nu_guy

Is anyone pumping 89 gas instead of 91 in their TL regularly? I just bought my car and the dude I bought it from said it was alright to pump 89 gas so I did the first time and it drove fine. After I finish pumping the gas I saw the stick that said Premium Only on the lid. I just want to know what would happen if I only pump 89 instead of 91.

alleyesonmeee

I have been lately. My gas card is close to maxed out so I can't afford the extra $$ for premium right now.

I wouldn't do it very long term, I've only been fueling up with 89 for about 2 weeks now. I'm going to switch back to premium as soon as I pay off some of my cc bill.

timmy8151

Nothing wrong with 89 or even 87. Our cars have knock sensors so there's no harm in using lower octane gas. You will lose a little performance by not using premium though.

JGsTL-S

get ready to be flamed as a cheap a$$ on this one.....cuz it happened to me once HAHAHA...I run the middle pump too and no problems with 50k on car...lots of folks believe if you buy a nice car why buy cheap gas for it? after all its only a couple bucks difference....I have run all 3 grades available from time to time.

JG

Black3.2

i did it for like a mth and after i switch back to premium my engine was making a tick sound.

stretchb69

It will cause your engine to knock!!! My friend used the cheap crap on his 04 and his engine did knock. It says right in the owners manuel do not use anything under 91.
Also, if you use cheap for a while then switch back to premo, it is to late. You will loose performance and it is irreversable. When buying a $35,000 car that requires premium gas you should consider that gas prices might go up. If you can't afford that possibility than look to another car.
It breaks my heart to think about you guys putting the cheap stuff in your TL's , your only cheating yourseves.

alleyesonmeee

Thanks, but being flamed as a cheap a$$ won't phase me. I've been around here long enough not to care. Other than the past two weeks, I have NEVER put anything below 93 in my tank.

mikegtls02

Teh Jatt

Allie is the farthest I know from being cheap.

antlive

I go back and forth 89-93, no 91 in MD, depending on where I'm getting my gas from. haven't notice a difference.

TLMugen

3rd gen cars have super high compression like the 2nd gen TL-S so you must run 91 or higher octane otherwise it'll be prone to knocking. TL-Ps have lower compression so you can run lower than 91 (91 is not required, only recommended). I run 89 in my '00 TL without any problems whatsoever.

BLaCk Acc

I use 93 right now, and was also wondering about this issue since gas prices are sky rocketing. Will I loose HP from using 87 or 89? Would it effect the quarter mile time?

Ken1997TL

On the base engine, 87 or 89 is fine.

In the '04+ and Type S TL's, stick to premium!

Ken1997TL

Yes, you lose a bit. If you're racing always use premium.

alleyesonmeee

Yes you lose hp and it makes the car feel slightly slower, but you will get better gas mileage on 87/89.

fsttyms1

ive noticed mileage decrease and it builds up carbon faster. you may not notice teh difference but its there. you are also causing more polutants by the car not running as effeciant. and you are putting more stress on the sensors and stuff by having it try to constantly compensate

Mike Skillz

what about 100 or 110 ocatane? Its available around here, i know for racing only, but will the sensors compensate?

alleyesonmeee

Hi Kris....Where have you been on AIM today?!

Ken1997TL

No, the engine will have to work harder to detonate the fuel.

Street Spirit

Please use the 'search' feature in Second Gen as this issue has been discussed over and over and over and over........... You'll gather many opinions that way too.

HiG4s

That is incorrect. Lower octane gas produces more HP. Higher octane gas burns slower, that is how it keeps the engine from knocking.. Higher compression engines need that.. But a higer compression engine makes much more HP than the little it loses by having to switch to higher octane. The octane you need to run properly is determined by the engine compression ratio and timing..

Now with modern computer controlled engines with knock sensors, if you use lower octane gas and there is knocking,, (even if you do not notice it) the sensors do and will retard the timing reducing power and stops the knocking.

For max performance you should use the lowest octane gas that will not cause knocking,, and of course the manufactures are usually correct with their recommendations on a stock auto.

Race gas in a different animal, it comes in different octanes also, and it's biggest benefit it how pure it is. The amount of junk allowed in pump gas is apalling, and that alone can increase performance noticiable, especially low end and off throttle.

Racing motorcycles guys often use a 50/50 mix of 93 octane pump gas and 100 or 110 octane race gas. The off throttle response is dramatically improved, mid range about the same and no change in top end.. The motorcycles in question engine's preform best on 96 octane. Although for just play riding they will run on 93 or 94 pump gas with no long term adverse effects.

nu_guy

thanks for helping me out.

BLaCk Acc

so why even put in 91/93??
if u get more hp from 87 or 89 why not just put that? why waste the money on gas?

NYZGREATST

i was talking to this kid i know whose dad bought the new porshe truck. he was telling me that the dealership told them not to use 91 and higher. he said that 83 was perfectly fine cus the new engine was able to compensate for the lower grade.

rozslvk

Been doing a "mix" for a while, 93 1/2 tank, and 89 1/2 tank no diffence in performance. Next move I may try is reg(87) and octane booster may work .. I have a 02 tl-s use synthetic oil , will see what happens...

03SSMTL-S

i always use 91 or higher (depending on the station)

fsttyms1

because you wont make more hp in the tl. the compression is high and the computer will retard teh ignition to reduce knock, there by reducing the hp. a few years back Motor trend did this test to the Honda Odyssey minivan. they ran 2 of them, one with premium one with 87. the one with premiup was over 1 second faster in the 1/4 and it also got better gas mileage.

teh question is you spent alot of money on the tl, why cheap out and run something other than the recomended??

jeff m 02 tl

Esso (Exxon) used to have 92 supreme, then they changed the octane rating to 91 about 6 months ago, after a few tanks I noticed poor gas mileage and a slight knock, so now the only fuel I run is the Sunoco Gold which has an octane rating of 94, I am now getting extemely good mileage and the car runs great but at the cost of $1.00/L or roughly $4.00 a US gallon it takes a bite out of the mod list, but definately worth it in the long run.
Peace, Jeff

SLAMMED_WDP_TLS

that is what i Was thinking. Get 87 and dump some octane booster in your car. How does that sound. Idont blame ya for getting cheap on gas sice gas prices are so DAMN high especially here in CALI. IT crazy man. But thinking about 87 and octane boost once I get my car back. My car is in the shop sO i odnt have to worry about filling up right now

carlos gonzales

mmmm...... considering pumping 89 on my TLP-02......... tempting....

Price is always a factor, i am thinking maybe doing this on the winter since performance and more HP is not as critical (since we've been slowed down by snow anyways) orrr

03CoupeV6

This is something I've debated... but really, by pumping 89, what do you save? $1.50? Is that really that big of a deal?

patrick

Interesting Kris! I got an Ody at home too. Hmm, would you be able to pull up this article? I'd like to read it...I'm currently using Chevron 87 octane as Honda doesn't say I should use premium.

mlionel

Higher octane gas better resists spontaneous combustion, then lower octane gas. That is all the difference, not counting small stuff as additives, etc. I terms of “producing power” high and low octane gas is the same. Winter gas does produce more power due to additional light fractions that added for easier start up.
If you use lower octane gas in engine with high compression ratio, car computer will adjust timing (retard it) to eliminate spontaneous combustion that produces knock. What happens is that air-gas mixture will ignite not when suppose to (when piston is moving down), but before or right at that point piston reaches its top position. That air/gas mix will explode due to overheating from compression, and not burn “slower” as normally should. Explosion makes “bang” that is transmitted through the piston, connection rod, crank shaft to bearings. That is dangerous. That ruins bearings. If you use lower octane gas with high compression engine, knock sensor senses “bang” and commands computer to retard timing. Retarding timing leads to loss of power, since engine does not burn gas-air effectively.
Just my 5c.

Maximaboy1

I have a 2001 Acura TL and a Lexus SC...neither of the cars have knock problems running on 87. Yes, I will admit I'm a cheapskate.....the thing is...explain why an ES330 from Lexus, with the same engine from a Toyota Camry demands premium while the camry doesn't...It's all marketing and money in the pockets of oil tycoons. I would only use high octane if the car actually knocks. Honda has declared on their Odysseys,which use similar engine designs, that regular will work, but with a 5 HP loss. Knocking won't occur. However, if you wish to support the oil tycoons and pay extra for gas, be my guest.

fsttyms1

there are different tunnings that make for the octane rating. you may not hear the ping but the computer is doinf its damdest to compensate for it there by reducing the efficancy of the engine, which = lower MPG, lower HP, and more emissions coming out of your tail pipe.

fsttyms1

i read that a few years back in motortrend, i wouldnt even know which and what year to begin looking, but it was in MT

alleyesonmeee

Around $3 on 15 gallons

rozslvk

My fear is the availabilty of premium, and the high price. Will try the booster as a emergency measure too bad Honda/Acura isn;t doing anything in this area to help us. Years ago I remember a i think volvo doing some to modify their cars to run on regular gas...

03CoupeV6

$3/tank by pumping regular instead of premium. $1.50/tank by pumping unleaded plus rather than premium, 89 octane, like I said.

Of course that's here in GA, where there's a $.10 increase per each step, unleaded, unleaded plus, and premium.

fsttyms1

and you would loose more than that in your mpg atleast i did, and id rather spend the little extra for my car to run the correct way.

and for all you complaining about having to fill up, try filling up EVERY day like me!