Ethanol additives to gas depends on your state. Here in Minnesota, unless you’re getting premium, you’re almost always getting E10. Very few gas stations buck the system and offer regular unleaded or mid-grade without ethanol. That goes for top-tier stations as well. Not much you can do about that unfortunately, as the corn-farmer lobby is quite powerful in the breadbasket states, and it’s pretty hard to overcome their influence.
I do like to use top tier gas when I can (which fortunately is most of the time since there’s a Shell station just down the street from my office) but more important than finding a top-tier station is timing. Don’t fuel up when you see the gas truck at the station - he’s just stirred up all the sediments and other crap that should be sitting at the bottom of the tanks, so if you fill up then, you’ll be putting those sediments in your tank.
The only way you are going to find out is by looking at the pumps at the stations close to you. Some gas stations will pay extra for fuel without ethanol, while another station of the same exact brand won’t, and will sell the ethanol gas instead.
Here’s a website to use to try and find an ethanol free station near you:
"Neither. It’s a government subsidy to the corn growing giants, paid for by us taxpayers. It takes more energy to produce ethanol than you get out of it. I consider it a scam. "
I agree with neither, but after that our opinions diverge. Ethanol is an inexpensive way to increase octane level when it is illegal to use MTBE. ETBE, or TAME. Here’s a list of places where you can’t use those chemicals.
And I also believe that ethanol is safer if it gets into the environment. It degrades quickly, while MTBE (and probably the others) persist for quite some time. I’m sure you don’t want to drink MTBE-laced ground water.
“Okay, I want to avoid enthanol. Does Phillips 66 and Shell have ethanol.”
It depends where you live. Some areas require ethanol by process of elimination. You can’t use MTBE in CO, CA, AZ, or WA. So you are pretty much stuck with ethanol.
It can differ state by state and region by region. Shell in one station could have ethanol and another Shell station could have gas with no ethanol. You actually have to go to the gas station as look at the signs posted on the pump.
This forum can’t give you the answer for your local gas stations. You have to go and see for yourself.
Yeah, buying gas used to be simple. Find an intersection with 2 or more gas stations, and buy from the one with the lowest price. Nowadays, when you pull into that station, more often than not, you will find a small sticker which says something like “may contain up to a 10% blend of ethanol”. So the gas is a few cents cheaper, but your mileage will be a little lower. So are you really saving money?? I consider it deceptive and try not to patronize these stations. Also, ethanol is supposedly corrosive to the fuel lines on an older car built before ethanol blends became common, but this wouldn’t be a concern for a new car.
On another note, I was past the age of 30 before I realized that some people really believe one brand of gas is better than another. That was a revelation for me; all those years I never could understand why the oil companies advertised their gasoline, because after all, gasoline is gasoline, right? Some interesting points regarding ‘detergents’ have been made in this thread, but the skeptic in me says it’s 99% marketing hype.
Some people pay $1.89 for a 2 liter of name brand soda, I pay 78 cents for ‘store cola’, can’t tell the difference…oh wait, I can tell the difference…in my wallet!
"Neither. It’s a government subsidy to the corn growing giants, paid for by us taxpayers. It takes more energy to produce ethanol than you get out of it. I consider it a scam. "
I live in corn country. Yea, it was a big political issue around here. The farmers wanted it big time, but they needed subsidies (at several levels) because the cost of production (in $$ and in pollution are higher than the selling price once you include all the additional cost of the total production stream.)
I agree with neither, but after that our opinions diverge. Ethanol is an inexpensive way to increase octane level when it is illegal to use MTBE. ETBE, or TAME. Here’s a list of places where you can’t use those chemicals.
And I also believe that ethanol is safer if it gets into the environment. It degrades quickly, while MTBE (and probably the others) persist for quite some time. I’m sure you don’t want to drink MTBE-laced ground water.
[b] According to all I have seen, that is true. [/b]
To address the original question: Ethanol is not likely to harm you car or help it in any material way to you. Older cars tended to have problems with it in hot weather, but less so with modern cars.
QT says they have an additive called IQ that is a detergent above and beyond the EPA Standard requirement. Shell advertises V Powere as additional detergent. Phillips 66 advertises ProClean detergent. Why isn’t BP on the Top Tier list?
On another note, I was past the age of 30 before I realized that some people really believe one brand of gas is better than another.
I have a problem. I don’t know if I’m supposed to use Super Shell with Platformate, Standard Red Crown with M2PG, D-X gasoline with Boron, Marathon with some Milemaker ingredient, or Blue Sunoco. While pondering this dilemna as a poor graduate student in the early 1960’s I bought gasoline at a cut rate station where I not only got a free drinking glass with each 5 gallons, but Double-Eagle trading stamps. Apparently my car didn’t need all those ingredients or the gasoline with a blue tinge and I saved money.
I was driving the next best thing–a 1947 Pontiac 6 that I bought for $75. I never put in Shell gasoline with TCP. I found out from a chemist that TCP meant tricallo-tricreso-phosphate. I didn’t know what that meant, but my neighbor told me that it was the chemical name for Tom Cat Pxxx. I’m certain my neighbor was correct because he worked for Standard Oil.
posting is fun! I didn’t read anything but the initial question, lol. Anyhow, my two cents should settle the matter: it’s like the old adage “what’s the best gun for a gunfight? whatever gun you got!” Seriously dude, maybe you should like read the stock reports for each company, or find the one that has best squeegee’s or where you can also get cheap beer, those should be the deciding factors.
Okay, I want to avoid enthanol. Does Phillips 66 and Shell have ethanol. They are close to me and Top Tier.
Having Ethanol or NOT depends on where you live NOT what company you buy from. Some areas of the country are MANDATED to have oxygenated gas to meet emission standards. MTBE and E-10 are two ways this is achieved. Here in the Boston area…ALL gas MUST be oxygenated…We use to have MTBE …but that was extremely bad for ground water…Now ALL gas stations have E-10…no matter what brand…that includes Shell…I don’t know of any Phillips station in the Boston area.
OMG talk about stressing over nothing. My daily driver has 209,452 miles on it, it has been fed a steady diet of what ever gas is cheapest at the moment. Runs perfect, & I commute 97 miles a day back & forth to work. Dude just put gas in it & stop stressing over it in the long run it makes no difference.