Does Gas Station Brand Actually Change MPG? 🤔⛽️

[Joaquin F]

Alright I can’t be the only one that notices this

I swear my Maverick gets different MPG depending on where I fill up. Some tanks feel like they last forever and other times the fuel disappears way faster even though I’m driving the same routes.

Sometimes the truck even feels smoother after certain fill ups and other stations make it feel kinda sluggish for no reason.
I’ve noticed:

• better MPG from some stations
• worse MPG from others
• different engine feel/sound
• some gas seems to burn way quicker

Curious if anyone else has noticed the same thing or if this is all just in our heads lol

• What stations have been the best for you guys?
• Which ones have been the worst?
• Does Costco actually live up to the hype?
• And is Chevron/Shell actually better or just expensive branding?

Interested to see if there’s actually a pattern here or if we’re all just gas station conspiracy theorists now
(Pic for attention)

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[Pointyears]

Top tier is top tier for a reason. Also, the two brands need to have the same amount of ethanol so you're comparing apples to apples.

 

[Joaquin F]

Top tier is top tier for a reason. Also, the two brands need to have the same amount of ethanol so you're comparing apples to apples.

What brands do you consider top tier?

 

[Joaquin F]

Alright I can’t be the only one that notices this

I swear my Maverick gets different MPG depending on where I fill up. Some tanks feel like they last forever and other times the fuel disappears way faster even though I’m driving the same routes.

Sometimes the truck even feels smoother after certain fill ups and other stations make it feel kinda sluggish for no reason.
I’ve noticed:

• better MPG from some stations
• worse MPG from others
• different engine feel/sound
• some gas seems to burn way quicker

Curious if anyone else has noticed the same thing or if this is all just in our heads lol

• What stations have been the best for you guys?
• Which ones have been the worst?
• Does Costco actually live up to the hype?
• And is Chevron/Shell actually better or just expensive branding?

Interested to see if there’s actually a pattern here or if we’re all just gas station conspiracy theorists now
(Pic for attention)

Is top tier gas worth the extra cost?

 

[MaverickDragon]

I noticed a difference between a couple of stations.
A discount gas station was 10 cents cheaper than the Shell across the street.
I noticed fewer mpg's with the cheap gas, on a very similar trip and the mpg's went back up after fill up from Shell.
IMHO, it's worth the extra 10 cents.
Full disclaimer, the cheapo-fuel was 15% ethanol, another reason why I won't use it again, but top tier fuel also has better additive packages than the brand X...

 

[Tbone289]

I always buy top tier fuels, and at least 90% of my fuel is Phillips 66 (or Conoco) brand. I track MPG of every tank in each of my vehicles, and I don't see any trends that any of the brands or stations I use alter my MPG significantly. Usually variances in MPG are noticed on the highway and are drag related due to speed or wind velocity and direction. Wind can make a huge difference with a moderately high drag coefficient such as the Maverick. MPG variances to city MPG for me are always seasonal temperature or winter fuel blend variations.

The brands I usually seek out are (in order from most to least):

• Phillips 66 (Conoco)
• Chevron
• Costco
• Shell

The brand I choose from those options are usually based on what's available in the area I'm filling up, and price.

 

[Pointyears]

What brands do you consider top tier?

https://www.toptiergas.com/gasoline-brands/

I tend to buy Sunoco or Valero.

 

[Steves2025XLT]

In all of our gasoline vehicles, Shell brand gasoline runs smoother and produces a slight better mpg than does Exxon here in my area. I quite using gasoline purchased on the Army base years ago. Bad mileage and the smell was foul. It was/is the cheapest price but I won’t buy it.

My diesel doesn’t care.

 

[Joaquin F]

I try to use Costco cause of price. What's everyone's opinion on costco?

 

[notaz3]

I use Costco unless there is no choice. Local Costco gets the gas from the Chevron refinery.

 

[Stickies]

What brands do you consider top tier?

Mobil/Exxon, Sunoco, shell

 

[Glen Baker LLC]

I try to use Costco cause of price. What's everyone's opinion on costco?

I've read Costco is top-tier gas.

Costco gas is officially certified as TOP TIER™ Gasoline. Both their regular unleaded and premium grades exceed the EPA's detergent requirements by five times, which helps minimize engine deposits and maintain optimal vehicle performance.

Sadly Sam's club is not.

 

[Nw_adventure]

I've read Costco is top-tier gas.

Costco gas is officially certified as TOP TIER™ Gasoline. Both their regular unleaded and premium grades exceed the EPA's detergent requirements by five times, which helps minimize engine deposits and maintain optimal vehicle performance.

Sadly Sam's club is not.

Good to know about Sam's- Being @ Elevation with a turbo I am pretty much stuck to 91-

 

[dochawk]

What brands do you consider top tier?

There's no "consider" to it.

Top Tier is a standard from a consortium of auto makers (Cadillac, Japan, Germany), and was created when they were going to release higher compression engines in the early 90s. It specifies primarily detergent levels that must be present, so that they could count on such as they boosted compression.

There is some variance between brands (Chevron claims to have significantly higher quants than the standard, for example), but the big difference is whether fuel has it or not.

You can also get it as an additive (e.g., Techron is a concentrate of what Chevron adds)

Is top tier gas worth the extra cost?

The higher the compression of your engine, the more likely your warranty is to require it!

It's also not necessarily more expensive: in the southwest, Arco is often the least expensive brand (other than the junk grade off-brand stuff), yet is TopTier.

 

[themartymac]

I posted this a while ago in another thread. There "Can" be a difference... Testing Top Tier Fuel

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