Does it affect my car’s performance?
Cars using summer-blend gasoline spew fewer harmful emissions and get slightly better fuel economy than those using winter-blend gas during the summer months.
The difference between conventional summer- and winter-blend gasoline has to do with the Reid Vapor Pressure of the fuel. RVP relates to the volatility of a gasoline. The more volatile a gasoline, the more likely it will evaporate as the temperatures rises; evaporated gasoline contributes to unhealthy ozone and smog levels. Summer gasoline has a low RVP and is less likely to evaporate when compared to the high RVP winter grade. The Environmental Protection Agency says conventional summer-blend gasoline contains 1.7 percent more energy than winter-blend gas, which contributes to the summer blend’s slightly better gas mileage.
The Energy Information Administration says the switch between the two fuels happens twice a year, once in the fall (winter blend) and again in the spring (summer blend). Summer-blend gasoline is typically more expensive to produce than the winter blend, and it won’t affect vehicle performance or the durability of the engine and fuel system, according to the EPA.
In many large cities as well as California and New England, the EPA requires the use of reformulated summer- and winter-blend gasolines. These RFGs contain oxygenates that lower RVP and other toxic chemicals even further than conventional gasoline.
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So why can't they make summer-blend all year long?
J summer-blend gas doesn’t perform as well in cold temperatures. The summer gas can make cold engine start ups difficult.
The article states you get slightly better gas mileage on the summer blend. I'm wondering what they consider slight. My first vehicle went from 18mpg in the winter to 24mpg in the summer, and my second vehicle went from 26mpg in the winter to 33mpg in the summer. I consider that a considerable difference.
Who cares when these blends of gasoline start, I want to know how much it cost the oil companies per gallon of gas to make it into a summer blend. I can't believe it runs .50 to $1.00 a gallon to make it a summer blend!
My Ford Ranger check engine light come on when they change to winter blend gas.Ive.replaced the part but light stays on,if you erase it in a day or two it will come back on.It works that way until they change the gasoline blends back to Summer
Anyone else have problems like this?????
Yes I have the same problem in the summer. Light comes on just when It's time for my inspection. I had to get a waiver from the state to get it passed. In the late fall light goes off and doesn't come back until June.
I live in Southern California. My newer model Chevy Corvette PINGS on the Summer blend gasoline and NOT with the Winter blend. Anybody know why?
All four vehicles i've owned in the past decade import and domestic have gotten poorer gas mileage on summer blend. Summer blend burns more completely, but at the expense of gas mileage. If you ask me it makes more sense to get better gas mileage with higher pollutants as you burn less of it. Kind of counter intuitive if you ask me. Not to mention one of the components of complete burn gas -- MTBE-- i responsible for contaminating tons of drinking resevoirs. Look it up... Get the crap out of the gas, drop the price, and get better gas mileage. Makes sense to me.
The thing that gets me is that the article says summer blend costs more to produce, yet the price goes up in the winter???? ($2.76 in August to $3.10 now) So...we get to pay more for them to do less AND we get worse mileage... what a deal! What ever happened to the law of supply and demand? As per the norm, the rich get richer and the poor get poorer
Belive This Or Not,I,Just Put On My Car(TOYOTA 2010 AVALON) And My Milage Has Drop Quite A Bit,According,To My Dealer,Due To The Winter GAS????? I,Think That May Be,I,Am Having My Chain Pulled???? All My Life(AM 80 YOUNNG) I Never Heard That The Gas Is Differant In The Winter???? Can Some One Please Explain This To ME??????
After getting one day less from a tank of gas I took a look at the Excel spreadsheet where I track gas mileage. The single tank MPG and three tank running average dropped by 15% the beginning of November. There have been no changes in my driving habits and nearly all of my driving in on the highway. Since temperatures here are relatively moderate, there was also no dramatic change in the weather.
I sure hope that it pops back up by 15% in the spring.
Since when have the oil companies made different gas for summer and winter - I think this is just another "gimmick"...thanks for listening...
I agree with mary.the oil companies have thier people in the EPA,NYSE, and every agency they want to control,like the government. Da
Seems to me I get Less MPG durring the summer. I would not trust the Junk science from the EPA.
It is interestng that the moment that California switched to summer blend my mileage dropped from 29/30mpg with my 98 Accord to 24/25mpg. So the way I see it I use the fuel that pollutes less but burn a lot more of it. So where is the gain in less pollution?
I have a 2010 Subaru Forester, which averages between 27 - 30 mpg highway on summer blend but immediately drops to 20 - 23 mpg highway on winter blend. Depending on the brand of gas the drop can be even more dramatic, which amounts to paying over $5.00 a gal vs summer ratio at current prices in WA State.
there is no differance between summer and winter blend other than winther gas has a ice additive cars get better gas milage in the summer due to air density, If you understand Volumetric Efficiency (VE) and how it pertains to internal combustion engines then the weather affects more or less equate to something pretty similar. Weather overall affects the amount (total mass) of burnable oxygen that the engine can draw in. just another way to ROB!! the american people
So...the summer blend exists to protect us from evaporation? What? Is gas evaporation such a big problem...like we're all running around with our gas caps off? What a joke...and a complete waste our money. It's yet another example of government, enviro-whacko science...we're all getting the shaft with this one!!
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I have read winter blend gasoline begins around Sept 15. do you know when summer blended gas begins?