It all comes out of the same few refineries. They (Chevron, Texaco, whoever) add some of their double-secret additives and put on a fancy name like Techron or Techroline, or whatever. The additives are actually added into the tanks by the drivers themselves! This is true. It's all the same gas when they leave the terminal. I know someone who used to deliver gas for Chevron. The most important thing is to buy your gas from a station that moves a lot of volume. We all run premium, so think about how long that premium has sat in their tanks, how stale it may be? Anyway, I pick a place that looks like they move a lot of volume. As far as additives, I run some Amsoil P.I. through mine every once in a while just like I throw a bottle in each of my rigs after every oil change. I used ride with a guy that would only put Texaco gas in his bike. Didn't matter, had to be Texaco or nothing. Geeezzzz - no clue. Just run a little Amsoil P.I. or whatever brand you wanna run every once in a while through a tank and you will be just fine.

 

True statement. The important thing is to pay attention to the % of Ethanol, the Octane rating, the freshness of the product and the additive package of your choice.

In North America, at any given time, there are several different "regular unleaded" gasoline produced by the refineries. One recent summer, that I payed attention to, there were 47 different summer blends being produced by the NA refineries. The reason for the number is your local and state politicians.

Remember when hurricane Rita took out the Pascagoula refinery? This caused a shortage of regular gas in Atlanta because the law requires a special low sulfur blend in the summer months that is specific to the Atlanta market. The local politicians had to pass special legislation, to allow a substitute blend to relieve the shortage.

The additive package is what differentiates retail gasoline's from one another.

 

I use to do tech service calls at a large terminal on the west side of Atlanta and asked them similar questions.

And they told me...

With respect to the actual gasoline...they have all their gas come in through the same two lines from the gulf coast (these two serve all the southeast and much of the mid-Atlantic states) and stored in the same above ground tanks regardless what truck carries it out or brand station it's dropped.

But as stated above, it's only the amount of additive asked for by each brand. And the difference in amount is very little. In other words, just enough so Brand X can call their formula something different and special.

It is always funny to hear someone say just how much better Brand A was over some generic station's brand only to learn that the exact same truck might have delivered gas at both stations back-to-back.

 

True and not True.

True Statement
"With respect to the actual gasoline...they have all their gas come in through the same two lines from the gulf coast...."

Not Completely True
"But as stated above, it's only the amount of additive asked for by each brand. And the difference in amount is very little. In other words, just enough so Brand X can call their formula something different and special."

While, in some cases, the amount of additive per volume may be the difference between one brand of gas and the other, for others the additive package itself is completely different and is the brands competitive advantage.

 

While the storm and blend didn't help, nearly all the shortages in the Atlanta and surrounding areas were really caused by those hording gas.

I lived in Atlanta during that time and remember seeing idiots filling milk jugs, water bottles, and anything else they could use. Prices spiked, fuel ran out, and people got into fights. Many stations closed because of the violence.

No, the hundreds of EPA-mandated blends certainly didn't help but the Atlanta problem was due mainly to the greedy.

 

As most shortages are. Just like .22 Long Rifle ammunition.

 

Top Tier is a marketing ploy and not a product. The various brands that market under the "Top Tier" concept have a few more ounces of additive than standard in a few thousand gallons of gas. That is if the driver adds it when he loads the truck at the tank farm. But, if it is winter, howling winds and 20 below do you really think he got out and did it?

All gasoline is the same as it is a government regulated product. They all have the same additive. Top Tier companies just add a few parts per million more.

Have you ever been by a tank farm and saw all the various brands of gas lining up to get their load?

 

Borrowed from Edmunds:

Recipes for Performance — at a Price
But this doesn't mean that all gas is the same, even though it starts out that way. The fuel from different filling stations comes from a common source: the "base gas" from a refinery. Workers there mix additives mandated by the Environmental Protection Agency into the base gas in order to clean a car's engine and reduce emissions. Then, the different gas companies — both off-brand and major brands — put their own additive packages in the gas to further boost both cleaning and performance.
A key difference is that the major brands put more additives in their gas and claim to have some secret ingredients. This extra shot of additives provides an additional level of cleaning and protection for your engine.
But is this extra helping of additives, which jacks up the price, really necessary? And, if you don't use more expensive, extra-additive gas, how soon will your engine's performance suffer?
"It's not like any of the fuels are totally junk," says John Nielsen, director of engineering and repair for the AAA. "If you buy gas from Bob's Bargain Basement gas station because that's all that's available, it won't hurt your car," he says.
The real difference is the amount of additives that are in the gas, Nielsen says. More additives essentially afford more protection — but they also cost more.
Some automakers and oil companies believe that the amount of government-required additives isn't enough to protect engines. They have created a Top Tier gasoline designation. It means that those gasoline brands sell fuels that provide more and better additives.
Nielsen recommends that drivers look in their car's owner's manual to see what the carmaker recommends and, when possible, follow that guideline. People who are still concerned about gasoline quality can ask a specific oil company if it has performed independent testing to substantiate its claims.

The full article:
http://www.edmunds.com/car-care/is-c...-your-car.html

 

You are correct. I should have explained it better. The mix may have called for a certain amount of additive from nozzle 1, a certain amount from nozzle 2, and so forth. But the total of all amounts from each nozzle were not much different...certainly not 2 or 3 times different.

As it was explained to me, they "custom blend" only the first load of the day for that driver IF that driver's first stop (or total drop) was to a particular station requesting that blend. Then the next station got what ever was left in the truck.

 

Guys, this is being over complicated. Fact: All stations receive their gasoline from the same suppliers. They add different "stuff" and name it. It sounds really technical and neat. Like "Techron and Techroline". Let's wait for someone to chime in that delivers fuel today and maybe they will tell us "how much" they actually pour into the truck before they dump it in the tank. Bottom line is - it ain't much. Be concerned about what the octane rating states, pay attention to how much ethanol you are willing to drink down, and how long do you think that PREMIUM fuel has been sitting in the tanks of the station you are stopped at. Control YOUR OWN additives and add them when YOU want. Again, I happen to put a little Amsoil P.I. in once in awhile, but use whatever you want. Gas, is Gas, is Gas. All the same ****... other than what I just mentioned above. Find a busy station with a decent price, fill up and boogie down the road. The Texaco's, Shell's and Chevron's are making a killing on the average Joe who doesn't pay attention to common sense and the truth. It's like oil, people buy either the brand that their neighbor or coworker told them is best, saw it on a TV show (Royal Purple) or what their G'Pa and Dad used to pour in when they were teaching them about oil changes 30 years ago. Hopefully someone who currently delivers fuel will chime in, but the guy that I know who retired as a driver for the big three put in like a gallon of their "additive" into an entire tanker truck at the pumps.