Does Gas Station Brand Actually Change MPG? 🤔⛽️

[MaverickDragon]

Shell is always higher. And it’s from the same refinery as the “cheaply” gas.

As was noted, the refinery isn't the primary difference in the fuel, it's the additive packages.
As far as two stations getting fuel from the same refinery, that is pure conjecture on your part.
Fuel in my area gets shipped in from a number of different locations.

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[MavStangVa]

Depends on the location. In big cities, the bulk terminals are usually located right at the refinery. But in less populated/rural areas, yes each brand has its own bulk terminal.

Only 29 states have oil refineries with Alaska and Hawaii being 2 of them so pretty sure my gas isn't coming from there . That leaves 27 states on the continental USA so 21 states rely on bulk storage facilities filled via pipelines. I drove past a bulk terminal in Virginia almost monthly for 20 years and saw BRAND tankers and unmarked tankers sitting in line to be filled. Just what I have observed here.

 

[James K]

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...

Ethanol does not have the same energy as dino juice so E15 would be expected to give lower MPG.

 

[Probity]

I'm thinking there is less difference between top tier fuel brands, than between a top tier and an "anything they can get" station.
I've also noticed that the off brand stations seem to be carrying E-15 fuel, which I refuse to use.

I tend to agree. Top Tier is........well, meets Top Tier specs from 20+ years ago.

I'll be interested to see when the new "Top Tier +" branded fuel makes it to my area (south Louisiana). Evidently bp and Amoco and Costco now market this "new" spec TOP TIER™ Announces New TOP TIER™+ Standard - TOP TIER™

I looked a bit into the 'new' Top Tier + last November. (51) Top Tier+ Gasoline | Page 3 | MaverickTruckClub - 2022+ Ford Maverick Pickup Forum, News, Owners, Discussions , post 32.

To repeat a bit of it, as far as gas additives go, what Top Tier+ promises is kind of a big deal. Top Tier+ will require cleanup performance with regard to fuel injector deposits rather than (current Top Tier) keep-clean performance. This means Top Tier+ fuels must be able to help eliminate deposits from already-dirty fuel injectors. And what BASF says - "TOP TIER+ formulations should be able to help restore some fuel economy and emissions performance to even older-model vehicles".

Three ‘new’ test methods: 1st test evaluates injector deposit control by measuring injector fouling, 2nd test no increase in particulates from the additive, and 3rd test focuses on protection against stochastic pre-ignition (SPI, harmful pre-ignition event that can occur in modern downsized engines and potentially lead to engine failure).

The new spec requires 50% improved injector performance compared to a dirty reference test, measured through long-term fuel trim—a numeric indicator of how much the engine must compensate to achieve as-designed performance.

What sort of $ premium we'll have to pay for the "+"? Dunno.

 

[Zanky]

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)

Go to top tier gas stations, does make a difference in mileage for me

 

[Pointyears]

As was noted, the refinery isn't the primary difference in the fuel, it's the additive packages.
As far as two stations getting fuel from the same refinery, that is pure conjecture on your part.
Fuel in my area gets shipped in from a number of different locations.

I have a vague memory of additive packages being added on a per-tanker basis. Dunno if that's fact or just my AI (Actual Intelligence(tm)) hallucination.

 

[Lone Ridr]

In case it hasn't been posted (tried to read all posts, this thread): https://www.toptiergas.com/#stations. This site will tell you which stations in your area are top tier. In my area its all Marathon stations and Costco. And yes, there's an app for that.

 

[piwtrnr]

Gulf gas is the pits,my mileage dropped 24% with a tank of that crap. Never again!

 

[MaverickDragon]

@Lone Ridr - Thanks for that.
In my area it's only Shell that's TT..

 

[Bandwagon]

There's actually a pretty clean explanation for most of this, and it splits the difference between "it's all the same" and "brands are magic."

The base gasoline really is pooled. Fuel gets refined to common specs, runs through shared common-carrier pipelines, and sits in the same terminal tanks regardless of brand. The gas in a Shell tank this week might've come out of an Exxon refinery, a Conoco one next week, and an actual Shell refinery the week after. So at the molecule level, the discount station and the Shell across the street are very likely pulling identical base fuel from the same rack.

What makes it "branded" happens in the last step: when the tanker loads, each brand injects its own additive package (Techron, Synergy, Shell's Nitrogen Enriched, etc.). But here's the key part — those additives are detergents, under ~1% of volume. Their job is keeping injectors and intake valves clean over thousands of miles. They don't change the energy content of the fuel, so they're not what's moving your MPG tank-to-tank.

The thing that actually does change MPG per tank is ethanol content. E15 has less energy per gallon than E10, full stop — that's physics, not perception. That's almost certainly what's behind the discount-station mpg drop someone mentioned: the cheap stuff was 15% ethanol vs the Shell's 10%. Match the ethanol first, or you're not comparing the same fuel.

So the real takeaway: Top Tier (Shell, Chevron, Costco, Exxon, etc.) is worth it for long-term engine cleanliness — 2-3x the EPA detergent minimum, and it matters more on direct-injection engines like our EcoBoost. But that's a slow, deposit-over-miles benefit, not a "feels smoother right after fill-up" thing. If a tank felt different immediately, that's ethanol % or just normal variance (temp, traffic, terrain, winter blend) far more than brand.

Pooled base fuel, brand-specific detergents, and ethanol % as the real MPG lever. Not a conspiracy, just the supply chain.

 

[MaverickDragon]

@Bandwagon - Well said.
I'd add to your ethanol comment that at least in my area, "cheap" gas in the places I get fuel, seem to be those with 15% ethanol, and the name brand gas has 10%, so it isn't possible to get an apples to apples mpg comparison.

Again, as you stated, ethanol has a lower energy content, so the fact that higher content ethanol fuel will provide poorer mileage is a given.
It also makes the modest difference in price a better deal at only 10 cents more per gallon for me when purchasing top tier fuel locally.

 

[lanceoak]

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)

Back in the day my EX worked in the office at the Gulf Oil refinery. She noticed it was not only Gulf Oil tankers that loaded up. Other brands loaded there as well. I assume the oil companies had an agreement to share refineries to reduce costs. I think a lot of the additive stuff is just hype to sell the product. We don't have the same number of refineries in our area that we had back then.

 

[A112358]

Back in the day my EX worked in the office at the Gulf Oil refinery. She noticed it was not only Gulf Oil tankers that loaded up. Other brands loaded there as well. I assume the oil companies had an agreement to share refineries to reduce costs. I think a lot of the additive stuff is just hype to sell the product. We don't have the same number of refineries in our area that we had back then.

I mentioned Refinery Exchange Agreements earlier.
Yes, for the most part the additives are different but very similar, such as Tide vs. Gain laundry detergent or Coke vs. Pepsi, etc.

 

[K9 Warrior]

What brands do you consider top tier?

Use your search engine and ask which brand are top-tier.

 

[HeyBales]

E-15 a noticeable difference in mileage to E-10?
Good luck.

Did this math for another group saying it was the reason for a loss of 10 mpg.

1 liter ethanol has 21 MJ of energy, compared to 32 MJ for gasoline.
33% less energy per volume.
Who runs pure ethanol in their vehicle?! No one.

Pretend the old standard up to 10% was 10% ethanol then.
30.9 MJ for the mix - 3.4% less efficient than pure gasoline.
Ok - increase that mix up to now 15%.
30.7 MJ for the mix - 4.1% less than pure gas.
But only 0.65% worse than 10% was.

Ok - pretend in a gas guzzling truck - 15 mpg in prior 10% mix.
Now - 14.9 mpg on the 15% mix. oh yikes. (30 mpg would be 29.81)

$4.30 for 10% vs $4.05 for 15% price difference - say 300 miles then fillup.
$86 vs $81.54.
Only if the price remained the same would the efficiency matter - by dimes.

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