I am reading the manual for my new van. It says I can use 85% octane, which I think is reg unleaded, but to also use 87%, at times, which I think is premium. I have read this over and over. WHAT?? What the heck? Do I alternate tanks of gas? Stick with reg unleaded and once a month put in 87%. Is 87% the premium stuff. Is there a difference in the gas stations and quality of gas. Is this important? Am I just over thinking every thing and questioning stupid trivial things?<br><br>I apologize for so many questions, but picture this... I was married 30 years and have been single 13. I was managed and programed and did not have to think or know about stuff. Even after my divorce I was still managed for a while. So I am in a steep learning curve.<br><br>I never had to think of this stuff, I guess I never had to think for myself at all so now I am lost. <br>I don't want to be a pain in the aaaaa, but I will take all information and suggestions.<br><br>I do thank every one on this forum for all the help and advice and encouragement. This is so embarrassing. <br><br>kidie, luci, and the big white moose.....<br><br><br>
Gasoline question
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MY BAD. I can't imagine a reason for alternating between grades but if I were at the learning curve where you say you are at, I would follow suggestions until I could discover why and make alternative plans if the reason is valid.
87 is the lowest level you will find at the pump - at least where I live in the Southeast. However other parts of the world lower octane levels are available - and maybe in other parts of the country?<br><br>anyway, most places in the US I have been is 87 is regular, 89 is mid grade, and 91 is high octane. Of course my understanding is that a high degree of the octane rating in our gas comes from the corn alcohol they blend in our gas, which is a whole other set of issues.
ilovemyvan
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Kidiekat, thanks for asking all of these questions. I'm trying to figure this stuff out myself. This is not my first van but it's the first one when fuel efficiency is so important to my wallet.<br><br>idn88, would you mind elaborating a bit on the octane rating. We have a 2003 E150 Ford. We used regular gas once by mistake, the van didn't like it much, it even turned the engine light on (Oh that so annoying light) The previous owner strongly suggested using high range but we would prefer the price of mid range. Does it make a difference? The van didn't come with a manual <img class="bbc_img" src="/images/boards/smilies/frown.gif" rel="lightbox"> <br><br>Kadiekat, I hope I'm not hijacking your post. <br><br>NIcole
drivebyandy
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I agree with what idn88 said. Here in Michigan 87 is regular, 89 is midgrade and 91 is premium. Some stations do have E85 but that's special junk and don't use it unless you have a special car (flexfuel). <br><br>Higher octane fuels require more compression to detonate and is generally recommended for higher performance engines. Any more information than that and I wouldn't know exactly what I was talking about. Wikipedia has lots of technical babble. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octane_rating" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octane_rating</a>
If your vehicle calls for regular which is the case here (85 / 87) are both regular, then that is what you use. no need to alternate or anything like that. Some places in the US regular is 85 octane, other places in the US it is 87.<br>If you run high octane fuel in a car that isn't meant for it you will eventually develop carbon deposits in your engine. There will be no performance increase, no efficiency increase possibly a slight decrease in efficiency. If your engine develops carbon deposits the compression ratio goes up and ironically you have to now run premium or risk the issues below.<br><br>If you run low octane in a vehicle that requires high octane you risk precombustion/detonation I forget which. If your engine senses this it will throw a check engine light and reduce power output(to protect the engine). If your engine doesn't sense this worst case scenario your engine blows up, but most likely nothing will happen. I have been "cheap" many times and run regular in cars that call for premium without any issues. When I worked at a Toyota dealership we would put regular in all the brand new cars (they are shipped on empty) didn't matter what the vehicle called for and nothing bad ever happened.<br><br>SoxAndNicole If your e150 engine is stock I can't imagine them calling for premium, usually it will say "premium only" on the fuel lid, or check the manual or ask at a ford dealer, usually at the parts counter or flag down a technician. Or find out which engine you have and try googling it.<br>If the manufacturer calls for regular but the previous owner ran premium because they thought it was better for it you may have carbon deposits in the engine raising the compression. Without removing the deposits you will be stuck unable to switch back to regular. There are various ways to remove carbon deposits, so it isn't permanent. First verify that the engine hasn't been modified and that ford doesn't actually call for premium.<br><br>The short answer on fuel with alcohol in it for cars is: Slightly less mpg, slightly cleaner burning, and you are helping your local corn farmer. There are other downsides but they generally do not apply when dealing with cars. Usually small engines carburators and the like may run into the other issues.
I've not seen 85 octane in the US. Here in Alaska its 87, 89, 91. I've seen where you can purchase octane from the store to boost your vehicle's performance so I don't think a higher octane will be an issue and if your vehicle runs fine on 85 and its cheaper go for it. You should have no worries when it comes to switching octanes if your vehicle is designed to run efficiently on lower octanes. Its those vehicles that require premium (91 octane) that will have an issue with lower octane. Happy travels.<br><br>Rae
Thank you so much to every one for all the input. <br>SoxandNicole no you did not hijack anything I am glad I am not the only one that this stuff causes confusion to. Usually with little red I just used the unleaded button on the pump. I thought it said 85, but my memory could be wrong. I will take a bit more time at the pump reading the labels now. If 87 octane is the norm then I am not going to fret over it. I will call mike that sold me the car tomorrow and ask for sure. So 87 octane helps out the corn growers.... Good. At least some thing is going for our US economy.<br>I looked at the mpg for the ride home friday in dead stop and go traffic and it showed 23.8 mpg so something is right what ever they filled it with. <br><br>I'll be darn, if the engine doesn't like the gas the "check engine" light will come on.... This is good to know.<br><br>The van is 2007, I don't know if there is anything special about that year for cars, really the only thing I knew before was what a 57 chevy looked like, a volks wagon beetle and it's a bus, truck or fire engine. lol I don't remember reading any thing about flex fuel in the manual. <br><br>I do appreciate all the input. Yep it's a steep learning curve here. <br><br>I took the morning off from my brain drain... Went to Assateague National Park and Assateage state park and took pictures of the Atlantic Ocean and breathed in the fresh air. Ahhhhhh. This is the start of my travel picture album. I didn't know Luci could go to the National and State parks. darn. I gotta get a picture of the sign leaving Ocean city that says 3000 what ever miles to Sacramento California. That will be my start off point. Yay it's getting closer.<br><br>85% is low grade, not every where, 87% is normal grade, 91% is high grade. Using the wrong one for your car will cause your engine NOT to work efficiently. <br><br>If your engine is not burning clean does that cause black carbon on the tail pipe? or would it just make the car run rough?<br><br>Thank you all so much.
Thank you Rae. I always read the manual for every thing I get and maybe that's not a good idea for me. Reading about the 85% and 87% just caused me unnecessary grief. I am just over thinking every thing and trying to be perfect. Ain't gonna happen. I will pay more attention at the pump now and not just do the zombie fill up. I am writing all this learning stuff in a spiral notebook, read it, say it, write it and it's yours. Hopefully this all sticks in my memory.
Van-Tramp
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Most cars do not require any more than the lowest octane fuel. Some people like to believe that a higher octane gives a boost in performance, but they are wrong. Unless your vehicle has a high compression motor, you would just be throwing money away. As long as your engine is not "pinging" or "knocking" under strain then you can run the lowest octane (and lowest costing) fuel. If your manual is saying you are ok to use 85 octane fuel, I would fill up with that fuel when ever I can find it.<br><br>High altitude states will have 85 octane fuel (such as here in Colorado). Lower altitude states will have higher octane needs and so they have 87 as the lowest. My little sports car specifically states that it "requires high octane fuel", yet here in Colorado I put 85 octane fuel in it without any issues. When I was in California with it, I did in fact have to use 91 octane to prevent it from pinging.<br><br>85 octane fuel is NOT the same as "E85" which is significantly cheaper, but you also get significantly worse MPG on E85. Unless your car is "flex fuel" capable, do not put E85 in it... it will not run. E85 is fuel with more ethanol (corn), which will not work in a normal engine.<br><br>Hope that helps
Van tramp... thank you. I have been driving without any extra noise. No radio, no a/c, etc to listen to the engine. I don't hear any thing extra going on. I had the window down and up and so far the engine sounds okay to me, but that's not saying much, cause I could be very wrong. <br><br>I think I need to check the tire pressure, make sure it is where it should be. I think I remember 35 from the manual, but there are stickers on the door jam so I will check there first. I have some gizmo that you put on the tip and it reads the pressure, then you clear it and can check it again. So I will drive to my shed where the air compressor is and I can fill them if they need it. I read some where on this site that air pressure in your tires affects gas mileage too. <br><br>
Zil
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I seem to be confusing some numbers. Octane and ethanol. Ethanol fuels use % as in 10% ethanol, 15% ethanol, or E85 which can be up to 85% ethanol. E85 can only be used in vehicles designed to use it. Octane ratings only use a number. As 85 or 87 or 91. In the usa it is the average of two tests. Using lower octane than your engine needs will result in lower mileage. Using higher octane than your engine needs will not help gas mileage. A modern engine adjusts the timing to avoid damaging knock when using lower octane fuel. So the lower mileage may be offset by lower cost per gallon. Using higher octane fuel does not build up carbon. Using cheap unbranded gasoline or driving short trips were the engine does not come to temperature will build up carbon. The famous "only driven by a little old lady once a week to church", will have problems when finally used normally on highways and the carbon burns out of the rings. <br><br>87 octane is regular fuel. In higher elevations you may find lower octane at the pump. Some brand gasoline use "more better" aditives in their higher octane products. Some vehicle manufactures require a specific list of gasoline brands for this reason. That is not the reason for higher octane rating.
Zil. When you talk of unbranded gasoiline do you mean some thing other than Exxon, BP, etc. I didn't know there was a difference in gas stations. <br>Plus.... 85 and 87 is both unleaded, or is all gasoline unleaded now?<br><br>thanks
Van-Tramp
Well-known member
If you research how gasoline is manufactured, you will realize that one brand's gasoline is no different then any other. Shell, Exxon, etc all deposit X-number of gallons at one end of a pipe in Alaska, and are then able to withdraw that same number of gallons down here. They are NOT THE SAME gallons that were deposited. Much like when you deposit a $20 bill at one ATM and withdraw $20 from another in a different city, they are two completely different $20 bills, but worth an identical amount none-the-less. The only differences between "generic brand" and the more expensive Shell, Exxon, etc is the additives added (cleaning agents mostly) to the identical fuel that actually powers your vehicle. If you notice any difference at all between brands, you are fooling yourself into a placebo effect as the fuel itself is no different then any other. Obviously, each brand loves to market their gasoline as superior then their competitors, but it is only marketing, not truth.<br><br>You can buy the cleaning agents separate at any Walmart. Pickup a bottle of SeaFoam ($8) once every 6 months and you are better off then buying the name-brand fuel at the added costs for those same 6 months.<br><br>In the USA, I believe all fuel is unleaded now
mockturtle
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Bottom line: Just use regular unleaded.
travlinman and wife
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one thing to remember is all gas is the same it is the additives that make the difference . the additives are put in the tanker truck after filling at the bulk plant each brand does not have their own holding tanks
Vantramp.... Wow. Okay. I just did the zombie fill up and really didn't pay attention to the brand, even though I see different gas stations on the road. Kind of like here's walmart or target thing. I did look at the price per gallon, a penny or two difference is just a dollar in the end and not worth an extra mile. So I can just get a good additive and run it through every six months. Sounds like a good/better idea to me. I am writing down the seafoam in my car section of the spriral notebook so I know what to get. I may get some additive now just to start out on the right foot. Begin the maintenance before it is needed. Thank you for all your information sharing with me. It is greatly appreciated. <br><br>mockturtle.... you got it kiddo, reg unleaded for me.<br><br>travlin man..... all gas is gas..... seafoam is what I am getting, I hate those stupid commercials on tv. They treat us all like idiots.<br><br>thank you all. This is helping and I am learning.
Oh yes. Do I put the additive in and then fill the tank? Do I do a stop and go, stop and go to mix it up in the tank. I know this may sound like a dumb question but I don't know if the additive will work like osmosis and automatically mix in the tank or need to be stirred some how. <br>lol, yes you can laugh, I just want to do it right.
Zil
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Is this a new van, like 2013?
Hi Zil, no it is a 2007, was a work van. Inside was clean and shiney like new. All the work shelving they took out for me, under the mat on the floor clean as a whistle. Appears to be well taken care of 100,000 miles. A small ding here and there like parking lot dings but no big bumps and stuff. Sliding doors open like butter in your mouth.
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