Yeah,these type of problems can hit brand names but it's usually the off names much more.
http://wcbstv.com/topstories/gas.mix...2.1693110.html

May 13, 2010 5:42 pm US/Eastern Bad Gas Mix-Up A Nightmare In Rockland
Local Mechanics Besieged With Repairs After Possible Shipment Of E-85 Mistaken For 93 Octane At Costco Station Reporting
Kirstin Cole NANUET, N.Y. (CBS) ― Clic
CBS

Then & Now The quest for bargain-priced gas could end up being a costly move for hundreds of drivers, who are reporting some major engine problems. CBS 2 HD learned more on the gas gone wrong and who's going to foot the bill.

Drivers lined up for gas at the Nanuet Costco, but a possible delivery of 7,500 gallons of bad gas a week and a half ago has sent many to the repair shop, something these regular customers knew nothing about.

"They should be notifying their customers, big signs and changing the gas," said Christine Scanlon of Thiells, N.Y.

"They should say we have some problem, issues and let the consumers know the proper way to handle that," added Vinny Guarino of Stony Point, N.Y.

A tanker truck dumped thousands of gallons of what county officials said was E85 or alcohol-based ethanol into the tanks at this Costco station. The problem was it was meant to be 93-octane gas. Drivers have reported problems to Rockland County -- complaining of their cars shaking, engines dying and fuel injectors being clogged. The county and Costco are awaiting test results, but inspectors believe it was a gas mix-up.

"It has a strong alcohol odor and looks like E85 as opposed to 93-octane gasoline," said Commissioner of Consumer Affairs Terry Grosselfinger said.

"Potentially, this is very bad -- the effects it can have on the gas lines, the fuel lines, the gas tank and the engine," added Robert Sinclair of AAA.

Drivers who filled up anytime between April 26 and May 2 could have been affected. Some of their repair bills are running into the thousands of dollars.

"We've heard anywhere from $400 to $5,000 depending on what needs to be done," said County Legislator Ed Day.

Day is warning customers though, saying if Costco won't notify gas buyers of potential problems, he will.

"Make an honest effort to outreach to people so these poor people, in these times, are not paying 1,000, $2,000 to fix a car that truly is your fault," Day said.

While the county said it tested gas found in the drivers' tanks and believes it to be E85, Costco responded that the tests also support a conclusion that the gasoline contained appropriate ethanol levels, contrary to earlier reports that Costco inadvertently received a delivery of E85.

Costco has said it will pay for repairs, and is giving customers a $150 gift card for their troubles.

Drivers should save gas and repair receipts and file a complaint with Rockland County, as well as contact Costco.






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That is just awful! Glad to see Costco own up to it.

 

While this is obviously an extreme situation, it has been well-known for years that, in general, there is much less risk in sticking with major name-brand fuel stations.......especially Chevron and Shell, which are probably the two best brands for quality detergent-additives. The Chevron Techroline blend is currently considered the standard for fuel-system protection by most auto manufeacturers and the SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers). We've done a number of threads (and a lot of posts) in CAR CHAT on this subject.

 

ah that sounds quite a bit of problem

though i don't see how this has much to do with brand name gas or not. it has more to do with the driver

 

True, but even if the truck driver doesn't screw up on something as important as dumping the correct gas (or octane) in the correct tank, the average level of fuel additives in major name-brand gas (particularly Chevron and Shell) is significantly higher than with off-brands. There is actually very little difference in the quality of gasoline itself, which is regulated by Federal and state law......it's pretty much the same from station to station. Most of the difference is in the additives (particularly detergent additives), where the name-brands are clearly superior.

 

i never deny that, though i am not sure about the "significant" part either. what's the definition of significant? content wise? i would be pretty confident to say that same car, one going to cheveron all the time, vs one going to costco all the time, over say 7 yrs, would that make significant difference in the performance between the two cars? i don't think i have read any reports saying there will be dramatic difference.

don't get me wrong, on cars i own, i get good gas for sure.

and still, the subject line is not very appropriate

 

I use only Chevron, purchased always on a Chevron card. Leaves a nice audit trail in case something goes wrong, never had an incident. That's just my personal preference and habit, nothing more.

Yes, I know the internet hearsay and related threads is endless, but at least this story is true.

I see the cars lined up waiting in lines at Costco gas stations, I can't be bothered.

 

E85 seems more common in the mid-states. Whomever filled the tanker really messed it up unless Costco does sell E85. Costco did well by owning up to the problem though.

I wonder if we'll see more FFV type vehicles and in so doing more E85 pumps.

 

Your story......and that of many other Chevron/Shell users. The benefits of using those two brands is not just Internet gossip. A number of service/repair shops use pure Techroline, right out of the bottle (along with BG44K, another excellent fuel-system cleaner).

In ths case, paitience is NOT a virtue.

 

Remember when gasoline went up to $4.00 a gallon and above and petroleum prices were around $150/barrel? Well, unscrupulous gasoline distributors were altering the 10% ethanol formula, adding up to 15% with the then cheaper ethanol additive to gas. This caused all kinds of problems in the Fort Worth area with blown fuel pumps, etc. The problem became more prevalent at several Exxon gas stations. The worst part is that auto companies such as BMW refused to fix problems under warranty due the well documented poor gas problems. As usual, owners had to pay out of their pockets the expense of fixing their cars.

Ed Wallace has commented several times during his Saturday radio show as well as documented the problem in one of his Sunday columns in the FTW paper.

 

Most auto manufacturers say their cars can routinely use E10 without any problems, and an occasional E15. If there were that many problems in the FTW area, then that distributor was likely using a higher concentration than E15. In general, with today's technoogy, only E85-rated vehicles (primarily from GM, but some othere as well) can routinely use E15 or over without problems.

I hope that those distributors, whoever they are, were caught and prosecuted. That is a direct violation of both state and EPA laws. It's disgusting what some people will do to make a dishonest buck.

 

It's disgusting what some people will do to make a dishonest buck.>>>

You ain't kidding!!! In addition to old vehicles that will probably be the most vulnerable to anything above 10% ethanol blend, Honda is one company completely against anything over that percentage due to the extra corrosiveness of the water and the damage that will cause in their products such as lawn mowers, plus marine engines, etc. Here's the latest on this debate:

Automakers Say Tests Show 15-Percent Ethanol Blends Will Damage Cars
By Erin Riches | May 5, 2010
Allowing oil companies to increase the ethanol content in gasoline from 10 percent to 15 percent puts cars at risk, the auto industry told the New York Times this week.

Last year the EPA announced it would issue the new rule, which would make it easier for oil companies to meet the agency's renewable fuels quotas. The Alliance for Automotive Manufacturers (the body representing the automakers) has always opposed it but didn't have test data to back up its opposition. Now the automakers say they do.

The EPA is expected to make the rule change effective in the next few weeks, but the industry is pushing for a delay until after 2011 -- giving manufacturers time to do more complete testing.

Automakers say they have evidence the increased ethanol concentration will confuse oxygen sensors and cause the engine to run on undesirably lean fuel mixtures -- damaging catalytic converters and potentially the engine itself. Some vehicle owners "will be walking" when their cars suffer damage, C. Coleman Jones, the biofuel implementation manager at General Motors, speaking on behalf of the Alliance, told the Times.

Green Car Advisor, New York Times
http://blogs.insideline.com/straight....html#comments

The COSTCO incident was obviously an accident and in my opinion it has nothing to do with big buck brands such as...EXXON!

 

no ghetto gas for me. I always stick to name brand gas.

 

I only use Shell or BP too.

Although in my area they both receive their fuel from the same distributor who also owns their own chain of mini marts/ stations under the Gas City name.

Same gas, probably different additives (I hope).

 

oh wow, that sucks. hopefully costco will pay for the repairs + some.

i dont think it matters but i only use Shell or Chevron gas. I also add the Shell/Chevron fuel system cleaner every 6 months.