What gasoline are ya Burnin?

[az3579]

It's really not that much more for a tank of the good stuff, and to the best of my knowledge it burns cleaner as the grade gets higher. I'm not even half way through my second tank, bought the car 1 month ago Tuesday.

I believe that is a myth; a higher grade doesn't necessarily burn cleaner...

[zhp43867]

I had to put in Sell 87 about two weeks ago. I was nearly out of gas (about 10 miles on the tank) and thats all the Shell station had, they were completely out of V-Power and 89. The car ran like garbage for the first 40 miles on the tank (hesitation, stumbling upon acceleration). After that, the ECU figured it self out and it ran alright, but I saw a big drop off in performance. NEVER doing that again.

I know some people in my family have done that in the same situations to an E46 325ci, and E39 528i. A little bit of lost performance but the car adapts much wuicker than 40 miles...

I believe that is a myth; a higher grade doesn't necessarily burn cleaner...

I get better gas mileage when I use 93 vs 91 vs 89, and it pretty much compensates for the extra fuel cost.

[mimalmo]

I get a 2-3mpg tank average increase when using non-oxy premium versus using gas with ethanol.

[az3579]

I get better gas mileage when I use 93 vs 91 vs 89, and it pretty much compensates for the extra fuel cost.

I think the car was designed for 91+, which is why you get better gas mileage. It's more optimized for it. 89 won't get you as good results as 91 or 93. Plus you run the risk of pinging by running the wrong fuel, which is very bad for the engine.

I get a 2-3mpg tank average increase when using non-oxy premium versus using gas with ethanol.

Non-ethanol fuel can increase your gas mileage quite a lot, but the problem is finding stations that carry it. There isn't a single place that I've seen that carries non-ethanol fuel now.

[mimalmo]

Non-ethanol fuel can increase your gas mileage quite a lot, but the problem is finding stations that carry it. There isn't a single place that I've seen that carries non-ethanol fuel now.

Check with your local street rod club. Those guys usually know where to find it. The Minnesota Street Rod Association publishes an annual list of stations that have non-oxy premium as well as race gas for its members that I use regularly.

[az3579]

Street Rod club? What on earth is that?
And in Bridgeport? I don't think so...

I'm definitely not driving 20-30 miles just for gas.

[mimalmo]

Street Rod club? What on earth is that?
And in Bridgeport? I don't think so...

I'm definitely not driving 20-30 miles just for gas.

Street Rods/Hot Rods ie: old classic cars that are from the 60's or older. Most states have clubs.

I don't have to drive out of my way to find non-oxy premium since there are dozens of places here that sell it. YMMV

I noticed CT isn't listed on this site but others may find it useful.
http://www.pure-gas.org/

[az3579]

I noticed CT isn't listed on this site but others may find it useful.
http://www.pure-gas.org/

Yeah, I've seen that site before. The only state even near me that has any is NY, and even then all of those areas are waaaaaay too far. I guess CT is one of "those states" that it's just never going to happen in.

[Daddyoh]

Shell V-Power 93, but BP and Sunoco occasionally. Owners manual calls for 91 minimum.
I use 93 in my chipped '92 M50 also.
The previous owner used 89 all the time in the Z. Can't say I'm thrilled about that.......

[johnrando]

Yup, CA has 91 only... usually with "name" brands, or Costco. Not Arco though... I could tell the difference in my '80 Triumph when I used Arco (didn't perform as well), so I've never used it in my ZHP. John