gas

[tuanle16]

there was talk about gas and ethanol. instead of highjacking the thread, i am starting a new one. but basic and hopefully simple question and answer. what is the best gas to put in your boxster? i assume premium. additives or no? is one gas company better than another? is there any i should avoid?

[husker boxster]

The simplest answer is straight 93 octane (no ethanol). But it's never that simple.

You could run 87 octane regular gas in your P-car, but the computer in your car would sense it and dial back the timing. This would cost you horsepower.

It also depends on what's available in your area. A few places here in Omaha sell 93 octane but it contains 10% ethanol. There's a BP station near me that sells 91 octane w/o ethanol and that's what I buy. If you're buying your gas from a convience store, it probably doesn't matter which one because chances are they're all getting their gas from the same supplier. Companies like Chevron (techron) and Shell (nitrogen) have additives in the gas which may make them more attractive to buyers or it's all just marketing hype - you decide. No Chevrons in Omaha but prior to Shell going ethanol, I purchased my gas there. Did I notice any difference after going to BP? No. As far as I can tell, she still runs clean.

And if you have choices, then you can let other issues (like politics) fuel your decision. Some people may never buy gas from BP after what happened in the Gulf last yr. My take is we had all the regulations we needed in place but our govt (the current and past) chose to ignore and enforce them, so I don't have a problem with BP. Forum members in Gulf coast states may have a different opinion. We don't have any CITGOs in Omaha but I'd push my empty Boxster 5 miles uphill to avoid buying a gallon of their gas. I don't want to turn this into a political thread, just saying if you have options then you decide where to buy. At the moment we still live in the greatest county on earth and we have the freedom to decide. My choice may be different than yours - that doesn't mean I'm right and you're wrong. Maybe you don't want to invest this much thought into where you buy your gas. That's fine too.

As far as avoiding something, the only thing I would suggest is a station off the beaten path that may not sell a lot of premium fuel. It should be safe, but who knows? Better to buy from a station that keeps their inventory fresh.

Hope this helped you with your question.

[tonycarreon]

i have taken something along the lines of 10 or so long-distance road trips in the boxster and have used diverse brands of gasoline / gas shops - exxon, valero, QT, shell, BP, sinclair, murphy, chevron, conoco, sunoco, pilot, hess, sheetz... to name a few

personally i prefer exxon (though i have political objections, i "feel" the gas is higher quality - go figure) but 80% of the gas my car gets is from the local convenience store - GetGo (a division of Giant Eagle, the local grocery store) and i honestly could not tell you one tank from the next in the way the car performs as long as it's 93...

(though once i believe i got a fairly "bad" tank somewhere in oklahoma as the car REALLY did not seem to like it - very low MPG, lower "power"...)

my preferences over the years have been for:
1. exxon
2. sunoco
3. bp
4. whatever else is available
5. texaco (pre-chevron)

[DenverSteve]

I have never had any one brand that gave me better performance/reliability than another. Some will say stick with the high-end brands like Texaco, Exxon, Chevron (your region may vary) because they have all the additives. I have found that using Bradley and any other "stop-and-shop" gas has always netted me the same results. I now usually buy gas from the same station that I have a relationship with because good service and friendly acquaintances are important to me. It has nothing to do with the brand.

And yes - run high-octane gas as much as possible.

[stateofidleness]

my car has seen Shell every time since I took ownership. I can definitely feel my car runs better with Shell (93) than all others. Exxon would be my next choice if I were stranded

[cvhs18472]

As I am a fat old man with a rear end to match, I cannot feel a difference in power from one brand to another of those who are available in the sticks, but as a cheap bas**rd I can tell you that I get a higher MPG using Shell than a cheaapie gas station. Ed