Techron Fuel Additive
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Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 727
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From: West Coast
Pole Position
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 2,035
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Name Brand gasoline and or Top Tier, that's all you need in almost all circumstances. Consume your fuel regularly if you're driving a PHEV like the NX 450h+ you will need to make sure you use your tank up within a certain amount of time, you will get a dash warning if you haven't done so. The reason is gasoline will go 'stale' over time. It will absorb water and some of the needed ingredients will decay with time. Pretty much all Toyota Lexus gasoline engines today are both port and direct injected, their engines are designated as D4S. The port injection will keep your intake tract and valves clean and free from carbon build up due to the detergents found in all gasoline today as regulated by the government (USA and Canada, possibly other countries as well) Auto manufacturers over the years have pushed to have fuels regulated and tested regularly to show conformance.
Fuel additives have therefore been rendered senseless to use as your engine will be cleaned of carbon deposits with your fuel anyways during the port injection use.
If you have a direct injected only engine, your valves and intake ports never see gasoline touch them so they will have a tendency to carbon up. Putting fuel additives into your tank won't solve the problem either. Some manufacturers, like Honda's engines, are only direct injection and don't have much of a problem with carbon build up.
The 2 videos referenced in post #11 explain what is going on inside your engine, and detergents are definitely needed in gasoline. If they're there in sufficient quantities such as in a Top Tier fuel, then you're doing your job at keeping your engine as clean as it can be.
Much more important here is oil dilution with fuel. This is the top priority of good long engine health. short trips, cold weather start ups, poor fuel quality, will all contribute to fuel getting pass the oil rings and into your oil. This results in poor lubrication ability and piston rings and bearings will suffer great amounts of wear. Change your oil often and use high quality, proper weight and grade of oil as recommended by the manufacturer and change it often! 5,000 miles (8,000 kms) or every 6 months.
Fuel additives have therefore been rendered senseless to use as your engine will be cleaned of carbon deposits with your fuel anyways during the port injection use.
If you have a direct injected only engine, your valves and intake ports never see gasoline touch them so they will have a tendency to carbon up. Putting fuel additives into your tank won't solve the problem either. Some manufacturers, like Honda's engines, are only direct injection and don't have much of a problem with carbon build up.
The 2 videos referenced in post #11 explain what is going on inside your engine, and detergents are definitely needed in gasoline. If they're there in sufficient quantities such as in a Top Tier fuel, then you're doing your job at keeping your engine as clean as it can be.
Much more important here is oil dilution with fuel. This is the top priority of good long engine health. short trips, cold weather start ups, poor fuel quality, will all contribute to fuel getting pass the oil rings and into your oil. This results in poor lubrication ability and piston rings and bearings will suffer great amounts of wear. Change your oil often and use high quality, proper weight and grade of oil as recommended by the manufacturer and change it often! 5,000 miles (8,000 kms) or every 6 months.
YMMV,
MidCow3
P.S. - Sometimes, you have to finally give up and replace your car. 250,000 miles is way beyond my replacement mileage for many, many reasons
Instructor
Joined: Jan 2023
Posts: 1,162
Likes: 653
From: Niagara Falls, Ontario
@TheCDN I agree with your factors toward engine health: short trips, clod weather warm up. poor fuel quality. I got criticized for recommending 5,000 mile oil changes, but I still think frequent oil and filter changes, e.g. 5,000 miles is one controllable key factor to engine longevity. I still strongly recommend 5,000 mile oil and filter changes.
YMMV,
MidCow3
P.S. - Sometimes, you have to finally give up and replace your car. 250,000 miles is way beyond my replacement mileage for many, many reasons
YMMV,
MidCow3
P.S. - Sometimes, you have to finally give up and replace your car. 250,000 miles is way beyond my replacement mileage for many, many reasons
Pole Position
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 2,035
Likes: 855
Everyone keep in mind, the fuel that is blended at the refinery is not the last step. The usual source of bad or contaminated fuel come from tanker delivery trucks or holding tanks that are used at station under ground. I've seen stories of diesel being pumped into gasoline tanks, and the holding tanks getting contaminated with water or rusting out. I believe they need to be fibreglass or a polymer now. Anyways 'bad' fuel stories are usually found to be at the gas bar not coming from the refinery.
Google ' bad fuel found at gas station. ' the list will be long!
Costco is listed as Top Tier:
you can search here:
https://www.toptiergas.com/gasoline-brands/
Google ' bad fuel found at gas station. ' the list will be long!
Costco is listed as Top Tier:
you can search here:
https://www.toptiergas.com/gasoline-brands/
YMMV,
MidCow3
Instructor
Joined: Jan 2023
Posts: 1,162
Likes: 653
From: Niagara Falls, Ontario
Be very careful, the link you provided, lists almost every station as top tier. Personally, I do not consider most of those truly top tier. You know all residents that pass the medical boards are considered doctors, but remember half are below average. Same with top tier stations, half are below average,
YMMV,
MidCow3
YMMV,
MidCow3
Quoted from Top Tier Website:
"Licensed TOP TIER™ Gasoline Retailers must adhere to the rigorous fuel detergency performance requirements. Be assured, the performance standard applies to all octane grades sold in each of the retail outlets, even if a TOP TIER™ Approved Gasoline sticker is not found on the pump. Please contact us if no pump sticker is found on licensed brands."
Pole Position
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 2,035
Likes: 855
I would urge anyone who believes that Top Tier's website listing of brands that have their rating is inaccurate (found here): https://www.toptiergas.com/gasoline-brands/ to contact them to express their concerns.
Quoted from Top Tier Website:
"Licensed TOP TIER™ Gasoline Retailers must adhere to the rigorous fuel detergency performance requirements. Be assured, the performance standard applies to all octane grades sold in each of the retail outlets, even if a TOP TIER™ Approved Gasoline sticker is not found on the pump. Please contact us if no pump sticker is found on licensed brands."
Quoted from Top Tier Website:
"Licensed TOP TIER™ Gasoline Retailers must adhere to the rigorous fuel detergency performance requirements. Be assured, the performance standard applies to all octane grades sold in each of the retail outlets, even if a TOP TIER™ Approved Gasoline sticker is not found on the pump. Please contact us if no pump sticker is found on licensed brands."
YMMV,
MidCow3
Pole Position
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 2,145
Likes: 960
From: Toronto, ON
Here in Canada, many (maybe most) of the major gasoline companies are NOT top-tier. Costco and Shell I think are the only major gasoline vendors rated as top tier, and they probably have fewer pump locations that the bigger players here. Not saying that the other bigger players like Esso, Petro-Canada, Canadian Tire have crappy gas (they all claim to exceed the minimum govt standards and all the good stuff they put into it), but we don't really know. I personally have never had an issue with bad gas from any of these guys. I suspect they feel its not worth the effort to gain top tier status as most consumers don't care. Because gasoline is more expensive here, many people will pass the empty gas stations showing "$1.56.9 / L" and line up at the one showing "$1.56.7 / L". Not because it will save them $0.10 on a tank of gas, but on principle because gas companies are all b@stards, LOL.
Its a long running joke that everyone thinks that major gas vendors have colluded to fix their prices. Usually all the stations are within $0.002/L ($0.005USD per US gallon) of each other within a geographic area and they change their prices virtually in lock step. There is even an independent website that tells you exactly how much the price will go up or down in the following days and by how much for each city, but the gas stations still say competition is alive and well. It seems Costco and some of the lessor known independents are the few that dare to offer different pricing. I suppose for those lucky enough to live near a native reserve, they do a brisk business selling tax free gasoline to us invaders (along with the tax free cannabis, these are truly full service gas stations). They are probably even top tier, Hahaha (the gas I mean, not the cannabis, although I hear its good stuff).
Its a long running joke that everyone thinks that major gas vendors have colluded to fix their prices. Usually all the stations are within $0.002/L ($0.005USD per US gallon) of each other within a geographic area and they change their prices virtually in lock step. There is even an independent website that tells you exactly how much the price will go up or down in the following days and by how much for each city, but the gas stations still say competition is alive and well. It seems Costco and some of the lessor known independents are the few that dare to offer different pricing. I suppose for those lucky enough to live near a native reserve, they do a brisk business selling tax free gasoline to us invaders (along with the tax free cannabis, these are truly full service gas stations). They are probably even top tier, Hahaha (the gas I mean, not the cannabis, although I hear its good stuff).
Instructor
Joined: Jan 2023
Posts: 1,162
Likes: 653
From: Niagara Falls, Ontario
Yes Droid us Canadians at least for the most part have respectable gasoline formulations. I’ve never heard of anyone getting bad gas (no pun intended) except as I referenced earlier with gas bar fuel reservoirs becoming contaminated with water or a mixup with fuel refilled by tanker. I live very close to a Costco so it’s my usual go to. I think Costco just simply went with a recognized standard (I think it’s better said as probably the only independent standard) and called it a day.
Our climate changes so much here and this results in changes to winter or summer gas, and we’re a small country by headcount, so there’s scant few refineries in Canada. I’m pretty sure they’re using a primary formulation for all and not mucking about that much to alter the formulation except for maybe Shell which has a few proprietary formulations.
Our climate changes so much here and this results in changes to winter or summer gas, and we’re a small country by headcount, so there’s scant few refineries in Canada. I’m pretty sure they’re using a primary formulation for all and not mucking about that much to alter the formulation except for maybe Shell which has a few proprietary formulations.
Last edited by TheCDN; Nov 7, 2024 at 06:57 PM.
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