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Is Premium Gas Required in Volkswagen Cars?

A stock photo of a person filling their var with gas.

Do Volkswagen Cars/SUVs Need Premium Gas?

Have you ever gone to fill up your car’s gas tank and wondered if it’s worth it to pay extra for premium fuel? People wondering if they need to fill their gas tanks with premium-grade fuel come into the Fifth Avenue VW showroom at least a few times a month. Volkswagen vehicles are designed to use regular-grade fuel to achieve their stated performance scores. There are some VW platforms that need premium, but that will be made very clear from the outset. Let’s take a closer look at some things you might not know about choosing gas for your car, truck or SUV.

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What is Premium Gasoline?

Different grades of gasoline are determined by anti-knock index (AKI) values. Premium gasoline has an AKI of 91 or 93. Fuel with an AKI value of 94 is also available. This is all great information, but what exactly is an anti-knock index value? Without getting too deep in the weeds, AKI determines how easily gasoline can be ignited. The higher the AKI, the more difficult it is to burn the fuel in an engine’s combustion chamber. 

It may seem counterintuitive to want a fuel that is harder to burn. But, fuel igniting at the wrong time is exactly what engine knocking is and what high AKI fuels prevent.

What Happens if You Use the Wrong Fuel?

Mistakes can happen at the gas pump. If you grab the premium gas pump instead of the regular pump to fill up your vehicle, it’s really not the end of the world. It is very unlikely that any permanent damage will take place. In fact, higher-end fuels have detergents in them and it could even clean out the system. Really, the only downside is paying a little more. 

If the reverse happens, and you fill a tank with regular when you’re supposed to use premium, the issues are going to be pretty minor. You might notice a small drop in performance or fuel economy. However, everything will go back to normal once all the fuel is used up and the right gas is in the tank.

What Happens When You Put Diesel in a Gas Vehicle?

It doesn’t come up often, but we have helped people who have accidentally filled their gasoline-powered vehicles with diesel. This is an extremely bad situation for a person to find themselves. Diesel and gasoline are fundamentally different types of liquid. A person who accidentally fills their tank with diesel instead of gasoline could be in for some expensive repair bills. Diesel is a thicker fluid and can easily cause damage to the fuel pump and fuel injectors. Do not start the vehicle’s engine and have your vehicle towed to a repair shop right away if this happens to you. On the other hand, filling a diesel vehicle’s fuel tank with gasoline is arguably worse. Gasoline has a much lower ignition point than diesel, meaning it could ignite too soon, causing catastrophic, if irreparable damage to several engine components.

The team working at the Fifth Avenue VW Service Department is always on hand to help you take the best way to take care of your vehicle. Make an appointment with us, today.