| Author | Message | ||
     Ferrisbuellersdayoff |
using 91 is whats recommended, and never use octane boosters in an XB. But I let my bike get filled up with 87. wheres the drain plug? or can I just run through the 87 and refill with 91 and pretend it never happened? | ||
| Ustorque |
i just ran a tank of 87 by accident, didn't notice any problems.....got to used to using 87 in the truck all winter and didn't notice till it was too late. | ||
| Debueller |
I always run 87 octane on my '08 Uly with no ill effects. | ||
| Pogue_mahone |
if it starts pinging,then u have a problem.if not pinging,dont worry about it.if the temps where u live suddenly go up,it can start pinging and then u need higher octane fuel.and the oxygenated fuels can stop pinging too.my vw beetle would in summer but with winter fuels it would not.also cooler temps eased it as well.air cooleds are more sensitive to pinging so keep an eye on it. | ||
| Glitch |
if it starts pinging, use octane boost. | ||
| Jraice |
+1 no need to drain, just use octane boost. And if it makes you feel better, at 25 or 50 mile intervals top it off with 91. | ||
| Pogue_mahone |
if it is pinging,one should address the cause and act appropriately. tires,fuel and oil cost enuff already.no sense in dumping money in the tank for the wrong reason. | ||
| Brumbear |
I use octane booster on hot days especially no ill effects yet | ||
| Union_man |
Octane is one of the most commonly misunderstood measurements we use in our daily lives. Here is some general information that may help to understand it. It helped me.   http://www.howstuffworks.com/framed.htm?parent=que stion90.htm&url=http://www.oregon.gov/ODA/MSD/docs /pdf/gas_octane_guide.pdf | ||
| Iamarchangel |
Run it, don't even worry about octane booster. If it runs bad, you'll know the issue and just keep topping it up with the highest octane you've got down there. Sunoco Gold at 94 not available stateside? Anyway, you probably won't notice anything in morning or evening runs or short distances. It's a very small tank. It's empty in about two hours so there's plenty of room for new fuel after fifteen minutes of running. Just keep topping up even if you think there is a problem. The fuel stop will cool the bike, the fresh fuel will dilute the old. Problem will clear up and it's not permanent. Relax. | ||
| Mesafirebolt |
Only bad thing with topping off is most pumps around here use the same nozzle for all 3 grades and the amount of fuel left in the hose is not much less than a "top off". I keep trying to find a station with 3 pumps but have yet to find one... | ||
| Corporatemonkey |
Run it, don't even worry about octane booster. If it runs bad, you'll know the issue and just keep topping it up with the highest octane you've got down there. Well put. Last summer I was on a long trip, and I needed fuel. I pulled into a small town and most of the stations were completely out of fuel, the one that had fuel only had 87. I filled up and got going again just fine. I did use a light throttle hand until I was able to get high test back in the tank. | ||
| Eicas |
I agree with the above, run it, but take it easy at first to see what it does. Detonation can quickly ruin an engine, especially an air cooled one, but if it does not detonate, no problem. Detonation is effected by cylinder pressures and temperatures, keep it low and all is well. | ||
| Spacecapsule1 |
i gave up running the expensive stuff after tracking mileage for thousands of miles using the high grade then the low grade. guess what? no difference that the but dyno can tell. no pinging. money saved for other stuff. yay! | ||
| Fast1075 |
Pogue_mahone brings up some good commentary. The simple truth about octane numbers...octane number relates to the fuel's resistance to preignition...the higher the number, the more resistant. Since we are discussing XB engines that have fuel injection and digital mapping, we will assume that all is functioning properly with good F/A ratios and ignition mapping....if so....we will dismiss some myths about octane. Myth #1: High octane fuel has more "power" than lower octane fuel....quite the opposite is true...fuel has a specific "energy content" as measured by weight of the fuel...expressed as BTU (British Thermal Unit) per pound of fuel.. The higher the octane number, the lower the BTU per pound...so high octane fuel has less "energy" than low octane fuel. Since engines are heat driven, the more heat produced, the more cylinder pressure is created, thus the more power...the trick is to use the fuel with the most energy while avoiding detonation.. Myth #2: Using fuel with more octane than needed will "burn up" your engine...refer to myth #1....higher octane fuel burns cooler than low octane fuel...this myth is most likely from people that tweak their engines and go to high octane fuel looking for that big boost in power...it is the "tweaks" that burn up the engine, not the fuel...the only problem with using high octane fuel in an engine that does not need it, is the specific power output will be a bit lower... Myth #3: adding octane booster is a good way to "turn cheap fuel into good fuel"...in the concentrations recommended, octane booster increases the octane by TENTHS of a point, and some of them contain stuff I wouldn't run thru my induction system...buy the higher octane fuel to begin with...on a tank full it's what, a dollar more?? Detonation: on STOCK engines that are street driven, detonation is most likely to occur under high load, low rpm with large throttle opening...(lugging the engine)...downshift and put the engine in a happy rpm...if you are playing with the mapping...use appropriate fuel...if you are modifying an engine, pay attention to quench, compression ratio and cam selection...dyno tune the engine so you don't have excessively lean spots (when an engine is run too lean, the oxygen left over will find something to burn...like the sparkplug tips, or piston crown), or equally as bad, excessively rich spots (rich mixtures and poor quench combined are engine killers where the engine is hammered to death).... | ||
| Jdemoxb9r |
i love it when i hear people say they put 92 octane in their (insert crappy car here) just cause its payday or cause they wanted to increase their performance! lol i gave up running the expensive stuff after tracking mileage for thousands of miles using the high grade then the low grade. guess what? no difference that the but dyno can tell. no pinging. money saved for other stuff. yay! higher octane shouldn't noticibly affect your milage or butt dyno... but if your not getting a knock or pinging then i guess you may be alright  | ||
| Old_man |
Fast1075 +1 | ||
| Hotrod427 |
Amen Fast. You seem to be pretty well versed on the internal combustion process. Does the XB engine have a knock sensor? I don't see one in my wiring diagrams, and I know from experience not all detonation or pre-ignition conditions can be easily heard. | ||
| Old_man |
I don't believe that there is a knock sensor. | ||
| Fast1075 |
The path to enlightenment is paved with broken parts...."Fast1075....destroying parts since 1968". (Message edited by fast1075 on May 04, 2009) | ||
| Fung |
I have used 87 a few tanks and no probs. I would not worry about it. | ||
| Debueller |
I run 87 octane in everything I own for reasons mentioned by Fast1075. It's also cheaper and easier to find. I do not own any high compression engines, so why spend more? | ||
| Fast1075 |
I run 93 octane in the Mighty Blast...because it will have some detonation on really hot days....one of these days I will fix the built in quench problem and cure that. | ||
| Saratoga |
Use 87 because of the expense? In something that holds 4 gallons? I can't remember the last time it cost more than $7.00 to fill the bike up, and for the extra $0.39 it costs to run 93... decision obvious. Not all fuel retailers have the same additive package, so you might as well get the best of what they have to offer. My unsolicited .02 | ||
| Jdemoxb9r |
+1 saratoga a couple extra pennies per gallon...you could probably do a lap around the gas station picking up pennies and come out ahead lol |
