With gas prices being expensive lately I have foung myself using lower grades of gas. Yesterday got a half tank of 87 octane and car runs like shat (bogs down low). I know i should use premium, but how do your cars run on the cheaper gas?

 

My car got regular gas once. NEVER again. It ran like crap. The thing didn't even want to stay started hardly. Fortunatley for me I did not have that much of it in the tank. I had just enough put in there so that my car could be worked on at the shop.

Fortunatley my Trans-AM is not my daily driver. My truck likes 87 octane.

However I only use Mobil or Exxon and occasionaly Chevron gas when its all that's around. Neither one of my vehicles cares for any other brand(s) of gas.

 

Man, I wish someone sold 100 octane at the pump near me. One place sells 110 unleaded but its too far to go for gas everyweek, or few days depending on the action!! Only run 93, never anything else cause I get some nasty detonation otherwise. Actually, I get some pesky knocking with it, oh well...

 

lol, 94 octane with booster is a requirement for my engine. 12:1 compression

 

i always just get regular...gas is so expensive . plus i get like 7-8 mpg city, which is basically the only kind of driving i do

 

12:1 compression?¿?¿?¿ WTF?!? What are you running under the hood of that thing?

 

363, forged bottom end (speedomotive long rod crank kit), fast burn heads, mini-ram for vortecs, LS1 injectors, FAST DFI, other goodies, hooker catback, suspension mods. it's not that crazy fast, only run mid-low 11s with it, I like it, it's unique. I thought, I could rebuild my 350 or I could stroke it to a 363, have a bit more fun and a unique motor. it's basically a very detuned race motor, 12:1 compression isnt too bad to run if you tune it right and put octane booster in it, revs like crazy though! Isn't a daily driver though, I want to get an '83 Z 5-speed and drop a 302 Chevy in it. Anyways, my project cost a good amount of money, but I wanted to do it, and figured it was better than buying a new LS1, and indeed it was, surprises the hell out of people!

 

sounds like a nice alternative to the LS1, Good Job!!

 

thanks man, it's nice, I like the rev happiness, 7000 rpm shifting is fun

 

i dunno ow my car will run on 87, i only put n 93. sometim,es 94 from sunco but its like 2.27 a gallon so i usally go to hess and get it for 1.87 for 93

 

i use 87...i dont feel a difference with lower octane. **** runs good too.

 

I run 93 in mine. On 87 it shakes and pings and runs like crap.

10:25 compression by the way.

 

I use 87 all the time. If I'm going on a trip I'll use 89 or 92, No engine mods though. I drive it pretty easy most of the time, I get a ping now and then but no big deal. I do use a 180 stat and did the t/b bypass which may help a bit.

 

damn you people need to get some aluminum heads. i can run any octane of pump gas. btw, gas with more octane burns slower.

 

just a little info:

Will higher octane gasoline clean your engine better?
As a rule, high octane gasoline does not outperform regular octane in preventing engine deposits from forming, in removing them, or in cleaning your car’s engine. In fact, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requires that all octane grades of all brands of gasoline contain engine cleaning detergent additives to protect against the build-up of harmful levels of engine deposits during the expected life of your car.

Should you ever switch to a higher octane gasoline?
A few car engines may knock or ping — even if you use the recommended octane. If this happens, try switching to the next highest octane grade. In many cases, switching to the mid-grade or premium-grade gasoline will eliminate the knock. If the knocking or pinging continues after one or two fill-ups, you may need a tune-up or some other repair. After that work is done, go back to the lowest octane grade at which your engine runs without knocking.

Is knocking harmful?
Occasional light knocking or pinging won’t harm your engine, and doesn’t indicate a need for higher octane. But don’t ignore severe knocking. A heavy or persistent knock can lead to engine damage.

Is all "premium" or "regular" gasoline the same?
The octane rating of gasoline marked "premium" or "regular" is not consistent across the country. One state may require a minimum octane rating of 92 for all premium gasoline, while another may allow 90 octane to be called premium. To make sure you know what you’re buying, check the octane rating on the yellow sticker on the gas pump instead of relying on the name "premium" or "regular."

 

higher octane cleans carbon deposits off the combustion chamber and can remove junk from injectors etc. if you don't need to run it though, don't bother with it, save that money for mods. I used to run 92 about once every 3 months with fuel system cleaner to maintain the car, now I need to run 92-94 with octane booster.

 

Stock compression here with a cam and some timing. I usually run 91-93, but sometime I run 87 for kicks and the fact that premium is too much most the time

 

363, nice car but how do you get 363 ci? ive been trying to figure it out for some time.. anyway.. i put 93 in all the time, and 94 when its low enuff. in NJ, gas is getting down there. i saw 1.58 for 93 octane... but that wasnt that good of a place.. i go to sunnoco for my gas.. i gotta find one with 100 octane and try to advance the timming to get full use of it!

 

93 Octane from either Amoco or Chevron.
Found an Amoco station at 93 octone 1.46/gal. Nice

 

Send me some gas!!!
I have to pay about 1.75+/gal of 93 here.

 

car runs rough on 87, better on 89, but the hioghest @ the pump is 92 so I usually use that, if I ever go from 87 to 92 I can so feel the difference, the car has a totally different attitude, much smoother acceleration and overall performance.

 

i cant believe ur gas prices....here its $2.10 for 91 a couple months back it was $2.40.

 

It was 2.10 for 92 here also believe me, it just went down to 1.90 however.

 

I run 91 octane, it costs about $2.15 per gallon right now but it was $2.30 a few weeks ago. I've got aluminum heads and about 10.3:1 compression.

You guys who have stock engines and say your car runs bad on lower octane fuel could run it if you were running stock timing or if your engine was in better condition.

 

What gas does the owner's manual say to use? I have a 91 z and my ride didn't have it w/ it. ... hopefully i'll find it on ebay soon. anyways, whatever the manual says should be fine ... i use 87... and sometimes 93. heh. i dunno mostly i use the cheapest gas.

 

I need to know the same thing.
I ran my car on 87 once (on the highway, constant 75mph). I didnt see/hear any problems, but if it isnt supposed to run, Ill be sure to never do it again.

 

I pay 2.10 for regular

 

I like to run 89 Octane, the Middle Grade here in California... But with gas being so expensive (2.05 for 87, 2.17 for 89, and 2.27 for 91) I usually just run the 87. I do have occasional knocking, mostly if I tap the gas from idle, right as it responds, it knocks a little... or if I'm under heavy load, like WOT in Second Gear.

I notice quite a difference with better gas, the thing runs so good with 91 octane... Unfortunately I'm unemployed, and just about broke, so I need to be cheap.

I wish we had some 93 octane out here, I would like to give it a try, and force my cheep @$$ to buy some better gas for my car. My new engine will get better treatment, I Promise.

 

I like to run premium, as anything else just makes my car not run right, with the carb and all. When I get the TPI and I start burnin my own PROMs, I hope that I will be able to run 89 when I want to, but that isn't til later.

BTW, premium is like 1.95 here. Highest its been IN A LONG TIME. I remember like weeks ago it was 1.75.

 

yeah, gas here is getting crazy. it is 1.65 to70 for 87 and a buck 90 something for 92. I remember when premium used to be 1.50 (last year). I think we need to start bombing those OPEC ****!

 

i agree with you on the bombing of the opec **** . i have to run my car on 93 or it pings with the advanced timing.

 

Over the last couple of months I've done a bit of traveling and far and away the cheapest gas is found in the middle of the eastern seaboard - VA, MD, NC, SC, GA.
I drove from here in VA to Michigan and regular there was almost 1.90 while it was about 1.60 here in VA. I just don't get the variability in it all - despite what they say about refining and all that. My theory is this - they figure out where the areas are with the higest density of cars - you know Michigan is loaded with them (Motor City/State) and Cali is also loaded with them - and that is where the prices are the highest. Down here in SW VA, there is usually just one car per family due to economics of the area. I don't know for sure, but it makes sense to me - somewhat.

As for my car, since I bought it last August, I've only driven it 3 or 4 times. Been in storage. I put premium in it but in the manual, they said (mind you, back in '89) that the thing would run on all grades. Bah! to that - it's a performance car, it's getting premium!!

K

 

here in sacramento,CA the 91octane is around $2.29 thats what I paid just a couple of hours ago

 

I run 94 octane at all times. No octane booster.

11.75:1 comp

 

You got nothing to be whining about. Here it cost about $2.35 a gallon for premium and our premium is only 91 octane.

 

yep here in ca sucks $2.39 for premium at 12 miles per gal= bull sh&% bomb the towel heads

 

Found 89 Octane (mid grade) for 2.09 a gallon today in the Bay Area, California... not bad eh? Car does feel a bit smoother, I payed close attention to how it felt before, since I was running 87 Octane, and how it runs now, definetly different.

First time I have been able to afford a full tank in a month LOL!

 

Yup, we're definitely octane-oppressed here in CA! 91 just doesn't cut it. "Premium?" HA! What a joke. CARB is such a scam! We should have, we NEED(I need), 93 or 94 here like much of the rest of the country. But I guess if everyone's cars were running more cleanly, then there'd be no more use for CARB! What ashame. But *** forbid! Can't have that, lol!

Along the freeways today, 91 was as high as $2.59/gal, and $2.39 in town. And we produce our own gas!!! How WRONG is that?! Can you imagine how high it'll be after our spring-annual, "accidental" oil refinery fire that pushes our prices up even more every summer? We'll go beyond $3/gal this year!

One year, they must've sat around the conference table, and it was like, "let's see... summer's coming, and there'll be an increase in demand, so we need to cut the supply so we can raise our prices. But how can we cut production without making it look too obvious, like that's exactly what we're doing? I got it! Let's burn a refinery each year! This year it can be Chevron, next year it can be Texaco, after that it can be Shell, and so on! Then we'll have a short supply, and we'll HAVE to raise prices!"

Now mind you, I really don't care about the price of gas. That would be rather hypocritcal of me considering the kind of car I(and all of us) drive. What pees me off is that we get such crappy gas for OUR money!

This state needs to be punished by the Feds, who unfortunately won't because they're the oil-wealthy Republican regime, lol. But it's out of control and running amuck, and it must be stopped!

Sorry everyone, lol. Think I'm bitter? Oh well... I hate to put more money in THEIR pockets, but I need to cool off, so I'm gonna walk the dog and go for a drive, lol.

 

I can run 94 Sunoco without any octane booster in my 12:1 motor, because it was built perfectly, eg. quench, polished chambers, the coldest delco plugs, ect. There is no audible knock, but I'm sure the timing is being retarded some as the car doesn't run near as smoothly as when I add a couple gallons of my home brew octaner booster. I would never drive the car hard with only 94 oct. and my compression though.

 

YAY! I'm originally from Indy, Joe. 94 Sunoco is the best! Send me some?

And what about your "home brew?" Care to share?