Octane Additive????
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 223
Likes: 4
Octane Additive????
The price of 93 Octane is at least fifty cents higher per gallon than the 87 Octane. Each fill up is costing me $7.50 extra for the higher octane. Why wouldn't I be better off just to buy the 87 Octane and add a can of Octane boost with each fill up? The additive would give me more than the 93 I am getting from the pump. Just wondering if this idea would be harmful to my Z06? Thanks!
Drifting
Joined: Aug 2016
Posts: 1,273
Likes: 205
From: Kansas City MO
The price of 93 Octane is at least fifty cents higher per gallon than the 87 Octane. Each fill up is costing me $7.50 extra for the higher octane. Why wouldn't I be better off just to buy the 87 Octane and add a can of Octane boost with each fill up? The additive would give me more than the 93 I am getting from the pump. Just wondering if this idea would be harmful to my Z06? Thanks!
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 223
Likes: 4
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 2,734
Likes: 1,695
From: Rochester NY
2018 C6 of Year Finalist
St. Jude Donor '10, '17
doomi is correct. The crap at the auto parts store only raises octane points, not octane numbers. So if it says one bottle increases a tank by 4 points, that means that 87 octane will go to 87.4 octane (and even this is questionable). If it were this easy and cheap to raise octane NUMBERS then we would all simply do it.
Now, there is race fuel concentrate like Torco or Boostane. This contains something called MMT which raises actual Octane numbers. One bottle of Boostane will raise octane legit by 7-10 numbers. However, it costs around $20/bottle. Therefore, to get from 87 to 93 it is still cheaper to simply fill up with 93. Torco or Boostane are used by guys that are stuck with 91 octane or someone needing to run 100+ octane due to high compression/boost.
Now, there is race fuel concentrate like Torco or Boostane. This contains something called MMT which raises actual Octane numbers. One bottle of Boostane will raise octane legit by 7-10 numbers. However, it costs around $20/bottle. Therefore, to get from 87 to 93 it is still cheaper to simply fill up with 93. Torco or Boostane are used by guys that are stuck with 91 octane or someone needing to run 100+ octane due to high compression/boost.
Race Director
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 16,557
Likes: 2,106
From: Peoria/Phoenix AZ
C6 of Year Finalist (performance mods) 2019
The cost to raise 87 to 91 using Torco is roughly $1/gal. So paying $.50/gal to get 93 is a much better deal. I'd love to have your 93 "problem", since 91 is all we have in AZ. We can get 100 for around $10/gal to mix with 91, but that costs about $13/gal to just get to 95 when Torco will do it for $4/gal.
Le Mans Master
Joined: May 2015
Posts: 5,187
Likes: 1,215
From: Las Vegas Nevada
you will have to buy about 10 bottles to boost 6 points.
You DO NOT have to run premium! The manual "recommends" premium because that will give you the best performance. The car is built to operate cleanly and efficiently on regular unleaded. If you are not racing, and not pulling a trailer, you will be just fine.
I will not reply to anyone disputing this. It is not worth the time to argue a proven point.
You DO NOT have to run premium! The manual "recommends" premium because that will give you the best performance. The car is built to operate cleanly and efficiently on regular unleaded. If you are not racing, and not pulling a trailer, you will be just fine.
I will not reply to anyone disputing this. It is not worth the time to argue a proven point.
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Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2010
Posts: 2,999
Likes: 242
From: Surprise, Az
you will have to buy about 10 bottles to boost 6 points.
You DO NOT have to run premium! The manual "recommends" premium because that will give you the best performance. The car is built to operate cleanly and efficiently on regular unleaded. If you are not racing, and not pulling a trailer, you will be just fine.
I will not reply to anyone disputing this. It is not worth the time to argue a proven point.
You DO NOT have to run premium! The manual "recommends" premium because that will give you the best performance. The car is built to operate cleanly and efficiently on regular unleaded. If you are not racing, and not pulling a trailer, you will be just fine.
I will not reply to anyone disputing this. It is not worth the time to argue a proven point.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 2,734
Likes: 1,695
From: Rochester NY
2018 C6 of Year Finalist
St. Jude Donor '10, '17
Please ignore user buckmeister2, who is handing out poor advice. The car and engine (LS7) was designed to run on 91 or 93 octane (93 preferred). When you put in lower octane fuel two things happen:
1) The car reverts to a "low-octane" spark table in order to protect the motor. This reduces performance and the car will not operate as intended. Why would you intentionally reduce performance on a performance vehicle? All to save a few dollars? A ridiculous, absurd suggestion.
2) You run the risk of pre-ignition/detonation. A stupid, absurd risk, all to save a few dollars at the pump.
So in summary, ignore the poor advice of buckmeister2. You should be using 91 or 93 octane in your car, with 93 as the preferred, recommended option.
1) The car reverts to a "low-octane" spark table in order to protect the motor. This reduces performance and the car will not operate as intended. Why would you intentionally reduce performance on a performance vehicle? All to save a few dollars? A ridiculous, absurd suggestion.
2) You run the risk of pre-ignition/detonation. A stupid, absurd risk, all to save a few dollars at the pump.
So in summary, ignore the poor advice of buckmeister2. You should be using 91 or 93 octane in your car, with 93 as the preferred, recommended option.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2010
Posts: 2,999
Likes: 242
From: Surprise, Az
Please ignore user buckmeister2, who is handing out poor advice. The car and engine (LS7) was designed to run on 91 or 93 octane (93 preferred). When you put in lower octane fuel two things happen:
1) The car reverts to a "low-octane" spark table in order to protect the motor. This reduces performance and the car will not operate as intended. Why would you intentionally reduce performance on a performance vehicle? All to save a few dollars? A ridiculous, absurd suggestion.
2) You run the risk of pre-ignition/detonation. A stupid, absurd risk, all to save a few dollars at the pump.
So in summary, ignore the poor advice of buckmeister2. You should be using 91 or 93 octane in your car, with 93 as the preferred, recommended option.
1) The car reverts to a "low-octane" spark table in order to protect the motor. This reduces performance and the car will not operate as intended. Why would you intentionally reduce performance on a performance vehicle? All to save a few dollars? A ridiculous, absurd suggestion.
2) You run the risk of pre-ignition/detonation. A stupid, absurd risk, all to save a few dollars at the pump.
So in summary, ignore the poor advice of buckmeister2. You should be using 91 or 93 octane in your car, with 93 as the preferred, recommended option.
Drifting
Joined: May 2015
Posts: 1,525
Likes: 391
From: Martinez CA
The difference would be the higher octane pump gas is reformed or upgraded by changing the molecular structure (more reformate, platformate, rheniformed product, etc. blended in). The additives that work use MMT (Torco, BOOSTane, etc), which does work (more than a few points as previously stated in some posts above), but are not "OK'ed" by most automakers in the US (or the EPA, etc.) due to the orange tinge left from combustion. Deposits are also left on the various sensors, etc. It's commonly used in CAN though...
Refining for octane; Reforming, or rheniforming, changes the octane by stripping an H2 bond, creating double bonds on the HC atoms, thus increasing the octane (much preferred) (on straight run naphthas). Isomeration, or the alky process in refining also makes some even better killer premo octane components...leaving the additive requirements to focus on deposit reduction, etc.
Refining for octane; Reforming, or rheniforming, changes the octane by stripping an H2 bond, creating double bonds on the HC atoms, thus increasing the octane (much preferred) (on straight run naphthas). Isomeration, or the alky process in refining also makes some even better killer premo octane components...leaving the additive requirements to focus on deposit reduction, etc.
Last edited by Chiselchst; Nov 25, 2017 at 01:07 PM.
Le Mans Master
Joined: May 2015
Posts: 5,187
Likes: 1,215
From: Las Vegas Nevada
Please ignore user buckmeister2, who is handing out poor advice. The car and engine (LS7) was designed to run on 91 or 93 octane (93 preferred). When you put in lower octane fuel two things happen:
1) The car reverts to a "low-octane" spark table in order to protect the motor. This reduces performance and the car will not operate as intended. Why would you intentionally reduce performance on a performance vehicle? All to save a few dollars? A ridiculous, absurd suggestion.
2) You run the risk of pre-ignition/detonation. A stupid, absurd risk, all to save a few dollars at the pump.
So in summary, ignore the poor advice of buckmeister2. You should be using 91 or 93 octane in your car, with 93 as the preferred, recommended option.
1) The car reverts to a "low-octane" spark table in order to protect the motor. This reduces performance and the car will not operate as intended. Why would you intentionally reduce performance on a performance vehicle? All to save a few dollars? A ridiculous, absurd suggestion.
2) You run the risk of pre-ignition/detonation. A stupid, absurd risk, all to save a few dollars at the pump.
So in summary, ignore the poor advice of buckmeister2. You should be using 91 or 93 octane in your car, with 93 as the preferred, recommended option.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2014
Posts: 8,672
Likes: 2,726
From: Atlanta GA
Dave
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2010
Posts: 2,999
Likes: 242
From: Surprise, Az
Race Director
Joined: Dec 2013
Posts: 12,502
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Same higher octane rating allow applies to the LS2 motor as well (wants 93 octane to due to the higher compression).
It was the LS3 motor that had the compression dropped to run better on 91 octane instead.
It was the LS3 motor that had the compression dropped to run better on 91 octane instead.