I was talking to somebody who owned a Chevron station. I’ve noticed that Chevron gas prices are more expensive than Arco stations. Why?
He said that Arco gas was bad for your engine.
I Googled the question and found this: All gasoline is essentially the same. All of the oil refineries in the United States produce what is called “base gasoline.” The chemical makeup of base gasoline must meet a strict formula as dictated by the EPA. In fact, most refineries throughout the world are required by governmental authorities to produce base gasoline according to the same strict chemical formula as is used in the U.S.
Consumers cannot purchase base gasoline. All of the gasoline that we buy at the retail level has what is called an “additive package.” It is the additive package is that sets the various brands of gasoline apart. The quality of the additive package determines the detergent properties of the gasoline. A higher quality additive package will do a better job of keeping fuel system parts, such as the valves, the injectors and the electronic throttle, clean. If you want gasoline with a better additive package, you can use a brand that is part of the “Top Tier” gasoline program. The member companies of the Top Tier program have voluntarily agreed to only sell gasoline with additive packages that meet higher standards for detergent performance. The Top Tier gasoline brands available in the U.S. are: Chevron-Texaco, Conoco-Phillips (includes Union 76), Shell, QuikTrip, Entec, Somerset, MFA Oil, Kwik Trip/Kwik Star, and Aloha Petroleum. You’ll notice that ARCO, along with a number of other major brands are not on that list.
If gasoline with better detergent properties is important to you, it is not necessary to use the Top Tier brands exclusively, in fact mixing and matching between brands is a good idea, because doing so will prevent a problem known as “additive buildup.” However, it would be smart to use a top Tier brand roughly every other time you fill up. Whatever you do, don’t ever buy unbranded gasoline, no matter how cheap it is. No-name gas may have garbage in it that can damage your engine. There is always a name-brand station nearby with a price that is higher by only a few pennies.
