I have just replaced an injector on my Ford F250 truck at a cost of around $700.00. After reading Car Talk’s articles about top tier gasoline, I was wondering if there is a top tier diesel fuel on the market or should I just add injector cleaner every now and then to the tank of gas?
I have a VW diesel with over 150,000 miles; have not yet had the injectors out of the engine. I used mostly popular brands such as BP and Amoco before that. Some places not associated with an oil company sell Gold diesel fuel which is very good. I have used a lot of that too. Change the fuel filter per the owner’s manual.
I have not heard of a top tier diesel fuel and do not use an injector cleaner.
You may want to know how your injector failed. It may have been a manufacturing defect and not at all related to the fuel. Some injectors can be rebuilt if worn.
My diesel has a little over 400K miles with one injector replaced around 250K miles. I agree, the best thing to do is buy name brand fuel from a busy station.
I got to thinking (that’s what happens when you take the dog for a walk) that the $700 to replace one injector seems very high. As a comparison, I can buy one brand new VW injector for about $70, not at a dealer. A Bosch remanufactured injector is $50.
It’s possible that the Ford injector is very special and/or the problem was very difficult to diagnose. You might want to review the $700 charge with the repairman to see how it was justified.
Maybe it was the injection PUMP, but that would probably MORE than $700…
Modern diesel fuel from a station with good turn over (never buy from that station that everyone else is avoiding) is all you engine should need.
The government standards has recently changed and now we have ULSD (Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel) which is cleaner. While there was a rash of fear when it first came out over various issues like wear etc. That has quieted down
It appears the government got the requirements right. They had the opportunity to copy from the EU who has had it for years.