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New diesel owner here, just bought my 6.7 on Monday. I’ve been doing research and have learned not all diesel fuel is the same.
Is there a consensus on which brand stations are better to buy from? I know to look for a station that moves lots of volume but am not sure about brand- they all seem to put their own marketing spin on their own products.
I've used Mobil for 90% of my fuel. I did my first fuel filter change at around 30,000 miles and my filters looked brand new (same with the next change). That was reason enough to stick with Mobil for me. And I agree, use a station that moves a lot of fuel.
I am with Pugga above..
Know your local stations and go where the truckers go is a good idea as they move quite a bit more fuel than the local mom and pop station. Not saying the mom and pops are bad but the higher volume most of the time keeps the tanks cleaner. Also use a quality additive every time.
Use fuel from high volume places such as your major truck stops like RaceTrack, Pilot, FlyinJ etc and then your high volume discount chains such as Wal Mart or Sam's. I mainly used fuel from Sam's and Wal Mart during the 7 years I owned my 2015 with no issues at all.
I found a Mobil off the interstate with commercial pumps and truck parking. I bet they move some volume! Do you think the commercial pumps feed off the same tanks as the non commercial pumps?
I found a Mobil off the interstate with commercial pumps and truck parking. I bet they move some volume! Do you think the commercial pumps feed off the same tanks as the non commercial pumps?
It's probably the same fuel. If there is ever any question, just ask the guy delivering the fuel to the station. The big rig pumps operate much faster than the regular pumps.
Near home I use Sam's Club. On the road I'm usually at a truck stock since I'm puling my RV trailer. If I'm out of town and without the trailer I'll use whatever looks like it moves a lot of fuel and has a good price.
As suggested by Senix, the TSD Logistics card is the way to go when at the truck stops. Otherwise, I use GasBuddy to find good prices.
I read somewhere on the boards that Race Trac wasn’t good fuel because there is too much bio diesel in it.
I’ve never really paid attention to the diesel pumps, is it the same as gas where they tell you it may contain up to 10% ethanol?
Most all diesel pumps are bio fuel now days. Wal Mart has the sticker as does Sam's. Ford has rated your truck to be ok with bio fuel up to 20% - B20. Ford also suggests you use full synthetic oil when using bio fuels. That is what most all stations sell now is a grade of bio fuel from B5 to B20.
You have to learn your local stations over time too. There is a Shell near work that I stopped using long ago because I discovered their tanks were full of junk and it had plenty of fuel rotation, my filters were a mess and was able to later reproduce it. Over time, other stations were fine and my filters looked good at 15,000 miles of fuel. Unfortunately, our local Sam's diesel pumps are like pumping cold molasses. The last time I fueled there over a year ago it was less than 1 gal per minute and this went on for two years, I even wrote customer service about the pump filters before I gave up. I don't have the patience for 15-20 minute refuels for a short bed! I too stick to high volume stations, I've never had a fuel issue.
Since it's your first diesel, I'll warn you to pay attention if you're going to the commercial pumps. They're made to fill the very large tanks of the semi's so they are a larger nozzle and higher flow. If you just set the handle and wait for the click, you might get a diesel shower. Pay attention at those pumps and listen for the tank filling up, then back off a bit.
Most of the commercial diesel pumps I've used operate correctly, just like the car pumps. But there that that ONE pump that didn't. Now I'm wary of all of them.
The DEF pump never seems to shut off quite right. And it's always crusty.
Thanks for the heads up. I pulled into the RaceTrac I would use this morning just to take a look at the notice on the diesel pump and it said may contain up to 5% bio and no more than 15ppm sulfur. I’m going to take a look at a couple more stations to compare before I need to fill up.
The main thing is pick a station that does a lot of business and turns over a lot of fuel. I made the mistake of filling my '04 Dutch Star diesel pusher motorhome with 100 gallons of diesel in a little podunct town in Missouri and I took on 100 gallons of diesel with algae. Long story short I had to replace a $600 lift pump, drain 140 gallons of diesel and dispose of it, clean fuel tank, change filters, clear fuel lines, and spend about 20 hours getting to and changing the lift pump. I learned my lesson the hard way. I use truck pumps at truck stops as much as I can. I also have the TSD fuel card and that makes things simple for filling up.
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