Filed under: Maintenance, Trends
Ford to recommend BP fuel
Ford will start recommending that owners of its vehicles use fuel from BP. The suggestion will come via a printed statement on the gas cap, which of course isn't visible until the owner has already begun the fueling process. Such a recommendation would make more sense if there were a technical reason for it, but that doesn't seem to be the story here. At least the Top Tier standard, developed by BMW, GM, Honda, and Toyota, aims to specify gasoline that's of a higher grade than the EPA minimum standards, where as Ford appears to be trying to hitch their marketing wagon to a petrochemical company that's trying to appear "green".
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
James Fee 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
I guess I can't buy a Ford since they don't have BP here in Phoenix.
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Chris 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
All of the BP stations that i can remember were bought out by 76 a long time ago... But hey, pretty soon, BP is bound to have a slight increase in sales, wherever their stations may still reside within U.S. borders.
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sensitive_man 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
I was shopping for a dishwasher not that long ago and all the Whirpool units had a big Cascade Detergent logo imprinted on the soap dispenser. I guess Ford decided to do the same thing.
Are these companies really that desperate for extra income? I wish corporate greed could be banished from the planet!
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iQuack 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
BP gas would be fine if I could buy it in San Francisco. I wouldn't hit a rat in the ass with any Ford anyway, so they can recommend pouring Pepsi into their tanks for all I care.
This kind of silliness just weakens the Ford brand which, except for trucks, is already pretty lame.
As for the upcoming Fusion and it's Mercury derivative, the Mazda 6 on which those cars are based is likely to be far superior.
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Joseph Willemssen 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
"BP gas would be fine if I could buy it in San Francisco."
BP owns ARCO and AM/PM. You can get BP gasoline there.
http://www.bp.com/productsservicesteaser.do?categoryId=908&contentId=2007986
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iQuack 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
Thanks, Joseph, you are correct. I should have known because I have a few shares of BP PLC stock; I'll have to read their annual report one of these days.
I guess I should patronize "my" company after I run to my local Ford dealer and buy one of their greatest of great cars;-).
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James Fee 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
"BP owns ARCO and AM/PM. You can get BP gasoline there."
Do they use the same additives? Sure all gas is pretty much the same except with the marketing additives added. I'd hate to think that my warranty might be voided because I had the nerve to put in Shell.
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Joe 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
BP is all over the place here in the Cleveland area. While calculating MPG I have found that BP fuels by far give me the worst mileage. I assume its whatever type of detergents they are using. This is why I avoid BP gas whenever possible.
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Joseph Willemssen 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
James, I think they're using the same BP gas, but there are regional variations in what is required to be in a gasoline formulation:
http://www.exxon.com/USA-English/Files/US%20Gasoline%20Map%20100102.pdf
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iQuack 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
No surprise that there are BP stations all over Cleveland. BP bought SOHIO which was everywhere there and where I bought most of my gas when I lived in Cleveland.
SOHIO had great marketing; in the winter months, whenever the temperature was expected to drop below freezing, SOHIO ran radio ads saying to fill up NOW because SOHIO gas had antifreeze in it to prevent frozen fuel lines (a very rare event, anyway).
The ads ran every few minutes on the most popular radio stations during commute hours and SOHIO stations were lined up with eager buyers on those cold, dreary late afternoons. Very clever, indeed!
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bert 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
If I end up with a gas cap like that I guess I'll have to take a knife and shave that crap off of it. This makes about as much sense to me as GM putting the little "GM" badges on all their new vehicles.
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iQuack 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
Bert,
The best way to avoid that dumb gas cap is to avoid Ford. It works for me!
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Bryan 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
I seem to recall that on the rental Ford I had in Germany, there was an Aral (European gas station) logo on the gas cap... guess they are trying something similar on the US Ford cars.
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andy 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
http://www.toptiergas.com/retailers.html
I think there might be a Shell or two within a 25 mile radius of my home and/or office. Aside from that, I guess I'm not worthy of buying from a "Top Tier Retailer" as none of those brands are anywhere near me.
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fuscob 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
#8: I too live in Cleveland and don't go to BP - it makes my car run poorly and it seems to give off a funny "rotten-egg" smell when the car is shut off. I use Sunoco and don't have any problems.
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Josh Wardell 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
A Castrol logo is molded right into my engine cover. But will that stop me from putting in Mobil 1? Heck no.
Unfortunately for "regular" drivers this is a bad idea, since they follow that advice over the important. In my case, they remember it needs "special" oil, so they'll put in the cheapest castrol-branded thing they can find, and not full synthetic of any brand, as is required.
BPs are rare around here as well, but I wouldn't be surprised to see some old guy drive 40 miles out of his way because he only gives his new Ford what it wants!
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salguod 10:25PM (12/18/2005)
#10 - I can still hear that Sohio soud effect they played when the temp dropped!
I have a friend who's a service manager at a Chevy dealer. He's worked at Lexus, Honda, Nissan, GM, Isuzu and Hyundai dealerships. He says that when folks come in with fuel injector problems they ask what kind of gas they use. BP is the most common answer, followed by no-name mom and pop stations. The only thing I buy at BP is milk.
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