Did that only apply to Cali. drivers? I live in GA and prices aren't too bad. $1.50 for 93 octane. Will I binifit from toulene as well? if I put 89 @ 1.30/gal. would that even be wise? I am taking it as 24-32oz. of toulene only brings 91 to 93. Or am I mistaken?
For a Laugh
- Thread starter nsxxtreme
- Start date
Correct on the 91 to 93 octane per dose in oz.Toluene is around $10/gallon in a one gallon can at a hardware store, about $6/gallon in a 5 gallon can from a chemical supply or paint store, or $3/gallon in a 55 gallon drum from a chemical supply warehouse. The fact that 93 octane is available cheap in your area as well as mine should prompt us to leave well enough alone.
[This message has been edited by AKUDOU (edited 19 March 2003).]
There are 3 pump location in bay area that sell 100 octane gas. They are in Sonoma, Redwood City, and San jose.
WHAT OCTANE RATING OF GASOLINE SHOULD I USE?
WHAT IS OCTANE RATING? I THOUGHT GASOLINE WITH HIGHER OCTANE REDUCED ENGINE KNOCK? WHAT IF I PREFER TO USE GASOLINES WITH HIGHER OCTANE RATINGS?
DOESN'T HIGHER OCTANE GASOLINE HAVE MORE CLEANING ADDITIVES THAT ARE GOOD FOR MY ENGINE? REFORMULATED GASOLINE Other References
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The type of gasoline to use is one of the most misunderstood areas of vehicle ownership. I am going to offer some ideas that I hope will save you a few bucks on gasoline.
The first rule of thumb is that higher octane gasoline is not necessarily better for your vehicle.
WHAT IS OCTANE RATING?
Octane, by definition, is the resistance to burn or detonation. The higher the rating, the slower the burn when ignited during the compression burn cycle of the piston. The higher octane allows for better control of burning for high compression engines. So we want to match the correct octane rating of the gasoline to the engine design to ensure complete burning of the gasoline by the engine for maximum fuel economy and clean emissions.
I THOUGHT GASOLINE WITH HIGHER OCTANE REDUCED ENGINE KNOCK?
It did in older engines using carburetors to regulate air/gas mix They cannot as accurately regulate the air/fuel mix going into the engine as a computerized fuel injector. Carburetors need adjustment, as a part of regular maintenance, to keep the air/fuel mix as accurate as possible. So many times, these adjustments were not made regularly causing too much fuel to be mixed with the air. When this happened the gasoline would not burn completely soaking into carbon deposits. This would cause a premature ignition of the gasoline due to the intense heat in the engine cylinder creating "engine knock." When this happened, people would change to the higher octane/slower burning gasoline to resist the premature burn, thus minimizing the knocking problem. And it worked. Good solution.
However, since the middle to late 80’s, engines are designed to use fuel injectors with computers to accurately control the air/fuel mix under all types of temperature and environment concerns. However the accuracy of the fuel injectors and computers is based on using the recommended gasoline for that engine.
Most cars are designed to burn regular unleaded fuels with an octane rating of 87. If the vehicle needs a higher octane rating of 89-93, there is documentation in the owner’s manual, as well as possibly under the fuel gauge and by the fuel fill hole. Usually you will see this rating for high performance engines only.
WHAT IF I PREFER TO USE GASOLINE WITH HIGHER OCTANE RATINGS?
You can, but there are no real benefits, other than the gasoline manufacturers making more money off of you. When you use a fuel with a higher octane rating than your vehicle requires, you can send this unburned fuel into the emissions system. It can also collect in the catalytic converter. When you over stress any system, it can malfunction or not do what it was designed to do properly. In the early 90's, an early warning symptom was a rotten egg smell from the tailpipe. Easy fix, go back to using regular 87 octane gasoline. The rude odor usually disappears after several tanks of gasoline.
DOESN'T HIGHER OCTANE GASOLINE HAVE MORE CLEANING ADDITIVES THAT ARE GOOD FOR MY ENGINE?
No. Government regulations require that all gasoline contain basically the same amount of additives to clean the injectors and valves. The only differences are the type to help create the different octane ratings. All gasoline burns at the same rate, it is the additives that create the different octane ratings for the different types of engines.
REFORMULATED GASOLINE
In some major cities with air pollution problems, reformulated gasoline is required. It is an oxygenated fuel, that burns really clean but can slightly lower fuel economy and engine performance. If your engine is really dirty with carbon deposits, it will also cause pinging or premature burn. In these types of situations, you may want to consider stepping up to the next grade of gasoline.
The bottom line is to use the type of gasoline recommended for your engine. In some cases, like towing, or other stresses on the engine, you may find a higher octane fuel helpful.
NOTE: I do not proclaim to be an expert in these matters, but am only presenting an overview of what I have discovered in my work in this industry with the different auto manufacturers.
Copyright, 1997, J. Daniel Emmanuel
March 20, 2003, 10:58PM
At the pump, what went up coming down
By NELSON ANTOSH
Copyright 2003 Houston Chronicle
Service station attendants should be out on their ladders lowering prices today, which will be a break from a relentless round of increases.
The steady rise in pump prices is likely to reverse course because wholesale prices on the Gulf Coast have dropped for seven days in a row.
The wholesale price for unleaded gasoline is down by more than 18 cents from its peak in early March.
All of the upward pressure has been removed from the market for the time being, according to Tom Kloza of the Oil Price Information Service. He expects pump prices to ease back downward.
"But don't get used to it," warned the chief oil analyst for the company that gathers retail price data for the AAA.
The pump price has been creeping downward, losing one-half cent nationally and 0.4 cent in Houston between Wednesday and Thursday, according to the daily AAA survey.
Wholesale gasoline prices are being dragged down by slumping prices for crude, which closed Thursday at $28.12 for the May contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
At its peak, oil briefly touched $40 a barrel.
"Crude is the mother ship, and gasoline is along for the ride. Another couple of weeks and they will be talking about gasoline, which has a different set of fundamentals," he said. Then the price will likely head back up.
The Gulf Coast spot market for regular grade, prompt delivery gasoline closed Thursday at 87.24 cents per gallon, according to surveys by Bloomberg News. This is down from 91.15 cents on Wednesday and the high of $1.096 on March 7. The prices does not include transportation and more than 38 cents per gallon in taxes.
There has been little change in pump prices because of uncertainty and the frequent large changes in wholesale prices, said Link Smith of Bay Oil, a local gasoline jobber.
"One day it is up 2 cents, and the next day it is down 2 cents; so nobody knows what to do," Smith said. There can be wide swings even within a single day, such as Thursday, when the early morning spot price was up 4 to 5 cents amid talk of Iraqi oil fields burning.
Smith said he has been in the business 30 years and has never seen swings like this except in the early 1970s during the Arab oil embargo.
"There is clearly a crazy market out there now," he said.
Last Saturday, pump price records were being set almost everywhere.
A spokesman for a group that sells gasoline at retail questioned whether crude oil supplies are really on the rebound.
The strike and its aftermath in Venezuela have put more pressure on gasoline than the war in Iraq because it is such a key source of supply to the United States, said Jeff Lenard, spokesman for the National Association of Convenience Stores.
Venezuelan production "is still not where it should be," and some of the recent projections were a bit too optimistic, he said.
Another factor in pricing is the annual switch to summer fuel blends. Each spring since 2000, this mandate has increased prices by 26 to 35 cents per gallon, Lenard said. It "puts stress on the system," which doesn't work its way through until about Memorial Day. In some parts of the country, summer blends are already being produced, Kloza said
At the pump, what went up coming down
By NELSON ANTOSH
Copyright 2003 Houston Chronicle
Service station attendants should be out on their ladders lowering prices today, which will be a break from a relentless round of increases.
The steady rise in pump prices is likely to reverse course because wholesale prices on the Gulf Coast have dropped for seven days in a row.
The wholesale price for unleaded gasoline is down by more than 18 cents from its peak in early March.
All of the upward pressure has been removed from the market for the time being, according to Tom Kloza of the Oil Price Information Service. He expects pump prices to ease back downward.
"But don't get used to it," warned the chief oil analyst for the company that gathers retail price data for the AAA.
The pump price has been creeping downward, losing one-half cent nationally and 0.4 cent in Houston between Wednesday and Thursday, according to the daily AAA survey.
Wholesale gasoline prices are being dragged down by slumping prices for crude, which closed Thursday at $28.12 for the May contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
At its peak, oil briefly touched $40 a barrel.
"Crude is the mother ship, and gasoline is along for the ride. Another couple of weeks and they will be talking about gasoline, which has a different set of fundamentals," he said. Then the price will likely head back up.
The Gulf Coast spot market for regular grade, prompt delivery gasoline closed Thursday at 87.24 cents per gallon, according to surveys by Bloomberg News. This is down from 91.15 cents on Wednesday and the high of $1.096 on March 7. The prices does not include transportation and more than 38 cents per gallon in taxes.
There has been little change in pump prices because of uncertainty and the frequent large changes in wholesale prices, said Link Smith of Bay Oil, a local gasoline jobber.
"One day it is up 2 cents, and the next day it is down 2 cents; so nobody knows what to do," Smith said. There can be wide swings even within a single day, such as Thursday, when the early morning spot price was up 4 to 5 cents amid talk of Iraqi oil fields burning.
Smith said he has been in the business 30 years and has never seen swings like this except in the early 1970s during the Arab oil embargo.
"There is clearly a crazy market out there now," he said.
Last Saturday, pump price records were being set almost everywhere.
A spokesman for a group that sells gasoline at retail questioned whether crude oil supplies are really on the rebound.
The strike and its aftermath in Venezuela have put more pressure on gasoline than the war in Iraq because it is such a key source of supply to the United States, said Jeff Lenard, spokesman for the National Association of Convenience Stores.
Venezuelan production "is still not where it should be," and some of the recent projections were a bit too optimistic, he said.
Another factor in pricing is the annual switch to summer fuel blends. Each spring since 2000, this mandate has increased prices by 26 to 35 cents per gallon, Lenard said. It "puts stress on the system," which doesn't work its way through until about Memorial Day. In some parts of the country, summer blends are already being produced, Kloza said
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