Do not use Shell?

[akiraproject24]

Received a custom tune file today. Making sure to read everything, I noticed the remarks about not using shell. I've been using their 93 since getting the car, even to mix my E30. Sharing new info (at least to me) . Should I use Sunoco? In bucks pa not really sure which to use now. I mean I put wawa in my daily...

 

[zumakid70cc]

I noticed that shell gas doesn't agree with the car to much.

 

[Brianmc27]

Unfortunately my ethanol station is part of a Shell.

 

[Dpro]

I have mentioned this before as several tuners do not recommend Shell which has been known for a long time and still caught flack for it. The haters and doubters will continue.

 

[M-Sport fan]

When one does NOT have the option for very many other brands (and NONE AT ALL of your 'fave' fuels), it is not doubt and hate, but making one's car go forward.

I also asked about the VERY FEW other brands besides YOUR 'go-to's of Chevron, 76, and (maybe??) Marathon which DO NOT EXIST here in Bucks County (the locale in which akiraproject24 and I reside), and got NO/ZERO/NADA/ZILCH 'reviews', suggestions, or answers, at all.

So again I will also ask; are; Sunoco, BP, Exxon/Mobil OK, or at least acceptable to your tuner-gods, or are they all also considered as 'shit' as V Power?!?

 

[M-Sport fan]

That being said, I was in the area the other day of that North Lansdale, Pa. Wawa, the ONLY place in my general area with the stuff, so I put some of their E85 in (about 2 gallons or so, which IS OK on the factory tune), and filled the rest with their 93, and I can feel a bit more power measured on the 'butt dyno' at WOT on this fill.

 

[Blk16 FiST]

Every car I've owned (2x ZX2s, 2x G35s, Sentra, Fusion) that I put shell in, the performance was noticeably worse.. the only time i would use it is if I was running on fumes and its the only thing available. I use BP, Exxon when I don't feel like going to the cheaper place and their fuel is good, AP still shows -1.0 OAR with those 2.

When I switch to the e30 tune its with Sheetz which takes 5-10 miles for the OAR to go back to -1.0

 

[SteveS]

Reading that picture closely, it seems that their issue is that Shell 93 octane is ethanol-free. They say they require minimum 10% ethanol for their tunes. That means they are depending on ethanol to keep their tune from blowing up the engine from too much heat in the cylinder. Ethanol has a cooling effect on combustion. It carries less energy than gasoline. It doesn't burn as quickly or easily. When you have more ethanol in your fuel, you can run higher compression ratios in a naturally aspirated engine, and higher cylinder pressures in a boosted engine (whether from compression ratio or boost). But if you tune for that and there is no ethanol, or even not enough ethanol, in the fuel, you will end up melting pistons and the like.

I live at Lake of the Ozarks, where boating is a big part of life, and super high performance boats are a dime a dozen. Therefore all our gas stations advertise the fact that their premium fuels have no ethanol because boaters don't want ethanol in their fuel. It destroys engines and fuel systems on boats, which causes problems from clogging of carburetors and injectors to boat explosions, because ethanol is corrosive to tubing, seals, and hoses.

It just comes down to what your ECU is tuned for and whether the fuel you use matches what it was tuned for.

 

[M-Sport fan]

Every car I've owned (2x ZX2s, 2x G35s, Sentra, Fusion) that I put shell in, the performance was noticeably worse.. the only time i would use it is if I was running on fumes and its the only thing available. I use BP, Exxon when I don't feel like going to the cheaper place and their fuel is good, AP still shows -1.0 OAR with those 2.

When I switch to the e30 tune its with Sheetz which takes 5-10 miles for the OAR to go back to -1.0

THANK YOU for that info on BP and Exxon/Mobil!

It seems that most of the Sheetz carry E85, unlike only 1 in 50 of the Wawa stations.
I just wish that they had more Sheetz stations east of the Susquehanna River in my state.

 

[Brianmc27]

Reading that picture closely, it seems that their issue is that Shell 93 octane is ethanol-free. They say they require minimum 10% ethanol for their tunes. That means they are depending on ethanol to keep their tune from blowing up the engine from too much heat in the cylinder. Ethanol has a cooling effect on combustion. It carries less energy than gasoline. It doesn't burn as quickly or easily. When you have more ethanol in your fuel, you can run higher compression ratios in a naturally aspirated engine, and higher cylinder pressures in a boosted engine (whether from compression ratio or boost). But if you tune for that and there is no ethanol, or even not enough ethanol, in the fuel, you will end up melting pistons and the like.

I live at Lake of the Ozarks, where boating is a big part of life, and super high performance boats are a dime a dozen. Therefore all our gas stations advertise the fact that their premium fuels have no ethanol because boaters don't want ethanol in their fuel. It destroys engines and fuel systems on boats, which causes problems from clogging of carburetors and injectors to boat explosions, because ethanol is corrosive to tubing, seals, and hoses.

It just comes down to what your ECU is tuned for and whether the fuel you use matches what it was tuned for.

They clearly delineate between the 2. They mention specifically the additives in Shell cause knock in GDI engines. This is a separate point from the non-ethanol fuels.

 

[gtx3076]

Who is the tuner?

If someone was set on using Shell, the tuner should tune for it.

Freektune told me once that Texas 93 was crap. Oh well, it's what I have, and even if there is a "better" 93 at a specific gas station I don't want to be tuned for an inconvenient fuel. E85 is hard enough to find.

 

[Alkoran]

Who is the tuner?

If someone was set on using Shell, the tuner should tune for it.

Freektune told me once that Texas 93 was crap. Oh well, it's what I have, and even if there is a "better" 93 at a specific gas station I don't want to be tuned for an inconvenient fuel. E85 is hard enough to find.

I'd guess it's Adam @ Tuneplus.

 

[M-Sport fan]

Who is the tuner?

If someone was set on using Shell, the tuner should tune for it.

Freektune told me once that Texas 93 was crap. Oh well, it's what I have, and even if there is a "better" 93 at a specific gas station I don't want to be tuned for an inconvenient fuel. E85 is hard enough to find.

Yes, it is the 'supreme lord and savior tuner', Mr. Brunson, who very well might be "the best" as so many claim. (I will let others contest/argue that point, one way or another.)

But as you state above, WTF good does that do someone who can only get the fuel which he flat out refuses to tune for/'tune around'?!?

Out of all of the tuners I contacted, very few have ever even heard of this 'problem', and even those who have were still fully willing to tune a car with V Power in it's tank.

Now of course his vehement/devout followers will claim that because Adam first of all even knows of, and alerts everyone about this problem with the V Power, and secondly, refuses to even bother trying to tune a car using it, just goes to prove how 'great and superiorly skilled' he is at his trade.

 

[XR650R]

I can't speak for anyone else, but the one Shell station here has 93 w/ethanol, like any other gas station. It was terrible for my tune.
The best gas I could find still wasn't that great, and my tuner had to dial things back a bit to reduce all the negative corrections I was getting.

 

[akiraproject24]

I have no prob changing it up, just need to dial one in. Was thinking Sunoco but possibly a chevron, might be one around here.

 

[Brianmc27]

FWIW, I get very little negative correction with my 91 oct shell/e30 tune.

 

[XR650R]

FWIW, I get very little negative correction with my 91 oct shell/e30 tune.

E30 is the bomb, it seems, but there's none around here. I'm stuck with what's available. I wonder if the talk of going 15% ethanol will ever happen.
Corn farmers would be happy, but hemp farmers would get more ethanol per acre.
But hemp is bad, for some reason.

Apparently, it makes you play pianos too fast and murder people.

 

[M-Sport fan]

I have no prob changing it up, just need to dial one in. Was thinking Sunoco but possibly a chevron, might be one around here.

WHERE is there a Chevron??

The last one I've ever seen was in Joyzee, and that was 15 years ago!

 

[XR650R]

WHERE is there a Chevron??

The last one I've ever seen was in Joyzee, and that was 15 years ago!

Brands don't seem to mean much. I tried Sunoco 93 (I remember 94, back in the 90s. That was what I used for my motorcycle and my first hot hatch, the Colt Turbo), but it wasn't that great. I had to buy it on the toll road, but I wanted to see if it was better than Shell. It was marginally better, and Mobil was too, but not as good as Marathon. I've yet to try BP, but I'll give it 3 gallons on an empty tank eventually. Not a lot of BP around here.

I think it's important to try different fuels when you're tuning. You need to have an idea of how they compare, but the gas here is not that great, and they'll always get away with selling it, since the few cars that actually require premium will run fine on shitty 91.

And who has the money to stop an oil company from selling shady products?

Our car runs ok on 87, stock. It makes about 10 more hp on 93. When you tune it, you gotta go 91 or 93, or e30 or race gas, or whatever. Never fill it up. Drive it to almost empty and put 3-4 gallons of another fuel in and try it out.

It sucks that premium fuels aren't all great, and you could find yourself having to use something it doesn't like. There's always tune 4 in that case, or you can just drive it gently, and you might be OK.

My point here is that we all get the fuel we can get, and it varies. What works for me here may not exist where you are.

 

[akiraproject24]

WHERE is there a Chevron??

The last one I've ever seen was in Joyzee, and that was 15 years ago!

Tell ya the truth I only assumed a Chevron but I guess I havent noticed one either. There is that BP near the shell in Doylestown. Going to a little car gathering this Sunday. I'll ask around about fuel in the area (Warminster).