Premium fuel?

Ethanol free, unsurprisingly seems to net me about 10% better gas mileage. Going to run a few tanks of the stuff and see if any noticeable performance improvements, but definitely better gas mileage which would be worth it to me if it reduced time between fill-ups when on long trips.

 

You are fortunate to be able to buy ethanol free gas. Is it expensive? What octane ranges does it come in ? What retailer and where. None near here in Connecticut except for real high octane race boat and race car fuels. Dannyblues

 

Comes in midgrade only in my area. 2 stores sell it.

 

It's about 15-20% more expensive here in TN, but there are a lot of independent gas stations that sell it. So, if i'm getting 10% better gas mileage I'm not saving anything, but if it keeps me from having to refuel as often I'd use it more often.

Can get it in about any octane if I'm willing to go across town, but where I am I can get in 87 only.

 

Not worth it to me to run ethanol free in the Tacoma for the price diff even if I could find it locally. They do not sell ethanol free in DFW area because of air quality regs. I would like to run it in my boat but because the stations that have it only sell in 87 octane I can't. I am running milled head and need 92 or 93. I ran some once but had to add a octane booster. Between the booster and the cost of the fuel I spent well over $1 more / gallon. I just buy 93 with ethanol and try to keep as fresh as possible. I go through almost a tank in the Tacoma weekly so no real need for ethanol free.

 

And it's better for your engine. Ethanol attracts water. Corrosion. Dannyblues

 

Pour a bottle of HEET in your tank every other tank or so to take care of that.

 

I use Sta-Bil in my Generator and in my car over the winter.

 

The problem is moisture. Ethanol is very hydrophilic. If you put ethanol fuel in a boat you are going to have problems.

The higher the humidity the more water will be in your fuel if it has ethanol. In a car that may not be all that bad. 50 miles offshore and it's a big problem. Engine goes off, even for a few minutes, wave hits you sideways and they have a funeral service for you a few weeks later.

I live at just above sea level. And that means almost all gas tanks are below the water table and that's a lot of added moisture. Having worked at a gas station. I don't buy ethanol gas if at all possible. The humidity level here is almost always 80%+ every night from the middle of March until late October. There's a lot of water inside the bottom of those tanks.

And if your station only has 91 ethanol free get the mid grade. It's usually a blend as most stations don't have an 89 tank. 5% ethanol is better than 10% and it's usually a lot cheaper.

And it's ok to ask how often they have their tanks cleaned and drained. Those tanks get nasty and a need cleaning and draining.

One last thing. Avoid ethanol fuel like the plague if there's a car wash on the same lot. Unless they have above ground tanks. Probably doesn't matter much at higher than sea level or places with low humidity but in the hot and humid south it makes a huge difference.

 

I'm on-again/off-again about premium (93). I've probably run 6 tanks of premium through it in 23K miles. Premium did seem to help with the surging/stumbling issue under small loads at 1300-1400 RPM...but it could have been psychological. It's running fine on regular today.

 

confidence building..

 

Indeed.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...power-any-options.480783/page-8#post-14764723

 

I actually use that stuff. I pour a bottle in usually just before the thermometer drops to freezing and maybe once more towards the end of winter

Though I'm sure it's unnecessary at 10,000 miles I added the larger size bottle of Techron engine and injector cleaner with a little marvel mystery oil and Lucas fuel additive and enough Strartron fuel stabilizer to preserve the gas ( though I go through it fast enough) and to neutralize the ethanol.

Since I use Shell nitro premium 93 octane the real need for those additives should really be unnecessary but I'm a creature of habit and have been adding that mix to the gas in everything I own periodically especially the startron and additional Stabil fuel stabilizer in my five gallon gas storage containers.

I keep a number of different sized fuel storage containers always full year round even in winter when I'm only using the four stroke snowblower. Hey. We never know here when we'll have a big storm that will cause blackouts.

I also keep both my vehicles topped off for the same reason. In a blackout the first thing you notice is the loss of conviences and here that means the well water pump stops as does the septic pump. No water. No toilet. Electric stove out too. Over the few years we're here I'm always ready for a blackout with lots and lots of bottled water, gasoline, porta-potty chemical toilet ( and the woods with extra toilet paper!- Betcha no one ever thought of having lots of extra toilet paper ready for a blackout?! ) Finally our gas grill has a side burner to cook on with at least three or more spare full propane tanks.

And finally... a compound bow for stealthy game hunting and other assorted firearms for everything imaginable including societal breakdown.

Dannyblues

 

91 octane was used for the EPA rating. I feel that this is kind of a bait and switch when they tell you to just run 87. I have yet to get the EPA rating out of my truck.

 

When the manual states use 87 octane OR HIGHER I began to scratch my head ( but not too hard as I want to keep the few remaining hairs I have left).

Personally I use almost exclusively Shell premium nitro 93 octane. It's more pricey than any other toptier fuel but I get at least 1 mpg more but more importantly I've seen independent lab test results as well as results claimed by Shell gas engineers as well that visibly demonstrate the ability of that gas to keep new engines clean as new indefinitely. They claim even one tankful of that gas will remove 65 % of all the built up crud in injectors, valves, cylinders etc.

Why does the same engine in a Tacoma and Lexus require the first to use 87 and up while the second must use premium? Tacoma-268 to 278 hp depending on source. Lexus 331 hp. Of course it's the tuning that would result in different hp and torque curves as well for the desired application: truck low end torque for hauling and towing ; Lexus for high rpm sore and different torque curve. Dannyblues

 

No, that is surprising. It should only give you 3.3% better than E10.

 

I started experimenting with octane and E0 to see if it would help with the "slight miss". I know it is not supposed to; but, every 89, 93, E0 tank has seen better MPG than the 87s before.

I am not yet saying I believe that outcome as I only have 5 tanks of non-break-in / non-vacation driving that average 23.7 MPG over 2365 miles. I rarely went 300 miles per tank in my 2002 DCOR4x4Ltd; my last 5 tanks averaged 473 miles in a bigger, heavier, more powerful vehicle with only a 14% larger tank.

 

I do recall reading about that very thing somewhere and it did say the Manufacturers use Premium E0 when doing the EPA Certification tests, obviously they are doing this for a reason.

 

That's excellent mpg. Four cylinder? I've never bested 22.2 almost all highway at posted speed limit and easy steady throttle during the first 3,000 miles. Dannyblues

 

My butt dyno says with 91 has a little more pep in its step but runs just fine with 87. I just load up on 91 when I'm out of state since it's still cheaper than 87 in cali.