SilverOmen

Hey guys,

I have a really stupid question but I am rather curious. I have had my 07 TL Type S since 09 and I have ran 93 octane since day one.

With that being said, I just had a motor swap due to hydro lock and I am curious if you can run 87 octane in it? I have a friend with an 07 TL (3.2 L) that runs 87 octane.

So I am just curious if it would hurt the car to run reg 87 in it or not. I am a cheap man and I would like to save 50 cents on the gallon if at all possible.

Let me know what you guys think!

Thanks!

WDPanda

You would probably lose gas mileage due to 87 octane and end up paying more at the pumps for less performance. 93 is excessive, 91 is fine

thoiboi

Not this again...



NO!

It's been beaten to death:
https://www.google.com/search?q=site..._sm=0&ie=UTF-8

/endthread

jon.mar27

would def lose performance and gas mileage using 87

thisaznboi88

iTrader: (7)

your engine will ping. You have a 11.5 compression ratio that is less forgiving than a 11.0 CR of your friend 3.2L tl.

Turbonut

iTrader: (1)

Read the owner's manual then do what you want, your car.

TacoBello

God, I love it when these threads come up

SilverOmen

Guys this was just a question. I will continue to run 93 if necessary like the manual says, but I was just curious.

Turbonut

iTrader: (1)

If you searched, the question has been beaten to death and you'll get various responses, so the only way for you to make a decision as you see fit, is to try the lesser octane, then you'll know which way to go.

truonghthe

try to to use 50 octane since it will give you 50 mpg in city and 70 mpg on the highway. Or you can choose diesel since it offer way more torque.

mtiaz

Lol the manual doesn't say to use 93, it says 91. Very few stock vehicles require 93 or 94 octane lol

MonkeyTrucker

I only use 93 octance and will continue to use only 93 octane.

A lot of stations in these parts have a "Fantastic Friday" where 93 is the same price as mid-grade. I've filled up on a Friday before and gone for a mountain run and re-filled early Saturday morning; have to fill-up before 7am on Saturday.

It's nice to often fill up for the price of mid-grade, but even without it, I'd still continue to run 93 octane all the time.


EDIT - Per the owner's manual:
Fuel Recommendation
"Your vehicle is designed to operate on premium unleaded gasoline with a pump octane of 91 or higher. Use of a lower octane gasoline can cause occasional metallic knocking noises in the engine and will result in decreased engine performance. Use of a gasoline with a pump octane less than 87 can lead to engine damage.

We recommend quality gasolines containing detergent additives that help prevent fuel system and engine deposits."

There is no language of "must" or "should" in there, so I would think you could argue that any engine trouble due to 87-91 octane would not have caused your engine any trouble or void a warranty, but we're way past warranties anyway. Besides it only explicitly cautions against the use of 87 or below octane, and relating to engine damage.

The only thing that sucks about this thread is the demeanor of a few of the posters...

nfnsquared

I've been running 87 for 3 years now with zero issues. There has been no decrease in mileage. I have done a few hard pulls to redline with both 87 and 91 and monitored timing using Torque Pro. I could find no correlation to timing pull from using 87 vice 91. I've never once heard any pinging from using 87. I've driven 35K miles/year the last 2 years, all on 87 octane (except for the one tank of 91 for testing). Most of that has been highway miles, but I still get on it and never have heard any pinging.

MonkeyTrucker

You should do a write up on that. To qualm this question, that apparently repeats itself with more frequency than some would like.

nfnsquared

I did, in another thread, where some "self-proclaimed expert" (ASE certified was the claim IIRC) claimed that 87 octane was garbage because it burned dirtier than 91 octane. That claim totally debunked his self-proclaimed expertise.

Someone else can try to prove me wrong. I'm convinced there is no harm, performance loss or mileage loss from my experience. Again, I'm not running any performance mods and do mostly highway driving, but as I said, I couldn't detect any timing pull running through the lower gears to redline.

FWIW, I do run nothing but Shell 90% of the time, and if not Shell, some other Top Tier gas.

MonkeyTrucker

Well, to be fair, he likely had much higher standards than most, and the flock gobbled up his words as gospel.

Link to thread, I'll block this know-it-all's user account so as to only read your assessment.