Quote:
Originally Posted by givemeslack
1. The "cheapest" gas can also be of low quality, in a station that's not a nationally known brand. It won't be good for your engine. I've switched to using a Sunoco credit card all the time at a station in my neighborhood. It gives 5 cents off every gallon and a statement in the mail of all purchases which is a good way to review expenses.
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Being the cheapskate I am, I make a habit of always looking for the cheapest gas I can find. Frequently it's Arco AM/PM, but has also frequently been the off-brand stations run by - "ethnic minorities". And I have withstood barrages of dire warnings it would ruin my engine and give me poor gas mileage. Being the cheapskate I am, when I bought my brand new '85 Jimmy, I continued using the cheapest gas I could find - despite all the continued warnings that I'd "be sorry".
Well, almost 30 years later, that Jimmy still runs, has never had an engine rebuild, and always averaged 25 mpg on the highway (I think the EPA was like 21 or something). Now, I realize one case does not make "proof" of anything, but my other vehicles are also running the cheapest gas I can find, and also not experiencing any engine trouble or bad mileage.
Indeed, my 2000 Jimmy (my parents now drive the '85) was #31 on the list of "cars by % over EPA" on this site the last I checked, with 60% over EPA.
Now, for oil changes, most owners manuals I have say 7500 for "normal" or 3000 for "harsh duty". I usually just split the difference and go for 5000 miles - an easy number to watch for on the odometer. The '85 Jimmy's main odometer stopped working many years ago, and though I took it in to get fixed several times, it never kept working. (speedo & trip odometer continued to work fine though - weird). So for oil change interval on that one, I did twice a year - spring and fall time changes. Also easy to remember....