[cooper4us]

Page #8 "For your own Safety" section, in the MINI Owner's Manual, states the following on the subject of fuel quality:

"Use unleaded gasoline only. Fuels containing up to and including 10% Ethanol or other oxygenates with up to 2.8% oxygen by weight (i.e. 15% MTBE or 3% methanol plus an equivalent amount of co-solvent) will not void applicable warranties with respect to defects in materials or workmanship.

Field experience has indicated significant differences in fuel quality (volatility, composition, additives, others) among gasolines offered for sale in the United States and Canada. The use of poor quality fuels may result in driveability, starting and stalling problems especially under certain environmental conditions, such as high ambient temperature and high altitude.

Should you encounter driveability problems which you suspect could be related to the fuel you are using, we recommend that you respond by switching to a recognized high quality brand.

Failure to comply with these recommendations may result in unscheduled maintenance.

Obey pertinent safety rules when you are handling gasoline."


So it appears to be that the MINI's engine is pretty sensitive to different gasoline qualities.

My dealer recommends Mobil gasolines. In fact they say that BMW/MINI recommends Florida owners to use Mobil because they have their own distributors and generally have very strict gasoline handling and quality control standards from refinery to station pump.

In order of preference, they issued the following gasoline brand recommendation:

1) Mobil (I guess Exxon falls in this category as it is owned by Mobil, but my near by Exxon station appears to be selling gas of dubious quality as I don't think they properly maintain their underground storage tanks (Water filtration).
2) Chevron (Never had problems with them before)
3) Amoco

They told me to stay away from Shell (Usually very expensive), Texaco, Citgo, Marathon and other less known brands.

I primarily use Mobil and Chevron only. What does everyone else is using and why?


__________________

[HarryHBMCC]

My MINI Cooper is VERY sensitive to gas, running great on some and threatening to stall on others.

I've found Mobil/Exxon/Esso 92 to run my MINI the best with no rough running; it gives excellent power and good mileage. Shell 91 runs alright, not as much power but better mileage; doesn't run rough much. Petro Canada 91 seemed to have a little more power than Shell 91 but ran much rougher. 10% ethanol blends around here are all 93 or 94 and so far my experience with them has been rough running, poor mileage but perhaps a tad more power than with Esso 92. Based upon all that, I fill up with Mobil/Exxon/Esso 92 whenever possible and will now go low on the tank if I must to get there.

Harry

[chiph]

My past two cars have liked Amoco Ultimate, so I'll try that first when I get my MCS. Others that I would consider are Exxon and BP. I wouldn't consider Texaco, Citgo, etc. due to past experiences with them.

We don't have Chevron near me, but if we did, I'd try them.

Chip H.

[LANER]

I use stuff over here called Optimax from shell and on their website they claim that its above 98 ron!!!!

I must say, i have noticed the difference!! (in my bank balance)and the performance!!

[jonturner]

I've not noticed a problem with fuel sensitivity. While driving through the Appalacian mountains of eastern North Carolina I burned a tank or two of "generic" 92 octane gas from a small station and the car ran just fine, too.

I've kept a fuel log from day one and I usually fill with BP 93 and very occasionally Exxon 93. MPG hovers right around 30.

In case it matters, my S is 2002 built in July so it has all the 2003 "fixes" (cold start fuel remapping, vented boot cover, reworked seat levers, disabled "odometer" software screen, etc.)

-- JonTurner

[noahe]

For the Greater Toronto, Ontario, Canada region:

Petro Canada will not disclose how much "Tactrol" they put in their gas. It is an oxygenate, but they won't say what kind. Since the MINI can only tolerate a certain amount, I've chosen to skip it.

Esso (Exxon) has the highest sulphur content of all the big chains. Skip it, the MINI has 2 cats, and a sophisticated (expensive) emissions system.

Sunoco's Ultra 94 usually contains more than 10% Ethanol. Infact, their brochures guarantee at least 10%. Bad. Next.

Shell's Optimax is a low oxygenate, clean fuel, but only 91 octane. This meets the minimum requirements of the car. Best we can hope for.

When we drove through the US, BP and Amoco had an "unoxygenated blend for european or older vehicles" which was ideal.

Fill up with anything if you're low - but TRY to fill up on a regular basis with the best fuel you can find. Remember, ALL USA and CANADA gas is terrrible. High sulphur, minimum refining standards, low octane, poor consistancy from tank-to-tank.

It IS good for the environment, but remember than Ethanol is Corn Alcohol, Methanol is Fermented Garbage Juice Alcohol, MTBE is very, very BAD stuff, and any co-solvents required to blend this stuff with the gasoline so it doesn't seperate like an oil/vinegar salad dressing is VERY harsh on your car's fuel system. Especially northern region cars, which have more soft rubber components to stay flexible when cold.

I actually emailed the major companies to enquire about the blends they use.

P.S. Harry, when it gets cold, DO NOT put the Petro-Can "Superclean Winter Gas" in your MINI. You don't even want to know what it contains.

A co-worker just bought a Porsche 911 Turbo X50, and the technicians that did the run-through told him to run Shell whenever he can, and NEVER fill up with Petro-Can.

[stryder]

I always used to get Mobil gas (both because I liked the quality and I could use their super nifty speedpass thing), but since I moved to Ohio I'm stuck with BP, it seems to be the best I can find.

Its nice to know other people are picky about gas, I'll have passangers in the car asking all sorts of odd questions as to why I'm driving around with the also super nifty low fuel light on trying to find a specific gas station. It does matter!

[AprilWhine]

I usually use either Costco or Wawa, but always premium.

[Dr. Bob]

4,700 miles on COSTCO Premium, so far. I'm about ready to try their Regular for awhile to see what effect it generates on mileage and performance. Right now, my cummulative mileage is 32.4 mpg(US).

After that experimenting, I may try a few tanks of "higher" quality petrol and see what differences I can find.

[catalyst]

I have 1000 miles on the clock and have used Phillips 91 octane exclusively. I've used it primarily because I trust in the quality of this particular station: never had any problems with "bad gas" in years of use in my previous car.

I'm going to try a few tanks of Amoco's 93 octane just for comparison purposes.

[Juanello]

I got over 8,000 miles on my Cooper and have used CHEVRON SUPREME mostly. It seems to work good and I feel confident to trust its quality. I've also used "76" Premium a few times and it seems to work fine too.

[MINImeat]

I've been using Amoco Ultimate for many years, now, and have never had any fuel-related problems. No one else can understand my pickiness, but I'm sticking to my choice. I usually frequent a station near my home that has a very good reputation and has been there forever.
I'm still on the dealers gas which seems to be working well, but I'll be going back to my friendly Amoco.
MINImeat

[Martin L]

My MCS is very particular in which petrol it drinks
It's always got to have super unleaded and IMO runs best on Shell Optimax. The fact that it's 98-99 Ron and much cheaper then BP 97 Ron is a bonus

[Allybrit]

Exxon premium only......runs great. I have been warned to stay away from Sams club etc gas, as someone told me on here they are a mix of all kinds of crap gas. Dont know if there is any truth to it but I dont want to risk it.......what do you guys think??

[RickB]

My Grandfather worked for Standard Oil for 40 years, and he'd be spinning in his grave if I used anything but Chevron Supreme. I've been using that gas, almost exclusively, for over 20 years, and find it to be of consistently excellent quality.

[ElectronMan]

I would stay away from Chevron. The octane ratings have been know to be false and a few points less due to the Techron additives that lowers octane points.

I like Texaco, Amoco, and Exxon.

[BillK]

Still waiting for my MINI (at the VPC), but I generally use Union 76 gas (USA). Good consistent quality. I occasionally use Costco in my wife's car, but I have noticed some pinging, so . . .

I believe Costco buys surplus from different refiners, so consistency may be a problem. My friend indicated that one of his cars (either an Audi or Mercedes, don't remember which) had a MAJOR problem with Chevron with Techcron and there was a dealer notice out on it, so I stay away from that one if I can.

[chiph]

One of my customers in a previous job is/was a gasoline and oils distributor in Eastern Georgia. I asked them what the difference was between the major brands and the "Cheep Joe's Discount Gas & Bait Shop" brands. From what they said:

Major brands all come out of the same pipeline from Texas or wherever, but the additive packages are proprietary to each of them. The additive may get added to the tanker truck when it gets filled up, or at the individual station, depending on the truck's delivery route.

Discount brands also come out of the same pipeline, but what they're selling is the gasoline that was near the plastic plug used in the pipeline to separate the various products that get shipped through it (gasoline, diesel, home heating oil, kerosene, etc). So you'll get mostly gasoline, but there'll be traces of some other petroleum product as well (due to seepage around the plug).

This was current as of the early 90's. Practices might have changed since then. YMMV.

Chip H.

[CurtP]

After many hours logging data from my 95 Formula (11.5:1 CR) with TTS Datamaster and monitoring with LT1 ScanMaster on extended trips, I have found Shell 93 to be the most consistant from gas station to gas station, and from state to state (for the Southeast and Midwest at least). I usually get 0° KR and my plugs "read" good. This really surprised me, since I was an avid Texaco user.

[PaulC]

Thanks for the info on gas in Canada. Was curious what your thoughts might be on "Month of Power Maximum Performance Octane Booster" (see http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/jk/030730.htm) as an additive to Optimax to boost octane (perhaps to level out poor consistency)?

Quote: Originally Posted by noahe

For the Greater Toronto, Ontario, Canada region:

Petro Canada will not disclose how much "Tactrol" they put in their gas. It is an oxygenate, but they won't say what kind. Since the MINI can only tolerate a certain amount, I've chosen to skip it.

Esso (Exxon) has the highest sulphur content of all the big chains. Skip it, the MINI has 2 cats, and a sophisticated (expensive) emissions system.

Sunoco's Ultra 94 usually contains more than 10% Ethanol. Infact, their brochures guarantee at least 10%. Bad. Next.

Shell's Optimax is a low oxygenate, clean fuel, but only 91 octane. This meets the minimum requirements of the car. Best we can hope for.

When we drove through the US, BP and Amoco had an "unoxygenated blend for european or older vehicles" which was ideal.

Fill up with anything if you're low - but TRY to fill up on a regular basis with the best fuel you can find. Remember, ALL USA and CANADA gas is terrrible. High sulphur, minimum refining standards, low octane, poor consistancy from tank-to-tank.

It IS good for the environment, but remember than Ethanol is Corn Alcohol, Methanol is Fermented Garbage Juice Alcohol, MTBE is very, very BAD stuff, and any co-solvents required to blend this stuff with the gasoline so it doesn't seperate like an oil/vinegar salad dressing is VERY harsh on your car's fuel system. Especially northern region cars, which have more soft rubber components to stay flexible when cold.

I actually emailed the major companies to enquire about the blends they use.

P.S. Harry, when it gets cold, DO NOT put the Petro-Can "Superclean Winter Gas" in your MINI. You don't even want to know what it contains.

A co-worker just bought a Porsche 911 Turbo X50, and the technicians that did the run-through told him to run Shell whenever he can, and NEVER fill up with Petro-Can.