I either purchase non-ethanol gas or use StarTron. My truck has never seen anything but 93 octane gas since April of '05 when I put my first tune on it...

 

Do you use startron with your 93 as well?

 

If the gas I buy has ANY ethanol in it - no matter of octane or if it's going in yard equipment, outboard, ATV or vehicle - it gets StarTron.

I used to have to rebuild carbs, replace primer bulbs & fuel lines almost yearly and ever since I started using StarTron I have yet to have to touch a carb or fuel line or any other part aside from normal tune-ups. I'm 100% convinced that ethanol is just pure-out bad for engine/fuel system components - PERIOD!!!

 

i've never heard of or used StarTron....where can i find info on it? i'd like to look into it and possibly start using it...i guess i could google it..i keep forgetting thats the trend now...i have several mechanics that work at various brand dealers in my family and i see and hear of the ethanol negatives constantly....i hate it myself....gums up the entire fuel system in whatever you run it in

 

There are a couple of very extensive threads on it in both the 3rd Gen and 2nd Gen sections.

But in a nutshell - it was introduced by Star Brite - a company that has long made products for marine engine applications. It was originally marketed as a product that would maintain gas in outboards that are seldom used and tend to have ethanol laced gas sit in them over time. I originally tried it on the recommendation of a friend with a lawn care/landscaping business when I was talking about having to replace disintegrated primer bulbs and fuel lines almost every spring. I gradually began using it in ALL my gas purchases unless I was able to find ethanol free gas.
Along with treating ethanol, it stabilizes fuel long term and cleans all parts including injectors.

Can readily be found at any marine shop, Ace, Lowes, etc. But I find the best local price can be found in the outdoor/boating section of Wal-Mart. It's available in different concentrations. I buy the 8 oz. treats 48 gallons for my outdoor equipment and the 8 oz. treats 128 gallons for my vehicles. It's just too hard to measure the super concentrated for small 1 or 2 gallon cans for me to use the 128 gallon bottle in smaller engine applications.

I find I get about 1.5-2 mpg better fuel economy with either ethanol free fuel OR E10 treated with StarTron as opposed to straight E10 gas. At a cost of about $8 for a bottle that treats 128 gallons of gas - the product pays for itself even if you don't consider the fact that it cleans the fuel injectors, etc...

 

i just got back from their site i found on google....seems like a good product that i will start using next time i get to wal-mart...1.5-2 mpg don't sound like much at first but it will add up for sure since i do mostly highway miles...thanks for the heads up about it being cheaper at wally world....they had my local discount store listed on the dealer locator but i will try the wal-mart around the corner and see what i can get

 

what determines if gas has ethanol in it? Do certain brands or stations not have it blended or what determines it?

Also I wonder how the startron compares to the Amsoil quickshot. Thats what ive always used in my motorcycles and stuff and was thinking about it for the truck. Acourse im a big Amsoil nutswinger so that helps to.

http://www.amsoil.com/storefront/aqs.aspx

they look to basically do about the same things, and ive been impressed with my Amsoil products before and the UOA testing with them.

 

The Amsoil product appears to be about the same thing. Since StarTron started to get a following outside of marine applications, namely in the vehicle market, many companies have come out with a like product. Sta-Bil now has an ethanol treatment product in addition to their straight gas stabilizer as well.

The Amsoil product doesn't appear to be available in multiple concentrations though, as I see you have to use an entire 8 oz. bottle per 12 gallons of fuel - which equates to 2 full bottles per full tank in a Ram truck. StarTron is available in two concentrations, an 8 oz. per 48 gallons and an 8 oz. per 128 gallon.

I don't know the cost of the Amsoil product but the super concentrated, 8 oz. StarTron bottle will treat about six full tank fulls on a Ram. As stated, you'll need two bottles of Amsoil for just one tank of gas in a Ram.

On a side note (and I'm not condemning Amsoil here, I've used their products and like them) but be careful using Amsoil oil in an MDS engine. The MDS Hemi is HIGHLY dependent on oil viscosity for proper operation. The reason Amsoil lasts so long is it has properties that make it resist thermal breakdown by actually gaining viscosity (getting thicker) over time and use. Tests have shown that a 5w-20 Amsoil product can actually have a viscosity of about 20w-50 after about 12,000 miles!
I'm not saying not to use Amsoil - it offers very good engine protection BUT resist the urge to use it for extended change intervals, especially in an MDS or like engine with cylinder de-activation...

 

you should start a fuelly account. i know they show you how much you could have save if you gained a couple mpg.
here is what it shows for my ram charger

here is what it shows for my 81

 

It would probably be better to go with the Startron just for the ease reasoning. It wasn't a big deal for a 4 gallon gas tank in my motorcycles but as you mentioned; for the big tank in our trucks it can def become a pain. Im sure that the little bit better the Amsoil product might be (which it might not even be better than the startron, idk I haven't read any test on it) it wouldn't be worth the extra hassle.

Could you shed some light on what determines if the gas gets ethanol or not? Is it strictly based on if its regular or premium; different gas stations, or what?

My friend that works with BlackLabs and Polaris lab has mentioned something similar to that or alot of times stays exactly in the 20 range. Which because of that I have decided that I will be having my mds turned off anyways before I make the switch over to Amsoil just to be safe. I think I would be fine but I would rather be safe than sorry.

(FWIW I think im having a problem with my MDS as we speak because of the oil the dealer or someone has put in previously) all I know is I seem to be having a weird sound like my other threads have mentioned. Not to say that it is the mds acting up because I dont seem to have any issues besides just that sound during the same particular conditions as well as the fact that it could just be the exhaust, heat shields, manifolds with a broken stud.

Also when I did the key trick I had a code that is usually referred to as the wrong weight oil being used. Which it has since went away without resetting the truck or battery so I really don't know. Ive only had the truck for a little under a month and have only put about 500 miles or less in that time so it doesn't get drove much. So I dont know if that has been stored there from a really really long time ago, or from the dealer or what. I plan to just do one thing at a time until its gone. Worse comes to worse I have a good warranty if my engine did go; but of course the sooner I can stop the sound/issue the better. But im just guessing that it could be an MDS issue from the oil, but I could totally be wrong. Time will tell I guess.

But I appreciate the help and info. That only solidifies my choice that I will be having my MDS turned off and as far as the Amsoil is concerned. While I am a huge nutswinger for them, its only because of the testing, readings, and numerous discussions and information from my friend that actually works at the Indi oil testing facility. But FWIW he has even stated that in his honest opinion, while most of the time Amsoil could be considered best in the testing he sees and he runs it himself in his personal vehicles; if he couldn't get Amsoil he wouldn't hesitate to go with RP, some Redline, and a few other nice API SL/SJ from the different companies if he needed to. Alot of people can get caught up in the readings and usually the differences that make one "better" than the other such as a comparison between Amsoil and RP are so small that it's not worth getting all bent out of shape over. Both as well as some others are more than sufficient and will be great for 99.9% of what people use them for. Just for example even RP and Amsoil offer some lower end API SM lines such as the Amsoil XL or OE line. Id personally never run anything but the top tier API SL/SJ maximum line from Amsoil but again it just goes back to; just because the bottle says Amsoil doesn't make it amazing. You have to pay attention and make the right decisions and most don't even know there was a difference between their synthetics; they just think hell im going to run Amsoil Synthetics and have the best stuff.


EDIT: Id personally just like people to make an educated decision and not just go on well my dad's brother cousins friends dog's owner used Mobil 1 or whatever in his diesel and didn't change it for 100,000 miles and its still running, and his cousins moped, and his friends VW Rabbit and never had a problem. Yeah because thats not apples to oranges.

As well while I admit that im a huge fan of Amsoil, and I also get 25% off, I run it because of the research and readings I go over and with him that works at the lab and tests it everyday. BUT if I couldn't get Amsoil, I would be MORE than happy to run other IV/V API SL/SJ true synthetics such as Red Line, Royal Purple, etc.

For instance I wouldn't hardly run any Mobil One oil nowadays but they used to be some of the best for 20 years. But lately have seemed to slack since hurricane Katrina. But again that information comes from my friend that works at the lab and sees it on a daily basis and he even stated that the Mobil One higher mileage oils are pretty dang good, but their API SM/SN counterparts are garbage when compared side by side. Much less getting into oil filter lmao, but I am very very happy with Amsoil's new Ea filters. The technology in them is from Donaldson/Amsoil Nano Fiber media oil filters. The new media allows the filtration of particles down to 15 microns @ 98.7% efficiency, yet still free flow as well as your cheapest filters that only filter to 20 microns @ similar efficiency.

Nano filber filter media technology was developed by Donaldson for the M1 Abrams Tank. The military required air filtration that was able to filter the finest dirt particles in the deserts of Iraq, be cleanable in the field (no oil allowed), and flow enough air to allow the high horsepower turbines to breathe which is huge for the military. But again take this info for what its worth, just trying to give a little light of some of the reasons why I made the decisions I did without going through a million and half reasons.

At this link, about half way down it has a good amount of filters cut open which gives a good idea of what one looks like inside.
http://www.svtperformance.com/forums...-within-4.html


Issues start coming up when people get butt hurt and have it out over if you don't use Amsoil or RP that your oil sucks. While Amsoil might be slightly "better" in ways, most people that just do normal everyday driving are going to be fine with just about any damn oil they choose so long as they change it like its supposed to be. I dont care if someone use a certain brand for 500 years and never had an engine problem, good for you; but that tells me nothing except the oil kept you from having problems. Im just the type of guy that if im going to spend money, I like to be as educated on it and make the best decision for me for my money. Even if usually its always over kill. For me changing my own oil, getting 25% off Amsoil, and it being able to last a good long time actually is less expensive than most spend on their "normal" oil for lack of a better word; so at this point in time Amsoil is the "best" for me but im not the type that gets in pissing matches over it all. If someone wants to use something else for whatever reason then so be it, but I like don't like them people to be passing it off on others who may not be informed and if you have no real reasons to back your claims up.