Gas. 87, 91, 93 Octane?

[Kazz]

In California they only get 91, my reply was to a Californian.

Fact is: The more octane you run the further the PCM can advance the ignition timing which creates more horsepower.
Adding octane booster to 93 gas will provide MORE horsepower.
The exception is on engines that do not use electronic timing control and only use a base timing map.
All Stingers use ESC and will make more horsepower with a booster added to 93 octane gas.

My question is whether it can take advantage of E20 and E30 or not.

 

[Mike_TX]

The octane rating of your gas isn't really going to make any real difference in your gas mileage. Octane ratings refer to the gasoline's ability to resist knock, or premature ignition, not its ability to deliver good gas mileage.

Now, with that said, if a car is set up for high octane gas and you run rot-gut, low-octane stuff in it (think Mexican gas, lol), the engine won't run quite as efficiently, and therefore will probably lose some gas mileage. But by the same token, most modern engines won't get any better gas mileage by using a higher octane rating than necessary.

So, putting 91 or 93 in a car tuned for 87 octane ain't gonna do anything but cost you money you could be spending on bubble gum. I've confirmed that by trying 91 octane in my Optima 2.0T (87 recommended), and also by running 87 octane in my previous Acura 3.5-liter that recommended 91 octane. Didn't affect mileage in either case, and any difference in performance i chalked up to my imagination.

So the bottom line is run whatever makes you happy. But if 87 octane gas runs in your car without pinging or knocking, you could pocket $6-8 a tank by just running Regular gas in it. That could easily add up to an extra $25-30 a month for Starbucks and Big Mac's!

 

[Beege]

I guess that's true unless the 'puter can adjust output depending on what the burn is

 

[weew]

The stinger does adjust engine output depending on the octane rating. I forget how much, but you definitely make less power on 87 than on 93

 

[Fred Pahlke]

Yes whether you decide to use 87, 91 or 93, definitely stick with top tier gas.
Licensed Brands | Top Tier Gas
Going with Bob's Discount Gas once in a while won't kill the car, but you don't want to do that consistently. Although next time you're there, go in and as Bob who supplies his gas, because some of those independent stations just pay for Shell or BP to fill up their tanks and it's the same Top Tier gas just a little cheaper.

All gasoline in USA filling stations are selling good gas. There is no difference if it is an independent station or a major brand.

 

[Fred Pahlke]

The stinger does adjust engine output depending on the octane rating. I forget how much, but you definitely make less power on 87 than on 93

I guess if you are racing the car you need that power....but when you blow the engine I hope you know it is very expensive to get a new motor. If you are a mechanic you can save on the installation of the new engine.

 

[SteveCo]

All gasoline in USA filling stations are selling good gas. There is no difference if it is an independent station or a major brand.

Can't agree there. There are different additives and detergents depending on the supplier and the market - see toptiergas.com. How effective detergents are in a GDI engine is another topic ...

Also, i try to purchase alcohol free gas when I can - which can be really tricky to find. See pure-gas.org.

 

[NYLAWBIZ]

Avoid ethanol at all costs.

 

[Fred Pahlke]

Can't agree there. There are different additives and detergents depending on the supplier and the market - see toptiergas.com. How effective detergents are in a GDI engine is another topic ...

Also, i try to purchase alcohol free gas when I can - which can be really tricky to find. See pure-gas.org.

I stand by my comment. In the USA, we do not have gasoline that will not run your engines. Yes, they say that some gas has additives....well, there are only a few gasoline refineries and they make the gas for all stations in the country.

 

[Fred Pahlke]

Avoid ethanol at all costs.

My dealership said that ethanol is ok as long as you have 87 octane.

 

[davebo]

I stand by my comment. In the USA, we do not have gasoline that will not run your engines. Yes, they say that some gas has additives....well, there are only a few gasoline refineries and they make the gas for all stations in the country.

There are 141 gasoline refineries in the USA. In the VA/DC/MD area we have a relatively recent upstart brand called Liberty which uses all Gulf of Mexico area oil refined in Virginia, but does not contain the additives that separate the Top Tier Brands from the the ones without additives. You can put whatever gas you like in your Stinger but please don't spread lies on the internet that all gas is identical.

Edit: They may have switched refineries since then since that was from an old article. Pretty sure that VA refinery switched to a distribution hub.

 

[weew]

I guess if you are racing the car you need that power....but when you blow the engine I hope you know it is very expensive to get a new motor. If you are a mechanic you can save on the installation of the new engine.

???

The power adjustment is something automatically done by the ECU and was put in there by Kia. That would be covered under warranty...

Do you regularly blow your engines at factory settings?

 

[Mike_TX]

Depending on where you live, it's hard to avoid ethanol. Most large metro areas have EPA regs that mandate it, and you have to go way out of town into rural areas to get ethanol-free gasoline.

 

[Todd Piefer]

I stand by my comment. In the USA, we do not have gasoline that will not run your engines. Yes, they say that some gas has additives....well, there are only a few gasoline refineries and they make the gas for all stations in the country.

What about this? Study Shows Top Tier Gasoline Worth the Extra Price

 

[Mike_TX]

What about this? Study Shows Top Tier Gasoline Worth the Extra Price

You didn't ask me, but I'll just drop this here: I ain't buying that much intake valve deposits in 4,000 miles of operation. If that were the case, a car with 20,000 miles on it would barely be able to back out of the driveway.

I've seen valves from cars with MANY more miles than that, running lower-grade gas, and they don't have that kind of deposits on them.

 

[StungBlueGT2]

The octane rating of your gas isn't really going to make any real difference in your gas mileage. Octane ratings refer to the gasoline's ability to resist knock, or premature ignition, not its ability to deliver good gas mileage.

Now, with that said, if a car is set up for high octane gas and you run rot-gut, low-octane stuff in it (think Mexican gas, lol), the engine won't run quite as efficiently, and therefore will probably lose some gas mileage. But by the same token, most modern engines won't get any better gas mileage by using a higher octane rating than necessary.

So, putting 91 or 93 in a car tuned for 87 octane ain't gonna do anything but cost you money you could be spending on bubble gum. I've confirmed that by trying 91 octane in my Optima 2.0T (87 recommended), and also by running 87 octane in my previous Acura 3.5-liter that recommended 91 octane. Didn't affect mileage in either case, and any difference in performance i chalked up to my imagination.

So the bottom line is run whatever makes you happy. But if 87 octane gas runs in your car without pinging or knocking, you could pocket $6-8 a tank by just running Regular gas in it. That could easily add up to an extra $25-30 a month for Starbucks and Big Mac's!

No offense but this is completely incorrect and I’m amazed at how many people are still ignorant of facts. Without going into a long explanation I’ll try to clarify some misconceptions.

Although higher octane ratings do relate to better knock resistance, it also ties directly to how efficiently the fuel burns when in combustion. Higher octane helps the engine produce power more efficiently, requiring less fuel. This typically will increase fuels economy by 5-10%. Do research and you will see most people get better mileage using higher octane fuels.

Also, not only do higher octanes burn better, they also burn cleaner leaving less carbon buildup in the cylinder, valves, etc. That buildup can cause decreased performance & gas mileage quickly and will get worse overtime. Using lower octane fuels than recommend negatively effects engine performance & reliability. This in turn will continue to hurt fuel economy and potentially cause combustion issues over time.

Lastly, I and many others already save more money getting 5-10% better fuel economy from premium gas than the $6-8 a tank you save using 87. Not only are you not saving any money, your also hurting the efficiency & longevity of your engine...

Facts speak for themselves and anyone following these misconceptions will just have to find out the hard way.

 

[Todd Piefer]

You didn't ask me, but I'll just drop this here: I ain't buying that much intake valve deposits in 4,000 miles of operation. If that were the case, a car with 20,000 miles on it would barely be able to back out of the driveway.

I've seen valves from cars with MANY more miles than that, running lower-grade gas, and they don't have that kind of deposits on them.

The article said 19 times more deposits. It did not say that the pictured valve was after 4000 miles although I can see how you could assume that.

 

[Mike_TX]

No offense but this is completely incorrect and I’m amazed at how many people are still ignorant of facts. Without going into a long explanation I’ll try to clarify some misconceptions.

Although higher octane ratings do relate to better knock resistance, it also ties directly to how efficiently the fuel burns when in combustion. Higher octane helps the engine produce power more efficiently, requiring less fuel. This typically will increase fuels economy by 5-10%. Do research and you will see most people get better mileage using higher octane fuels.

Also, not only do higher octanes burn better, they also burn cleaner leaving less carbon buildup in the cylinder, valves, etc. That buildup can cause decreased performance & gas mileage quickly and will get worse overtime. Using lower octane fuels than recommend negatively effects engine performance & reliability. This in turn will continue to hurt fuel economy and potentially cause combustion issues over time.

Lastly, I and many others already save more money getting 5-10% better fuel economy from premium gas than the $6-8 a tank you save using 87. Not only are you not saving any money, your also hurting the efficiency & longevity of your engine...

Facts speak for themselves and anyone following these misconceptions will just have to find out the hard way.

If facts speak for themselves, could you point to some of those facts? Everyone has their own set of preconceived notions.

 

[Mike_TX]

The article said 19 times more deposits. It did not say that the pictured valve was after 4000 miles although I can see how you could assume that.

No sir, and I quote: "Intake valve comparison showing a new valve compared to the results from the 100-hour engine test."

They are saying that after 100 hours (approximating 4,000 of driving), this is how the valve compared to a brand-new one.

 

[StungBlueGT2]

If facts speak for themselves, could you point to some of those facts? Everyone has their own set of preconceived notions.

No problem and happy to help educate.

Here is one of the best examples of confirmed facts and its directly sourced from the upmost authorities on fuels & energy consumption; the "US Department of Energy" & the "EPA". Select the right octane fuel for your vehicle!

That website is full of useful information and I’ve citied the sections that are specifically related to this discussion about our turbo charged engines.

"What octane fuel should I use in my vehicle?
You should use the octane rating required for your vehicle by the manufacturer. So, check your owner's manual. Most gasoline vehicles are designed to run on 87 octane, but others are designed to use higher octane fuel.
Why do some manufacturers require or recommend the use of higher octane gasoline?
Higher octane fuels are often required or recommended for engines that use a higher compression ratio and/or use supercharging or turbocharging to force more air into the engine. Increasing pressure in the cylinder allows an engine to extract more mechanical energy from a given air/fuel mixture but requires higher octane fuel to keep the mixture from pre-detonating. In these engines, high octane fuel will improve performance and fuel economy.
What if I use a lower octane fuel than required for my vehicle?
Using a lower octane fuel than required can cause the engine to run poorly and can damage the engine and emissions control system over time. It may also void your warranty. In older vehicles, the engine can make an audible "knocking" or "pinging" sound. Many newer vehicles can adjust the spark timing to reduce knock, but engine power and fuel economy will still suffer."

This should be all the proof you need in order to make an educated decision on the proper fuel to use in our Stingers. Please dont get caught up in misinformation just to try to save a few bucks...