I believe that in the Rocky Mountain states regular gas is actually 85 octane and not 87 octane due to the high elevation. I wonder if anyone in our forum has used 85 octane in those areas.
Yes, this is an effect of high altitudes, and should not worry you, if sold at sea level it would be 87 octane gas.
I would expect it to make less power due to the slower burn? Being that this is an Atkinson Cycle it is setup to run on 87. Your much offer buying A top tier gas overall. Might be fun to dyno the car with 87 and 91 in CA anyway?
I use the recommended 87 octane but try not to use the one with ethanol as it messes with your mpg. Takes more fuel...
What I was reading in the manual was that the recommendation is 87 and above. I get better mpgs in the Camaro with premium, but it costs more. I get slightly less mpgs with regular, but its cheaper. I don't use ethanol blend. The Camaro has a higher compression so premium fuel is the good choice. Not mandatory, but is recommended. I wouldn't think the C would benefit from premium but I'll try it after I get a baseline with regular.
Go to pure-gas.org for addresses to the minority of 5100+ stations(10 in every 350) selling 100% ethanol-free gasoline in the U.S. & Canada, plus a great zoomable map. Get away from ethanol. Don't worry about the brand. The ethanol industry would like you to believe that 10% ethanol blends only lose 2-4% mpg due to that percentage less of btus in 10% ethanol blends. However, 100% ethanol is best in ethanol engines & 100% gasoline is best in gasoline engines(duh). Several on this Prius site know that ethanol is bad, but not enough. Since switching to 100% pure gasoline, our 3 cars' mpg has increased 8%, 7-8% & 5%. All 3 engines are smoother(1 manual shifter shifts much smoother with less stumbling), quieter & need less downshifting while ascending hills due to extra power! If you have careful records of your 10% ethanol blends & take careful records of your switch to 100% pure gasoline, you won't go back. A little extra in 4 or 5 categories will make you happy...... really happy.
While we're on the topic of gas...what about claims by some producers, like BP? They claim their gas has "invigorate" which cleans the valves, etc., and the mid grade and premium have more of it. They have a station near my house that is convenient and it dawned on my one day to research it a bit. I've used the regular and mid-grade. I honestly don't see any difference, in mileage nor performance, but then again, I can't see my valves.
l know nothing about ethanol in gas engines, but I know that there are virtually no where in Maryland (the parts accessible to me) selling pure gas for me to try! I would try and compare if any places had it near me, I assume there is some sort of state or county regulation on this.
Use 87 Octane (85 in Mountain states) from a busy station, you do not want the gas to spend much time in the dealers tanks.
Originally Posted by litesong Go to pure-gas.org for addresses to the minority of 5100+ stations(10 in every 350) selling 100% ethanol-free gasoline in the U.S. & Canada, plus a great zoomable map. Get away from ethanol. Don't worry about the brand. The ethanol industry would like you to believe that 10% ethanol blends only lose 2-4% mpg due to that percentage less of btus in 10% ethanol blends. However, 100% ethanol is best in ethanol engines & 100% gasoline is best in gasoline engines(duh). Several on this Prius site know that ethanol is bad, but not enough. Since switching to 100% pure gasoline, our 3 cars' mpg has increased 8%, 7-8% & 5%. All 3 engines are smoother(1 manual shifter shifts much smoother with less stumbling), quieter & need less downshifting while ascending hills due to extra power! If you have careful records of your 10% ethanol blends & take careful records of your switch to 100% pure gasoline, you won't go back. A little extra in 4 or 5 categories will make you happy...... really happy. ///////// alimooney wrote: ......there are virtually no where in Maryland (the parts accessible to me) selling pure gas. /////////////// litesong wrote: Go to pure-gas.org & look at the addresses & zoomable map. If you're in the big cities, you may not have any place near you, altho you have about 20 places within the state. If you live near Maryland's border, look at the other states to see if they have 100% gasoline near you. I helped one fellow find 100% gasoline in another state! Airports, marinas & farm co-ops have exemptions, so can sell 100% pure gasoline. Don't give up. In a month & a half, pure-gas.org listed another 200+ stations selling the good stuff. If you do find 100% pure gasoline that pure-gas.org does NOT list & map, please add it to pure-gas.org. You can interact to add a station, plus details, like octane & price.
Carefully check all marinas. They have exemptions to sell 100% gasoline if they desire. Airports & farm co-ops also have exemptions. Keep checking pure-gas.org. In a month & a half they added 200+ stations who now sell 100% ethanol-free gasoline.
I do have the app and check it regularly. I never thought about marinas. I will check that out. Thanks.
Yes, pure-gas.org doesn't have all stations selling 100% gasoline. People looking at pure-gas.org have the ability to add stations they find on their own to the pure-gas.org station listings. You might find not only marinas, but Card Lock accessible stations, airports, or fleet stations that may allow public purchases of gas. Anything you can do to find 100% pure gas. Gasoline engines work best with 100% pure gasoline, & don't take gov't inability to control pollutants in other ways, as a block to use fuel that is right for you engines.
Anybody knows a %100 gas station in DC or Baltimore or in between?! non is listed in pure-gas.org? And what is a card lock accessible gas station?
Card lock is merely a "store card" There are WoGo's around my area that the police use. I guess you could say Costco is similar. Mainly they dont have attendants and you just swipe your card that you pay monthly.