Your engine is going to be gunked up at the intake valves LONG before the inside of the combustion chambers. one tank of something once in a while isn't going to change the small amounts of build up in there.

All fuels have the same additives so there really is no "Top tier" gas. its all marketing BS.

 

but why?? it does nothing but waste money. My type-r says 91 or higher and don't even go with 93 unless 91 isn't available at the station.

 

All ECO does is make the throttle response terrible so you can't get up to speed as fast, therefor you might save a little gas. it makes very little difference in gas mileage. You can do the same thing in non-eco mode if you want, just grandma it after every stop.

 

It would be more correct to say "All fuels have the same additives in the specific minimum quantities specified by the Federal government." Oil companies can add other additional additives and/or add larger quantities of the mandated additives which they might feel will be of benefit to their customers. Top Tier is an example of this - larger quantities of certain mandated additives are required to meet their standard.

Honda recommends Top Tier gas for their vehicles because they feel that the additional additive strength that Top Tier provides is of benefit to their engines. You of course are under no obligation to buy Top Tier but are free to fill your car with minimal standard gasoline, typically for a cheaper price.

 

I am unfamiliar with the term "Top Tier" gasoline. I assume that it refers to any major brand, as in this list (?).

 

Well - What is Top Tier Gas and Is It Worth It? (autolist.com)

 

Thank you for that link.

 

Don't forget to buy buy buy Top Teir® today! -AutoList.com

 

never had a problem with 87

 

Neither my BMW nor Fit like 87.
Both show improved (overall) performance on 91.

Only vehicle that I wasn't able to notice any difference on, was my 07 Focus.
That thing was a total turd from the beginning to the end when I sold it.

 

Negative Ghost Rider!
All fuel must meet a MINIMUM requirement put forth by the Federal Government. The ADDITIVE packages added to this minimum requirement fuel are PROPRITARY formulas of their respected oil company.

Some fuel facts most people don't know...
1: Chevron makes the best fuel.
2: Chevron is NOT sold in Detroit.
3: Detroit auto manufacturers have Chevron fuel trucked in for all their engine certification runs.
4: Those tanker ships running up and down the coast carry fuel for multiple oil companies. Its one reason why if one refinery has an outage, everyone's fuel goes up. Being related to a tanker Capt. has taught me this.
5: Local Depots will sell gas to many different sellers, not just their own. Example, the Arco (yuck) depot in Bell, CA sells fuel to all the cheap gas stations as well as their own. The only difference is Arco adds their additive package as the tanker truck is being filled. Like going through a car wash and one person selects wax while the other person doesn't. I watched them do it and asked about it while doing in-frames.
6: Octane is NOT an additive. Its a RATING. You don't add octane to fuel. You add additives that changes the octane RATING of that fuel. Octane is a KNOWN gas that is burned in a lab as a baseline. Then they burn gasoline and compare the two. 87 octane rated fuel burns faster and hotter than 92 and exhibits lower emissions. Higher octane rated fuel burns SLOWER and is more stable in higher compression engines. These additives in a higher rated octane fuel can actually damage cheaper catalytic converters. Its why the cats for a Corvette is so expensive. An engine designed to run on 87 octane will actually loose power when running 92. The higher performance are not getting their power increase from the fuel, they get it from the higher compression/boost where a more stable fuel is required. (people are going to hate me for this fact).
7: If your car was designed to run 87, run 87. If you can buy Chevron; its the cleanest burning fuel.
8: If you boosted your engine, then you will need to run a higher rated fuel. When power drops off, have your stock cats checked if you didn't bypass them. A simple differential pressure test will reveal lots!
9: None of this is BS...as you say.

 

Nice book report. Can you site your sources?

 

Double post

 

Chevron 87 here still. Just about 103,000 miles, still average 38-40 mpg in horrendous Bay Area rush hour traffic and internals are squeaky clean.