not worth the premium price

 

93 octane fuel is not "cleaner" than 87 octane. If you buy from the big oil companies like Shell, Exxon, Chevron etc... their 93 octane will not contain any more detergent than their 87 octane will. The key to getting the "cleanest" fuel is to buy top tier. The major brands are top tier as well as other brands like Costco.

 

Pretty much all gasoline from ANY vendor will have some measure of detergent. There are top-tier gasolines with even more detergents added but I question that it's more marketing than function. Your truck has port injection to help keep the valves clean. You also have self cleaning injectors. I have an old '97 4Runner with about 260K miles and never had the injectors cleaned. It runs like a top and still gets the same MPG as when new. Once in awhile I'll put a tank of Chevron gas but mostly go for the cheapest I find. About twice a year I'll dump a bottle of Techron or Gumout Multi-System cleaner each with the PEA nitrogen based cleaner but still think it doesn't do that much. I feel we all over-think and get sucked into fancy marketing on fuel system cleaners. There are dozens of so-call test people have done with bore scope before and after pictures while using every flavor of fuel additive. I haven't seen one yet that makes significant difference in the combustion chamber or valves. Point me to one done by an independent tester to change my mind.

Use the Octane level your truck recommends. Higher elevation over 4000 feet will need less octane because there is less oxygen in the air. Higher compression engines than ours will increase the flash point of the gas to the point it ignites before the spark tells it to - hence ping and knock. Octane reduces the flash point of the gas and so does less oxygen. Your engine computer will adjust the fuel ratio and timing as needed to eliminate knocking. It cracks me up hearing people say "I got 1 MPG improvement using premium fuel". Why do we care about MPG anyway? It's because it cost us less per mile. You are NOT getting more miles per dollar with premium fuel. It can't make up the difference in cost.

 

I use 87 anywhere I need gas. Never been an issue.

G.

 

The best gas is the byproduct from Taco Bell. Especially the bean and 5 cheese burritos. Good stuff.

 

Unleaded.

 

I try and use "Top Tier" when I can, and I just use 87 and it runs as designed. I see a slight improvement in MPG and power when I run ethanol free fuel. We are lucky in Colorado that several stations have it and it is generally less than Premium. I won't go out of my way to get Ethanol Free but if I am near a station that has it I will usually run it. That is more based on science in that Ethanol burns slower and the good old gas of old (Ethanol Free) definitely is better stuff, but most the time you won't notice much of a difference. Somewhat contradicting myself there.

 

Costco unleaded, used by top NASCAR drivers and drag racers

 

Another vote for "top tier" 87. There are definitely brands and gas stations that I'll drive past and avoid if possible. Every now and then I'll upgrade to ethanol free if it's convenient. Stock tune.

 

EGR will also slow down the combustion process by displacing oxygen with inert exhaust gases and therefore richening up the fuel mixture while quenching combustion chamber temp to reduce NOx formation. EGR allows the engine to tolerate more spark advance.

 

https://media.giphy.com/media/scCdwqIpwnnLq/giphy.gif

 

lol. Love it !!

 

I run 87 and try to use Chevron at least half the time. I have had no knocking and no issues.

 

Too soon!

 

I've tried all grades of gas and I saw absolutely no difference in performance or MPG. I think unless you get your truck tuned to a specific octane it's a waste of money to run anything higher than 87. Now where you buy your gas is a different story. Stick with top tier gas and you'll get all of the additives you need. However, I like to add a bit of Techron every couple of months. Maybe not necessary but it makes me feel like I'm doing good by my engine.

 

All automotive fuel is unleaded. But I'll assume you're talking about the 85 octane I've seen when traveling out of California.

Op. Our engines were designed for 87. Octane can be summed up as the fuels resistance to pre ignite during compression. ( Yes I know it's a lot more complicated than that but really thats it when you get down brass tacks). Without a higher compression ratio you can't take advantage of the higher octane. And all top tier fuel burn cleaner regardless of brand or grade. The oil companies all agreed to a standard level of detergent to give this label. So just go wherever the price is best.

 

I’d like to see your experiment. Personally I just use 87. No shell stations around here so no “V-power” in my area. My Tacoma isn’t a race truck and it runs fine off the 87. I can’t justify the 30 cents more a gallon for premium