Octane Reqirements

[MouthPiece]

It is true that the respective oil companies put the same additives in all grades of fuel (which varies by company). You have to watch the wording. They never say they don't put these additives or even the same amount in other grades. Of course the way they present it you will naturally ASSUME you're getting more with their premium fuel.

If you have a vehicle that will run optimally on regular grade you will not see any increase (and even a possible decrease) in mileage by running higher octane. My opinion is that though the GS, RS, RS-S Spyders will run on regular fuel, it is not the optimal fuel. That would explain why I experience improved fuel mileage when I run premium in my 2008 GS.

It has been suggested that premium fuels may have less Ethanol in them. I don't think so but if it is true, then so be it. Even more reason to run premium fuel in the Spyder.



This is the reason that propaganda will never go away, it's very effective. When you take a look at the whole picture it is not nearly as rosy as the environmental machine would make it appear.

Did you know...

The E85 (15% Ethanol) fuel that you want everyone to go to will drop your mileage 25-30%? (as compared to gasoline according to 'Green Car Reports')

Polution output from 10% Ethanol fuels are about the same as gasoline. The 'Improvement' comes from factoring in the amount of C02 that the corn plants remove as they grow. But farming equipment used to plant/fertilize/spray/irrigate/harvest & transport the corn and all the energy need to produce and supply these farming products are not factored in.

It takes 3 gallons of water to make 1 gallon of Ethanol

It takes more energy to make a gallon of Ethanol than it does to make a gallon of Gasoline

Corn requires a lot more (Petrolium Based) fertilizer than other crops

More (Petrolium Based) pesticides and other chemicals are used to grow corn that we would otherwise not need

Farmers used to rotate their corn crops because corn depletes the soil. Now that Corn is so profitable, farmers just use more fertilizer

More fuel and other oil products are used in equipment to farm the corn

A 10% ethanol mix will give you at least a 10% reduction in fuel mileage requiring you to burn at least 10% more to go the same distance

Burning food drives up the price of food which drives up the price of nearly every other commodity in the world

Forested areas are being cleared to plant corn

Ethanol attracts moisture causing millions of dollars worth of damage to engines every year

10% Ethanol fuel has a shelf life of 90-100 days

Gasoline has a shelf life of over a year (which can be extended with stabilizers)

No product exists that will prevent water absorption by Ethanol (alcohol)

Those that support Ethanol production cherry pick their facts just as I did here. However, we constantly hear how good Ethanol is, it's much less common to hear 'The Rest of the Story'.

My humble conclusion is that Ethanol blended fuels are a bad deal, that is why governments have to 'Manage the Facts' and force it upon their people.

Finally, someone has stepped up to the plate and presented substantiated facts to support their argument. Job well done.


Chris

 

[8 legs nz]

If you are going to mone about the price or octane of fuile then dont ride a Spyder when I boart the spyder I new it was dear to run ho cares , you paye US $3.04 per gallon man thats cheep here in New Zealand it $9.60 per gallon that works out $8.09 US we pay per liter here about $2.40 for that and that is 91 octane I run 98 and rember that a gallon US is 4 liters I think we are based on the UK gallon witch is 4.5 liters per gallon :yes:

If BRP siad this is the octane use, then run it and get over your self or dont ride a spyder get some thing checp to ride.

 

[Ga Blue Knight]

Methanol will absorb water. If your fuel has water in it adding methanol will absorb it and help get the water out by burning it with the fuel. This is the theory but it only works in very small quantities of methanol around one to two percent. Any more Methanol and you will generate a water methanol layer in the gas tant causing corrosion issues.

All grades of,vasolene are the same except for additives to reduce knocking in high performance engines. Neither grade is better or worse but needs to be matched to the compression ratio of the engine in question.

generating methanol from food resources is just plane dumb. It should be generated from waste materials or saw grass.

 

[NancysToy]

..... Neither grade is better or worse but needs to be matched to the compression ratio of the engine in question. .....

In this day and age of electronic fuel injection, variable valve timing, multiple sensors, and programmed engine timing, there is far more to it than compression ratios. It is a combination of the effective compression ratio (which takes valve timing into consideration) the programmed tuning, engine load sensing, and the programmed response to knock or differing air-fuel ratios sensed by the diagnostics. If they had this stuff during the old days we wouldn't really have needed Sunoco 260. :roflblack:

 

[BajaRon]

If you are going to mone about the price or octane of fuile then dont ride a Spyder when I boart the spyder I new it was dear to run ho cares , you paye US $3.04 per gallon man thats cheep here in New Zealand it $9.60 per gallon that works out $8.09 US we pay per liter here about $2.40 for that and that is 91 octane I run 98 and rember that a gallon US is 4 liters I think we are based on the UK gallon witch is 4.5 liters per gallon :yes:

If BRP siad this is the octane use, then run it and get over your self or dont ride a spyder get some thing checp to ride.

:agree:

Anyone got a Yugo that they want to sell? At least I can still get a bit of the Y-Factor! hyea:

 

[Bob Denman]

Why? Did they lose a wheel every once in a while out on the road? :shocked: :roflblack:

 

[BajaRon]

Why? Did they lose a wheel every once in a while out on the road? :shocked: :roflblack:

You were lucky if they only lost 1 wheel! :yikes:

The Yugo was like a little birdie... Fragile and 'Cheep-Cheep!'

 

[Hberninger]

I've only found one station I'm my town that sells ethanol-free gas. They almost always have 87 octane, but are frequently out of the higher octanes. They say it is hard to get. So I have to decide between 93 octane with ethanol or 87 octane without ethanol.

 

[Kratos]

I've always run 93 as well...
Here's why.
What's the difference in price; 25 cents a gallon? on a four gallon re-fuel; that's only a buck!
For an extra buck per fill-up; I'll give the bike what they wanted it to have. I can save that buck by drinking my coffee at home... :thumbup:

Very well stated, that pretty much sums it up. Sounds dumb to even do 87 after reading this post.

 

[baldeagle55]

none

Will Spyder's run well on 87 or is their appetite for expensive preminum?

I run 89 every other tank full I don't no problems ran 87 one time it ran crap

 

[johnnyrocket]

I've only found one station I'm my town that sells ethanol-free gas. They almost always have 87 octane, but are frequently out of the higher octanes. They say it is hard to get. So I have to decide between 93 octane with ethanol or 87 octane without ethanol.

Just curious about the price of 87 octane without ethanol in you area. One place here has 87 w/o at 4.59. Another station I found today has 93 w/o ethanol also for 4.59. Average price for ethanol 93 is 3.67.

 

[Hberninger]

Just curious about the price of 87 octane without ethanol in you area. One place here has 87 w/o at 4.59. Another station I found today has 93 w/o ethanol also for 4.59. Average price for ethanol 93 is 3.67.

87 Octane without ethanol was $3.11 today. Unfortunately, they were out of high octane non-etanol.

 

[Illinois Boy]

87 Octane without ethanol was $3.11 today. Unfortunately, they were out of high octane non-etanol.

If I had the choice between 87 w/out ethanol and 90+ with ethanol... I would choose the non-ethanol. While 90/01 octane is recommended, the manual still states RT's can use 87 octane as the minimum.

You can try either and likely not have a problem -- although some might say outside temps may make a difference between the two.

I would try both to compare and see any noticeable difference in performance and mileage. I would also keep in mind that ethanol attracts moisture -- so if you use fuel with ethanol be sure to use it and not let it sit around in your tank for too long. If your Spyder is going to sit for a while, be sure it doesn't have ethanol fuel in it.

Just my two-cents of experience from the corn-belt...

 

[spydernatic]

Octane rating

I started using the 87 octane on my 2012 RT but then switched to Premium 93 octane and I feel my RT is running much better since doing the switch.

• :sour:
  

 

[Jeriatric]

Your mileage may vary

Fast, Do-It-Yourself Changes to the Fuel System of Your Vehicle

High-Octane Fuel


It sounds too easy, but the reality is, if it is recommended for your vehicle, filling the gas tank with high-octane fuel increases horsepower and efficiency noticeably. Most vehicle manufacturers suggest high-octane fuel for the life of a vehicle, but after a few years, many of us are guilty of trying to save a few pennies by using standard unleaded.


What most of us don't account for is the reality that lower octane fuels are filled with non-combustible ingredients that not only lower gas mileage, but clog filters and speed the rate of wear on engines components.


Difference in Elevation


Because the air has more oxygen at sea level than on a high mountain, the vehicle needs more fuel to create the 14.5:1 air-to-fuel ratio. While the engine operates at wide-open throttle on a mountain and needs about 50kPa of MAP, it uses about 100kPa wide-open throttle at sea level.

 

[Bob Denman]

Difference in Elevation
While the engine operates at wide-open throttle on a mountain and needs about 50kPa of MAP, it uses about 100kPa wide-open throttle at sea level.

:shocked: Can youtranslate that into something that my addled-brain can digest?
Thanks!

 

[Jeriatric]

MAP = manifold absolute pressure. it's signal can be interpretted as vacuum, but it measures from 10.35 kPa absolute to 104.45 kPa absolute.

10.35kPa = max vacuum, 104.45 = total lack of vacuum. in terms of vacuum, 104.45kPa is 0" of vacuum, 10.35kPa is ~30" of vacuum.


retarding timing with rising MAP is normal... can't run the same amount of advance at 50kPa than at 100. if you ran the advance from 50kPa in the 100kPa range, you'd have knock that would be absolutely ridiculous. if you ran the 100kPa advance in the 50kPa column, you'd have bad power and even worse fuel economy.

:shocked: Can youtranslate that into something that my addled-brain can digest?
Thanks!

 

[Bob Denman]

Does that mean that I need to put in some larger main jets?