The closest gas station to my house is a Shell station, and while I normally don't go there I had concerns over making it to the next one so I filled up and went on my way. After about 15miles, my gas gauge quit. I figured the float had developed a hole and sunk again, but after 2tanks of gas from my normal station, it was fine.
Has anyone else had some odd issues with Shell gas, or is this just a strange coincidence?

 

I could not believe it when I read the thread, But my father stopped using Shell gas for the reason of crappy gas. Three times when he did use it he had engine trouble all threee times. I have stopped using it as a result but never had a problem with it myself as bad as dad did. I have noticed a little sluggish performance after filling up, but never really paid that much attention until now.

 

Branded gasolines are not at all consistent throughout the country. When I worked for USA Petroleum we had ARCO, Unocal and Chevron tankers filling up at our rack. In addition to all the tankers hauling for unbranded stations. ARCO had their own additive tank and pump at our rack. So when the ARCO drivers scanned their card, their proprietary additive pump would come on. Other major brands would batch their own proprietary additive into the tanker before loading.

Gas is gas. What brands it is the proprietary additives. So brand name gasoline is only as good as the refinery that makes it and that is not always a name brand.

 

Each part of the country may also have different emissions requirements, so ethanol percent, vapor pressure and other specifications could be different. Here in CA, RFG II means that Scott is right, its all the same, except the detergents. In other parts, it may be different. The Los Angeles area has at least one refinery owned by each company, BP (ARCO), Chevron, Conoco (76), ExxonMobil, Shell and Valero, but Im sure they still share product from time to time. I've never noticed a difference, but use only name brands to get the best detergents.

 

i think it is coincidence and maybe your patch failed due to coincidence or maybe the detergent pack ate it.

Yah gasoline is a commodity and the difference at the pump is what the additive package was when the tanker filled up.

I have driven for almost 40 years and never noticed a significant difference on any of my vehicles. I keep them fairly well maintained and run some fuel system cleaner thru them periodically so wild guess is my engines are running well enough that a minor difference in gas doesn't affect them.

Just my opinion,

Jim Henderson

 

It didn't fail, though. After a couple tanks of my regular gas, it's working fine.

 

I use Shell's unblended gas in my 2000 Ranger and my '69 Thunderbird. I have no troubles/problems.

 

If it's in that van, it wouldn't be the first time something strange happened with it...

 

I'm finding that every now and then- It has quirks, that's for sure.

 

The only shell branded station around here sells E10, and I avoid buying E10 anytime possible. There's a few Conoco/Phillips stations that prominently display the "Ethanol free" banners, and with the fines they would get for selling ethanol blended fuel without a label on the pump is high enough to prevent ($10K per day per pump) anyone from even thinking about doing it, therefore I tend to buy all my fuel from them.
I just don't like the idea of putting corn syrup into my fuel tank..........

 

All gasoline is E10 by law in much of the country, so there is no avoiding it.

Jim

 

Maybe not in some areas, but around here we still have the option to avoid it. I will continue to use 100% gasoline as long as I have the choice. 10% ethanol costs me 15% in MPG, I've checked several times.
21-23 MPG on E10, and 25-27 MPG on 100% gas.

 

I too avoid ethanol gas at all cost as its the older vehicles carb seals and my cars run worse on it. Unfortunately I'm running out of places to get 93 octane as well. And the last couple years I've had terrible luck with watered down gas. There are only 3 gas stations within a 25 mile radius of me that sell non ethanol gas and none offer 93 octane, 1 kwik trip, 1 BP and 1 phillips 66. I've gotten in the practice of putting heet and octane booster everytime I fill up, it's stupid I have to do that. My friends and I all have issues with pinging with anything less then 93 octane, but all the 93 octane has ethanol around here and that wrecks'em. Just my experience.

 

Which brings up the question as to why it's being claimed there is a gasoline shortage when there isn't that much actual gasoline in the fuel? It's mostly ethanol, detergents, and whatever else they decide to throw in...

 

it's an engineered gas shortage to raise the cost of gasoline, like they did in the 70's with the oil shortage to jack the price.