Octane booster

[CJAY]

Has anyone used octane booster to save money at the pump?

[ColinP]

I think its better to ask "has anyone saved money at the pump by using octane booster?" and the answer is no.

[85 Barefoot]

exactly how would that work? excess octane doesn't increase power or efficiency. Octane is just a measure of fuels flashpoint.

[martinarcher]

exactly how would that work? excess octane doesn't increase power or efficiency. Octane is just a measure of fuels flashpoint.

Exactly....if your engine isn't pinging, octane booster is worthless. You could liquefy a $5 bill and pour it into the tank.

[CJAY]

Just curious. Was thinking if I ran 85 and added booster it might save me $7-10 on a tank of gas. At altitude with the monsoon 85 doesn't seem to cause pinging anyways

[85 Barefoot]

Just curious. Was thinking if I ran 85 and added booster it might save me $7-10 on a tank of gas. At altitude with the monsoon 85 doesn't seem to cause pinging anyways

that's because your engine detects pre-detonation and retards timing to deal with low octane gas. With timing retarded your engine is less efficient and offsets any cost savings. Do I have a graph for that, no, but that's how its been explained to me.

[tuslake]

Only time I use it is when your some place that does't carry high octane ,then I'll use it .when on sled I use it up north because high octane is like twice as much.In the boat if your on the water and they don't sell highO then I do.

[CJAY]

that's because your engine detects pre-detonation and retards timing to deal with low octane gas. With timing retarded your engine is less efficient and offsets any cost savings. Do I have a graph for that, no, but that's how its been explained to me.

At alt the compresion is less, hense why our octane levels are lower then those sold at sea level, also part of the reason we lose 3% of our HP for every 1000ft above sea level. You don't need as high of octane due to it. My VTX requires 87 octane at sea level, 85 doesn't hurt it at nearly 6000ft

[85 Barefoot]

At alt the compresion is less, hense why our octane levels are lower then those sold at sea level, also part of the reason we lose 3% of our HP for every 1000ft above sea level. You don't need as high of octane due to it. My VTX requires 87 octane at sea level, 85 doesn't hurt it at nearly 6000ft

Indmar would disagree with you. The absence of pinging, knocking, or any sign of predetonation due to fuel does not mean it's running optimally, nor that you're not "hurting" it. While there are plenty of people who successfully use 87, it's not near worth it to me but to each his own.

[CJAY]

Indmar would disagree with you. The absence of pinging, knocking, or any sign of predetonation due to fuel does not mean it's running optimally, nor that you're not "hurting" it. While there are plenty of people who successfully use 87, it's not near worth it to me but to each his own.

So if 89 is the min at sea level for the monsoon, 87 at alt would be fine. Once again you're talking about pressure changes in the cylinder due to being at alt, it changes the game

[85 Barefoot]

So if 89 is the min at sea level for the monsoon, 87 at alt would be fine. Once again you're talking about pressure changes in the cylinder due to being at alt, it changes the game

I understand the physics, just don't see the cost-benefit to be worth it, not to mention Indmar doesn't either. If you use the octane booster, how about letting us know what kind of consumption you had?

[99response]

Indmar would disagree with you. The absence of pinging, knocking, or any sign of predetonation due to fuel does not mean it's running optimally, nor that you're not "hurting" it. While there are plenty of people who successfully use 87, it's not near worth it to me but to each his own.

I seriously doubt a less aggressive timing curve would be noticeable at the pump, and if the engine dials itself back its not going to "hurt" the engine. Heck the LCR doesn't have any knock sensors and just runs the more conservative timing table.

[85 Barefoot]

I seriously doubt a less aggressive timing curve would be noticeable at the pump, and if the engine dials itself back its not going to "hurt" the engine. Heck the LCR doesn't have any knock sensors and just runs the more conservative timing table.

"hurt" or damage, probably too strong I would agree on MOST applications. But can we agree on less than optimal performace? We spend all this money on machines that really only do one thing well, get all hung up on performance, and then get unrecommended cheap gas? On ultra-high compression engines (LS3 etc.) I am of the propagandized opinion that damage can and will occur by using low octane gas, but again, to each his own.

[Brett B]

A bottle of octane booster makes nearly zero difference in the total octane of your tank of gas. The main contents of those booster bottles is toluene, which by itself has an octane of ~114. However there are other ingredients in those bottles to keep pure toluene from destroying rubber fuel lines and o-rings which brings the total octane down to about 104 per 16 ounce bottle.

Mixing 16 oz of 104 octane "booster" (which costs ~$10) in with 45 gallons of 87 octane results in a tank that has an octane rating of 87.05. Put in 2 bottles, 32 ounces total, and you get a whopping 87.1 octane for your extra $20. So in summary, just buy better gas at the pump if you want higher octane, because those little octane booster bottles do nothing and are a rip off.

If you run 85 octane and your engine pulls timing to counteract knock, then your torque will be lower and your exhaust gas temps will be higher. You will lose performance and likely end up burning more gas as it will take longer to get up on plane with less torque.

Edited May 25, 2011 by Brett B

[CJAY]

A bottle of octane booster makes nearly zero difference in the total octane of your tank of gas. The main contents of those booster bottles is toluene, which by itself has an octane of ~114. However there are other ingredients in those bottles to keep pure toluene from destroying rubber fuel lines and o-rings which brings the total octane down to about 104 per 16 ounce bottle.

Mixing 16 oz of 104 octane "booster" (which costs ~$10) in with 45 gallons of 87 octane results in a tank that has an octane rating of 87.05. Put in 2 bottles, 32 ounces total, and you get a whopping 87.1 octane for your extra $20. So in summary, just buy better gas at the pump if you want higher octane, because those little octane booster bottles do nothing and are a rip off.

If you run 85 octane and your engine pulls timing to counteract knock, then your torque will be lower and your exhaust gas temps will be higher. You will lose performance and likely end up burning more gas as it will take longer to get up on plane with less torque.

That's exactly what I was looking for, thank you

[Brett B]

Glad to help!