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Old 09-30-2015, 09:54 AM
 
Location: New Orleans, LA
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I sometimes wonder does premium fuel burn less than regular unleaded gasoline .
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Old 09-30-2015, 10:40 AM
 
Location: Denver
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87 or 93 octane has the same energy content per unit. Diesel has about 20 to 30 percent more BTU per unit.

Higher octane fuel offers more knock resistance.

But I am unsure what you are asking.
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Old 09-30-2015, 10:51 AM
 
Location: New Orleans, LA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wankel7 View Post
87 or 93 octane has the same energy content per unit. Diesel has about 20 to 30 percent more BTU per unit.

Higher octane fuel offers more knock resistance.

But I am unsure what you are asking.
I was wondering if 93 fuel burn less like a diesel
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Old 09-30-2015, 11:01 AM
 
Location: Morrisville, NC
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But gasoline and diesel are totally different. Not sure how you can compare which burns less.

Are you talking emissions? Total energy per given volume?
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Old 09-30-2015, 11:16 AM
 
Location: High Bridge, NJ
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Blackandgold51 View Post
I was wondering if 93 fuel burn less like a diesel
Octane ratings, used for gasoline, have an inverse relationship with cetane ratings, used for diesel fuel, so the higher the octane number, the lower the cetane number, so gasoline with an octane rating on the higher end like 93 or even higher number racing fuels would have an extremely low cetane number. Is that what you're asking?
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Old 09-30-2015, 11:20 AM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Blackandgold51 View Post
I sometimes wonder does premium fuel burn less than regular unleaded gasoline .

I think it is a simple question.

The answer is no. It is a waste of money.
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Old 09-30-2015, 11:37 AM
 
Location: Prosper
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Blackandgold51 View Post
I sometimes wonder does premium fuel burn less than regular unleaded gasoline .
No. The amount of fuel used is subject to your fuel pump flow rate and injector size, it doesn't matter what octane you use, the same amount of fuel is going to flow through your engine. What a higher octane does is allow your engine to run a higher compression ratio for more power, because it ignites at a higher flashpoint. That's why high performance cars require 93 octane vs 87. Running the lower octane could result in detonation and engine damage.

Diesel is a whole different animal.

Quote:
Originally Posted by unit731 View Post
I think it is a simple question.

The answer is no. It is a waste of money.
False. It is a waste of money buying a higher octane if your car does not require it. If your car DOES require it, you need to use it, otherwise the next time you floor it to merge onto a highway, you could damage your engine.
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Old 09-30-2015, 11:47 AM
 
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If we are talking about the fuel in general, and not using it in any particular engine, then yes....higher octane fuel has a higher resistance to burning than lower octane fuel. That's a very simplified answer.

In other words, lower octane fuel ignites more easily and burns more completely than higher octane gas.

Now, the application of this is based on the engineering design of the engine it's being used in. Different engines are designed in different ways and they make their HP/Fuel economy indirectly from the octane being used.

Diesel is a whole different animal and not really a good comparison.
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Old 09-30-2015, 12:26 PM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MckinneyOwnr View Post
False. It is a waste of money buying a higher octane if your car does not require it. If your car DOES require it, you need to use it, otherwise the next time you floor it to merge onto a highway, you could damage your engine.

Go back to the original question. Maybe it can be interpreted differently.
The way I observed it was:

"I have a car the runs on regular gasoline. If I put in premium gasoline, will it run better and will I get better gas mileage."

That answer is no.

Don't think anyone is advocating putting low octane gasoline in a car that requires high octane.
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Old 09-30-2015, 12:41 PM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by unit731 View Post
Go back to the original question. Maybe it can be interpreted differently.
The way I observed it was:

"I have a car the runs on regular gasoline. If I put in premium gasoline, will it run better and will I get better gas mileage."

That answer is no.

Don't think anyone is advocating putting low octane gasoline in a car that requires high octane.

I think I interpreted it differently. I went the technical route and thought he was comparing the properties of 87, 93 and diesel


He compared it to diesel fuel in the title. Diesel doesn't burn that easily, so I took it as him comparing the resistance of burning of 87 vs 93 octane to diesel....which I attempted to answer above.


I didn't take it as a "will I get 10HP more on 93 octane" sort of question.

Last edited by BostonMike7; 09-30-2015 at 12:52 PM..
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