Recently we’ve been seeing the same issue come into the shop. Customers are reporting hesitation, rough idle, and poor fuel economy. They say, “my car just doesn’t have the pep it used to have”. We’ve even had a few more serious issues, where the engine was burning oil and a knocking noise coming from the engine. We talked to these customers and found they were not using top tier gasoline, so before we took apart their engines to do serious diagnostics, we recommended a fuel injector/engine cleaning service. Unsurprisingly this has been a huge success.
So, what’s so special about Top Tier gas and why should you use it? Top tier gas has extra additives that allow it to burn cleaner and not leave excessive carbon deposits on your intake valves, fuel injectors, and combustion chambers. In the past Top Tier gas was only recommended for high performance vehicles but with today’s high precision engines, carbon deposits cause all sorts of issues on all makes and models. Currently eight auto manufacturers specifically recommend Top Tier Gasoline to their owners: Audi, BMW, Fiat Chrysler, General Motors, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota, and Volkswagen.
A Study by the American Automobile Association did a 100 hour test on various brands of gasoline and you can see how in just 100 hours serious the deposits already are.
PHOTO: AAA
In this test they ran the engine for 100 hours simulating 4,000 miles of real use. The engine was then taken apart, photographed, and its critical components inspected to see the severity of the carbon deposits. 6 Random Fuels were used with 3 being Top Tier. On average, Top Tier Gasoline had 19 times less carbon deposits on those key engine components.
On your next fill-up, take a look around, talk to cashier. See if the store you are at is using Top Tier gas. A penny or two more per gallon now could save you hundreds or thousands later.