Unleaded 88 vs. unleaded 87

[Trigganometry]

We did some tests once and w/ dino saw the more ethanol the more performance dropped. The best results were 100% gas. If they will sell it to you marinas have it. Years ago we use to use aircraft fuel for our built up muscle cars. Now that’s fun!

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[BassRanger]

We did some tests once and w/ dino saw the more ethanol the more performance dropped. The best results were 100% gas. If they will sell it to you marinas have it. Years ago we use to use aircraft fuel for our built up muscle cars. Now that’s fun!

What kind of tests? There's a very large subset of the performance car market using ethanol specifically for its performance benefits.

 

[Trigganometry]

What kind of tests? There's a very large subset of the performance car market using ethanol specifically for its performance benefits.

Honestly today there is so many variables from DI to turbos that anything we did back then would only be a data point. Things are so much more efficient today.

My last Ranger a 97 was one of the first offered by Ford with the E heads. The surfaces were shaped differently to allow efficient use of E fuels. It wasn’t direct injected though. I did a head job on it at about 150K because valves sunk, a common problem. New heads were standard style for gas. I was surprised how much different the two types were.

 

[CJBax]

What kind of tests? There's a very large subset of the performance car market using ethanol specifically for its performance benefits.

BassRanger, same thing I was thinking. Those tests must have been on pretty old vehicles because e85 tunes/conversions have been around for a good many years now, specifically because of the higher performance potential out of e85. As you mentioned though, it is definitely a subset of performance enthusiasts. Mpg on e85 is probably terrible, since it takes more e85 than e10 to produce the same power. If I am not mistaken, the higher ethanol content increases knock resistance, allowing higher compression ratios and advancing timing more to produce more power.

 

[Traneman]

I've used E88 since day one on my Ranger, and I have no issues. My drives are short and I'm avg 20-21mpg. best was 24.8 last summer on the long road trip.

Ours is cheaper too. that's why I go that way vs 92.

 

[JohnnyO]

BassRanger, same thing I was thinking. Those tests must have been on pretty old vehicles because e85 tunes/conversions have been around for a good many years now, specifically because of the higher performance potential out of e85. As you mentioned though, it is definitely a subset of performance enthusiasts. Mpg on e85 is probably terrible, since it takes more e85 than e10 to produce the same power. If I am not mistaken, the higher ethanol content increases knock resistance, allowing higher compression ratios and advancing timing more to produce more power.

Around here E85 is about 40-50 cents cheaper than regular gas. My wife's Chrysler minivan is flex fuel-rated and she ran a few tanks of E85 but the mpg dropped enough that it didn't really save any money.

 

[JohnnyO]

We did some tests once and w/ dino saw the more ethanol the more performance dropped. The best results were 100% gas. If they will sell it to you marinas have it. Years ago we use to use aircraft fuel for our built up muscle cars. Now that’s fun!

I don't know that it gets updated often enough but this site has a list of places with non-ethanol gas.
www.pure-gas.org

 

[ArchitectThom]

Unleaded 87 is 10% ethanol. Unleaded 88 is 15% ethanol. For a one point higher octane rating your getting an extra 5% ethanol added.
10% was/is bad enough...why would you want more. And, a 1% higher octane rating is so insignificant you and your vehicle will not notice it.
Owners manual indicates if under heavy load/use, like towing, you can use 89 or even 92 octane, both of which still have only 10% ethanol.
These are general guidelines as different parts of the country may rate their fuel differently.
When we were traveling with our motorhome in Canada, fuel available sometimes only had ratings of 84/85 octane, and our E-450 V-10 motorhome did just fine.

So, you seem to be pretty knowledgeable about this, so maybe you're the one to ask.

Here in Arizona, pretty much every station I come to has three options for gas, 92, 89 and 87. I'm always putting in 87 because, obviously, it's the cheapest. But am I hurting my truck? Or what?

What is the right thing to do for the truck to make it last the longest?

 

[CJBax]

Years ago we use to use aircraft fuel for our built up muscle cars. Now that’s fun!

I have heard a few other people say something very similar to this in the past and I don't really understand what they are are talking about. Perhaps you could elaborate on what type of "aircraft fuel" was used, in what type of engine, and what the benefits were that made it so fun?

During my many years in the Army I learned, from first hand experience that all turbine powered aircraft, rotary wing, fixed wing, and high performance jets, use paraffin (kerosene) based fuels, JP8 or Jet A-1. These fuels are a lot more like diesel than gasoline. Kerosene and all derived aircraft fuels are inherently less flammable and less volatile than standard gasoline, which makes them ideal for aircraft use. Some small and older aircraft that use piston engines use regular gasoline, with various octane requirements. However, this is not aircraft fuel but rather gasoline like you put in your car.

Interesting tidbit, in the Army, most of our equipment runs on a single fuel type, JP8 (jet propellant 8), making logistics for fuel supply much simpler. Jets, helicopters, generators, heaters, tanks, MRAP's, HMMWV's, all run on JP8. It's low flammability and greater stability compared to gasoline makes it safer to transport and store. JP8 works well in heaters for the same reason that Kerosene heaters and lamps are so popular in other parts of the world, it burns more like oil than gasoline.

 

[Chris M]

So, you seem to be pretty knowledgeable about this, so maybe you're the one to ask.

Here in Arizona, pretty much every station I come to has three options for gas, 92, 89 and 87. I'm always putting in 87 because, obviously, it's the cheapest. But am I hurting my truck? Or what?

What is the right thing to do for the truck to make it last the longest?

When in doubt, refer to your owner's manual. I'm pretty sure that while it says we can run 87, it also says we can expect better performance from 91. But then again, pretty sure isn't absolutely sure.
That said, I run 91 in mine exclusively now and like the way it runs much better than when I was using the 87.
I buy my gas at Costco, and most recently it was at $3.24 for the 91 octane

 

[t4thfavor]

I will say that I was towing HEAVY last weekend and I was getting 8 or less MPG. I was also getting some shudder and light knock on acceleration (anything over 50% throttle). I emptied the tank (easy to do at 6MPG) and filled the next three tanks with 93 (yay Michigan gas) and the MPG went up to around 12 average and the knock/shudder was gone.

 

[CJBax]

So, you seem to be pretty knowledgeable about this, so maybe you're the one to ask.

Here in Arizona, pretty much every station I come to has three options for gas, 92, 89 and 87. I'm always putting in 87 because, obviously, it's the cheapest. But am I hurting my truck? Or what?

What is the right thing to do for the truck to make it last the longest?

Hi,

Simple, follow the user manual. 87 is recommended for general daily driving, if that's you, then 87 is fine. However, the manual also says that for best performance, when towing, or in very hot conditions, 91+ octane rating is better.

Generally the more important factor is the quality of the fuel and not the octane rating, since our ranger has a manufacturer recommended octane rating of 87. As long as you are filling up with fuel that is Top Tier certified, 87 will be just fine in your ranger, unless your driving meets the criteria stated in the manual that recommends 91 or higher octane rating.

I fill up at Costco because their fuels are Top Tier certified and they are almost always the cheapest prices around, by a lot.

If you want to know more about Top Tier fuel and if it is worth it, Google it, you'll find everything you need to know about Top Tier and its benefits to your engine.

Regards.

 

[Trigganometry]

I have heard a few other people say something very similar to this in the past and I don't really understand what they are are talking about. Perhaps you could elaborate on what type of "aircraft fuel" was used, in what type of engine, and what the benefits were that made it so fun?

During my many years in the Army I learned, from first hand experience that all turbine powered aircraft, rotary wing, fixed wing, and high performance jets, use paraffin (kerosene) based fuels, JP8 or Jet A-1. These fuels are a lot more like diesel than gasoline. Kerosene and all derived aircraft fuels are inherently less flammable and less volatile than standard gasoline, which makes them ideal for aircraft use. Some small and older aircraft that use piston engines use regular gasoline, with various octane requirements. However, this is not aircraft fuel but rather gasoline like you put in your car.

Interesting tidbit, in the Army, most of our equipment runs on a single fuel type, JP8 (jet propellant 8), making logistics for fuel supply much simpler. Jets, helicopters, generators, heaters, tanks, MRAP's, HMMWV's, all run on JP8. It's low flammability and greater stability compared to gasoline makes it safer to transport and store. JP8 works well in heaters for the same reason that Kerosene heaters and lamps are so popular in other parts of the world, it burns more like oil than gasoline.

It was Avgas available in octanes 87, 100 and 130. The 130 was crazy fuel in 1970 era cars with cams and dual quads

 

[HDEO]

So, you seem to be pretty knowledgeable about this, so maybe you're the one to ask.

Here in Arizona, pretty much every station I come to has three options for gas, 92, 89 and 87. I'm always putting in 87 because, obviously, it's the cheapest. But am I hurting my truck? Or what?

What is the right thing to do for the truck to make it last the longest?

Here’s a good publication on more than you’d ever want to know about gasoline. It’s published by Chevron who knows a bit about gasoline. This is a newer edition but when we first published it, I wrote Chapter 5.

https://www.chevron.com/-/media/chevron/operations/documents/motor-gas-tech-review.pdf

 

[Bat-1]

The likely reason 15% ethanol has a slightly higher octane rating is because ethanol is an octane booster.

What's not to like about it? Well, ethanol has less energy density and is corrosive to rubber and certain plastics. It's basically moonshine. No one would choose to use it if it wasn't government mandated. You will absolutely get better gas mileage using straight gasoline.

It was supposed to help decrease our reliance on foreign oil. But now it's mainly a job creation program for corn farmers and industrial distillers. That's why they wave at you when you're driving through rural Kansas or Nebraska

Keep in mind octane ratings are "minimums." I doubt the blenders are taking chances by adding only the minimum. And you're getting a half gallon of whatever the guy who used the pump before you bought.

I kept a Car & Driver article from a couple years ago where they ran a variety of high performance vehicles and trucks calling for premium on regular. The result was effectively no difference. One saw a slight increase in mpg (less than 1).

Also altitude affects octane that's why regular is 85 in places like Colorado.

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