Comments on: Premium gas for your regular car: Is it really worth the cost?

By: Mike

Mike — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 16:49:05 +0000

I’ve been driving over 40 years too and have done close to 2 million miles. I have always used regular, except for 2 cars where the manufacturer called for premium. I have never ever had an engine problem either and put up to 300K miles (500K km) on individual cars. You are wasting your money if premium isn’t called for.

By: Morbius

Morbius — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 15:53:47 +0000

Been driving for about 40 years now. Way back when, I recall it was suggested to use ‘High Test’ gasoline every few fillups to clean out the engine and quiet engine knock. I’ve added ‘regular’ gas the odd time to my 2006 Civic sedan without telling other family members it was in there just to see the results and their impressions…they always notice a difference in the ‘knock’ and mileage. Been using premium in all my cars from my ’73 Duster 318 thru the Civic and have NEVER EVER had an engine problem/issue in any vehicle @10-15KM per year. Costs a little more as you go but as I don’t do high miles driving and having NEVER paid to have an engine repaired or ever having a breakdown of an engine for me it’s been worth it.

By: old george

old george — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 15:34:27 +0000

Beside the price, I’ve never found any real difference between regular and premium gas, except when it comes to Shell juices. When I fill my car with their 91 octane gas (V-Power), even though it has a bread-and-butter naturally aspirated engine, consistently gives me a smoother ride, noticeably more power, while still returning about 10% better fuel economy. So for me, in this particular case, yes it is worth the extra bucks.

By: Musclehead

Musclehead — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 14:47:35 +0000

I have worked for major oil at both refinery and retail ends. Yes, I agree the price of premium fuels far outweighs the production costs of additives etc. It does however increase your mileage, in addition to adding longevity to your engine. The real test of is it worth it, 2 identical vehicles, 1 using regular the other premium, over the course of 10 yrs with the same mileage. Compare engine repair expenses vs fuel costs.

By: Dragan

Dragan — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 13:38:39 +0000

Just pump what the manufacturer recommends. It’s as simple as that.

By: WastedPotential

WastedPotential — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 13:12:01 +0000

The same anecdotal nonsense we usually see about fuel. There is no reason to “upgrade” the octane marginally. Engines are designed to run on fuel much poorer than the regular fuel sold in Canada. Premium fuel isn’t “cleaner” or runs “cleaner”, the same detergents are in the regular fuel and the same amount of ethanol is added to each grade in the winter. Go ahead and believe whatever you want to believe, I’ll save my money while getting the same performance.

By: Justin

Justin — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 13:01:40 +0000

I run only 94, because i’m tuned for it, yes with a turbo this does matter, a lot. If i filled up with 91 my engine would most likely suffer catastrophic knock and blow itself up. Yes I have measured this, all modern cars have knock sensors, and when tuning you look to eliminate as much knock as possible.

If your car is forced induction (turbo/supercharged) and it says use 91, do it for your own good, the higher the boost the more you need that octane to prevent detonation.

By: A.S.Grieder

A.S.Grieder — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 12:33:47 +0000

Regular pony p*ss has 10% ethanol. Some premiums have no ethanol, like Shell 91. Since ethanol actually robs the car of fuel mileage and no ethanol fuels don’t rob mileage. How do i know my vehicle gets better mileage when i put 91 Shell in it. My vehicle uses more gas when 87 octane with the 10% is put in the tank. I only buy Shell gas yes there 87, but also only there 91 because of no Ethanol.
Worst crap to happen to the automobiles.

By: Doug from Calgary

Doug from Calgary — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 03:24:06 +0000

I concur with Jeff. Premium gas is a rip-off, to put it bluntly. Having worked in refineries, I can tell you that the extra costs for refining premium gas are about 3/4 of one cent, that’s it. In Alberta, the premium gas is 12 cents/litre higher (15.5 cents/litre at the Econo gas station quoted in this article). In Florida, the premium charged to drivers is 4 cents/litre more, and in New York state, it is 3 cent/s litre more. Back in the 70′s and early 80′s, Canadian gas stations were only charging a 4 cent/litre upcharge for premium gas. The majors will tell you that selling gas is highly competitive…that isn’t the point however when the majors control the refineries and can manipulate the wholesale price being charged to the gas stations for their supply of gasoline. WHY are we being ripped off in Canada? Maybe one reason is that the gas stations don’t have to advertise their premium prices, just regular prices. Why isn’t a political party (how about the NDP) tackling this issue?

By: jimster

jimster — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 02:14:51 +0000

Premium buns slower. Cheap gas goes bang.

Premium can make poorly tuned, often older engine start and run smoother.