you can still buy 110 race fuel/gas but that's about it
Posted on 05/19/2016 3:30:52 PM PDT by littlebird
every time I fill up my car, I suspect all the different octane gasoline are exactly the same, 91 octane. The only difference is what it is called (eg. gold) and the price. Gas company puts in the same octane gas, with a little advertising, gets more money by calling it gold or premium plus. It is all marketing. Unsuspecting driver feels better buying higher price gas for their beloved car. Any one likes to comment.
you can still buy 110 race fuel/gas but that's about it
Before you get mad, my wife drives a BMW and I speak from experience.
Hey, welcome to FR!
If you read Doolittle’s autobiography “I could Never Be So Lucky Again” (a great read) you’ll find that he worked promoting Shell gas in the 20’s and helped created the first true aviation gas. Most cars then could run on the real cheap stuff, but with his involvement in plane development, air racing and record setting he wanted something more.
No great loss.
First, regarding the subject of the post, this is what I know: the states each have a consumer protection bureau or agency. The pumps are checked regularly for both how well they measure the quantity pumped, and also for the truthfulness of the octane being pumped. There is simply NO WAY that a conspiracy to fool everyone into believing that there are 3 grades, when there is actually only 1, could hold up AT ALL, for more than a couple of days at most.
Second, re: the B-25s: I did a report many moons ago (circa 1980) about oil. I found a book in which a little-known fact was presented (and the book was rather dated, even then - probably from the early 1960s): the US sent several ship loads of extremely high octane gasoline to Britain before we entered the war - it was loaded to capacity with lead and other octane boosters (no one gave a rat’s ass about the environment, winning the war was much more important). Anyhow, the higher octane allowed the Brits to significantly boost the superchargers on their Hurricanes and Spitfires, giving them about 100 additional hp, and about 20 knots of airspeed more than they previously could obtain. The extra speed gave them an important advantage over the Luftwaffe, contributing to the British victory in that critical air campaign. No leaded gas, and perhaps the war would have turned out differently. So, what Yarddog said about the B-25s is undoubtedly true. There was a limited quantity of the REALLY special gas, but it was used when and where needed.
I’ve tried 93 ethanol free in my 16 Tacoma and I didn’t see much of a difference in mileage.
With my commute, there is no time for regular fuel to deteriorate.
Old stuff like the 750, K5, and both CJs when they are operational get the ethanol free.
Doolittle was the one who, pre-war, recommended that Army Aviation fuels be restricted to 130 octane or better. You could run higher compressions and get more power.
Mentally lazy or just a kid?
All you had to do was call your local fuel distributor and he would have given you the answer.
Wrong.
See post 20.
That is an old school from the days of the oil companies using tetraethyl lead to raise the octane rating.
Back in the early days most engines were very low compression. You would not believe how low. 4-5 to 1 or less. A high grade of kerosene would run most Model As. Read some of the horror stories about the “pool gas” from England after the war.
If you could prove that, you’d have a great lawsuit against the gas station (not the refiner) but some ambulance chaser would have already beat you to the courthouse.
What they did do a few years ago (with the connivance of the feds) was change how they calculated octane. They used to use the Research Octane number. Now they average RON with MON, so the gas in the pump is rated about 6 octane lower than it is in the rest of the world. For example, 102 octane gas in Germany would be 95 octane in the US.
Years ago I had a hot-rodded Beetle. I was out in the country for a gig, and needed gas. Stopped at a station that had “purple” racing gas, so I tried it. Wow!
My motorcycle mechanic said that I need to put premium in my bike. I’ve always used regular.
The EPA does not allow ethanol free in Colorado. My ATV requires a carburetor rebuild every year because of the EPA. The neoprene looks like Swiss cheese.
A bit off topic, but I stopped into a Kroger gas station to get some cheap gas. I found out that the reason it was cheap is that you had to pay separately for the detergents - a flat fee per fillup instead of per-gallon. I figured one tank without detergents wouldn’t clog the injectors, but I made sure I got the next tank somewhere else, and I haven’t been back.
Building a still at home presents problems not the least of which may be legality. Ethanol (still product) readily absorbs water so it would need to be dehydrated before using in a gasoline engine else you may get too much water in your gas tank (not good). Also getting octanes out of your homemade still is nigh on impossible. Octanes are a family of hydrocarbons that are typical components of gasoline manufacture which is a complex operation. They are colorless liquids that boil around 125 °C (260 °F). Homemade stills rarely exceed 195° F in ethanol manufacture.
Idiot.
Here’s more information on the high-octane fuel:
http://www.mindfully.org/Technology/2004/Eugene-Houdry-Octane1oct04.htm (Long, but interesting).
A friend of mine many years ago put a can of starting ether in his old Plymouth. That thing ran like race car for that tank of gas, then promptly fell apart.
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