Premium, regular, or in-between
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Joined: Aug 2006
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Premium, regular, or in-between
Picked up my 2006 coupe in September. The dealer filled the gas tank, and I never asked what octane they used. I'm guessing regular, but the salesman thought premium (91). In any case, I heard no "pinging" or detonation. I decided on my first fill-up to use premium because I didn't want to risk any detonation during break-in. My style of break-in is to avoid cruise control steady speeds, give it occasional 3-4 second blasts while cruising, and no full-throttle 0-60 type starts. Since auto magazine reports and the owner manual state regular is okay, I'm tempted to try out a few gallons of regular now that I have about 700 miles on the clock to see what happens. Does anyone out there use regular in their C-6?
Team Owner
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From: When all is said and done... there is a hell of a lot more said than done. Riverside,Texas
St. Jude Donor '05 thru '26
Highest octane you can buy, it just hurts perfomrance if you don't. The ecm will retard spark spark to avoid pinging and cost you in engine power.
Safety Car
Joined: Jun 2004
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From: panama city beach florida USA
St. Jude Donor '09
Originally Posted by zare191
Anybody that de-tunes a Corvette by burning other than premium fuel should save even more money and buy a non-performance car in the first place.
Drifting
Joined: May 2005
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From: Ft. Liquordale Florida
Originally Posted by patton
i agree if ya cant afford the gas stay on the porch. 93 only and i have no idea how much a gal is. i just filler up and give them cash
I burned premium in my SUBURBAN - not reason to burn anything else in my vette (though at my level of mods, I doubt the car would run worth a damn on anything less)...
Rick
Le Mans Master
Joined: Feb 2006
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From: Chandler Arizona
Originally Posted by cbrf4i1
Is this a joke, spent $50k on a brand new car and you want to use 87 octan? next question would be which 87 octan is better to use. don't go cheap now.
However, I have heard first hand from a Corvette owner that they actually have filled up with Circle K gas!!!!
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Instructor
Joined: Jun 2006
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From: Missoula Montana
We only have 91 octane here in Montana so I add a can of Torco to bring it up over 93 (94.13). Putting regular (87) in a Corvette is like putting a $1000 business suit in the washing machine in order to save on the dry cleaning bill.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Nov 2005
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From: Houston TX
St. Jude Donor '09
The C6 is factory-tuned for 91, so any higher octane is wasted without a tune. Regardless, we have 93 premium here, so that is what I use. I recall a post from someone who talked with a Corvette engineer at the Birthday Bash this Spring who said running mid-grade, 89, would not produce any pinging or noticeable difference in performance, and actually recommended it. 
Team Owner
Joined: Feb 2000
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From: Arizona
Originally Posted by Indy-hp
The C6 is factory-tuned for 91, so any higher octane is wasted without a tune.
Melting Slicks
Joined: May 2006
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From: NJ..."the way I saw it, everyone takes a beating sometimes."
The difference in price from 87 to 93 is very insubstantial. Let's say even a $.30 difference a gal, at 18 gallons, you're looking at roughly $5.40 extra per tank. And that's with a full tank refill which never happens. People are willing to spend $1000+ on mods for an extra 10-15hp but don't want to spend an extra $5 to make sure their car is using all it's power potential stock? Go for the 91/93. The extra cost will be noticed more in your head than in your wallet.
I have had experience with Torco in other cars and I have found that it quickly fouls out the plugs. It may not be a concern on the LS2 but just giving you a heads up.
BLCK PRL
We only have 91 octane here in Montana so I add a can of Torco to bring it up over 93 (94.13).
We only have 91 octane here in Montana so I add a can of Torco to bring it up over 93 (94.13).
Team Owner
Joined: Feb 2000
Posts: 53,527
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From: Arizona
Originally Posted by k0bun
The difference in price from 87 to 93 is very insubstantial. Let's say even a $.30 difference a gal, at 18 gallons, you're looking at roughly $5.40 extra per tank. And that's with a full tank refill which never happens. People are willing to spend $1000+ on mods for an extra 10-15hp but don't want to spend an extra $5 to make sure their car is using all it's power potential stock? Go for the 91/93. The extra cost will be noticed more in your head than in your wallet.
Melting Slicks
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 2,891
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From: NJ..."the way I saw it, everyone takes a beating sometimes."
Originally Posted by Hoonose
The same can be said that power difference is more in your head.
I agree 100% but the manual recommends 91+ so...
Team Owner
Joined: May 2004
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From: McKinney TX
St. Jude Donor '21-'22-'23-'24
Since I'm not a gearhead, I USUALLY go with whatever my owner's manual says. My 2006 owner's manual says this on page 5-5:
We don't have 91 octane gas, so I'm using 93 octane gas.
Gasoline Octane
If your vehicle has the 6.0L V8 engine (VIN Code U),
use premium unleaded gasoline with a posted octane
rating of 91 or higher. You may also use regular
unleaded gasoline rated at 87 octane or higher, but
your vehicle’s acceleration may be slightly reduced,
and you may notice a slight audible knocking noise,
commonly referred to as spark knock. If the octane is
less than 87, you may notice a heavy knocking
noise when you drive. If this occurs, use a gasoline
rated at 87 octane or higher as soon as possible.
Otherwise, you might damage your engine. If you are
using gasoline rated at 87 octane or higher and you hear
heavy knocking, your engine needs service.
If your vehicle has the 6.0L V8 engine (VIN Code U),
use premium unleaded gasoline with a posted octane
rating of 91 or higher. You may also use regular
unleaded gasoline rated at 87 octane or higher, but
your vehicle’s acceleration may be slightly reduced,
and you may notice a slight audible knocking noise,
commonly referred to as spark knock. If the octane is
less than 87, you may notice a heavy knocking
noise when you drive. If this occurs, use a gasoline
rated at 87 octane or higher as soon as possible.
Otherwise, you might damage your engine. If you are
using gasoline rated at 87 octane or higher and you hear
heavy knocking, your engine needs service.
