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$.50 a gallon is a lot. $10 a tank. ~ $50 a month. $600/yr.
That's if you are filling up every week. Personally I'm probably around three to four hundred a year additional expenses running premium. Or maybe 3 nights out with the wife and her choice of restaurants...
That's if you are filling up every week. Personally I'm probably around three to four hundred a year additional expenses running premium. Or maybe 3 nights out with the wife and her choice of restaurants...
Originally Posted by SW15LS
Most people who commute are going to be filling up once a week or so.
To be clear I run premium, but I can see why somebody would consider not doing so.
My work commute is 4.6 miles, one-way, but with all the other errands we do I still fill up the LS weekly and am on pace for 18K miles in the first year. I always tell my wife it is fine for her to put 87 in her ES, yet I always stayed with 91 in my car (except for 87 in the Sienna). My wife is "by the book" and ignores what I say and still puts 91 in her ES.
I used to only pump Chevron Supreme but have since switched to Costco for many years. Costco gas undercuts other Top Tier competitors on price and we get an additional 4% member cash back. I believe Costco only offers 87 and 91 though. Between those two choices I will always select 91, but it is nice to learn that fellow members have not experienced any problems after refilling with 87 for years (with the exception of performance on hills and inclines). If the price differential was 50 cents per gallon then I would probably downgrade to 89 or even 87, that's enough savings for an extra fill-up each month.
...actually, I dunno about 87. Not sure if I can actually bring myself to select that grade for the LS. Just a personal mental barrier.
Last edited by FatherTo1; Oct 3, 2017 at 08:05 PM.
FWIW Costco gas doesn't qualify for the 4% member cash back.
Really, teedub? My Costco Citi statement appears to say different and unless we're taking a road trip I pump Costco gas exclusively. However, you did help me see that it is 4% cash back on eligible gas worldwide! I never noticed that before. I believe though that it is still 1% at supermarket gas stations.
Last edited by FatherTo1; Oct 3, 2017 at 10:08 PM.
The 4% reward program is through Citi not Cosco. With the 2% executive membership rewards gasoline is not included. I also like their fuel and fill up at their stations as often as I can. They are on average about 25 cents cheaper then most stations locally.
In the U.S., Rewards are not calculated: (i) on purchases of cigarettes or tobacco-related products, gasoline, Costco Cash Cards, postage stamps, alcoholic beverages in certain states (including Alabama, Connecticut, Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee), and at food courts; (ii) on membership fees; (iii) on purchases not recorded through Costco's front-end registers and transactions done on or through websites not hosted by Costco even if accessed through Costco.com, including all business, consumer, and insurance services, the Online Photo Center, and the My Publisher website; (iv) on miscellaneous fees, deposits and taxes, including sales tax; (v) where prohibited by law or regulation; (vi) on purchases made by anyone other than the account's Primary or Primary Household Cardholder; and (vii) on certain other categories as determined at Costco's discretion, which may change without notice.
The 4% reward program is through Citi not Cosco. With the 2% executive membership rewards gasoline is not included. I also like their fuel and fill up at their stations as often as I can. They are on average about 25 cents cheaper then most stations locally.
Ah, I see what you mean. I forgot about the separate Executive membership clauses because I always flashed my Amex or Citi co-branded card for Costco ID and mistakenly comingled the benefits. You and teedub are right, if you don't get the co-branded card then you lose out on the gas cashback.
Last edited by FatherTo1; Oct 4, 2017 at 03:49 PM.
My work commute is 4.6 miles, one-way, but with all the other errands we do I still fill up the LS weekly and am on pace for 18K miles in the first year. I always tell my wife it is fine for her to put 87 in her ES, yet I always stayed with 91 in my car (except for 87 in the Sienna). My wife is "by the book" and ignores what I say and still puts 91 in her ES.
I used to only pump Chevron Supreme but have since switched to Costco for many years. Costco gas undercuts other Top Tier competitors on price and we get an additional 4% member cash back. I believe Costco only offers 87 and 91 though. Between those two choices I will always select 91, but it is nice to learn that fellow members have not experienced any problems after refilling with 87 for years (with the exception of performance on hills and inclines). If the price differential was 50 cents per gallon then I would probably downgrade to 89 or even 87, that's enough savings for an extra fill-up each month.
...actually, I dunno about 87. Not sure if I can actually bring myself to select that grade for the LS. Just a personal mental barrier.
That's too bad that your wife is putting Super in the ES, it calls for regular, she's getting absolutely no benefit putting Super in it. Super gasoline just has a higher octane rating, which means it has a higher resistance to igniting than a lower octane fuel. If your engine has lower compression or is tuned in such a way, you won't need to be concerned with preignition, so super fuel is useless...it's trying to resist ignition...not needed in an engine that already does that on its own.
That's too bad that your wife is putting Super in the ES, it calls for regular, she's getting absolutely no benefit putting Super in it. Super gasoline just has a higher octane rating, which means it has a higher resistance to igniting than a lower octane fuel. If your engine has lower compression or is tuned in such a way, you won't need to be concerned with preignition, so super fuel is useless...it's trying to resist ignition...not needed in an engine that already does that on its own.
That generation ES actually calls for Premium. All ESs before 2011 called for premium.
That's too bad that your wife is putting Super in the ES, it calls for regular, she's getting absolutely no benefit putting Super in it. Super gasoline just has a higher octane rating, which means it has a higher resistance to igniting than a lower octane fuel. If your engine has lower compression or is tuned in such a way, you won't need to be concerned with preignition, so super fuel is useless...it's trying to resist ignition...not needed in an engine that already does that on its own.
Originally Posted by SW15LS
That generation ES actually calls for Premium. All ESs before 2011 called for premium.
Yea, I should have qualified it as an 06 ES, and although it is smart enough to manage 87 the wife insists on the best for her baby, or at least as good as the manufacturer recommendation. Funny that the wife is paranoid about the octane she puts in, yet isn't so careful about where she parks or what she spills in the car. She is a kind woman and wonderful mother to our daughter. She takes pretty good care of me too. She doesn't collect expensive shoes or purses so I'm keeping my mouth shut about how much she wants to spend on gas. Besides, I'd be a hypocrite to insist she puts 87 in the ES when I won't do it in my own car, even if either car can handle it.
Last edited by FatherTo1; Oct 4, 2017 at 04:29 PM.
The 4% reward program is through Citi not Cosco. With the 2% executive membership rewards gasoline is not included. I also like their fuel and fill up at their stations as often as I can. They are on average about 25 cents cheaper then most stations locally.
Thats what I was referring to. We have the Executive membership where you get a percent back at the end of the year and gas is excluded.
Here is what someone AT Lexus had to say about this matter:
"As mentioned, it’s rare that new cars require premium-grade fuel, but two test vehicles that passed through here recently did -- or at least, that’s what it said on their fuel doors. As both were Lexus models, we called the company to see what they’d recommend if someone accidentally filled one with regular. According to Doug Herbert at Lexus, 'Required' is a bit overstated. Herbert said that both vehicles (an RC 350 sports coupe and an NX 200t compact SUV) will run on regular-grade fuel without damage. But since both the advertised power ratings and the EPA fuel-economy figures were attained using premium, that’s what they have to put (on the fuel door) as the required fuel. However, he also warned that continued use of regular-grade gas would cause the engine’s computer to back off on the ignition timing -- thus adversely affecting both power and fuel economy -- and that it would continue to do so for a time even after the car is filled with premium."
According to LinkedIn, Doug Herbert worked for Lexus since 1998 and at the time of this article, he was a 'Field Education Senior Specialist" at Lexus USA Headquarters, where he developed & delivered product and dealer training for 'Lexus College.'
Besides, I'd be a hypocrite to insist she puts 87 in the ES when I won't do it in my own car, even if either car can handle it.
