U.S. Drivers Wasted $2.1 billion in Gas in 2016
According to some new research conducted by AAA, drivers in this country wasted more than $2.1 billion dollars in 2016 by using premium gasoline in cars that are designed specifically to run on regular gas. With approximately 16.5 million U.S. drivers filling their gas tanks with premium fuel despite the vehicle manufacturer’s recommendations that say use regular gas, this is a huge waste of consumers' cash.
At Service King Willowbrook, we would advise that you always check to make sure what type of fuel your vehicle should take and use it exclusively.
Drivers see the ‘premium’ name at the gas pump and automatically assume that it's better for their cars. The AAA warns drivers that premium gas is higher in octane and not necessarily of higher quality.
As part of their in-depth study, the AAA also tested reveal to discover the possible benefits related to using premium gasoline in a vehicle that requires regular fuel. Premium gasoline is specially formulated to be well-suited with specific types of engine designs and cannot take advantage of the higher octane rating featured in premium fuel. So yes--the power is there, but if your engine can't burn it effectively, you're wasting money in a big way.
To understand the scale of this issue, the AAA surveyed U.S. car owners to understand what type of gasoline their vehicles need and the frequency at which they fill their gas tanks to premium fuel.
Here are some interesting factoids that were discovered during the AAA survey:
- 70% of U.S. drivers who currently drive a vehicle that requires regular fuel, while 16% drive cars, vans or trucks that require premium fuel. The remaining 14% own vehicles that need mid-grade gasoline (10%) or burns an alternative energy source (4%).
- In the past year, 16.5 million U.S. drivers gratuitously used premium-grade gas in their vehicle at least one time. On average, those drivers that upgraded to premium gasoline did so at least once monthly.
- Also in the past year, U.S. drivers unnecessarily used premium gasoline in their vehicle more than 270 million times.
An educated consumer is a smarter consumer and if you're spending too much money on premium gas while not taking advantage of its benefits, you're operating without enough information. People in Houston and throughout the entire State of TX need to know that premium fuel isn't necessarily better for your car.
Sources: Facebook, Yahoo and AAA
Social