Fuel grade do you use ?

[cb1313]

What grade do you use ? Cb

[Freebird]

I use 87. That is what the bike is designed to use and paying more for higher grades is just a waste of money. I've experimented a bit and saw now improvements in performance nor fuel economy when using mid or high grade.

[etcswjoe]

I use 87. That is what the bike is designed to use and paying more for higher grades is just a waste of money. I've experimented a bit and saw now improvements in performance nor fuel economy when using mid or high grade.

 

I try to use non-ethanol which around here means high test, but if not just regular.

[friesman]

I know the bike only needs 87 but I like to use real gas and to avoid ethynol I need to buy the premium, esp when the bike is going to be sitting for any time at all.

 

Brian

[bongobobny]

Yah! Normally the 87, around here we have little choice but to use the ethanol. When storing for the winter I fill it up with the premium, and by spring it has degraded to regular...

 

On my old 1st gen it did run better on the 89, with the 87 it had a little spark knock going uphill.

[DragonRider]

I run 87, I try to avoid stations that have ethanol, but thats not always easy. I have tried mid grade and prem., but cant really tell any difference.

[Sailor]

There is a show called " Marketplace". They did a real world test using cars to see if there was any difference. Unless you have a Ferrari there is no point in using premium. There is no difference in performance, mileage, or emissions. In fact they found putting premium in a car designed for regular decreased mileage and performance and increased emissions.

[Miles]

I use either 85 or 87, whichever is the lowest at the pumps. Rarely will I use a higher octane, as the bikes runs just fine on 85 or 87. I am more careful about which stations I stop at, than the level of octane.

[Flyinfool]

In my 96 P/U I tried running premium for a full year to compare with running regular.

At the end of the year the premium did get better gas mileage and their was noticeably more power. But then the computer in my truck is capable of making use of the premium gas. But calculating the $$ per mile the regular still did better. I now just use premium when towing the RV just for the little extra oomph and range.

 

In my bike I did the same test, for a full year. With no computer and EFI to take advantage of the extra octane there was no noticeable difference in mileage or performance.

 

Now when I can find a station that has ethanol free gas, there is a very noticeable improvement in both mileage and power regardless of grade. If ethanol free premium were available around here, I would run it all of the time in the bike.

[djh3]

Most of the time I use reg grade fuel. I guess its 87. I do however add either seafoam or Berrmany B12 perty regularly. About evry 4 tanks or so and run it out, incase any bad things are forming in carbs etc. On my trip this summer up thru the mountians I ran some premium as I was pulling some long up hills and it was hoter than _ _ _ _ I though it might help keep the spark knock possibility down. Milage wise I haven seen any difference that I can tell. Even the difference between the ethonal and non-ethonal fuel. But to be really fair on that deal I think you have to run the exact strech of road with and without, and I have yet to do that.

[bongobobny]

In my 96 P/U I tried running premium for a full year to compare with running regular.

At the end of the year the premium did get better gas mileage and their was noticeably more power. But then the computer in my truck is capable of making use of the premium gas. But calculating the $$ per mile the regular still did better. .

I did the same thing with our '02 Intrepid R/T. Better MPG with the middle premiun, no increase with the higher premium, but the cost per mile was better with the regular. There was very little difference in the performance, not noticable...

[Max]

There is a show called " Marketplace". They did a real world test using cars to see if there was any difference. Unless you have a Ferrari there is no point in using premium. There is no difference in performance, mileage, or emissions. In fact they found putting premium in a car designed for regular decreased mileage and performance and increased emissions.

 

Happen to catch that show sailor, blew away a lot of myths.

I would use regular other than to avoid ethanol with premium. Even at that, I have to wonder what premium brands are truly tested ethanol free.

[KeithR]

This is the link to the Marketplace show the guys are talking about

 

Keith

 

http://www.cbc.ca/marketplace/episodes/2012/11/pumpfiction.html

[Flyinfool]

I think I agree with most of the comments on that site.

Marketplaces test and analysis is faulty.

[Eck]

87 in my GW 1800..

87 I also used in my RSV...

[saddlebum]

The fact of the matter is ethanol aside, regular is a better burning fuel as due to the fact that when you raise the octane level in fuel you actually slow down or raise the flash point of fuel. This why you use it in engines with either high compression or advanced timing such as high performance cars, weed eaters and chain saws etc., otherwise you get preignition comonly known as pinging. Preignition or pinging is more than just that noise your hear, it is damaging to the pistons. The top of a piston that has sufferred severe or extended pinging, often comes out looking like someone nailed it with a shotgun.

One of the things that makes ethanol so bad is that it absorbs moisture. Over time as the ethanol depletes the moisture remains in the form of condensation. If the engine is running on fairly regular basis this should not be an issue. However once the egine is stored for an extended period of time the ethanol depletes. the moisture remains and does its havoc with the fuel system. Adding fuel stabaliers, and keeping the fuel tank full will help prevent this. Seafoam for example claims to stabalize fuel and control moisture issues in fuels with 10-15% ethanol up to E-85 for up to two years. Using ethanol free or high test when storing an engine will also help when storing an engine.

One final note with ethanol fuel although I cannot personally verify it, there have been statments made that high levels of ethanol can attack the rubber parts in some older engines so if and when 15% ethanol comes into the picture this may be something to consider.

If you start running higher octane fuel slightly advancing the ignition timing may be an option to consider, although keep in mind that when advancing ignition timing, too much can create a hard starting issue.

[jfoster]

Question? HD recommends either 91 or 92 octane, but mine runs fine on 87 with no noticeable sounds of knocking etc. Primarily that's all our bulk plant sells without ethanol. Mine is stock with the factory mufflers. I noticed while running either 89 or 93 I get some faint popping on deceleration, but not on 87.

Now a cousin says he cant run 87 due to fuel knocking on his HD.

 

So I guess its a two part question...why does it affect one and not another? Or does it take a couple of tanks for the ecm (what ever you call it) to adjust for the difference in fuel? Or is that a myth too?

[djh3]

With the pipes most HD guys run, how in the heck would they know if it was knocking and pinging? If you look @ the compression ratio of the HD most I have seen are still in the 9.0 range which you should be able to run regular grade I would think.

[jfoster]

With the pipes most HD guys run, how in the heck would they know if it was knocking and pinging? If you look @ the compression ratio of the HD most I have seen are still in the 9.0 range which you should be able to run regular grade I would think.

 

I agree, he's has the loud pipes on his, but he says he can hear it. Not sure what other moods he had done to it.

[Galapagos]

I use 87 with no problems

[saddlebum]

Question? HD recommends either 91 or 92 octane, but mine runs fine on 87 with no noticeable sounds of knocking etc. Primarily that's all our bulk plant sells without ethanol. Mine is stock with the factory mufflers. I noticed while running either 89 or 93 I get some faint popping on deceleration, but not on 87.

Now a cousin says he cant run 87 due to fuel knocking on his HD.

 

So I guess its a two part question...why does it affect one and not another? Or does it take a couple of tanks for the ecm (what ever you call it) to adjust for the difference in fuel? Or is that a myth too?

Ignition timing does affect how fuel burns quite often when you get engine knock the two solutions are 1) use higher octane fuel or 2) retard your ignition timing. The poping in the exhaust from high octane fuel could be the result of unburned fuel escaping through the exhaust valve do to late ignition, remember regular burns faster than high octane.

[timgray]

Ethanol actually has a higher Octane rating than Gasoline, close to racing gas octane levels. It's why a lot of racers run E85 in their race cars.

 

That said. Best is Ethanol Free 87 Octane because your bike is tuned for 87 octane.

 

Also most Premium gas has MORE ethanol in it because it is a cheap way of raising octane ratings. Unless they say "ethanol free" on the pump, all grades have 10% or 15% ethanol in it.

[Bobby G]

I'm not much of a mechanic and know less than most about the internal combustion engine, but I do know something about the fuel and oil business. I am convinced that the composition of fuels when it comes to octane levels and ethanol content varies considerably by both region of the country and by brand of fuel. Some fuel blends are more "true" to their labeling than others, and are just a better grade of refined gasoline...among them Shell, BP and Exxon. On a regional basis, where I live in the Southeast, QT gas is on par with the best national brands in quality and consistency, while brands like Kangaroo and Valero are among the worst. QT also has an edge over the other top brands in price.

 

Having said all that, I feel that when we select the level of octane and ethanol content we choose to run in our personal scoots, whether it's 87 or 92, 0% or 10%, we should also be as picky as possible about the brand. I run both a 4-banger RSV and a higher compression V-twin Harley, and I solicit lots of opinion from people I consider to be knowledgeable about engines. Each of these bikes also has their own unique carburation, exhaust and engine timing set-up's. Using their knowledge about what's under the seat and how it all works, and based on how my bikes run and what they sound like and feel like, I have settled into using 87 (usually E10 content) in the RSV and 92 (E10) in the H-D. I make every effort to avoid "off" brands, and use a good fuel additive like Seafoam, Lucas or B-12 Chemtool on a regular basis to keep my fuel system clean and stay ahead of any residual problems that may be caused by the ethanol content or moisture build up. My mileage has also been consistently good (40 to 45 mpg's in both) using these grades in each bike we well.

 

Bottom line is that there is a lot of crap gasoline out there that should be avoided if possible. The trick is to find out which ones they are based on where you live. Fuel distributors and retailers are no different than any other business, and many will buy and resell a much poorer quality of gas if they can boost profits and grow their business. If you think that there is no discernible difference in brands, you are in the majority - - most people would agree with you. But there is.

 

Just my 2 cents.

 

[rickardracing]

There is a show called " Marketplace". They did a real world test using cars to see if there was any difference. Unless you have a Ferrari there is no point in using premium. There is no difference in performance, mileage, or emissions. In fact they found putting premium in a car designed for regular decreased mileage and performance and increased emissions.

 

 

My 2002 Nissan Xterra SESC has a supercharger on it. Manufactured by Eaton for Nissan. Looks like a mini blower just like on a funny car. I HAVE to run premium. Let's just say I found out the hard and expensive way as to why. But it does say and I was told when I bought it that I had to use premium. 93 or higher. Used it for the first 5 years, then when gas went to almost $5 a gallon I quit for almost a year. Not good.

I run premium in it now, no matter what the price.

[timgray]

My 2002 Nissan Xterra SESC has a supercharger on it. Manufactured by Eaton for Nissan. Looks like a mini blower just like on a funny car. I HAVE to run premium. Let's just say I found out the hard and expensive way as to why. But it does say and I was told when I bought it that I had to use premium. 93 or higher. Used it for the first 5 years, then when gas went to almost $5 a gallon I quit for almost a year. Not good.

I run premium in it now, no matter what the price.

 

Yup! high compression or Forced induction such as Turbo or Supercharging REQUIRES high octane ratings to avoid detonation.

 

Detonation in an engine that has 6 to 20PSI of air/fiel mixture being jammed into the pistons will cause really bad things to happen.

 

I have watched a timing slip blow up a supercharged engine within 5 seconds, but he was running almost 55PSI of boost.