premium gas

[twistable_deer]

hello, i have a 2006 1800mx and i use it for wake boarding and tubing and i just put regular 87 gas in it and people keep on telling me i should put 91 or premium. are they right?

Thanks

[rens914]

the question is why ?
i have owned a lot of supercars (lotus esprit turbo, TVR Tuscan, porkers, tomaso pantera) and couldnt really say that there was much to gain.
yes these cars (heavily tuned engines) respond better to the trottle but it was only usefull on the track.
when are you going to use the full range of power in youre boat
sure you'll need it to take off but after that you won't open the trottle further than 3/4
it's yust a waist of money
YM2C
rens

[twistable_deer]

but my cousin said that it prevents knocking which can crack the block or piston. what do you think?

[rens914]

no idea
have the 4,3 l v6 vortec and use 95 RON
engine runs great
rens

[brianbossman1]

Unless your running 11 to 1 pistons (which your not) 4 or 5 octane points higher is not going to make any difference. I have never had a problems and I just ran through 70 gallons today with no problems.

[vffb507]

I asked this when I bought mine (of the first owner).... He said he only ran regular 87 octane... Keep it maintained, don't beat on it and it will run fine... Mine's a 97, 1700 with a 3.0l and runs great, no knocks, starts quick and responds good all with 87 octane. I do however use a additive for the effects of our wonderful ethanol fuel..

[TBarCYa]

According to the specifications on their website, Mercruiser says 87 octane fuel.

[twistable_deer]

thanks for replying

[biggerseagar]

TD...........sorry I have to put my 2 cents in here.............this is why you read your owners manual........what does mercury tell you? 87 right...........

Cousins like that.......IMHO need to watch what they say.

Adding more octone to your engine does nothing but drain your bank account faster.

You can add an octane booster if you want too, but again that will be throwing your hard earned money away also.

Listen to your engine ......it will tell you what it wants.

Roger

[ss3964spd]

Originally Posted by TBarCYa

According to the specifications on their website, Mercruiser says 87 octane fuel.

And that's the key bit of information.

Higher octane fuels actually burn slower than lower octane fuels, and are specifically for use in engines that would experience pre-ignition (the fuel mixture - air and gas, ignites BEFORE the spark plug fires). Pre-ignition is AKA pinging, detonation, etc. The engines compression ratio, cylinder head combustion chamber design, ignition timing, camshaft lobe design, and at what temp the engine runs all factor into what octane gas the engine needs.

Higher octane gas is more resistant to pre-ignition and burns slower than lower octane gas. If your engine is not suffering from pre-ignition when using 87 then there is zero to gain by using a higher octane gas. Indeed, you could even see a slight decrease in performance (though you'd be hard pressed to notice).

Dan

[twistable_deer]

i actually don't have a manual, that is why i asked you guys. but thanks for replying

[ed & inge]

Originally Posted by biggerseagar

Listen to your engine ......it will tell you what it wants.

Roger

yo roger, your so right....

but with the fuel prices over here in holland i'm so not happy that he wants so much........(haha) here in holland we have an other type of motor than in the states in the boat because of the environmental law. and we use 91 or 95 octane

greatz, ed

[tackleshep]

Ok maybe this was for jetski's or something else. Isn't the important thing to make sure that the gas does not have an ethanol component?

Here in the midwest it's almost hard to find a station with 87 octane that doesn't have ethanol and my recollection is that the ethanol can cause some gumming in marine engines.

Now I could be thinking about my old 2 stroke jetski's or something else. My marina only sells the good stuff so thats what I buy.

[ss3964spd]

It really depends on the age of the of the fuel system components TS, and mostly only rubber fuel lines, o-rings, some seal, and such. Some people report that the rubber fuel lines deteriorated from the inside out, causing blockages and/or bits coming off and getting stuck in filters or carbs.

Frankly though, I've never seen evidence that ethanol enhanced gasoline has any negative effect. My old school 1966 Impala ran on it without issue, my 2004 boat has had no issue, my carb'd 1984 Ford F150 didn't, nor did my 1990 Honda.

Dan

[TBarCYa]

Around here, any fuel purchased on the water is ethanol free and all fuel sold on the hard contains ethanol. Several companies, including StaBil, make treatments that reduce the effects of ethanol on the fuel system.

[brianbossman1]

Originally Posted by ss3964spd

It really depends on the age of the of the fuel system components TS, and mostly only rubber fuel lines, o-rings, some seal, and such. Some people report that the rubber fuel lines deteriorated from the inside out, causing blockages and/or bits coming off and getting stuck in filters or carbs.

Frankly though, I've never seen evidence that ethanol enhanced gasoline has any negative effect. My old school 1966 Impala ran on it without issue, my 2004 boat has had no issue, my carb'd 1984 Ford F150 didn't, nor did my 1990 Honda.

Dan

Same here with me. Never have had any problems at all and I run it all the time.

[9Ball]

Everything here in St Mary's county, Maryland has ethanol, I run 87 octane, and put a can of Seafoam in everyother fillup and haven't had any problems. (Yet... LOL Fingers crossed)

[9Ball]

Oh buying gas on the water (around here....) is too expensive

[ss3964spd]

Mine requires 89, which is what my marina has. The pump is right next to the launch ramp so it's just too convenient. Then there's another marina a few minutes away who's gas dock is staffed by bikini clad 20 somethings. That one is always busy. LOL

[9Ball]

I wonder if they can wash and wax my boat....LOL