SickSpeedMonte

How come nobody has reccomended adding a little octane booster?

e1000

because it's just not that big of an issue.

LILBENZ230

As Eric said.. not a big deal.. but also, that stuff is a gimmick. 1 container of octane booster will raise the octane from 87 to 88. Gotta read that fine print.

LILBENZ230

It is my understanding that gas is gas on the trucks. It's at the gas station where stuff is added that makes it different, including octane levels and detergents.

Glyn M Ruck

Bottled octane boosters are a total waste of time - I've covered this before.

Octane levels are segregated on the delivery truck. Companies run a borrow/loan system so you will often see one filling anothers stations.

Proprietary additives like Techron are added along the supply chain so they only get into Chevron, Texaco or Caltex fuel as an example. They are expensive treatments & will not be given to the opposition.

jcnash

So youre saying that fuel of different octane levels are transported seperately...stored in seperate tanks and proprietary additives (such as Nitrogen enriched Shell gas) are then added directly into the gas station storage tanks?

Ive seen trucks fill up all storage tanks at gas stations from the same tap on the truck! Maybe the truck has the capability to route fuel from different storage tanks through the same tap...but highly doubt it.

LILBENZ230

You're arguing with a man who has spent his life working in the oil/gas industry. FYI.

jcnash

Wasn't an argument....just a clarification.

Thats good news...good to know that gas companies aren't ripping us off by selling the same gas at higher prices.

samaritrey

Glyn M Ruck probably knows the truth but would have to kill us all if he told us
this is why you use reputable gas stations and not mom and pops gas and go or gas stations at grocery stores. i would use them in my pickup or something but not a Mercedes remember you got to pay to play
Glyn M Ruck sounds shady so lets all go to shell i think he worked for chevron

sorry Glyn i had a long day so i need to have some fun you know we all love you btw which oil company did you work for i can't remember if it was Chevron or another one?

slammer111

I think it depends on the city. In Vancouver there are only 1 or 2 refineries for the whole city, and my understanding is that ALL gas comes from there. Sure there might be additives put in here and there depending on the brand which may do whatever's advertised (and I don't doubt that), but personally I think the whole "fuel quality" issue is BS, ie not having them is not going to cause your engine to blow up. I've run my car HARD (ie 5000rpm, full load, ripping through mountains with the boys) on 87 for hours once as an experiment, and I can't even say the car felt any slower. These days I use 90 in my car.

Been filling up pretty much EXCLUSIVELY at a non-namebrand place (same station) for 6 years and counting now, with 0 problems. Unless you're saying bad gas caused my steering wheel buttons to crack and my door IR sensor to fail.

samaritrey

oh i am not saying that the gas at a name brand place is better just saying that hopefully it will not have water in it or wrong octane or other problems i have seem in my area at least at some independent places. + the chains in my area are usually way cleaner and safer looking. but if you live in a town with a refinery then i am sure almost all your gas comes from their.

Glyn M Ruck

Gas tankers have different compartments to carry different grades of gas & even diesel on the same truck. This also helps them not fall over from fuel surge. Everything is piped through a manifold & you will see a row of levers to select what grade is discharged. Some trucks can even bleed the additive into the manifold. If you knew the millions of dollars Techron costs to add to gas every year - we would certainly not give it to an opposition station.

Glyn M Ruck

Local stations are usually supplied by local refineries - Moms & Pops do not see the QC demanded by the majors.

I see what you mean Sam

samaritrey

lol
which company did you work for?

Glyn M Ruck

Started at Caltex - 50/50 JV between Chevron & Texaco outside US. Ended up at Chevron after merger. One big happy family. Chevron/Texaco/Caltex

samaritrey

cool seems like you did very well for your self with them.

Glyn M Ruck

Yes - loved the many years of international experience. Oil companies are dinosaurs & some of the very senior management should be extinct. I think this applies to many large Corporations. But they were good to me. Caltex was a very entrepreneurial company blazing new trails across Asia etc. Once we merged things became far more conservative with mature market attitudes & risk aversion.

C230 Sport Coup

For Crisake....how many threads do we have on gasoline and octane?
What does it say inside the fuel door?
What does it say in the manual?

It says, use 91 octane MINIMUM.
I ran 87 octane once for about 50 miles, my car felt like it was missing a cylinder.
I sure as hell did not fill the tank.

The manual states it's ok for emergencies but to go easy on the throttle.

If I accidentally FILLED the tank, me; I''d siphon off to another car as much as possible and then fill up with 91. My car barely runs on 87.
I used to argue that the top tier gases were a scam too, but while the octane ratings may be the same, they don't run the same. But it became so very obvious....
I get a noticeable boost from Shell, 76, and Chevron premium.
I tend to prefer Shell. I seem to get the most oooomph from their gas.

Of course, keep in mind my engine is modded, and not just a pulley.
See my sig.

LILBENZ230

Splinter - my M271 doesn't mind 87 octane either. I can't tell a difference in performance or fuel economy. I use 93 almost exclusively but after so many of these threads I decided to just see what the big deal was about. I couldn't tell any difference whatsoever.

Iceman8984

The big deal about octane is denotation. I only run the recommened octane in mine. The higher the octane, the slower the burn rate is for the fuel, translation ... higer octane fuel can stand higher compression ratios or power adders (turbos/superchargers). More compression or power adders = higher cylinder pressure which = heat. Too much heat in the cumbustion chamber may ignite the fuel even without a spark. If your fuel ignites prematurely then it attempts to send the crank in the wrong direction while the pistion is coming up. For instance, if you have your ignition timing set at 23 degees before Top Dead Center without nitrous then you need to set it significantly lower when on the juice because the nitrous makes the fuel burn faster. The plug is always lit before the piston reaches TDC to start the combustion cycle.

Glyn M Ruck

Yes - we all know that - You did not read this did you?
https://mbworld.org/forums/c-class-w...er.html:smash: