Gas Question For Northern Calif.

[Ron61]

Ward,

I have been using Chevron in my car for some time now and it does run better than it used to on some of the cheaper brands. The mileage has gone up a little but not enough to get excited about. And I don't drive a lot so that is no big thing to me. We also have a Circle K store here that sells Union 76, but no Exxon station in this town and it isn't worth the 20 mile round trip to Redding to buy that brand. The Chevron Station is just about 1/2 mile from my house. I am a little leery of this Circle K store here as they have been caught in the past not selling what they advertise. So if I get 76 I will wait until I am in Redding and go to a regular 76 station. Another thing that makes me a little leery of the Circle K is that all of the stations out here are about 3 to 9 cents per gallon above the ones in Redding because of no competition, but the Circle K is a good bit lower than the others here.

Ron

[WardL]

Chevron is a fine fuel for a Cobra. Shell adds plenty of additive too. Circle K does not add as much as the Top Tier level. Go to www.TopTierGas.com for a list of the retailers that use extra additive. California gasoline is very clean burning leaving few engine deposits, the use of extra additives is not as important as in other parts of the country. The octane is only 91 and that hurts.

It is human nature to convince yourself when you buy the most expensive fuel on the street and your engine misses or hesitates, your engine needs a tune-up. But if you buy the mini-mart bargain gas and your engine misses or hesitates, it's that cheap gas! This is exactly like the same feeling you can get when you change your oil. Your gut knows an oil change will not make the engine run better. But it sure seems like an engine does run better sometimes!

The Techron additive does not change the driveability of the fuel instantly. The Techron does eliminate deposits from forming and cleans them off a dirty engine. The dirty valves they show in their ads are not the result of running California mini-mart fuel. I don't know where the dirty valves come from.

[Ron61]

Ward,

I am talking about my little 1965 Comet with the 289 2 barrel carburetor. I had to sell my Cobra several years ago. The 69 will barely run on this pump gas and I can't put any load on it at all. I did have the compression lowered from 12:1 to 10:5, but those iron heads just don't dissipate the heat well. When I ordered it, the manual said to use nothing less than 105 leaded octane which was what we could get at the Chevron White Pumps back then. Now I run leaded racing gas in it for the few miles a year it is driven. It just turned over 41,280 miles the last time I had it out.

Ron

[Rick Parker]

Those of you that are familiar with the fuel industry I have a good question for you? Why do some states offer higher octane rated fuels than others?

On another note


Ron: With as unreliable as the older cars used are, that 40 year old (69) (Torino) Cobra with over 40,000 miles on it is seriously on the verge of becoming a REAL problem for you, It could leave you stranded on the way to the Mini Mart or the Grocery store. This is not safe for you especially with all the incorrigables, and druggies on the streets and keep in mind that the state is now realeasing convicts for good behavior (lots of those up your way too) you should consider a more reliable mode of transportation for you and your friends and pets. Driving in that "OLD" car just isn't safe anymore. Think of how unsafe the "Old" tires on it are(?). The problem with fuel etc. Give me a call and I'll help you either find a charity (they can do wonders for people less fortunate) and the car would go to a good home. Just imagine, as big as it is any one of these families with 6 or 8 kids, single parent chain smoking types could get all the kids in it at one time and make only one trip to the free clinic for medical care. So please give me a call.

[Ron61]

Rick,

Following along with your question, why does Southern Calif. have higher octane at the pumps than we can get up here?

Ron

[Jcamper]

Generally speaking the difference between octane available in different areas relates to elevation, humidity, and temperature differences. Southern California is more hot/humid, so it needs a higher octane rating, while Colorado is at a very high elevation so you can get away with 85 octane there. Keep in mind that octane rating only rates resistance to "knock". Ethanol has a high octane rating, allowing jobbers (fuel wholesalers) to use a cheaper base fuel (less octane) when blending with ethanol to get the same overall octane rating for each load of fuel. However, ethanol also has less energy then straight gasoline, so a vehicle without modern O2 sensors and computer control will run leaner on oxygenated (ethanol added) fuel, which may contribute to poor running and pinging. Another issue is that ethanol evaporates extremely easily, making modern fuel much more sensitive to age. There can also be slight variations in what kind of mix you get one time to the next. When transporting fuel through a pipeline they run each type of product (straight, high, diesel) one after another, theoretically diverting the portions where they have mixed into a separate tank. Sometimes this doesn't get done perfectly. This sounds weird but it isn't a bad idea to sniff the nozzle before you stick it in your car, especially with a diesel pickup where the effect of having some gasoline mixed into your diesel can be extremely punitive. Sorry for the long post. Jcamper

[Ron61]

Originally Posted by Rick Parker

Those of you that are familiar with the fuel industry I have a good question for you? Why do some states offer higher octane rated fuels than others?

On another note


Ron: With as unreliable as the older cars used are, that 40 year old (69) (Torino) Cobra with over 40,000 miles on it is seriously on the verge of becoming a REAL problem for you, It could leave you stranded on the way to the Mini Mart or the Grocery store. This is not safe for you especially with all the incorrigables, and druggies on the streets and keep in mind that the state is now realeasing convicts for good behavior (lots of those up your way too) you should consider a more reliable mode of transportation for you and your friends and pets. Driving in that "OLD" car just isn't safe anymore. Think of how unsafe the "Old" tires on it are(?). The problem with fuel etc. Give me a call and I'll help you either find a charity (they can do wonders for people less fortunate) and the car would go to a good home. Just imagine, as big as it is any one of these families with 6 or 8 kids, single parent chain smoking types could get all the kids in it at one time and make only one trip to the free clinic for medical care. So please give me a call.

Rick,

That is one problem that I have no trouble living with. The 110 leaded racing gas takes care of it and I never drive it more than 40 or 50 miles at a time any more. In fact I have been waiting for some good weather to take it out for a short spin as it has been 2 months now since I last drove it. Funny that you should mention it. My best friends brother in law is down from Washington for the car show and he was asking me about it this morning and if I was going to ever sell it. I also got an invitation to bring it back over to the Finish Line car show next month. That is only about a 6 mile drive.

Ron