Regular, Mid Grade, or Premium Gas?

[airshot]

The "difference" is the money you wasted buying higher octane for no valid reason.
[/quote]

I have other toys that do require a higher octane fuel so I keep it on hand. Had to try a couple tank fulls to see if it really made a difference.

[jeeves]

The lowest octane we have here is 95. Premium is 98, some gas stations have 100.

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[CROSSBOLT]

Bet that is straight octane, Jeeves, instead of the R+M/2 nonsense we have in the US!

Karl

[Forbes1964]

If a manufacturer recommends regular, then regular is ALL YOU NEED. If they recommend mid grade or Premium, then THAT's what you need.
Remember this: a manufacturer has ZERO interest in ruining your engine and having a warranty claim.  So if it needed premium, you can be certain that they'd recommend it.

If 87 octane is recommended, unless you ENJOY spending extra money, buy 87 Octane


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[jeeves]

Bet that is straight octane, Jeeves, instead of the R+M/2 nonsense we have in the US!

Karl

What does  R+M/2 mean?

[CROSSBOLT]

Valid question, Jeeves! R means research and M means motor. Research uses some kind of lab technique to determine the Octane rating of fuel while Motor runs a single cylinder engine with variable compression ratio to determine Octane rating. Both these methods are used to maintain production octane rating quality. Since the octane ratings are different, one being higher than the other, they are averaged. This way we, the consumers, get one number for regular and cannot be cheated by unscrupulous retailers by somehow selling us a fuel with a higher octane rating number that really does not perform as well. This scam was made possible by ignorant people thinking a higher octane number automatically meant higher performance. Same is true about higher octane number not breaking down as quickly. Pure fantasy started by ignorant people. Nothing wrong with ignorant except staying that way.

Karl

[CROSSBOLT]

Forbes, you are SO right!

Karl

[kickstart]

All my small engines get non ethanol and the place I get it either has 87, 89 or 92 but only one octane at a time, so mine will get all three. 

[Forbes1964]

I find that if a vehicle is driven regularly, the particular brand and whether or not it contains ethanol (10% or less) or not is not that important. But if it's sets up for any length of time, ethanol content becomes very important. In that case, I strongly advise using a fuel stabilizer.


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[Forbes1964]

I've found that in some cases off brand fuels sometimes seem to decrease my fuel economy in certain vehicles. But that seems to apply across all their grades of fuel.


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[Stig / Major Tom]

Stick my toe in here:
 
If a guy uses a top tier fuel station (ie. not a Bettie's Burgers and Gaz) to fuel his fuel injected bike. .....he should have zip to worry about. Right? No autos have carbs any longer?

All the additives and worry about the age and octane of gas is related to carbed engines. Yes/No?
Stig

[Forbes1964]

Stick my toe in here:
 
If a guy uses a top tier fuel station (ie. not a Bettie's Burgers and Gaz) to fuel his fuel injected bike. .....he should have zip to worry about. Right? No autos have carbs any longer?

All the additives and worry about the age and octane of gas is related to carbed engines. Yes/No?
Stig

Octane is unrelated to whether an engine is carbureted or not. If an engine requires a certain octane, that's what it requires carburetor or no.
As far as additives go, fuel injected engines are even more sensitive to deposit build up because of the location of the injectors (closer to (or even in) the combustion chamber and their precise calibration.  But as you stated, most name brand fuels are fine. But Even the cheapest fuels are ok if they are not used exclusively. Go to a top their station every so often.
However. NO VEHICLE likes old fuel. The octane AND the overall quality tends to degrade as fuel ages. So keep it fresh. Drive it!




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[Forbes1964]

Stick my toe in here:
 
If a guy uses a top tier fuel station (ie. not a Bettie's Burgers and Gaz) to fuel his fuel injected bike. .....he should have zip to worry about. Right? No autos have carbs any longer?

All the additives and worry about the age and octane of gas is related to carbed engines. Yes/No?
Stig

Side note. The government (which many people seem to despise) regulates the claims on motor fuels. They make CERTAIN that 87 octane is 87 octane and 93 is really 93. However, the refiners are allowed a certain VERY SMALL amount of wiggle room. So bargain fuels may have for example, 86.9 octane and 10% ethanol while a top tier fuel may have 87.1 octane and 9.8% ethanol. (My numbers are simply off the top of my head examples) . But no fuels can have more than 10% ethanol although they are allowed to have less. Again, our often despise government regulations keep them honest (A GOOD THING, in my opinion)


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[airshot]

   The simplest solution is just add an ounce or two of ethanol fuel stabilizer such as stabil to your fuel then forget it. Unless you are going to leave your equipment sit for more thn 90 days without running then drain the tank. If ethanol fuel is a worry to you add the stabilizer and be done. I have been using ethanol fuels in all my toys for a good many years without any issue, including my old 1983 boat engine. It sits all winter and starts right up in the spring, I did convert all the hoses to ethanol rated hoses, and do add some stabilizer on a regular basis. Only those that neglect their equipment are the ones having problems. Been a small engine mechanic for a long time and neglect and failure to follow a few simple rules are the main cause of fuel/engine problems.