Not Logged In Log In   Sign Up   Points Leaders
Follow Us    8:46 AM

Message Forum - Read Message

Category: Voting poll discussion > Topics Add to favorite topics   Post new topicPost New Topic
Author Topic: Do you care if you buy branded or unbranded gas. Post a Reply Back to Topics
6500rpm

Rookie Author
St. Louis

Posts:68
Points:1,160
Joined:Jun 2006
Message Posted: Sep 15, 2006 9:27:12 PM

What is the difference ? Does the cost vary that much ? I heard lately
there has been a big difference in rack pricing. The big oil companies sell the unbranded fuel also. Why would they let an unbranded station
buy gasoline cheaper than a branded station that advertises their fuel
every day? There is no QT oil is there ? So its Exon/Mobil, Phillips/
Conoco BP Shell. Who else ?
REPLIES (newest first)
Profile Pic
mattsage
Champion Author Buffalo

Posts:4,357
Points:697,500
Joined:Apr 2011
Message Posted: Jun 5, 2011 7:37:12 AM

They are all the same so I buy whatever is cheaper.
Profile Pic
ZL1
All-Star Author New Jersey

Posts:602
Points:63,150
Joined:Mar 2011
Message Posted: May 10, 2011 1:36:37 AM

Branded
Profile Pic
g747
Champion Author Mobile

Posts:4,531
Points:931,720
Joined:Jul 2009
Message Posted: Feb 16, 2011 8:56:10 PM

Branded Fuel Only.
Profile Pic
Cirdan
Champion Author Nevada

Posts:2,020
Points:124,585
Joined:May 2006
Message Posted: Nov 28, 2010 11:42:22 PM

Here in Reno, all the gas stations get their gas from the same tank farm/pipeline from the Bay area. Why pay more?
Profile Pic
g747
Champion Author Mobile

Posts:4,531
Points:931,720
Joined:Jul 2009
Message Posted: Nov 25, 2010 8:36:44 PM

Yes it does matter.
Profile Pic
HFAJR0034
Champion Author New Mexico

Posts:6,433
Points:1,165,810
Joined:Jul 2009
Message Posted: Aug 7, 2010 11:00:13 PM

SAMS
Profile Pic
michigansooner
Rookie Author Grand Rapids

Posts:44
Points:3,460
Joined:Jul 2010
Message Posted: Jul 27, 2010 8:08:48 PM

most gas stations in your areas come from the same refinery , the only difference is the addititives that the brand of gas you use, that is the major difference in prices, having been around around the gas station business for almost twenty three years. my dad ran a texaco for thirty three years before leaving the gas business he was glad to get rid of the gas station after losing money the last few years of owning it.
Profile Pic
HFAJR0034
Champion Author New Mexico

Posts:6,433
Points:1,165,810
Joined:Jul 2009
Message Posted: Mar 9, 2010 12:01:04 AM

yes
Profile Pic
NightMagic
Champion Author Cincinnati

Posts:57,100
Points:2,411,435
Joined:Sep 2006
Message Posted: Mar 8, 2010 9:13:32 PM

no
Profile Pic
pkhdonovan
Champion Author Maine

Posts:12,001
Points:2,703,855
Joined:Sep 2005
Message Posted: Mar 8, 2010 6:40:08 AM

I don't put much weight on brand name, I go by station access.
Profile Pic
pinbuster2005
Champion Author New Hampshire

Posts:5,210
Points:1,521,475
Joined:Oct 2005
Message Posted: Mar 8, 2010 5:38:11 AM

For all you people that say all gas is the same because everyone pulls from the same tank farm. While that is true that everyone pulls from the same tank farm for the BASE gas. What makes each brand different is the additive package that gets added to that base gas. Every brand has their own patented additive package that gets added to the base gas in another part of the terminal no-name gas normally only have the minnimal additive requirements by law where name brands are better than minnimal. Now before anyone says what about when i see the same truck deliver to a name brand then to a no-name station. Tankers have sections sometimes two sometimes three where they can carry different grades or in some cases different brands in the same truck. Also Tankers have to go back empty so if they still have gas in the tanker they are told by their company to check with their own brand stations to see if they can use the gas and if they can't they can check with some branded stations to try to sell the gas if they can use it. Also some times brands can be different with different ethanol contents. Even being in an area that is supposed to have E10 gas if you look up the mandates all it says is that the gas must have up to 10% ethanol not it has to have 10% ethanol so the content could be different. I got this information from tanker drivers i've known for years including my cousin who used to drive tanker trucks.

So I go by cost per mile when figuring what brand is truely the cheapest to run. One brand may be cheaper in cost per gallon but if you don't get the same mileage out of it it might end up costing you more in cost per mile to run it.

For example I have a 2000 F-150 pick-up. I average about 25,000 miles a year. If gas prices stayed the same and I ran the cheapest brand in my area Sam's Club @ $2.53/gal I average 16.743 mpg out of their gas. That would give me a cost per mile of 15.111 cents.

Now If I run my best mileage brand Irving at a cost of $2.59/gal I average 18.202 mpg out of it. That would give me a cost per mile of 14.238 cents.

So for 25,000 miles I would use 1493.16 gallons of gas with Sam's club and spend $3777.75 for gas.

With Irving I would use 1373.47 gallons of gas and spend $3559.50 for gas.

So even though Sam"s club is 6 cents a gallon cheaper I would end up spending $218.25 more a year ($4.197 a wk) on gas using it. Also as the prices go up the savings goes up.

If gas went back to the prices during summer 2008 Sam's was at $4.05/gal and Irving was at $4.11/gal. That would make Sam's club's cost per mile 24.189 cents. Making my cost for a year be $6047.25. Irving's cost per mile would be 22.580 cents making my total cost for a year $5645. So running Irving would then save me $402.25 a year ($7.73 wk). If gas stayed in that range for a year.

So in my opinion your better off to look at cost per mile because it's the combination of cost per gallon & miles per gallon so it tells the whole story where looking at only one or the other only gives you half the story. Granted I have owned a couple of automobiles where the mpg difference was so small that the cost per mile difference for each brand coincided with the price per gallon. But the only way to find out is to check it out for yourself.
Profile Pic
GasMizerGSO
Champion Author Greensboro

Posts:2,777
Points:610,025
Joined:Apr 2008
Message Posted: Mar 8, 2010 4:42:36 AM

no
Profile Pic
BCNU
Champion Author British Columbia

Posts:13,759
Points:2,166,330
Joined:Mar 2005
Message Posted: Mar 8, 2010 4:21:12 AM

yes
Profile Pic
gator2002
Champion Author Calgary

Posts:11,006
Points:2,566,350
Joined:Jul 2003
Message Posted: Mar 7, 2010 11:09:39 PM

no
Profile Pic
NightMagic
Champion Author Cincinnati

Posts:57,100
Points:2,411,435
Joined:Sep 2006
Message Posted: Mar 7, 2010 10:51:54 PM

prefer unbranded
Profile Pic
bja0030
Champion Author New Mexico

Posts:3,194
Points:535,930
Joined:Jan 2010
Message Posted: Mar 5, 2010 10:51:45 AM

i care what i buy
Profile Pic
NightMagic
Champion Author Cincinnati

Posts:57,100
Points:2,411,435
Joined:Sep 2006
Message Posted: Feb 16, 2010 12:32:05 PM

prefer unbranded
Profile Pic
HFAJR0034
Champion Author New Mexico

Posts:6,433
Points:1,165,810
Joined:Jul 2009
Message Posted: Feb 15, 2010 9:42:44 PM

NO
Profile Pic
NightMagic
Champion Author Cincinnati

Posts:57,100
Points:2,411,435
Joined:Sep 2006
Message Posted: Apr 19, 2009 10:28:50 PM

no
Profile Pic
Panama19
Champion Author Louisville

Posts:25,273
Points:2,542,335
Joined:Sep 2005
Message Posted: Apr 13, 2009 12:17:58 AM

No
Profile Pic
Signfool
Champion Author Omaha

Posts:5,973
Points:1,465,185
Joined:May 2008
Message Posted: Apr 13, 2009 12:15:18 AM

no preference
Profile Pic
CashSaverUSAnet
Rookie Author Mississippi

Posts:46
Points:355,405
Joined:Mar 2008
Message Posted: Apr 12, 2009 10:17:47 PM

No
Profile Pic
NightMagic
Champion Author Cincinnati

Posts:57,100
Points:2,411,435
Joined:Sep 2006
Message Posted: Apr 12, 2009 9:27:39 PM

no - prefer unbranded
Profile Pic
NightMagic
Champion Author Cincinnati

Posts:57,100
Points:2,411,435
Joined:Sep 2006
Message Posted: Apr 5, 2009 10:24:32 PM

no
Profile Pic
Firehawk
Champion Author Maine

Posts:5,054
Points:1,121,225
Joined:Apr 2005
Message Posted: Dec 15, 2008 7:03:08 AM

No
Profile Pic
Studdaddy
Champion Author Kansas

Posts:7,525
Points:742,400
Joined:Jun 2006
Message Posted: Dec 15, 2008 6:52:53 AM

no
Profile Pic
NightMagic
Champion Author Cincinnati

Posts:57,100
Points:2,411,435
Joined:Sep 2006
Message Posted: Dec 14, 2008 10:48:06 PM

no, prefer certain unbranded gas stations
Profile Pic
dongo50
Champion Author West Virginia

Posts:14,684
Points:2,379,070
Joined:Jul 2006
Message Posted: Nov 24, 2008 1:11:33 AM

no
Profile Pic
Panama19
Champion Author Louisville

Posts:25,273
Points:2,542,335
Joined:Sep 2005
Message Posted: Nov 24, 2008 12:08:15 AM

No
Profile Pic
iwannavet
Champion Author Kitchener-Waterloo

Posts:10,195
Points:1,824,320
Joined:Oct 2007
Message Posted: Nov 23, 2008 11:40:10 PM

no
Profile Pic
NightMagic
Champion Author Cincinnati

Posts:57,100
Points:2,411,435
Joined:Sep 2006
Message Posted: Nov 23, 2008 10:26:39 PM

no
Profile Pic
dental man
Champion Author San Diego

Posts:14,834
Points:3,186,055
Joined:Mar 2003
Message Posted: Nov 10, 2008 10:38:35 PM

no
Profile Pic
NightMagic
Champion Author Cincinnati

Posts:57,100
Points:2,411,435
Joined:Sep 2006
Message Posted: Nov 10, 2008 10:26:12 PM

no
Profile Pic
NightMagic
Champion Author Cincinnati

Posts:57,100
Points:2,411,435
Joined:Sep 2006
Message Posted: Aug 10, 2008 10:40:23 PM

no
Profile Pic
Studdaddy
Champion Author Kansas

Posts:7,525
Points:742,400
Joined:Jun 2006
Message Posted: Aug 7, 2008 7:11:11 AM

no
Profile Pic
april4
Champion Author Virginia Beach

Posts:12,169
Points:2,399,885
Joined:Oct 2005
Message Posted: Aug 7, 2008 6:49:41 AM

No
Profile Pic
nyuknyuk49
Champion Author Rhode Island

Posts:13,676
Points:2,760,890
Joined:Mar 2005
Message Posted: Aug 7, 2008 5:29:50 AM

no
Profile Pic
bobnks
Champion Author Kansas City

Posts:11,462
Points:2,211,240
Joined:May 2004
Message Posted: Aug 7, 2008 5:09:52 AM

no
Profile Pic
Signfool
Champion Author Omaha

Posts:5,973
Points:1,465,185
Joined:May 2008
Message Posted: Aug 6, 2008 10:36:11 PM

no
Profile Pic
catchme08
Champion Author Sacramento

Posts:6,616
Points:1,385,810
Joined:Mar 2008
Message Posted: Aug 6, 2008 10:33:52 PM

no
Profile Pic
CashSaverUSAcom
Rookie Author Memphis

Posts:69
Points:174,100
Joined:Dec 2007
Message Posted: Aug 6, 2008 9:35:41 PM

No
Profile Pic
NightMagic
Champion Author Cincinnati

Posts:57,100
Points:2,411,435
Joined:Sep 2006
Message Posted: Aug 6, 2008 12:25:02 PM

no
Profile Pic
april4
Champion Author Virginia Beach

Posts:12,169
Points:2,399,885
Joined:Oct 2005
Message Posted: Aug 6, 2008 7:14:17 AM

no
Profile Pic
NightMagic
Champion Author Cincinnati

Posts:57,100
Points:2,411,435
Joined:Sep 2006
Message Posted: Aug 5, 2008 9:30:06 AM

no
Profile Pic
UltraClassic08
Champion Author Georgia

Posts:3,177
Points:648,860
Joined:May 2008
Message Posted: Aug 5, 2008 8:59:39 AM

No
Profile Pic
dongo50
Champion Author West Virginia

Posts:14,684
Points:2,379,070
Joined:Jul 2006
Message Posted: Aug 5, 2008 8:53:01 AM

no, it's all the same, except for the additives.
Profile Pic
in_orbit
Champion Author Orange County

Posts:334,750
Points:1,656,790
Joined:May 2006
Message Posted: Aug 5, 2008 8:14:44 AM

yes
Profile Pic
NightMagic
Champion Author Cincinnati

Posts:57,100
Points:2,411,435
Joined:Sep 2006
Message Posted: May 21, 2008 1:41:24 PM

no
Profile Pic
n8pu
Sophomore Author Michigan

Posts:239
Points:105,710
Joined:Apr 2006
Message Posted: May 20, 2008 11:03:11 PM

No, but back in the late 60's and early 70's I used to have favorites but not any more. The vehicle I drive it wouldn't make any difference.
Profile Pic
SabB23
Rookie Author Colorado Springs

Posts:17
Points:1,255
Joined:May 2008
Message Posted: May 19, 2008 12:58:49 AM

no
Post a reply Back to Topics