APR 93 octane...but cant find any gas
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I recently had my 02 225 roadster chipped with APRs 93 and 100 octane programs but now I cant find ant 93 octane gas. I have just been using 91 octane and adding octane booster. Could this hurt my car? Also I live in Denver and heard that minimum octane requirments decrease as elivation increases, Does anyone know anything about this?
Thanks,
Aaron
Do a search online to find the closest one to you.
Yup, outside of major cities you will have a very hard time finding over 91 octane. Some smaller towns don't even have real 91. The octane booster is okay to add to your fuel, it won't hurt anything, but they don't all work the same way, and they may not boost your octane as much as they seem to indicate.
According to this article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octane_rating) the
Rocky Mountain states don't sell 93 octane - only 91 octane (85-87-91). This is
because of the effects of altitude. I live at 7200' seldom dropping below 6000'
and have found that the mid-grade 87 gas works just fine up here on my 225 TT.
However, I don't use any of the 10% gasohol mixtures as I've read elsewhere
- maybe here - that this type of fuel can cause problems because of
incompatibilities with the metals used in the fuel system.
One other thing. It seems to me that gas stations in higher elevation areas
- where 85-87-91 octane is the norm - are selling us lower octane (READ: cheaper
gas) for the same prices as in the higher octane areas of the country.
Premium (91) is running between $4.85 and $4.77 here in the greater LA area.
The TT tsb's state that you can use a minimum of 87 in a pinch, but don't recommend regularly running on 87. You usually see knocking, and poor performance, and loss of power. Long-term knock can cause your engine to wear out prematurely. It's also going to effect your turbo.
It's my understanding that methanol results in less knocking at lower octanes than standard gasoline, but does break down some fittings much more quickly, aging the engine rapidly.