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my car loved shell v-power 93 when it was available here. now it isn't anywhere close but a local bp now carries 92 non-oxy, so that is what I use.

if you guys have a marina of some sort close by... they usually have a non ethanol of some octane rating or another, usually higher than midgrade.

I usually fill up with Holiday gas (87 octane since it's only an SE). I'll run Cenex gas once in a while but only during the summer because the winter blend sucks. I stay away from the Shell gas because I have heard that they, or at least used to, contain higher sulfer levels which would mess with the sending units in the fuel tank on GM vehicles. I've never had much luck with the BP (used to to Amaco) gas around here either. Super America once in while. The Phillips 66 stations around here have become Sinclair stations or Clark Stations. I always stay away from the gas stations where the tanker truck is refueling the underground bulk tanks to minimize possible fuel contamination.

Silver03Se wrote:if you guys have a marina of some sort close by... they usually have a non ethanol of some octane rating or another, usually higher than midgrade.

Im not bending over lol, marina gas around here is uber more expensive.

And back to the AV gas...Someone told me that its like 120 octane, but googled came up with 103-104. We have Cam2 around here for our race gas. There is only 1 gas station the sells anything higher than 93 as far as I know, and yeah like $5-$6 /gal. Maybe when I make the 408 for the ol 64....

Esso, Petro-Canada or Shell. Generally what I use up here!

Esso.

I use the rewards points for car washes, I get a free wash about every 3 tanks

Its like cam 2 or sunoco turbo blue, you can get the 120 octane BUT its got lead, you have to pull the injector baskets so it doesnt clog them up. And alcohol is cheaper, after you install a delivery method

Crazy high octane isn't good either. Lower octane = more potential energy. You will make the most HP on the lowest octane you can run without predetoniation.

That being said, I run BP 93 because it's the same as 91/92 around here, and I have a 93 Octane tune in my ECU.

BonneMe wrote:Crazy high octane isn't good either. Lower octane = more potential energy. You will make the most HP on the lowest octane you can run without predetoniation.

That being said, I run BP 93 because it's the same as 91/92 around here, and I have a 93 Octane tune in my ECU.

with "that being said" an informed and intelligent tuner would use the appropriate fuel for the appropriate power potential expected from the mill, in this instance we will consider it an Internal Combustion Engine.

This post is about our opinion of the *best* fuel at the pump, and in that spirit, i was sounding off with the availability of 103 at my backwoods pumps and no-ethanol at my marina's.

You are very correct about using the correct fuel for your need. If you use to high of an octane fuel in a motor that runs to cool, it will not burn completely and in the long run will cause unneeded carbon deposits and wasted fuel dollars, not to mention the lackluster performance. And all you s/c guys who have replaced motors from changing s/c pulleys and using cheap fuel have learned, to low an octane has catastrophic effects.

If you are bone stock, run 87, it burns hot enough to burn completely. Use a fuel station that has a lot of customers all the time to ensure the freshest fuel. Its already been leaked that most fuel companies in an area get there fuel from a central tanker port, and add there own additives enroute. If you use a station that doesnt get frequent fillups, you get old fuel, contaminated or not. The chances of getting contaminated fuel these days is slim, its a rare story anymore. If youre lucky enough to get a batch of bad fuel, sorry for ya, it sucks. Ride a horse. I bet youll find a way to get the dirty fuel out.

If youre worried about water in the fuel keep a good fuel filter in your system and use a drier from time to time (good clean isopropyl works great, look for 98%) other than that, general maintenance should keep things in good working order. The factory doesnt want parts failing in their warranty zone, they generally keep a good product.

I went on a tangent again. Ah well, theres insight in this post somehwere.

My dad just retired from BP/Amoco after 32 years there. He started at the whiting, IN refinery, and then went to retail operations, then jet fuel, and then hydrogen.

I can tell you that the places who have gas cheap (speedway, gas city, etc) are getting their fuel that the major oil companies turned away. That's how they sell it cheaper.

Along with that, what makes a fuel better than another is the additive. There is only so much potential energy in gasoline, so the additive is where one brand will shine over another.

Shell is trying to pull a fast one with their "nitrogen-enriched" fuel. All fuels have had nitrogen in them for YEARS, just never said anything about it. the nitrogen content in shell gas pre-marketing vs post marketing is exactly the same.


I run BP just because I know the company well, and they are close. If needed, I will run Shell, or Mobil.

BonneMe wrote:Crazy high octane isn't good either. Lower octane = more potential energy. You will make the most HP on the lowest octane you can run without predetoniation.

That being said, I run BP 93 because it's the same as 91/92 around here, and I have a 93 Octane tune in my ECU.

Then why do the street machine racer guys LOVE to run E85 in their cars?

Octane levels around 105ish

01bonneSC wrote:

BonneMe wrote:Crazy high octane isn't good either. Lower octane = more potential energy. You will make the most HP on the lowest octane you can run without predetoniation.

That being said, I run BP 93 because it's the same as 91/92 around here, and I have a 93 Octane tune in my ECU.

Then why do the street machine racer guys LOVE to run E85 in their cars?

Octane levels around 105ish

Depends on the car, are you talking old or new? A lot of newer tuners like to use E85 because as long as you have the fuel system to handle it, a boosted car can often get more power out of 85 then regular pump gas. I know Allmachtige was really keen on trying an E85 setup on his cam'd 2000 before he traded it in for a G8 GT.

Older cars were designed for leaded gas. The trick is having a tune/fuel system able to cope with the different AFR required.

E85 has less potential energy than regular gasoline as well. Cars get lower MPG on it because they have to burn more fuel, to get the same output. But there certainly are ways where It can be beneficial in performance.

Yeah talking older cars. Aftermarket heads, E85 carbs, big boost.

http://www.carcraft.com/techarticles/cc ... index.html
Magnuson 122 supercharger, TFS heads, 355 ci, 10:1 compression, 12lbs of boost = 601hp, 631lb ft Tq.

Yeah not as overwhelming as some others Im seen, but those are good numbers out of a small cubes, and a mild head/cam combo.

01bonneSC wrote:Yeah talking older cars. Aftermarket heads, E85 carbs, big boost.

http://www.carcraft.com/techarticles/cc ... index.html
Magnuson 122 supercharger, TFS heads, 355 ci, 10:1 compression, 12lbs of boost = 601hp, 631lb ft Tq.

Yeah not as overwhelming as some others Im seen, but those are good numbers out of a small cubes, and a mild head/cam combo.

10:1 compression is around what most of the modern turbo 4cyl's run on pump gas, like Mitsu EVO motor, my 2.0T, the Hyundai, Ecotec etc. On simple aftermarket heads E85 helps you pull that off and keep respectable timing..

a benefit to E85 in high performance is the volume of fuel used, it substantially cools the parts that are involved, reducing the change for any hot spots to predetonate.