Octane Question
Junior User
Joined: Sep 2004
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I am glad that I have never even had to hear this pinging people refer to 
My truck runs just fine on 87, however, some gas companies, like BP/Amoco add detergents to their 89+ gas to help keep the fuel system clean.
I am also glad that I can run 87 on the truck, as my car requires premium... and with the horrid gas mileage the truck gets, using premium every time would bankrupt me.
But on the car, I still get over 20 MPG and it sees a lot of WOT use at 21PSI of boost, so I can live with paying for premium
-Chris
My truck runs just fine on 87, however, some gas companies, like BP/Amoco add detergents to their 89+ gas to help keep the fuel system clean.
I am also glad that I can run 87 on the truck, as my car requires premium... and with the horrid gas mileage the truck gets, using premium every time would bankrupt me.
But on the car, I still get over 20 MPG and it sees a lot of WOT use at 21PSI of boost, so I can live with paying for premium
-Chris
Laughing Gas
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 1,021
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From: Brandon Mb
I don't think that there would any real advantage to using premium. It will probly get you a bit better mileage, but be offset by the increase in price. I'd use the lowest rating that doesn't make it ping.
Trevor
Trevor
Cargo Master
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 2,691
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Hey FordPerf300, higher octane gas isn't harder to burn. Its more resistant to pre-igniting in a hot combusion chamber (that's what pinging is). Higher octane gas burns just fine once the spark is applied. You also don't get better performance. All you get is less likely to ping. That's it.
And Poppa Tim, I don't have a sound bite for you but pinging sounds kinda like something is rattling around inside your engine. Kind of like someone threw a handful of broken porcelain in there. I had an old Volvo that required 87 octane gas. If I used 85, which would happen whenever I lent to car to someone, it would ping when I would gun the accelerator from a dead stop until the car got some speed going. The ping would go away if I backed off on the accelerator. I don't know why its called pinging cause it doesn't sound like a ping. It just sounds like something is rattling around in the engine.
And Poppa Tim, I don't have a sound bite for you but pinging sounds kinda like something is rattling around inside your engine. Kind of like someone threw a handful of broken porcelain in there. I had an old Volvo that required 87 octane gas. If I used 85, which would happen whenever I lent to car to someone, it would ping when I would gun the accelerator from a dead stop until the car got some speed going. The ping would go away if I backed off on the accelerator. I don't know why its called pinging cause it doesn't sound like a ping. It just sounds like something is rattling around in the engine.
Cargo Master
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 2,691
Likes: 6
It just hit me. The sound of pinging is the same sound that a diesel makes. But in a gas engine its just not as loud. This came to me because I remembered that a diesel doesn't have spark plugs. I think that in a diesel engine the compression of the fuel/air mixture ignites the stuff. So what you have in a diesel engine is constant pinging.
Posting Guru
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 1,456
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From: Indiana
Yes but a diesel only has one souce of ignition. Where the problem is with gas is that the heat and comp. light the fuel and the spark plug then the two flame fronts hit each other causing engine damage. That and if it explodes to soon while the piston is in the upward movement it causes damage.
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Posting Guru
Joined: Sep 2003
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From: Florida Hill Country
I have a 3.2 V6 rated at 205 HP that sometimes rattles when we run 87 in it. Therefore, we run 93 in it and it doesn't rattle. In reallity, a computer "flash" would probably program it to run right on 87. We certainly wouldn't run it otherwise.
In my Bronco and F350, I only run high octane when towing due to lesser heat build up.
In my Bronco and F350, I only run high octane when towing due to lesser heat build up.
Last edited by rlh; Nov 29, 2004 at 10:43 PM.
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