[BroadHopper]

I'm sure folks heard about engine nightmares of today's highly efficient engines. I will be talking about the TSFI engines from the Volkswagen Auto Group, which I am familiar with. TSFI means Turbo Stratified Fuel Injection. I'm not going into the details here, so ChatGPT is your friend.

2.0 liter TSFI engines are easily capable of producing 300+ HP and 25+ mpg. Compare to my 340 Rallye Challenger that produce 240HP and 13mpg, this is a huge efficiency step! Both requires premium gas, and both have knock sensors that retard timing should you use regular fuel.

TSFI engines tends to run 'dirty' i.e. significant carbon buildup in the combustion chamber. Top Tier gasoline uses detergent to help combat this. Plus, Euro spec synthetic oil helps keep the piston rings from carbon buildup. Engines that don't get top tier gas and Euro spec oils have problems of oil consumption and eventually ring failure.

So, it depends on how efficient you engine is. Most engines on the market may run great on cheap gas and oils. I also heard these engines start having problems as they hit the 100K mark. A good share is due to carbon buildup or slug in the oil. Most folks trade their vehicles in before or when this happens.

Cheap gas is great if you are planning on getting rid of your new car before the 100K mark. I keep my autos until rust takes over. So I'm not taking chances of an engine failure.