Question:

I just got back from a rather long 400+ kms trip. I filled up my truck at a Esso with the usual mid grade and the truck ran great the whole trip to where we were going. Mid way back I fill with regular at Shell, shortly after that the truck does not want to pull well and keeps shifting out of OD to 3rd gear as it is suffering power. I stopped at a restaurant quick and the truck has a rough idle, pinging badly on power and has a bad hesitation. I made it home and the truck is still running rough, I have not driven it since but will be working on the problem this weekend.

I have been told by friends they have also had problems with Shell gas, possible water issues i'm told. If this is the problem what can I use to rid my system of water? Someone said gas line antifreeze has alcohol and that will do the trick, if this is the problem. Any other ideas?

Someone else mentioned I might want to do a timing chain soon ... I really don't know if it has ever been done. Truck has the original motor.

The truck Stats:
96 F-250 XLT 4x4. 5.8L Auto OD. 272kms

Any help would appreciated.

 

Sounds like your timing chain is due to replaced anyways but if the problem is fuel than that won't help. I'm not so shure that anti-freze will remove water. I'd try topping off the tank with your regular grade or draining it then filling it to see if your problems dissapear. You can get a fuel water filter like they use on boats that would definatly remove any water but if it's just a one time thing then it's probably more work that it's worth.

 

Put a bottle or a bottle and a half of dry gas in the tank and run it out. You likely got some water at that last fill up.

Water in gasoline is more relient upon the individual gas station than it is on the brand of gasonline. you'd be suprised if you ever spent any time sitting outside of a gasoline distribution center. You'd see a BP truck pull up and fill up from the same tank that a Shell truck did a moment before, which would also be the same tank that the Citgo, Spur, Marathon, Exxon, and <your brand here> trucks filled up from. They all claim to have different modifiers, which they often throw into the tanker after filling it. Of course that is for regular gasoline. The same is often true for ethonol blends and high grade gasoline.

A word to the wise, stay away from unfamiliar gas stations that don't see a lot of business. They often are more suceptable to condisation in their storage tanks. Also, if you pull into a station and the tanker is filling up the storage tanks, then pull out and go to the next station. When a tanker is transfering fuel to the storage tanks it will stir up any sediment on the bottom and deposit it into your fuel tank. Good luck. I hope you solve the problem.

 

I will check it out.

 

I'd lay it more on you I guess. I've got a 90 with a 5.8 that runs like **** on regular gas (our other two cars also). Between the inground tanks (at any gas station and the nozzle that you stick in your tank is a series of filters and sensors, you also have a filter in your vehicle. Not sure where you live, but with the weather most of us have been having, failing to keep your tanks full will have condensation build up. If your truck is still running bad, maybe try an octane booster?

Good Luck,

Dave

 

I'm wondering what happens when you fill up with regular grade at your normal gas station instead of midgrade. Your truck SHOULD run fine on regular grade. If It doesn't, i would suspect it's in the timing.

Also, what prompted you to use midgrade at the first station and regular at the shell if you normally use midgrade?

We use shell every chance we get... have had no problems.

The only other thing I can think of is what was mentioned by PMLEOW. Maybe you got sediment because the station just got it's tanks filled?

Let us know how it works out.

 

I just read what I wrote (or, how I wrote it). I sure didn't mean to sound like an *** or make anyone look like one, just offering a suggestion and sharing my experience. My truck runs noticeable different with regular, the cars just get worse mileage.

I have a real way with words sometimes.

Dave

 

Actually I didn't read it that way at all .... but thanks anyways.

I used regular this time just by default ... sometimes i use regular and usually on a trip i use better gas, as i seem to get more power.

I drove it today, and it has a little shudder when in gear(almost seems like its missing, this truck runs very well and I don't usually feel it running at all).... still pretty sure its in the gas. I'm going to run it this week and burn the tanks dry, then fill with my usual place.

If its still there, I will be checking my EGR for blockage also my new bosch plugs for damage and next play with the distributor to see if i can get the shudder to go away. If it go's away with playing with the dist. then I'm going to check the timing chain.

 

something to ponder. are you regulary using regular GAS, and the stuff you got at the shell station may have been E-85??
i have noticed both my parents cars and my cars and trucks run like crap and get 1/2 the mileage with E-85 than they get with pure gas.

 

I had the same thing happen to me and yes it was Shell gas. once I ran the gas out and went back to chevron no more problems

 

I use whatever gas im near at the time BP,chevron,shell,texaco,76,phillips,conoco,
and on occasion arco and never had any problems with any of them,and thats in my
89' f250 460, now my wifes 97' exped and 06' escape she only uses 76 and chevron
and agian no problems.

 

my f150 300 runs on regular anything but if i put regular marathon in my subaru it has a fit.

 

This seems to be exactly what has happened. But I will find out for sure next week once I have used up all the gas in both tanks.

Thanks for all the posts.
Keep em coming if you have something to share!

 

Happened to me once. I thought I had a bad tank of gas but i guess the TPS sensor took a crap about the same time I filled up and caused horrible drivability afterwards.

 

When Shell introduced the V-Power 93 Octane here in the New Orleans test market area ... myself and some of my VW friends used it. Out of 5 tankfuls from 3 different stations I had one tank, that after I left the station my tires were spinning and I had lots of power ... the other 4 gave very poor performance, my VW required 91 octane minimum at that time and is now chipped to 93, I will push my car past a Shell station to another station if I ever have to. I began using the Discount Zone gas and my 220HP Beetle ran much better at 10cents a gallon less, I now use mostly Citgo since that is what is available on the base I work at. My F150 and DelSol get 87 Octane, anything but Shell gas and run fine. I don't believe I will ever use Shell gas again, and they brew it only a few miles away. Oh ... and I stopped using Shell gas about 2 weeks prior to them letting a large quantity of fuel with too much sulpher into the Louisiana and Florida markets, which caused fuel gauge failures in about 70 percent of the cars that got it, you wouldn't know why the car wouldn't start when the needle showed half or full tanks. When my 1.8T pings or is sluggish that only means one thing, the station I paid 20cents or more per gallon more for 93 Octane ripped me off with lower Octane fuel .... and I have only had that suspicion from Shell stations.