Which Grade Of Gas Do You Use?

MS_ES330 · July 12, 2004

What kind of gas do you use on your ES?

steviej · July 12, 2004

I put in the premium until the price goes over $2.25. Once over that I drop to the mid level. Right now premium is running $2.19 at Mobil/Exxon, which is where I usually go.

steviej

MS_ES330 · July 12, 2004

I put in the premium until the price goes over $2.25. Once over that I drop to the mid level.

Do you notice a difference in performance between premium and mid-grade? How about fuel economy?

amf1932 · July 12, 2004

Do you notice a difference in performance between premium and mid-grade? How about fuel economy?

I didn't notice ANY difference in performance when I used Premium fuel, so I went back to Regular fuel. If I did I would definitely go back to Premium. This is on a '03 ES.

The same situation happened on my '94 ES......I started using Premium when this car was bought new for about a year and then switched back to regular for the next 8 years with absolutely NO problems and NO difference in performance.

........and I'm talking about really driving the car and NOT babying it!!! Plus the fuel economy was virtually the same!

SKperformance · July 12, 2004

lots of answerson this question all over the forum

i wouldn't use anything but premium

juan01 · July 12, 2004

2.34 for regular here..... It hurts. :blushing:

steviej · July 12, 2004

I put in the premium until the price goes over $2.25. Once over that I drop to the mid level.

Do you notice a difference in performance between premium and mid-grade? How about fuel economy?

right now, only in my head. Absolutely no difference in fuel economy.

As for the cleanliness of my throttle body, valves, cylinder head and other internals.......haven't a clue.

steviej

Triggz · July 12, 2004

i would never put regular gas in my car, but i flipflop back and forth between 89 and 93 octane based on 2 things how much the 89 costs and how much of a difference there is between the two.

SW03ES · July 13, 2004

You should tear them apart and find out Steve LOL

I run premium too simply because in the long run it actually doesn't cost that much more, my gas is a business deduction, and the peace of mind helps me sleep at night. ;)

amf1932 · July 13, 2004

Read on Mcduff: ;)

Regular verses Premium

I have NEVER heard engine knocking using regular gasoline on any of the Lexuses I've owned!

SKperformance · July 13, 2004

and you probably will never hear knocking from using regualr gas in a lexus as it has technology caled knock sensors which will hear tehm before your ear and adjust the timing accordingly.

Because you don;t hear it doesn't mean it isn't there.

amf1932 · July 13, 2004

Mild or occasional detonation can occur in almost any engine and usually causes no harm. But prolonged or heavy detonation can be very damaging. So if you hear knocking or pinging when accelerating or lugging your engine, you probably have a detonation problem.

I don't hear any detonation with regular fuel........EVER! I guess my knock sensor is working. :lol:

jragosta · July 13, 2004

and you probably will never hear knocking from using regualr gas in a lexus as it has technology caled knock sensors which will hear tehm before your ear and adjust the timing accordingly.
Because you don;t hear it doesn't mean it isn't there.

Actually, it probably _isn't_ there.

However, the Lexus engine detunes itself at the first sign of preignition. So, under at least some circumstances, you'll get lower mileage running on regular (situations that are prone to knocking). If you're not knocking, there's no benefit to the higher grades. They don't have extra cleaning additives (in most cases) and won't make the car run any better.

That said, I haven't noticed any difference at all. Either I don't operate under conditions where knocking is likely or the difference is too slight to be noticeable. There could be a slight difference in fuel economy, but it's going to be too small to pick up under normal conditions (perhaps if I spent all my time on 55 mph highway driving I might be able to report something).

On balance, I've chosen mid-grade about 95% of the time. If the price gap is too high, I don't hesitate to use regular and if the price gap is low enough, I occasionally put in premium, but midgrade seems like a good balance between cost and benefits.

bdonkersgoed · July 13, 2004

I agree with the article totally.

Fuel grades have got to be one of the most commonly misunderstood consumer prodcuts. The big oil companies want you to believe that you are doing your car a favour by feeding it Premium gas instead of Regular (and hence the marketing words "PREMIUM" and "REGULAR"). Or, with Shell, Bronze, Silver, and Gold . . . it's all marketing. It frusterates me when I hear people with cars like Cavaliers and stuff say "I ONLY give my car premium gas!" because you know that it is definitely not required . . .

If your car says in it's manual that it requires premium, then feed it premium. If it says regular, then feed it regular. It's pretty simple. Personally, my '92 only requires regular gas, so that's what she gets, and I have no problems ever :)

Regards,

Bryan

tundra-lover · July 13, 2004

Agreed! Nuff said. The only real difference in other companies is usually the detergent additives anyway. No performance gains with 88-92 octane.

jragosta · July 13, 2004

Agreed! Nuff said. The only real difference in other companies is usually the detergent additives anyway. No performance gains with 88-92 octane.

Be very careful.

In most cases, there isn't any higher detergent level in the Premium gas than the regular.

If your supplier uses higher levels (or better grades) of detergent in the premium gas, that's a good reason to consider it. With today's 100 K tuneup intervals, your engine could probably use every advantage it can get.

The problem, of course, is determining whether the premium really does have more (or better) detergent addtiives.

gbhrps · July 15, 2004

The manual on my 97 says regular fuel, and that's what goes in the tank. The car runs like a dream, always has, and most probably always will. I'll use the money I save by not using premium fuel to help buy my next ES. By the way, my Nissan 300ZX manual says to use premium fuel, and that's what goes in the tank. I'll put my trust in the cars' designers and engineers. They built the thing and they will know its requirements.

SW03ES · July 15, 2004

It would be interesting to gather samples of each brand of gas and have them analyzed to figure out if there's a difference in the detergent amount...

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Which Grade Of Gas Do You Use?