What Octane?

[kpaske]

Well, I'm back to using 87 regularly again. It seems to ping a bit more in the mid RPM's, but I get better gas mileage. Don't know why, but upping the octane to 89 lowers my gas mileage, so as per Tone's suggestion, I'm going to try some different brands to find an 87 that plays well with my VX. Does anyone have any brand preferences? (I usually use the cheapest I can find )

BTW, how often do fuel injectors need to be cleaned? Is that something we can do ourselves or does it require special equipment?

[kinnaq]

I use "super" premium, it is...90 octane! It's funny how the prices kept going up for gas as the octane went down.

[circmand]

not VX specific using gas with octane above revomended will do nether harm norimprovement. Using oil rather than recomended can cause engine failure. That being said I occasionally run 110 octane through me Jensen Healey and clean the carbs out.

[vt_maverick]

Hail circmand, ancient thread archaeologist.

[circmand]

Hail circmand, ancient thread archaeologist.

Hey I dont read the post dates. If it pops up in the unread posts area I read it. I do wonder why these posts pop up. I think it is due to having a poll attached to it and when someone votes it pops up as unread.

[vt_maverick]

You are correct. Very annoying "feature."

[crager34]

Since my last post here I bought another VX (first was totaled) and my gas mileage has been better. I use mid grade and consistanly get 16 - 17 MPG.

However, lately my MPG's have went down to around 13 and I am not a heavy foot driver. Time for a fuel pump replacement I guess. Gonna try the low grade fuel too.

[Mile High VX]

Since my last post here I bought another VX (first was totaled) and my gas mileage has been better. I use mid grade and consistanly get 16 - 17 MPG.

However, lately my MPG's have went down to around 13 and I am not a heavy foot driver. Time for a fuel pump replacement I guess. Gonna try the low grade fuel too.

Depending on how long you've had the new one...winter gas will typically yield lower MPG than summer gas...don't overreact to reduced mileage in the winter.

[mindaugas]

91, I think that's the highest Colorado goes. I've always put premium in everything I own, it amounts to a few dollars more. Usually $.20 cheaper, lower octane would be $61 if you filled the whole 22 gallons. It's $66 for premium at $3 a gallon. I think those are going rates, honestly I don't even look at prices anymore, it just makes me sad.

And now I'm going from a 99 Subaru Legacy that cost $30 at the most to fill and got 25mpg to this VX. Although I put 200 miles on a full tank of gas and I'm half way down. So 400 miles to a tank won't be bad, but I have a sneaking suspicion I won't get that. I will be doing mostly highway driving to and from work, but it's into downtown Denver via I-25, I'm not sure if you can count that as highway driving during rush hour.

[BeeVenom]

I'm doin' the 93 stuff with the S/C. Tank is small too, so it doesn't hurt that bad!

[vt_maverick]

22 gallons is small? What's your other truck, an Excursion?

[mindaugas]

22 gallons is small? What's your other truck, an Excursion?

lol, right? I was surprised when I hit $50 in this little thing, my 4 door dakota had the same size tank I think, but didn't get much better mileage despite 2x4

[Hiredgoon]

I was curious about this so I actually experimented with regular vs. premium. I ran spreadsheets (I know, pretty geeky) to calculate my gas mileage based on what octane I was using and where I was buying it, in case that had an impact. Based on almost two years of testing, I'm getting 2-3 MPG higher when I use the 87 octane fuel as opposed to the 91 (or 93 in a couple of cases). I don't notice any appreciable difference in the sound of the engine or the amount of power I'm receiving, but since that's all subjective and the only thing I am actually measuring with any sort of rigour is mileage, I can't say for certain.

I do know that I am running a completely stock engine.

[mindaugas]

That's really interesting, and good testing. I wonder if it has any more wear on the motor than 91. Isuzu recommends 87, so I'm guessing not. I just really want to make this car last for a really long time, so I'll try anything that will lengthen life.

[Mile High VX]

I was curious about this so I actually experimented with regular vs. premium. I ran spreadsheets (I know, pretty geeky)

You sir, are uber cool...