Regular Vs. Premium Fuel

Brooksie365

Brooksie365

Well-Known Member
820
570
Worcester, Ma
Vehicle Model
Civic Si
Body Style
Sedan
Hey guys I am just wondering if any one runs regular in there si. Here premium is around .30$ more per gallon than regular. I don't want to damage the car but I am willing to sacrifice some performance during the winter to save some coin. Any input is appreciated.
 
There are ppl that think it's ok to run reg in a car that requires prem, I wouldn't. Neither would I run prem in a car that only requires reg.

I'm more concerned with running a top-tier (name brand) fuel, which in the long run will give better MPG from running clean-er, by way of having double the additives(detergent), than these cheap no-name brands.
 
Aw man you guys got me going today....

Brooksie, how much do you drive a month? You then have to ask yourself the question whether it's worth it to save that $3 per tank of gas, for me $15 per month by using an unrecommended fuel in the motor. Where does that $15/month trade-off come from, one less time going out to dinner, one less steak, three lattes in the month? The real problem is knocking. Yeah, the ECU in the Civic can correct for it, but I know from experience with my old Nissan Pathfinder, it DID NOT like anything less than 91 (yeah, it required premium, gotta love that VQ35) with both bad gas mileage and knocking. Do that for a long time and you could cause your engine to die at an early age, or cause no problems whatsoever. But with the high compression ratio on the Si, I'd personally just try to figure out where that extra $10-15 per month on what is a $200 gas bill is going to come from.
 
I do about 4 tanks a month I didn't know if there were any proven problems. I use Cumberland farms has witch is usually gulf. Is that ok gas for my car?
 
Ya with that about of driving your really not saving much money in the long run. Figure 3 to 4 dollars a tank you would save. And at at 4 tanks a month you aren't saving an amount of money that would really even be noticable. Ya it sucks paying the extra for the high grade gas at the initial glance but finacial its really not much in the long run.
 
There are a few who've tried it, but it's not recommended. You paid the price for the SI, you should be taking care of the engine as recommended. The .20-.30 cent price per gallon shouldn't be a surprise. Compare that cost, to the cost of a replacement engine from honda, and you're taking like 6 grand. Not to mention you'd be getting less MPG when running a lower grade gas. So you're paying less, but also getting less mileage per tank. It's a lose lose situation.
 
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I'm pretty agnostic when it comes to top tier or not top tier gasoline but not on the subject of ethanol. I typically use no ethanol fuel, which by definition is NOT top tier because it doesn't contain between 8-10% ethanol. The non-top tier gases still have detergents and additives because that's mandatory by the EPA, but the top tier fuel suppliers have agreed to put more in.

My deal is the ethanol gums stuff up, even in the motors through 2007, even in low levels, but more so as ethanol content increases. With the recent push to E15, the EPA continues to see problems with ethanol gumming problems (http://www.theblaze.com/stories/201...anol-gasoline-blend-found-to-gunk-up-engines/). So...I like no ethanol in my motors. Not only do I not get short-changed on 10% of my fuel by accepting 2/3 less energy, and I don't have to worry about the numerous ethanol problems.
 
Monk said:
http://9thcivic.com/forum/threads/5-driving-myths-that-cost-you-money.569/#post-153517

This is a list of top tier stations , they have about 15 to 20 points rating of detergent, virses those not on the list that only have "half" the amount of detergent additives.
http://www.toptiergas.com/retailers.html
Click to expand...
I looked at this list of top tier US gas stations, and noticed not one of them is anywhere in may area. We pretty much have a BP or Sheetz on every street corner; with the occasional Giant Eagle GetGo. I always put premium in my Si and the addtional $3+ per fill is really not an issue...I would not drive an Si if fuel economy was my main concern. I guess my question is, what is the consensus opinion on BP fuels?
 
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Blimpcity said:
I guess my question is, what is the consensus opinion on BP fuels?
Click to expand...
from BP Marketing - regarding top tier gas

I use a lot of BP gas and when I came across a BP ad touting thier product called "Invigorate" I emailed them and asked how did it compare to "Top Tier" gas. Heres thier reply. You can decide for yourself.

"Thanks for your note and interest in quality fuels.
BP's Fuels Technology group has tested BP gasoline with Invigorate and has demonstrated that all of our grades of gasoline with Invigorate perform as well or better than gasoline meeting the Top Tier standards.
Top Tier was a program started by GM and supported by a five other automakers. Ford (which recommends BP gasoline with Invigorate) and Chrysler and many other manufacturers are not members. The Top Tier program was created in response to one of the member's problems with fouling fuel injectors in certain models of their engines in the early
2000's.
To become a Top Tier gasoline supplier, the petroleum company or fuel marketer must submit their gasoline detergent additive to GM for testing at a certain dose. The applicant must sign a pledge to use that additive and dose for at least one year.
BP and some other major fuel marketers decided not to join the Top Tier program. BP's reason is simple: BP reserves the right to determine what goes into our gasoline for the benefit of our customers and does not want others dictating what to sell to our customers. We are confident that our gasoline will perform well in our customer's vehicles; in fact BP guarantees the performance of our gasoline in writing.
Thank you for your inquiry and interest, it sounds like you are interested in quality fuels. Why not give BP gasoline with Invigorate a try! It helps cars run younger for longer!
Kind regards,
US FUELS Marketing"
Click to expand...
 
Blimp City said:
I looked at this list of top tier US gas stations, and noticed not one of them is anywhere in may area. We pretty much have a BP or Sheetz on every street corner; with the occasional Giant Eagle Get Go. I always put premium in my Si and the additional $3+ per fill is really not an issue...I would not drive an Si if fuel economy was my main concern. I guess my question is, what is the consensus opinion on BP fuels?
Click to expand...
Actually, I like BP , I use BP or Shell most of the time, I think the main thing is to use a name brand. Being aware and trying to use good fuel with the recommended octane rating is about all we can do.
Not fueling at a station while the tanker is loading fuel in the ground tanks is one thing to avoid, use a station that have a heavy turn over of refueling.
 
Thanks Webby. Not that I have much of a choice. British Petroleum is one the oldest and most established oil companies in the world...so I suppose their fuel can't be that bad.
 
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Monk said:
Actually, I like BP , I use BP or Shell most of the time, I think the main thing is to use a name brand. Being aware and trying to use good fuel with the recommended octane rating is about all we can do.
Not fueling at a station while the tanker is loading fuel in the ground tanks is one thing to avoid, use a station that have a heavy turn over of refueling.
Click to expand...
Blimp City...Nice Touch!
 
Monk said:
http://9thcivic.com/forum/threads/5-driving-myths-that-cost-you-money.569/#post-153517

This is a list of top tier stations , they have about 15 to 20 points rating of detergent, virses those not on the list that only have "half" the amount of detergent additives.
http://www.toptiergas.com/retailers.html
Click to expand...

I always go to Shell V Power FTW! lol but I'm surprised BP didnt make the list, I thought they had pretty good gas.

Edit: Didnt read sorry lol..thats interesting. I like BP, I have a Shell station next to my job so I always get shell but I have a BP station close to home so that's always my second choice. I find Hess to be pretty good also.
 
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I always use Cumberland farms because I have the app that saves me 10 cents every gallon every day. Is there an additive I could add every now and then to add some cleaning agents?
 
Brooksie 365 said:
I always use Cumberland farms because I have the app that saves me 10 cents every gallon every day. Is there an additive I could add every now and then to add some cleaning agents?
Click to expand...
There's a cleaner I like called "Seafoam" and can be used in the fuel tank, as well as the oil sump. I've used it in my Jeep and had some clicking noise that went away with about 4 oz. of the stuff in my fuel, and would do that about every month or so............. with my MC I use it about 1 oz with every tank(5+ gal tank)(so about 2 oz to 10 gal seems to work). Also on my MC I have a "Oil window" for checking the oil level and though time could see the window getting that tinted colour, so right before changing my oil I put about 4 oz. in the sump and went for a 30 mile ride, came home and changed the oil ....Clean window...... that's all I know.........
There are plenty of cleaners out there that are good.... this is the one I use.
 
Monk said:
There's a cleaner I like called "Seafoam" and can be used in the fuel tank, as well as the oil sump. I've used it in my Jeep and had some clicking noise that went away with about 4 oz. of the stuff in my fuel, and would do that about every month or so............. with my MC I use it about 1 oz with every tank(5+ gal tank)(so about 2 oz to 10 gal seems to work). Also on my MC I have a "Oil window" for checking the oil level and though time could see the window getting that tinted colour, so right before changing my oil I put about 4 oz. in the sump and went for a 30 mile ride, came home and changed the oil ....Clean window...... that's all I know.........
There are plenty of cleaners out there that are good.... this is the one I use.
Click to expand...
So you run this in your EX every month? I have never thought to do this in smaller intervals, how long have you been doing this?
 
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