The fuel system can be
another driver neglected item. Some are
very good at sticking with the same
fueling stations when it comes time to
refill the tank. Others may travel all
over town trying to find the least
expensive fuel their hard earned dollar
will buy.
Bear in mind that
you get what you pay for. Well
maintained fuel stations have few if any
problems with their storage tanks.
Others, well, have you ever heard of
somebody filling up and now it won't
start? This is usually caused by water
that leaked into the storage tank.
All fuel is dirty to some
extent but well maintained stations are
cleaner than poorly maintained ones.
That is why your vehicle utilizes a
filter in its system. Most filters
should be replaced around 30,000 miles or
each year no matter where you get your
fuel. Many vehicles made in the last five years don't have a simple filter to replace, making the use of higher-quality fuels a must.
Another important note
about fuel quality is the additives that
are already in the fuel. The additives
are what each company puts into the
fuel. The base stock of each company
comes from the same place in the
Mid-Columbia. The only difference is the
additives they put in it. Chevron has
the highest quality detergents. Shell is
next in line and it goes downhill from
there. These additives contain
detergents that keep the fuel system
clean. Buying over-the-counter additives
from your neighborhood parts store will
do nothing for your fuel system. Often
those additives become too diluted in
the tank to do anything useful.
I use a potent cleaning
process that completely bypasses the
fuel tank and runs only through the fuel
injectors. This is to clean tarnish from
the finely machined injector tips which
will restore the original cone shaped
spray pattern. to have this
simple cleaning procedure done.
~ Curtis
Messer
|