Garibaldi

I was reading through the owner's manual today and visited toptiergas.com. In Canada, Sunoco is listed as a top tier gas, but in the US, it is not. In the Northeast, Sunoco is one of the few brands that offer 93 octane. I'm confused.

Please don't turn this into a 'best gas' p**sing contest...

Thx
GP

BLD.70DRIVERMPG-RET.

In may "hood" I stopped to fill up and noticed 10% Ethenol in it. I left.

EyeMaster

I thought Sunoco was bought up or merged with Petro Canada? All Sunoco stations that I am aware of, have been converted to Petro Canada, even when it's within a few blocks of each other.

Garibaldi

I may be wrong, but I'm fairly certain ALL gas in New England has 10% ethanol, so not using it isn't an option.

Garibaldi

Interestingly enough, PetroSunoco IS a top tier gas.

Gary '09 C6

maybe this will be helpful ?

I just found it after a bit of "searching" here on the CF: www.toptiergas.com

PetroniDE

Sometimes I wonder why Valero isn't on the list either.

camarochevy19702

I think you are correct, every pump at every station I go to now says may contain up to 10% ethanol

PetroniDE

I know of zero stations near Houston that don't sell 10% booze in the gasoline.

jackhall99

In most "hoods" you'll get 10% Ethanol these days.

Gearhead Jim

To answer the original question, Sunoco isn't Top Tier in the U.S. because they either don't meet the specs or don't want to spend the money to prove they meet the specs. Also, to get Top Tier approval, ALL grades of their gas at ALL of their stations must meet the specs. BP Premium has an excellent reputation for cleanliness, and they say it meets the specs, but BP is not listed as Top Tier because their other grades aren't up to spec.

Some people say it's just a marketing gimmick, but we had a retired oil engineer posting here recently who claims there is a real difference.

NYC6

pretty sure all top tier gas have techron added.

jschindler

You have almost for sure hit it on the head. I have searched in the past and it's very vague how Top Tier was formed. Some say by the automakers to assure that the gasoline meets minimum requirements, some say it's a marketing program - I won't refer to it as a gimmick because it most likely has merit.

Having said that, I work in a business that deals with a lot of certifications of products, and marketing programs. My best guess (which I would place money on) is that Top Tier does in fact require that the fuel meets a meaningful standard, but that just because a refiner does not have Top Tier certification really means nothing because there is a good chance that they meet the requirements but don't feel a need to pay to be part of the program.

Long and short of it is that I consider it meaningless. Any known brand sold by a gas station that turns their fuel inventory over on a regular basis (in other words, they have plenty of traffic) is not going to damage your engine. I've been on this and many other auto/motorcycle forums every day for ten years now. And I can't remember a single incident of someone have a fuel related problem. By that, I mean the basic quality of the fuel.

jschindler

Techron is a Chevron/Texaco additive. Others may have something similar, but they don't have Techron. Chevron has spent a lot of money selling that as a "value add" selling feature of their gasoline. In fact, even GM recommendS adding the Techron additive by name as a fix for certain fuel gauge problems. They don't recommend any other similar product. It is a cleaning agent in the fuel btw.

Gearhead Jim

I did read once that Top Tier approval requires an actual engine test, where they disassemble the engine at the end and measure the amount of deposits. But i can't verify that.

Because so many brands are now on the Top Tier list, I make it my habit to buy from them if available. Ten years ago, not so easy.

C6Loach

Coincidentally, I work for Sunoco making gasoline and do not use it (even at a discount). More for personal reasons than anything else. No worries though, after July 2012, the gasoline you buy at a Sunoco station in the U.S. will be base gasoline blended to Sunoco standards as they have elected to sell or shutdown the last two refineries they own and exit the refining buisness. I ran Sunoco high test in my Vette for years and truly believe it to be excellent fuel. As to the original question, send an email to the public affairs person listed on the website and ask, you might get a reply.

rakuhn

In all sincerity, perhaps an email to Sunoco would get the best results.

Garibaldi

You are absolutely correct. I didn't even think of that. Thanks for the suggestion.

GP

Racer

It's kind of like being a member of the BBB. Our business got a generic letter from them asking us if we would like to be a member of the Better Business Bureau.......all we had to do was pay them $350 and have no complaints against us in the last x amount of years and we could proudly display their sticker on our window etc....WHAT? You kidding me? No thank you.
Our business is doing just fine without that sticker as are my cars if I am not using a top tier gas (which I do not know because I don't even follow it nor care about the list.)

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C6~Missle

Probably because they didn't pay to join the list