Is it possible for gas stations to do this?

[MagnetiX]

Hey guys.

Well, as we all know, gas prices are seriously a bitch now...
Anyways, I've been filling up my car and the gas seriously does not last...but the thing is, I drive the same exact distance every single day, the gas should still be lasting longer than it is now.
Now, a few weeks ago, as I'm pulling up to a gas station with my friend sitting next to me and he's like "Ey yo, don't go here, they dilute their gas"
I'm like "with what?" and he said there's been rumors going around the city that some gas stations put water or some kind of chemical into their gasoline.

So, first off...is this even possible? And if it is, how much damage would this do to your car? Cuz this definitely does not sound very healthy for your car.
Also, I'm living in the Philippines, so I guess it's not too far off if they did some shit like this.
Is it possible to test if the gas is diluted?

This is seriously some horrible shit cuz I used to be able to drive about 2-3 days off 20 dollars of gas...now sometimes it hardly lasts a day, depending on what gas station I go to. I try to avoid some gas stations, but seriously, it seems like most of em are probably doing this because the gas in my car isn't keeping up, no matter what I try to do.

[ThePurpleBunny]

It's not the gas stations that do that, it's their distributors or higher-ups that do it. But yes, the gas can contain water (it counts to the octane value).

The amount of water is not constant to all stations, so different distributors can sell gas with different amounts of water than others.

[Shukuda]

It would certainly FUBAR your engine, if not now, soon. You should hear a knocking noise from the engine if the gas is diluted to hell.

[Se7in]

Yeah.

Wawa's near my house has the most watered-down gas; consequently, it's the cheapest. Around $3.93 right now.

Shell and Exxon have the highest quality, I believe, I passed Shell today and it was at $4.19.

I always go to Exxon and never get anything bellow Plus, since my engine started getting problems from using Wawa's regular for a year straight. Works fine now.

[firstpressing]

It's been mentioned that Arco does this. Not surprising since their prices are cheap in comparison.

[SlothHands]

76 all the way. Best quality pump gas. I would kill anyone who waters down their gas which can cause my aggressively tuned car's engine to blow up.

[MagnetiX]

Wow, so this dilution stuff is real?
Damn, seriously, I thought I was just traveling more and more, but honestly, I haven't really gone anywhere other than my house to my university and back.

We're getting close to the check-up point on the car...would the dealer be able to tell if the engine is being jacked up by the dilution of the gas? Like, are there any visible changes in the engine if it's been running on diluted gas?

[alfaphlex]

wow... is this for real? godfuckindamnit... that explain why we had to spend over $2000 repair after repair within a 3wk period cuz my wife's ride's engine fucked up. After reading what se7in posted about Wawa, I have no doubts because that's where she always goes to get gas (best price).

that's really fucked up. $2k thrown away when I needed it too. middle finger to any company that does this shit.

[Bobbypigo]

Yeah.

Wawa's near my house has the most watered-down gas; consequently, it's the cheapest. Around $3.93 right now.

Shell and Exxon have the highest quality, I believe, I passed Shell today and it was at $4.19.


4.19 for premium? Damn, I pay 4.70 now!

Where do you live?

[VG Emblem]

wow... is this for real? godfuckindamnit... that explain why we had to spend over $2000 repair after repair within a 3wk period cuz my wife's ride's engine fucked up. After reading what se7in posted about Wawa, I have no doubts because that's where she always goes to get gas (best price).

that's really fucked up. $2k thrown away when I needed it too. middle finger to any company that does this shit.
Do you think there's any way to sue? I'm usually against random lawsuits but that is seriously fucked up.

[Darkside3024]

4.19 for premium? Damn, I pay 4.70 now!

Where do you live?

$4.70? Hot damn! I think it's like $4.10-4.20 for premuim here in Bama. Bet you gotta sell crack just to get gas.

[sainthuey]

only buy from 76/Chevron/Exon Mobile

[Wantonx]

I've noticed since they started putting up the 10% ethanol signs it seems to loose volatility faster

[gridman]

4.19 for premium? Damn, I pay 4.70 now!

Where do you live?

barely over $4 around here.

[alfaphlex]

Do you think there's any way to sue? I'm usually against random lawsuits but that is seriously fucked up.

How can you even prove something like that? the damage has been done and everything has been prepared. Anyway, first thing tomorrow morning I'm letting her know never to go there again. Stupid thing is that I always tell her "you get what you pay for". Never thought it'd apply to trying to save some change in gas.

wow, I never thought I could be more upset about the gas situation.:sad:

edit- about the OP mentioning that the same amount of gas seems to last a shorter period of time: my wife's been saying the same shit for a while now, so I guess there really is truth to it (especially from Wawa).

[ThePurpleBunny]

Do you think there's any way to sue? I'm usually against random lawsuits but that is seriously fucked up.

Not really, because whatever station you fill up at, the ratio of gas to water is still heavily favored toward gas.

Almost every station has the same 87 octane (regular), 91 octane (plus), and 93 octane (premium) gas. But not all stations have the same gas-to-water ratio relative to those octanes. Because the gas is provided by distributors who get the gas from refineries who make the mixtures, if you wanted to sue you'd have to put it against whoever mixes the gas.

And even then, you'd have to get a sample of the gas from a station, find out who they get it from, ect, and have actual proof that it's diluted enough to cause engine trouble.

[Bobbypigo]

$4.70? Hot damn! I think it's like $4.10-4.20 for premuim here in Bama. Bet you gotta sell crack just to get gas.

Its bad man. . . ALot of me and the wifes money gets shit down the highway everytime we drive to work. Im trying to find a good online job to supplement my income.

barely over $4 around here.

Where man?!

[Einlanzer]

wow, some of you guys are lucky gas here is already over 4.50.....premium is at 4.93 last i checked at chevron, lolz.

[Pat the Great]

This is seriously some horrible shit cuz I used to be able to drive about 2-3 days off 20 dollars of gas...now sometimes it hardly lasts a day, depending on what gas station I go to.

you know, since gas prices are getting more expensive, you're getting less gas for $20 than you used to.

just saying.

[Seijuro-HIko]

I knew something was up. Me and a good friend were talking the other day about gas not lasting very long. He works at a bp gas station and drives a 95 Nissan Altima thats in great condition. But he's telling me how he only goes to certain stations now because he notices how some gas last a lot longer than others. He doesn't travel much either. I've noticed my gas needle going down faster lately. I know I drive a mustang gt *8 cylinder 5 speed* but I barely push it. I always shift at no higher than 2,500 rpm's during cruising speed. Everything's in great condition but that needle goes down quick as fuck. Now I only feel up at the Mobile or Shell because their gas seems to last longer imo.

[spotlanx]

alot of stations (as mentioned) are starting to dilute their gas with ethanol.
i know here in Australia they legally have to state their fuel has ethanol in it.

just recently stations were busted pretending their pumps were broken on their cheap fuel day.
(i'm not sure how it works elsewhere - but here there is a weekly price cycle with tuesdays being the cheapest day.)

a guy thought it can't be right that half the available pumps were broken every tuesday.
so he attempted to fill up on a pump with a NOT IN USE sign on it and it worked.

the lengths oil companies go to is shameful!!

[MagnetiX]

you know, since gas prices are getting more expensive, you're getting less gas for $20 than you used to.

just saying.

Yeah, that's true, too. But the thing is, $20 of gas should last more than a day, especially with how little I drive. I drive about 20-30 miles per day, sometimes 40, but that's at the most. That right there shouldn't be costing me $20.
Now whenever I go out anywhere, I check where my gas is at and what my current mileage is.
I was at 12240 miles with half tank when I left from home. When I came back home, I was at 12287 miles and was barely at 1/4th...that doesn't sound right at all.
Not to mention, I barely hit over 2k RPM when I'm driving and usually stay under 60 mph.

Over here, it's about $5 per gallon now...it's just getting ridiculous.

[ckrazy]

Some mexican dude in high school told me his dad works for and oil company and they dilute gas like a mother fucker. How much? I have no clue but he made it sound like like we are basically driving on black water. Just saying.....

[Adam Warlock]

If the gas contains high amounts of ethanol you'll get the same effect.

[alfaphlex]

ok, I just had to do more research on this topic and I found this article which perfectly explains how and why the dilution of gas using ethanol is reducing the mpg.

http://www.bookrags.com/news/tech-tidbits-what-about-ethanol-mpg-moc/

ok, so we know these companies are using it, the problem now is knowing how much. After doing a bit more research, it seems Wawa uses E85, which is 85% ethanol and accordng to the article above, that leads to about a 27% drop in mileage. With gas at the prices they are now, 27% is a HUGE and expensive loss in performance.

Again, no more Wawa for the wife. Gonna start paying a little more for the better stuff.

edit- just found another article which specifically addresses the Wawa vs. better quality situation. This would be exactly how the avg driver(my wife) would see things:

http://www.mychurch.org/blog/178834/Ethanol---is-it-worth-it

(ignore that the link says church. the article is pretty good).

[Chachi]

I swear off the 10% ethanol if I can help it. I'm noticing a couple of QTs that sell a "summer additives" version of their gas that lets them sell 20 cents cheaper than normal. I bet that gas has the same negative effect on mileage...

Exxon has the best gas? You mean the fuckers that are making the most bank off this situation? You don't say...

Also, keep an eye on yo steez when paying for gas at the pump. There have been news reports of stations charging extra per gallon to pump payers.

http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=5338151

[BlackShinobi]

I thought I was imagining things. I think I need to check out what type of gas the gas station around here is selling, because I knew it doesn't last the same way it did a year ago.

[MagnetiX]

Well, I'm glad that there is truth to the whole dilution rumor, so now I know where to go and not go, but I think the next upcoming months, maybe even weeks, I'm sure more gas stations will be doing this.
I'm probably gonna ask my parents if we can go get the car checked up cuz it would be ridiculous if this car broke down because of diluted gas.
We bought the car last year, it's a 2007 model, so it better damn well survive for a few more years.

[alfaphlex]

We bought the car last year, it's a 2007 model, so it better damn well survive for a few more years.

I don't think an 07 car would have much trouble with ethanol. Besides mileage, are there any noticeable differences in performance?

[Tetsuosan]

4.19 for premium? Damn, I pay 4.70 now!

Where do you live?

Damn dood where the hell are you pumping gas. I just filled up at cumbys in naugatuck for 4.30. Anyways Hess is the same way too. They're gas is horrible.

[Seta]

For all you Bay Area guys, I saw a San Bruno Shell station that sold regular at 4.88 today. That was some straight up highway robbery. The gas stations in the towns around the airport always have ridiculous prices.

[PsychoSquall]

Bottled water is more expensive than gasoline per gallon, in the States at least.

[MagnetiX]

I don't think an 07 car would have much trouble with ethanol. Besides mileage, are there any noticeable differences in performance?

Not really, I don't think. It's just the mileage.
I recorded another trip today...went from 12287 to 12300...and it went from 1/4th to near empty. My dad was like "Ain't that shit fishy as hell?" Seriously, this is ridiculous. Just put gas in that last night and it's pretty much all gone in a day of driving. Horrible :/

[Lv.32 Z-Ism Rose]

I think the ethanol cuts down about 15% of your mileage overall. I've noticed it on my 90 Corolla as well. I was filling up at the big stations with the 10% crap and noticed a bit of a mileage drop on the car. Found an old mom and pop type place that sells 100% pure gas, and the mileage went back up (this last trip I was on I scored 38MPG).

You really dont get any real savings from the watered down fuel places. you might save 4 or 5 cents per gallon tops. The pure stuff is costing me about $3.90 a gallon. Do the math, and it is cheaper to get teh good stuff instead of the ethanol crap...

[Legendary Gokou]

Not really, I don't think. It's just the mileage.
I recorded another trip today...went from 12287 to 12300...and it went from 1/4th to near empty. My dad was like "Ain't that shit fishy as hell?" Seriously, this is ridiculous. Just put gas in that last night and it's pretty much all gone in a day of driving. Horrible :/

What is it that you drive? There are a lot of factors that go into a car getting less mpg. Dirty air filters, tires not properly inflated, sludge build up, etc.

[Se7in]

Exxon has the best gas? You mean the fuckers that are making the most bank off this situation? You don't say...

My Accounting teacher used to say the same thing. We were talking about oil prices in class and the topic of buying gas came up. My teacher lamented that while Exxon does have the highest quality, she wouldn't buy from them due to their "questionable business practices."

As if a few thousand people not buying gas from them will change their ways.

[Rhio2k]

Bottled water is more expensive than gasoline per gallon, in the States at least.

69-89 cent gallon jug of drinking water...that individual bottle shit is for fools and yuppies...(in many cases, a yuppie IS a fool)

[SiLLiEMutAfuKA]

For all you Bay Area guys, I saw a San Bruno Shell station that sold regular at 4.88 today. That was some straight up highway robbery. The gas stations in the towns around the airport always have ridiculous prices.

I know which one you're talking about, that one is the most ridiculous one, I'm think you're talking about the one next to Tanforan mall, right?

But yeah I believe not much places in the US beats the prices we have here. $4.75 - $4.99 premium.

Good thing it seems like it's been dropping a few cents as of a few days ago.

[MagnetiX]

What is it that you drive? There are a lot of factors that go into a car getting less mpg. Dirty air filters, tires not properly inflated, sludge build up, etc.

We drive a Mitsubishi SUV. Yes, I know SUVs take up a lot of gas, but I'm sure it's not THAT much. I know one trip to the city and back does not take a half tank or even 1/4th tank...that would just be ridiculous. The city is about 10 kilometers or about 6 miles. Back and forth that's 12 miles...but since I take little trips around the city like to the mall from school and back and whatnot, I'll round it off to about maybe 15-20 miles of driving per day.
15-20 miles is not even pushing anything and it's already taking up a shitload of gas.

Also, we got the car serviced about two months ago. We're almost at the next servicing point, so I'll be sure to get this car serviced when it hits 15k and see what's up.