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Non-tech, off-the-wall topic: Gasoline/Petrol, does grade matter?

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wreckedcarzz:
Okay, I know this is wayyyy off the beaten path of anything even remotely tech-related, but it's been itching at me for a while. I hope it isn't too non-techy for DC :P

As some of you may know, I'm a teenager. And, as you also may know, teenagers tend to drive. A lot. All the time. Sometimes every day! And while most of them drive a small vehicle like a Honda Accord, a Ford Escort, or something of the like (from who I know), some of them can occasionally be seen in not-so-gasoline-friendly vehicles. Such is the case for myself. Almost every other day I go hang out with friends in my dad's vehicle: a 2001 Chevy Silverado HD2500 crew cab pickup truck. And being such a large vehicle, it consumes gasoline fast enough that one may think that the gasoline is literally set ablaze in the tank when you turn the key in the ignition.

My dad tells me the fuel economy is the same going uphill pulling a trailer full of cattle, or downhill with no trailer with no cattle, and the wind pushing you down. I have verified the fact that mashing the gas at green lights, versus gentle take-offs, has absolutely no noticeable effect on fuel consumption either (this was done with several tanks of gas to nullify other factors in play). Aside from obtaining a smaller vehicle (which I am in the process of doing :D) I need to increase the fuel economy on this truck for the time being, so I started to wonder if the fuel grade matters enough to put Plus or Premium in instead of standard Unleaded?

TL;DR
Does the grade of gasoline/petrol you put in your vehicle make a noticeable impact on fuel economy, and if so, where do you go to purchase said fuel? I'm stateside so not sure if anyone outside of the US can help my specific problem, but you could help someone else by posting regardless :)

-Brandon

EDIT: Right now, I'm getting 6 miles to the gallon. The truck is rated for 8. Even if I can pull it back to 8 that is a 25% increase in money staying inside my wallet.

techidave:
Ask a racer if Premium grade performs  better than the standard stuff.  I am confident he will tell you it will.

we lived in Dallas, TX for 5 years.  down there they use reformulated gasoline or as I call it, recycled gas.   :D  They use it to supposedly combat smog.  The part they don't tell you is your car gets poorer mileage, harder to start, and runs crappier as a general rule. They mechanics down there will tell you to use a higher grade of gasoline.  I do believe most larger cities have gone to this.  I know that Kansas City was talking about it a couple of years ago, so I assume they have went to it.

On our trips home to Kansas, roughly a day's drive, my car started running better on the second tank of fuel through it.

There have been many gimmicks "invented" over the years to increase gas mileage.  95% of them didn't work or were very dangerous to use.  I believe you would be better off getting a vehicle that was designed for better MPG.

By the way, in my opinion, I disagree with your dad and with your experiment.  But everybody is entitled to their own opinion.

Dave

mwb1100:
My understanding is that the various grades of gasoline (the different octane ratings) have nothing to do with fuel economy or how much 'power' or 'juice' the fuel has.  The octane rating is a measurement that indicates how resistant the fuel is to detonation from compression.  If the fuel detonates to early when the the fuel-air mixture is compressed, you get 'pinging' or 'knocking' and that will hurt fuel economy (and can cause further problems).

Basically a higher octane fuel can handle a higher compression - that's why high performance engines will require a high octane fuel; they're designed to use higher compression (as that can give's more power).  But just using a higher octane fuel without changing the compression in the combustion chamber will not provide any more power - you're just wasting money.

If your engine exhibits knocking, then using a higher octane fuel might help with that problem, but aside from that, probably no benefit.

It's possible that the oil companies might claim that the higher grade of fuel also has other additives that might provide some benefit, but I doubt that's anything more than marketing.

Shades:
6 miles per gallon...that is around 10 kilometers. A gallon is slightly more than 3 liters, so that comes to a result 3 kilometers per liter of fuel.

Amazing! In a bad way. I expect to see those numbers when a truck is hauling 30.000 kilos of freight.

The sound of American engines (muscle cars), that is how heaven could sound like. But the consumption is appalling. Darn, combustion engines in cars should already be driving 100 kilometers per liter to be sustainable.

Ok, more ontopic now:
To my understanding, the quality of fuel does matter. Not necessarily in consumption, but also for maintenance. Here in Paraguay there is a fuel called 'Flex' and is sold for practically the same price as diesel (slightly over 1 USD/liter). But you can run your engine completely down if it doesn't "support" it.

For my motorbike I only use the good fuel (about 1.5 USD/liter) as I notice that the engine is more responsive and generally sounds nicer.

Granted, all this is anecdotal, so your mileage may vary...or not in the case of your dad's truck.

I never understood the US and their stance against diesel. Especially the distances one has to travel over there. In the Netherlands I had diesel cars that easily drove 20 kilometers/liter, even one that had no problem getting to 25 kilometers/liter. That particular Peugot 205 was from 1986, strong, dependable and a joy to drive. So it is not impossible to get way better mileage, even with old technology.

Ah well, this post is starting to become a nagfest, I'll stop.

eleman:
Here are a few general tips about fuel economy. There are no miracle cures like "pump gas for 2 seconds, hit the brake 3 times and signal to the left and your milage will increase by 50%". Fuel economy is more about the car (smaller the better, diesel the better, newer the better), and also about driving with less adventure.

For instance, when you think you will have to stop at a red light, leave the gas alone, and let the vehicle drift to a stop. Do not increase your speed and hit hard brakes upon the red light.

I know these are no brainer, but I have trouble making wifey apply such principles :)

That being said, higher grade (or octane) does not help fuel economy. See wikipedia.

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