Do not use Shell?

[M-Sport fan]

This thread will never die.......some tunes like Gorilla 93 XLT super clean Brillo pad infused kryptonite treated gas and some don't.....some use terms like "butt dyno" (a placebo) which I toss in the trash pile. A simple indicator of the performance of a fuel under normal conditions is doing a mileage test over the same route several times with several different fuels. Nothing has changed on my MP-215 2016. Shell 93 here with ethanol provides a 2 to 2.5 mpg loss over the best performing fuel of Midnight Oil (local stations) selling Marathon 93 non ethanol. That is almost a 7% loss in power produced at highway speeds of indicated 75 MPH (73 true speed) on cruise. BP here is second best down by about .5 mpg under the non ethanol.

As also stated Randy at Mountune had issues with Shell on that tune. Works great in our Coyote it seems, just not Fifi. You cannot compare gas from regional areas, the mix for ME is not the same for LA. With all the different mods and tunes what cannot be determined for YOU is "what is the best" other than opinions. The gas that burns the most efficiently will produce the most power, gas mileage is a free and simple test to see what fuel/mix works best with your car. If you race or acceleration is your priority then the 1/4 mile times would tell you much more than your anatomy by using your calibrated "butt dyno", LOL.

I am thankful that here we have choices. My "butt dyno" feels my daughters stock FiST is faster due to the strong acceleration when the torque pulls hard at about 4500 RPM. On the other hand the MP-215 pulls strong lower and builds without the jerking your head back transition. My FiST walks away from hers in third gear. I've been driving way to long to put faith in butt dyno's. I prefer numbers and visual data. My rotary Mazda's did not feel fast due to a fairly linear power delivery. But they were compared to the competition.
The most fun posts we have are the "what is best" oil, gas, tires, batteries, transmission fluid, radiator, I/C, air filters, oil filters....blah blah blah. And the answer is always the same. What ever pleases you is the best! I can provide a list of what makes me feel safe and secure in the longevity/performance of our Ford cars, I'm sure it would not match any other list.

As to Shell gas I'll pass by a Shell for Fifi and pull in for the Mustang. Gave Shell another test not 6 months ago and same results, still sux in my car with MP-215 tune compare to other fuels. I don't know why and niether did Randy at Mountune, The only quote I have seen from him simply stated the only fuel he had issues with was Shell and no further explanation . We know the numbers don't lie and are not subjective. I paid for my HP and will use the fuel that gives me the performance I paid for. I'm sure most others will use what works for them, human nature at work. As our Forum is predominantly modded cars now the focus is on special mixes to match special tunes and very important to them obviously. At home I use 93 non.....on the road any top tier 93 alky but Shell. Prefer BP for availability and consistency. I do not buy convenience store, supermarket or mystery truck stop gas unless I am in W. Texas or UP MI and have zero choice.

BTW this is not some rouge "tuners" opinion. It was expressed with data to back it up according to Mountune who had to keep their tune legal long before another "tuner" made their claims. I could care less about any illegal tune, that is not me. I lived in Cali for a brief time in '69 looking at and breathing the brown air. No desire to add to that pollution anywhere. To each their own.
FiST on!

Both Randy, and the other guy may have quite valid, verifiable, and empirical evidence of Shell being no bueno in our cars; factory, canned, or any other tune included.

That does not help those of us who do not have a Midnight Oil/Marathon 93 no alky anywhere nearby to us.

My local choices are; Sunoco 93 E10, Exxon 93 E10, and Shell V Power E10, unless I want to travel 25 miles each way to fill up.

The closest station to me is a Lukoil, but I flat out REFUSE to use that for reasons even beyond any potential performance shortfalls.

 

[unclefester]

*chuckles* I run mine on nothing but E5 97R or E5 99R

I refuse point blank to let E10 anything anywhere near any of my cars / mowers / blowers. It might be cheaper but it performs worse and when you factor in that decrease in performance, it actually works out more expensive to use it.

 

[anticon]

I did some research on our fuel in NW Oregon a while ago.

https://www.fiestastforum.com/threads/washington-oregon-gas-sources.17928/post-320867

 

[rallytaff]

^^^I don't notice because I never even look at the Lukoil prices at all, since I refuse to support a fascist dictator and it's loyal oligarchs.

I just drive a couple of miles, cross the river into Joyzee, and buy the Shell, Exxon/Mobil, or Sunoco there in Stockton, or Lambertville.

Well said Sir!

 

[rallytaff]

I have NEVER put Shell in any of my cars. I tried to fill up one time on my way to work and they refused to accept my debit card because it wasn't a Shell card. Never had any problem with fuel I put in my ST. I don't look for performance gains like some of you guys. I'm totally happy with what I've got.

 

[FiestaSTdude]

I have NEVER put Shell in any of my cars. I tried to fill up one time on my way to work and they refused to accept my debit card because it wasn't a Shell card. Never had any problem with fuel I put in my ST. I don't look for performance gains like some of you guys. I'm totally happy with what I've got.

Around here the BPs always have some issue with my card or their card reader which is one of the reasons that I use Shell and Sheetz.

 

[FiestaSTdude]

Both Randy, and the other guy may have quite valid, verifiable, and empirical evidence of Shell being no bueno in our cars; factory, canned, or any other tune included.

That does not help those of us who do not have a Midnight Oil/Marathon 93 no alky anywhere nearby to us.

My local choices are; Sunoco 93 E10, Exxon 93 E10, and Shell V Power E10, unless I want to travel 25 miles each way to fill up.

The closest station to me is a Lukoil, but I flat out REFUSE to use that for reasons even beyond any potential performance shortfalls.

I wish I could see that evidence. I've never felt a difference in power with Shell, but I'm also still on the stock turbo and haven't really tested different brands of fuel for changes in power.
Is the general opinion that shell causes the engine to make less power, or are they claiming it can lead to lower reliability/engine issues?

 

[rallytaff]

I use ARCO usually or COSTCO if I'm in Burbank. No issues ever.

 

[jmrtsus]

I wish I could see that evidence. I've never felt a difference in power with Shell, but I'm also still on the stock turbo and haven't really tested different brands of fuel for changes in power.
Is the general opinion that shell causes the engine to make less power, or are they claiming it can lead to lower reliability/engine issues?

In my FiST it makes less power. It is a known issue in the MP-215 tune from Mountune. I posted my MPG results long ago.
@M-Sport fan, Marathon is not the only company to sell non alky gas, every Shell station has that option. What works for most folks is wonderful and I'm sure Chattanooga is not the only place a 17 billion dollar company sells their fuel. I'm sorry you do not have access to no corn fuels. Plain and simple whatever additives are in Shell has issues making power with the only legal upgrade tune. That is a fact from the tuner and user experience and data. This thread is about do not use Shell which I think is wrong, Shell works fine in 99.999% of cars I'm sure. It is the worlds most popular gas, but I drive one of the .001% where it doesn't. There are still many people running the MP-215 that DO think this is valuable to them even if it is not to you. FiST on!

 

[M-Sport fan]

I don't know if Randy has a problem tuning with E10 fuels or not.

It seems that with Adam, it is NOT the alky content that he has the problem with as far as tuning goes, but the V Power fuel's additive package, which you have mentioned as being a problem with Randy as well.

TWO completely different factors involved here.

I am still on factory ECM tune and snail, so maybe that's why I do not see any problems, or power reduction, from using Shell?

It is also why (among other reasons as well) I am leaning towards the Monster Adapt-X Tune if/when I ever do decide to swap out the factory map.

 

[D1JL]

I don't use Shells either.

 

[Mikey456]

Locally I can get Union 76, Mobil, Shell and Chevron? Any preferences besides not going with Shell gas?

 

[Capri to ST]

Locally I can get Union 76, Mobil, Shell and Chevron? Any preferences besides not going with Shell gas?

It looks like they are all Top Tier gas, which is the only kind I will use in my car, so I would feel comfortable with any of them-
https://toptiergas.com/licensed-brands/

Using Top Tier gas gives you some indication of quality.

 

[Saponetta]

I wonder if there is any actual functional difference between Exxon and Mobil fuels.

Don't know. We don't have Exxon in st. Louis. Basically everything is a shell, Mobil, bp, or quick trip, with a few phillips 66 and zx interspersed. Growing up, my friend's dad owned most of the amaco/bp in the area. He said that quick trip sources fuel from all the big providers based on price. So I guess you really don't know what youre getting with them. They've grown a lot in past 20 years, so they may not operate that way anymore.

 

[scooter123]

There is a LOT of octane cheating out there and mostly it's not brand specific. Personally I've found Shell to be one of the finer gasoline brands back when I was towing 5200 lbs. of Boat and Trailer to Lake George NY and back home. Had zero issues with Shell and Engine Knock on the NT Thruway. Sunoco on the other hand was a huge problem. Every single time I had to fill up with Sunoco I had to pull off on the on ramp and get under the hood and turn up the Edelbrock Water Vapor Injection up to Maximum. Every Single Time. To this day I will walk before I use Sunoco fuel.

 

[XR650R]

There is a LOT of octane cheating out there and mostly it's not brand specific.

This ^.
It's almost pointless to talk about brands. Good gasoline is hit-or-miss. What works for you locally is different from the same brand 2 states away.

 

[dhminer]

Anyone want to guess what happened?

 

[TyphoonFiST]

Anyone want to guess what happened?

View attachment 48352

Don't tell Tune-*

Sent from my SM-N975U1 using Tapatalk

 

[FiSTY]

YMMV. I frequently hit my local Shell (Hill Rd., Pickerington, OH). Both Mountune and Dizzy have me at -1.00 on Octane Adjustments running 93. That said, Ohio is known to be exceedingly punitive for cheating pumps (octane or dispensing)... read: imagine local regulation has something to do with it.

 

[jmrtsus]

YMMV. I frequently hit my local Shell (Hill Rd., Pickerington, OH). Both Mountune and Dizzy have me at -1.00 on Octane Adjustments running 93. That said, Ohio is known for be exceedingly punitive for cheating pumps (octane or dispensing)... read: imagine local regulation has something to do with it.

Lots of fairy tales of altered gas................