[garyahouse]

So just to be clear as I've not done ALL the research, are both of our Tucson engines rated for 87 octane? If I understand correctly, we have the 2.5 in my SEL and the 2.0 in the hybrid and plug in hybrid. Are those the only two engines available, and are they both rated for the 87 octane?

 

[RevLauren]

Thanks for all the thoughtful input. I always do consult more than once source since the Internet is an interesting mix of fact, opinion and speculation. There has certainly been some helpful information in this forum, which I appreciate. I certainly don't think that something is "better" simply by virtue of being more expensive. That is sometimes true and sometimes not the case. I simply want to take the best possible care of my new car. Having downloaded the FULL unabridged manual (thanks to the poster who included the link in a post above), I found the applicable instruction as follows for my 2023 Tucson (with 2.5L 4 cyl engine) :

Chapter 9, page 73 (very near the end of this remarkably detailed 548 page document)
FUEL REQUIREMENTS
Gasoline Engine
Unleaded
Your new vehicle is designed to perform optimally with unleaded fuel having
an octane number ((R+M)/2) of 87 (Research Octane Number 91) or higher.
Your new vehicle is designed to obtain maximum performance with UNLEADED
FUEL, as well as minimize exhaust emissions and spark plug fouling.

And that being quoted, now I've spent half an hour reading about the difference between (and definitions of) 87 Octane and RON 91. Good grief!

 

[garyahouse]

...Your new vehicle is designed to perform optimally with unleaded fuel having
an octane number ((R+M)/2) of 87...

Which engine do you have Rev?

 

[Tampa8]

So just to be clear as I've not done ALL the research, are both of our Tucson engines rated for 87 octane? If I understand correctly, we have the 2.5 in my SEL and the 2.0 in the hybrid and plug in hybrid. Are those the only two engines available, and are they both rated for the 87 octane?

All Tucsons, of all creeds and colors, including the Santa Cruz turbo says 87 octane.

 

[RevLauren]

Which engine do you have Rev?

All the trim levels for the gasoline powered Tucson (2023) models have the 2.5L 4-cyl, 187 HP engine. And that is exactly what is says on the window sticker, too, so that provides confirmation.

 

[Tampa8]

Not leaving well enough alone.....
Some high altitude areas of the Country have 86 octane instead of 87. At that height engines are more efficient (lower air pressure) so 86 is the new 87..

I encountered that on our cross Country trip last year as well as in previous years traveling. In those instances I went with the higher octane (89 or 91 what was available) rather than 86 because we were traveling not staying at the high altitudes.

 

[garyahouse]

Okedokee. So now we have some definitive info on octane requirements. Thank you everybody for doing the research here. Now, back to our subject at hand...

Doing some research on another one of my favorite forums, I was reminded that too many people who post on open forums give only anecdotal evidence (their own experience) as "proof" for the point they're trying to make. Gets frustrating sorting through the fluff looking for the meat. Though I love to give my opinion, the question we all must ask is, where did you get your evidence? That said, two of the most respected sources out there for anything automotive are Consumer's Reports and AAA. Their researchers and methodology are second to none. Recently I quoted some info from research done by AAA.

Curios about what I saw? Here's the link to the study: CLICKY. It's an amazing and thorough report done on the difference between engines that use top tier fuels and those that don't.

If nothing more, just scroll down and look carefully at the pictures. It will make a believer out of you. The difference is indeed staggering. I'd especially direct your attention to page 17 and the "key findings," which is the summary, on page 24.

 

[RevLauren]

Okedokee. So now we have some definitive info on octane requirements. Thank you everybody for doing the research here. Now, back to our subject at hand...

Doing some research on another one of my favorite forums, I was reminded that too many people who post on open forums give only anecdotal evidence (their own experience) as "proof" for the point they're trying to make. Gets frustrating sorting through the fluff looking for the meat. Though I love to give my opinion, the question we all must ask is, where did you get your evidence? That said, two of the most respected sources out there for anything automotive are Consumer's Reports and AAA. Their researchers and methodology are second to none. Recently I quoted some info from research done by AAA.

Curios about what I saw? Here's the link to the study: CLICKY. It's an amazing and thorough report done on the difference between engines that use top tier fuels and those that don't.

If nothing more, just scroll down and look carefully at the pictures. It will make a believer out of you. The difference is indeed staggering. I'd especially direct your attention to page 17 and the "key findings," which is the summary, on page 24.

Wow. That is one seriously constructed research experiment. Well done. Though I didn't grasp all the technical details, the conclusions are irrefutable and nothing but Top Tier gas will ever go gurgling down the fuel filler tube of my Tucson. I found the map of mixtures based on regions of the U.S. quite interesting. Thanks so much for bringing all these facts into the forum... and yes, we did drift a bit off topic with the octane discussion.

 

[garyahouse]

Since my research seems to be helpful, here's another short piece put together by Consumer Reports. We all know the trustworthiness and accuracy of the research they do. CLICKY It's not the only report they made, but it was published just one year ago for any who might appreciate some recent evidence.

 

[garyahouse]

A member asked me a couple questions on another thread, and since my answer was related to this one, here it is copied below. It's rather lengthy: but contains some good info.

...Well, we do know a little about additives. We know that Chevron uses Techron, and also sells it by the same name in a very similar formulation at the local auto store. We also know that Techron, like other formulations from other gas companies, is not just one chemical, but rather a cocktail of many additives each designed to do different things. But the most important one to most of us is the detergent portion of the mixture. As you probably figured out, I have researching in my blood. As an English teacher, I spent a fair amount of energy teaching my students just how to do research, how to write papers, and how to find and utilize iron-clad evidence in their writing. Here I am retired, and now I do for fun what I once did for a paycheck. I enjoy researching: but as we all know, every gas company is very tight lipped about their formulations. Specifics are nearly impossible to come by. For example, Shell uses what they call V Power Nitro in their premium only, but uses a slightly lesser amount of much the same stuff in their lower grade fuels. They say it has nitrogen in it and more than one researcher has confirmed this. What is it exactly? Who knows. Of course since they are indeed top tier certified for all grades, all their fuels still meet TT mandates, it's just that their premium contains MORE still. That has led some to proclaim that ONLY their premium is top tier. WRONG. Gotta be careful WHERE ya get yer information.

Back to just what's in each fuel. Likely we'll never know. I read a post written on a car forum last week. The poster said he drove a truck delivering gas to perhaps 5 different stations, and could readily quote the name and exact amount of the additives he put in the fuel for each different station. But he quoted names like Techron and V Power and such. His post was something like 9 years old so it wasn't really relevant info anyway, but even with that knowledge, we don't really know what's IN these formulations.

But he did say that the cheaper companies choose additives, (minimum federal requirements only) bought from the lowest bidder on the open market, sometimes changing "brands" daily pending the price and availability.

Top tier retailers of course don't do this. Their fuel is monitored for content BY THE TOP TIER ORGANIZATION. But even between top tier suppliers, I find it nearly impossible to determine which is best. For example when AAA did their huge comparison (and provided the research results) on this subject several years ago, they tested several cheap stations and several top tier stations. The differences were astonishing. The cheaper stations were clumped at the bottom, and the TT stations were clumped at the top, and there was a huge margin in between. But there was a slight difference between the individual TT stations. It's just that AAA wouldn't divulge which was which. UGGGH.

Obviously, there's a reason for this, gas companies protect their secret formula and proclaim it the best. As far as I can tell nobody knows for sure. I started researching this 7 years ago. But what I have found is that Chevron and Shell seem to come out on top with those who seem to know. I've read this a number of times. These are only opinions however: like I said, who knows? But we do know that either one is a good choice and that's good enough for me. Guess I'm hoping that somebody else who does (or did) this for a living weighs in here.

 

[garyahouse]

Came across this online this morning:
"I work at a Chevron refinery making gasoline for Chevron stations as well as other brands. All gasoline has the same specifications, so all the gasoline leaving the refinery is the same. Each brand has a different additive package that is added to the gasoline when it is loaded into the delivery trucks at the truck rack at the terminal.
Top tier gasoline contains about twice as much additive as non top tier gasoline.
Top tier gasoline additives are not the same, but the differences are very slight. Car manufactures test the Top Tier gasolines and assign the top tier label."

 

[PowerJrod]

Solid info. At the end of the day I know the research proves that top tier additives made a difference in the long run and definitely not a waste of money since you can get some TT gas for maybe around $0.02 or $0.03 more per gallon which is worth it.

 

[Mwatkins]

A member asked me a couple questions on another thread, and since my answer was related to this one, here it is copied below. It's rather lengthy: but contains some good info.

...Well, we do know a little about additives. We know that Chevron uses Techron, and also sells it by the same name in a very similar formulation at the local auto store. We also know that Techron, like other formulations from other gas companies, is not just one chemical, but rather a cocktail of many additives each designed to do different things. But the most important one to most of us is the detergent portion of the mixture. As you probably figured out, I have researching in my blood. As an English teacher, I spent a fair amount of energy teaching my students just how to do research, how to write papers, and how to find and utilize iron-clad evidence in their writing. Here I am retired, and now I do for fun what I once did for a paycheck. I enjoy researching: but as we all know, every gas company is very tight lipped about their formulations. Specifics are nearly impossible to come by. For example, Shell uses what they call V Power Nitro in their premium only, but uses a slightly lesser amount of much the same stuff in their lower grade fuels. They say it has nitrogen in it and more than one researcher has confirmed this. What is it exactly? Who knows. Of course since they are indeed top tier certified for all grades, all their fuel still meet TT mandates, it's just that their premium contains MORE still. That has led some to proclaim that ONLY their premium is top tier. WRONG. Gotta be careful WHERE ya get yer information.

Back to just what's in each fuel. Likely we'll never know. I read a post written on a car forum last week. The poster said he drove a truck delivering gas to perhaps 5 different stations, and could readily quote the name and exact amount of the additives he put in the fuel at each different station. But he quoted names like Techron and V Power and such. His post was something like 9 years old so it wasn't really relevant info anyway, but even with that knowledge, we don't really know what's IN these formulations. But he did say that the cheaper companies use additives, (minimum federal requirements only) and buy it from the lowest bidder on the open market, sometimes changing "brands" daily pending the price and availability. Top tier retailers of course don't do this. Their fuel is monitored for content BY THE TOP TIER ORGANIZATION. But even between top tier suppliers, I find it nearly impossible to determine which is best. For example when AAA did their huge comparison (and provided the research results) on this subject several years ago, they tested several cheap stations and several top tier stations. The differences were astonishing. The cheaper stations were clumped at the bottom, and the TT stations were clumped at the top, and there was a huge margin in between. But there was a slight difference between the individual TT stations. It's just that AAA wouldn't divulge which was which. UGGGH.

Obviously, there's a reason for this, gas companies protect their secret formula and proclaim it the best. As far as I can tell nobody knows for sure. I started researching this 7 years ago. But what I have found is that Chevron and Shell seem to come out on top with those who seem to know. I've read this a number of times. These are only opinions however: like I said, who knows? But we do know that either one is a good choice and that's good enough for me. Guess I'm hoping that somebody else who does (or did) this for a living weighs in here.

what is a Top Tier gas station?

 

[Danco]

what is a Top Tier gas station?

See here: About Top Tier
There's also a page on the site that lists brands/stations that sell Top Tier gasoline.

 

[rajaramgna]

what is a Top Tier gas station?

Fuel Stations - TOP TIER™

TOP TIER™ Licensed Brands prominently display the TOP TIER™ logo on the pump, pump handle, canopy or in a station window.

www.toptiergas.com

Costco, Shell, Exxon, Sunoco, and others as mentioned in the link.

 

[garyahouse]

what is a Top Tier gas station?

Do yourself a favor and REALLY study up on this. It makes a HUGE difference and it's sad that more people don't know about it.

 

[RevLauren]

A member asked me a couple questions on another thread, and since my answer was related to this one, here it is copied below. It's rather lengthy: but contains some good info.

...Well, we do know a little about additives. We know that Chevron uses Techron, and also sells it by the same name in a very similar formulation at the local auto store. We also know that Techron, like other formulations from other gas companies, is not just one chemical, but rather a cocktail of many additives each designed to do different things. But the most important one to most of us is the detergent portion of the mixture. As you probably figured out, I have researching in my blood. As an English teacher, I spent a fair amount of energy teaching my students just how to do research, how to write papers, and how to find and utilize iron-clad evidence in their writing. Here I am retired, and now I do for fun what I once did for a paycheck. I enjoy researching: but as we all know, every gas company is very tight lipped about their formulations. Specifics are nearly impossible to come by. For example, Shell uses what they call V Power Nitro in their premium only, but uses a slightly lesser amount of much the same stuff in their lower grade fuels. They say it has nitrogen in it and more than one researcher has confirmed this. What is it exactly? Who knows. Of course since they are indeed top tier certified for all grades, all their fuel still meet TT mandates, it's just that their premium contains MORE still. That has led some to proclaim that ONLY their premium is top tier. WRONG. Gotta be careful WHERE ya get yer information.

Back to just what's in each fuel. Likely we'll never know. I read a post written on a car forum last week. The poster said he drove a truck delivering gas to perhaps 5 different stations, and could readily quote the name and exact amount of the additives he put in the fuel at each different station. But he quoted names like Techron and V Power and such. His post was something like 9 years old so it wasn't really relevant info anyway, but even with that knowledge, we don't really know what's IN these formulations. But he did say that the cheaper companies use additives, (minimum federal requirements only) and buy it from the lowest bidder on the open market, sometimes changing "brands" daily pending the price and availability. Top tier retailers of course don't do this. Their fuel is monitored for content BY THE TOP TIER ORGANIZATION. But even between top tier suppliers, I find it nearly impossible to determine which is best. For example when AAA did their huge comparison (and provided the research results) on this subject several years ago, they tested several cheap stations and several top tier stations. The differences were astonishing. The cheaper stations were clumped at the bottom, and the TT stations were clumped at the top, and there was a huge margin in between. But there was a slight difference between the individual TT stations. It's just that AAA wouldn't divulge which was which. UGGGH.

Obviously, there's a reason for this, gas companies protect their secret formula and proclaim it the best. As far as I can tell nobody knows for sure. I started researching this 7 years ago. But what I have found is that Chevron and Shell seem to come out on top with those who seem to know. I've read this a number of times. These are only opinions however: like I said, who knows? But we do know that either one is a good choice and that's good enough for me. Guess I'm hoping that somebody else who does (or did) this for a living weighs in here.

Thanks for adding to our knowledge base here. I, too, am fond of research, and nowadays there is LOT more dross to sift through in order to find those priceless nuggets of actual fact.

 

[garyahouse]

Thanks for adding to our knowledge base here. I, too, am fond of research, and nowadays there is LOT more dross to sift through in order to find those priceless nuggets of actual fact.

Dross: I can appreciate that. You'll not be hearing it from this computer. Unless of course it's time to pick on somebody...

 

[retiredsigndude]

Amazing how many threads address the issue of gas mileage on this forum, but I can't find one that specifically addresses WHERE we buy our gas. In other words, according to the owner's manual, we might be putting the wrong gas in our cars. Our first question is usually, "Should I use regular or premium?" We've argued over this more than once on these pages. But a more important question is, "WHERE should I be buying my gas?" The WHERE is important because many owners know nothing about top tier fuels.

Bear with me, those of you who already know about this, but I believe a specific thread out to be started on this subject. I'd like to make this simple. Rather than explain what top tier fuel is, if you don't know, just do a quick google search on "top tier fuels." The net is awash with plenty of good information about this. That said, my owner's manual that came with my 2023 Tucson says nothing about this. But from what I understand, the copy issued to each new owner is an ABRIDGED copy (says so right on the cover), and is shorter and more abbreviated than the online version. I was reading through this online version recently. You can find it here: CLICKY. On page 9-9, at the bottom of the page, look at footnote *3, and you'll find these words: "If top tier detergent gasoline is not available, one bottle of additive is recommended..." Reading a little further reveals that they are referring to utilizing fuel additives (like Techron) every 8,000 miles.

I'm not making this up. I provided the link so you can see for yourself. Hyundai didn't come right out and demand that we use top tier fuels ONLY, but do the math, folks, that's what they're saying. So what if we don't? What does a manufacture ALWAYS do when we don't follow the recommendations found in the owner's manual? They refuse to fix a claim that should be covered by the factory warranty.

Beyond that, it is well documented that top tier fuels make a big difference inside your engine. Better mileage and smoother running today? Not likely. But use if for a year and compare with the other guy who didn't. Top tier fuels are worth every extra penny they cost. Over the past 10 years, I've read dozens and dozens of reports and watched countless you tube videos on this subject. It's worth learning about because it really MATTERS.

Gas is gas. All comes from the same terminals. The additives are mostly marketing gimmicks.

 

[RevLauren]

Gas is gas. All comes from the same terminals. The additives are mostly marketing gimmicks.

I do respect everyone's right to an opinion, and I don't simply accept information at face value. But given the fact-based reports cited in this thread, demonstrating some thorough research, which i have looked into myself at length, it seems clear that top-tier fuels are highly preferable and DO make a difference in extending the life of an engine. And besides, I'm not going to buy a brand new, expensive car and skimp on fuel cost. I'm a big believer in preventative care. And choosing the top-tier brands and spending a few extra dollars on a full tank is, to ME, like buying a little extra insurance.