# Shell vpower nitro for old car **URL:** \ **Category:** General Discussion\ **Created:** [April 12, 2016, 5:38am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010 "2016-04-12T05:38:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![xaml](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/2bfe46/32.png) [@xaml](https://community.cartalk.com/u/xaml)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 5:38am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/1 "2016-04-12T05:38:15Z")
2000 corolla with 75k miles racking on 500miles a week, rpm around 2500-3000. Is it better for the engine to use a higher octane fuel like shell vpower nitro? ---
**Author:** ![VOLVO-V70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/8e8cbc/32.png) [@VOLVO-V70](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VOLVO-V70)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 5:42am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/2 "2016-04-12T05:42:32Z")
Only if you want to spend extra money for fuel for no reason. ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 5:50am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/3 "2016-04-12T05:50:37Z")
+1 to Volvo’s post. A 2000 Corolla has no need for and will not benefit from “Shell VPower Nitro”… or any other high octane gas with “roto-rooter scrubbers” (I made that one up… it’s no more ridiculous that “VPower Nitro”). ---
**Author:** ![B.L.E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/848f3c/32.png) [@B.L.E](https://community.cartalk.com/u/B.L.E)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 6:26am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/4 "2016-04-12T06:26:23Z")
> (I made that one up.... it's no more ridiculous that "VPower Nitro"). Maybe it dissolves tiger fur left over from when everybody was putting tigers in their tanks. ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 6:39am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/5 "2016-04-12T06:39:52Z")
LOL, sounds like another thread wherein someone quoted an old sign motto saying that… was that you??? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![UncleTurbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e9a140/32.png) [@UncleTurbo](https://community.cartalk.com/u/UncleTurbo)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 6:56am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/6 "2016-04-12T06:56:23Z")
No. ---
**Author:** ![B.L.E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/848f3c/32.png) [@B.L.E](https://community.cartalk.com/u/B.L.E)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 6:59am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/7 "2016-04-12T06:59:59Z")
No but I did read that thread and I’ll admit that’s where I got the idea for that reply. I never figured out what they mean by “Nitro”. Nitro-what? Is “nitro” something you really want in gasoline? The air the engine breaths is about 79% nitrogen, why does gasoline that’s mixed with that air need it? And “V-power”, why not W-power or Omega power? ---
**Author:** ![Yosemite](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/yosemite/32/643_2.png) [@Yosemite](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Yosemite)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 9:39am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/8 "2016-04-12T09:39:26Z")
shell vpower nitro!!! That’s what they use in the “Dyson Digital motors” in their vacuum cleaners. Digital motors??? What a sales gimmick!!! That’s right up there with the carbonless brushes in motors so there is no carbon emissions. Yosemite ---
**Author:** ![Docnick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Docnick](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Docnick)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 5:27pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/9 "2016-04-12T17:27:07Z")
This car was designed to run on regular gas because it is an ECONOMY CAR! Therefore you would be wasting money putting a premium product in the tank. Read the manual and you will see the OCTANE requirement for your gas. Any regular gas from a reputable supplier will do. Premium will not get you more miles per gallon either; the engine is not designed for premium gas. ---
**Author:** ![texases](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/texases/32/862_2.png) [@texases](https://community.cartalk.com/u/texases)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 6:09pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/10 "2016-04-12T18:09:22Z")
No, one more time. The ‘Nitro’ comes from the nitrogen-containing detergent Shell uses. ---
**Author:** ![VDCdriver](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/vdcdriver/32/30_2.png) [@VDCdriver](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VDCdriver)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 6:32pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/11 "2016-04-12T18:32:10Z")
The OP has been given a lot of good, valid advice. Now, we are just left to wonder about the cryptic mention of “2,500-3,000 RPM”. Hopefully, the OP wanted us to understand that the engine is frequently turning at that speed during a high-speed drive. In that case, there is nothing to worry about. On the other hand, if those high revs are taking place at lower speeds, then…there is a problem that we can discuss. ---
**Author:** ![common-sense-answer](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/common-sense-answer/32/716_2.png) [@common-sense-answer](https://community.cartalk.com/u/common-sense-answer)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 6:38pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/12 "2016-04-12T18:38:23Z")
_**@xaml As Others Have Pointed Out The Car Won’t Benefit From Higher Octane Gasoline.**_ If You Want To “Throw Your ~~Dog~~ Car A ~~Bone~~ Treat,” Then Make Sure You Keep Clean Oil In The Engine! Some older Toyotas were more susceptible to **engines dying earlier than expected deaths** because of **oil sludge** formation in the engine. Toyota settled a class-action lawsuit resulting from this. Although the Corolla was not specifically listed in the settlement many owners felt their engines had the problem. (see links below). Why take a chance? Besides, you have extra money from not buying fancy gas. You can help the engine by frequently changing the oil and checking it often and adding oil if it ever needs some. If this was my car I would run full synthetic motor oil in it all the time, and use the viscosity called for in the Owner’s Manual. If you take care I don’t think you’ll have any problems. You’ll feel better and your car will thank you, too! [http://www.toyoland.com/sludge.html](http://www.toyoland.com/sludge.html) > **[Toyota Settles Class Action On Engine Sludge - Sludge!](https://www.corolland.com/forums/index.php?/topic/20165-toyota-settles-class-action-on-engine-sludge/)** > > Toyota Settles Class Action On Engine Sludge - posted in Sludge!: Copied From Automotive News > > LOS ANGELES -- Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc. has quietly settled a class-action lawsuit that covers about 3.5 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles that may... > **[New Sludge Articles - Sludge!](https://www.corolland.com/forums/index.php?/topic/17769-new-sludge-articles/)** > > Page 1 of 5 - New Sludge Articles - posted in Sludge!: Thought some recent articles on sludge may be of... [http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/cars/car-parts-and-accessories/engine-sludge/index.htm](http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/cars/car-parts-and-accessories/engine-sludge/index.htm) _ **CSA** _ ---
**Author:** ![BillRussell](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/billrussell/32/3179_2.png) [@BillRussell](https://community.cartalk.com/u/BillRussell)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 6:38pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/13 "2016-04-12T18:38:51Z")
I think the “nitro” is a marketing allusion to nitro powered cars. It is an abbreviation for Nitromethane. ---
**Author:** ![texases](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/texases/32/862_2.png) [@texases](https://community.cartalk.com/u/texases)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 6:48pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/14 "2016-04-12T18:48:58Z")
No, it’s the nitrogen in the detergent. But I’m sure they like folks to think about nitromethane, nitroglycerine, etc: “Shell V-Power NiTRO+ contains the highest concentration of the Shell Nitrogen Enriched Cleaning System and cleans up faster than Shell regular. In fact, Shell V-Power now contains seven times the amount of cleaning agents required by federal standards. The new Shell V-Power NiTRO+ formulation contains an innovative combination of two key cleaning agents that work together in harmony to provide the BEST TOTAL engine protection you can get. It provides unbeatable protection against gunk and corrosion, and superior protection against wear.” ---
**Author:** ![VDCdriver](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/vdcdriver/32/30_2.png) [@VDCdriver](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VDCdriver)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 6:59pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/15 "2016-04-12T18:59:12Z")
When Shell began marketing this new gasoline additive package, I contacted the corporate folks to inquire about the nature/need for a new type of detergent additive, and I was told that it was in response to the problems that people are encountering with _Direct-Injected_ engines. If this additive package is truly effective, perhaps BMW & Mini owners won’t have to pay for a “walnut shell scrubbing”. In any event, the OP’s Toyota engine doesn’t have direct injection, and doesn’t need either that type of additive package or the increased octane of Shell’s premium gas. ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 7:07pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/16 "2016-04-12T19:07:37Z")
LOL, I’d bet money that the term actually came from the marketing department as a “takeoff” of and to invoke the image of nitromethane-using dragsters. ---
**Author:** ![Rod-Knox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a183cd/32.png) [@Rod-Knox](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Rod-Knox)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 7:19pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/17 "2016-04-12T19:19:21Z")
The use of “Nitro” as a marketing ploy goes WAAAAAY back > **[Nitro Express](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitro_Express)** > > The Nitro Express (NE) series of cartridges are used in large-bore hunting rifles, also known as elephant guns or express rifles, but later came to include smaller bore high velocity (for the time) British cartridges. The term "Express" was coined by James Purdey the younger in 1856, derived from the express train, to publicise the bullet velocity of his double rifles and became common parlance for many rifle cartridges. The addition of the word “Nitro” stemmed from the propellant used in these... ---
**Author:** ![Jova007200](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jova007200](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Jova007200)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 9:07pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/18 "2016-04-12T21:07:31Z")
I just love all of these advertisements for gasoline mentioning the various additives. They get people thinking that they need higher octane gas to make their engines perform well. It takes advantage of a lack of knowledge. OP, if you want to keep the engine up for many miles to come change your oil and filters on schedule. Oil protect your engine, not the gas. At least not any better than any other gasoline, since they all have additives within them. ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 9:55pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/19 "2016-04-12T21:55:42Z")
One of the PBS channels had an hour’s special on the issue, and basically what they showed was that the science of additives for gasoline is well matured to the point that even though the different companies do their own research the additives are pretty much exactly the same. The science is well established, and they all have evolved to the same conclusions, the same additive packages. The variations are in the marketing. ---
**Author:** ![chaissos](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/chaissos/32/2347_2.png) [@chaissos](https://community.cartalk.com/u/chaissos)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2016, 10:18pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010/20 "2016-04-12T22:18:37Z")
The Clean Air Act (1970) and as supplemented/revised (1977 and 1990), requires the use of certain detergents in (all) fuels. What the various petro companies decide to call them is largely irrelevant. They’re all the same, mandated by the EPA, and required to be registered. No one wants to research what exactly does what (and I can’t blame them - I don’t really, either). [https://www.epa.gov/clean-air-act-overview](https://www.epa.gov/clean-air-act-overview) In general, using a fuel rated higher than your car requires provides no benefit, and in some cases can work against you. Octane rating is based on the fuel’s ability to resist engine knock at a given compression value. If your engine is designed to run a certain fuel, sticking to it - as long as you don’t have any issues - is the simplest, easiest way to go. Also, if your car calls for regular, you might want to consider that most other vehicles do, too, and the regular in the tanks at the station is refreshed much more often than the other grades (except diesel). Premium tends to hang out longer than regular. > **[Octane Rating | Exxon and Mobil](https://www.exxon.com/en/octane-rating)** > > Learn more about octane ratings and why some engines need high octane gas to run properly. [http://www.caranddriver.com/features/regular-or-premium](http://www.caranddriver.com/features/regular-or-premium) From the article: > When a spark plug fires, it does not cause an instantaneous explosion of the entire cylinder's charge of fuel and air. The spark actually lights off a small kernel of air-and-fuel mixture near the plug. From there, a flame front expands in every direction, gradually igniting the rest of the air and fuel. This takes some time, as much as 60 degrees of crankshaft rotation. > > Meanwhile, the air-and-fuel mixture that the flame front has not yet reached is experiencing huge increases in pressure and temperature. If any part of this air-and-fuel mixture gets heated and squeezed enough, it will explode spontaneously, even before the flame front ignites. This self-ignition is called detonation, or the dreaded “knock.” > > Now for the chemistry lesson: Oil is a hydrocarbon fuel, meaning the individual molecules contain carbon and hydrogen atoms chained together. Modern gasoline is blended according to various recipes, the active ingredients for which include about 200 different hydrocarbons, each with a spine of between 4 and 12 carbon atoms. One of them, isooctane, consists of 8 carbon and 18 hydrogen atoms (C8H18) and is exceptionally resistant to exploding spontaneously when exposed to the heat and pressure found inside a typical combustion chamber. Another, n-heptane (C7H16) is highly susceptible to such self-ignition. > > These two compounds are therefore used to rate the knock resistance of all gasoline blends. A gasoline recipe that resists knock the way a mixture of 87-percent isooctane and 13-percent n-heptane would is rated at 87. Racing fuels with octane ratings over 100 resist self-ignition even better than pure isooctane. The octane ratings for regular-grade fuel range from 85 to 87, midgrades are rated 88 to 90, and 91 and higher is premium. [Next page](https://community.cartalk.com/t/shell-vpower-nitro-for-old-car/93010.md?page=2)