mmarshall

That's because you may not be putting enough miles on your vehicles (leasing them every 2-3 years) for crappy fuel to build up a lot of deposits in your engine and fuel system.....deposits are an especially noted problem with Direct-Injected engines.

And no, according to Consumer Reports, the top-tier system is not just slick marketing. By the very nature of their work, CR knows how to recognize smooth-talking when they see it.

swajames

SW17LS

Which is one reason why I don't care. Most people don't keep their cars long enough to start seeing issues that come from the sort of fuel they use or the sort of oil they use.

What I DO believe in is using quality fuel. I generally stick to name brand dealers, avoid small off brand gas stations. What I don't buy into is that ONLY "TOP TIER" gas is high quality gas. So, by default I typically use Top Tier gas because I choose to use name brand gas and its almost all Top Tier.

The whole reason this exists is to try and help big brands compete with cheap, off brand gas stations.

SW17LS

Exactly......

A big regional company like Royal Farms, Sheetz, 7 Eleven, Wawa, Liberty etc is going to have quality gas with additives even though they aren't "Top Tier" branded. That gas is coming from one of the same quality sources as gas going to those Top Tier stations.

Johnhav430

haha when I bought my BMW new it had a Top Tier brochure. I at the time believed it was more hocus pocus BS, and over the years there has been inconsistency. On my permanently attached oil cap, it has the Castrol logo. Well, BMW has switched over the years, and the cap is not a label you simply peel off. So I say just because BMW switched to Shell, doesn't mean Castrol is no good anymore, it's pay to play.

Long story short I asked someone in the petroleum business, and they stated yes there is something to TOP TIER, and got into in detail and earnest, and if the same price, why in the world would you want unbranded gasoline? I get it if it's a leased car, but if you own it? That's why I seek out Conoco, Costco, Phillips 66, and previously Citgo. When I see a Shell across from Speedway, and it's only 3 cents difference, you bet Speedway gets shut out. Another failed logic on my part was I see Mystic pulling into a top tier station, and a convenience mart. Same carrier, so how can the gas be different? Because the additives are put into the tanker at the terminal, that very same tanker isn't going to both stations on one run.

edit p.s. why I thought Top Tier was BS. BMW at the time recommended Castrol (as physically shown stamped on the oil filler cap). Castrol is owned by BP. BMW recommends Top Tier gasoline. BP at the time was NOT Top Tier. So it to me was inconsistent...again today, with Conoco, Costco, Phillips 66, I can buy 93 Top Tier gas for the same as Wawa, etc. So I seek it out. Today, I don't think it's the same.

LexBob2

Yup. Up until a few years ago, BP with their Invigorate additive (didn't it used to be Envigorate?) wasn't listed as a Top Tier gas. When they finally were added to list, they published the comment that they finally decided to pony up and pay the TT fees.

SW17LS

Exactly, nothing changed with their additives, they just finally decided to pay the fees.

Johnhav430

This argument (and I used it so it's reasonable) is used all the time when it comes to college and whether or not a top college is worth it. One argument where I sit back and laugh is when someone says, "Oh that college costs $78,000/yr. My kid got in but no way are we gonna go in debt and pay that." The dead giveaway is that college is up to 10% of income to 250k, so if your kid really got in? You would know that! For most people, the top tier colleges cost between $0 and at most $25k if your family earns 250k/yr. (along with that comes a 4.5 to 8% acceptance rate) Less costly than many public schools.

So, if Top Tier gas is not any more expensive (again, Costco, Conoco, Phillips 66 in my area), then why go out of your way to get unbranded for the same price?

SW17LS

Its not as simple as to say "college costs 10% of your income up to $250k". What you're taking into account is financial aid, and its not as simple or straightforward as that.

I don't think anybody would do that, or is suggesting that somebody would do that. Point is, it is in fact typically more expensive.

tex2670

Exactly. Sellers like Wawa, Sheetz, 7-11, Giant, Costco, are luring people in by their gas prices. They aren't going to risk damaging customer engines and harming their reputations by selling sub-standard gas.