I used to say the same thing! A few kids and a mortgage ago.. :okay:

So glad many on RS are aging along with me or else I’d feel like I didn’t belong entirely. I do enjoy living vicariously through many here, like yourself, but man.. that minivan thread is what keeps me coming back :badpokerface:

I'm nowhere near the car guy I used to be but as someone who's been filling 91+ octane since it was 69/liter, I'm not about to break that habit.

^ But why?

I put premium in my MR2 Turbo because it can't run properly on regular... but every other car I ever owned that was NA no chance even if it recommends premium... never had a single issue. Modern cars just adjust the timing, there's no pinging/knocking. Waste of money.

you lose some performance and you might adjust your driving habit for the lost ponies = worse fuel economy

i just put in whatever the gas cap recommends/requires, preferrably from pumps that meet the top tier cert

https://www.toptiergas.com/licensed-brands/

I've only ever owned V8s or S/C V6s so there's that too (all requiring 91). I was loosely implying I never drove a basic grocery getter. Only ever owned one car that could run on 87 but after putting 91 the car had better throttle response (other owners shared the same experience) so I don't know.

Raking in air miles at Shell tho :drunk:

A buddy bought an 09 Audi A4 brand new (2.0 Turbo). He has put 87 in since new and it pulls timing and makes it slower. Anything to save money.

What a waste of a car.
Why spend the extra 20k on buying a car like that if $8 a tank is an issue? There are plenty of decent cars you could either
A) spend way less on so that tank of gas price didn’t matter as much
B) buy a car that doesn’t have the same performance so that 87 is no issue.

Because $14 dolla balla?

There are plenty of ways to save money on a vehicle, dumping it at a loss to buy something else and chucking in lower grade fuel than it was designed for are not good ones though.

I dunno... I didn't spend extra money on my car cuz I didn't buy it new I just think there are a number of cars out there that say they need premium that don't... not necessarily performance cars. I can understand where it makes a difference on, say, a NA M3 for example.

That said, if anyone can drive my '04 IS300 back to back on 91+ or 87 and tell me if there's a difference I'm open to changing my mind. I can't perceive one when I've tried. Again, not exactly a performance car tho.

I use 87 in my 5.0 Mustang. Rated for 87, but gains more power on 91. Says in the owner's manual to use 87, but for "extreme" use to use 91.

Thing is, these things pick up so much power on a 91 tune that it makes me think the factory is detuning it for this purpose.

Other cars are 91 minimum required...will still RUN on 87 but they won't be happy doing it.

basically the engine is crying for help (if mfgr states 91 min)

From my understanding it depends on how you drive it. For example a 5th gen Prelude calls for 91 octane, but it only really needs it if VTEC kicks in yo. I imagine any vehicle with any kind of variable timing (VTEC, VVTI, etc) or forced induction can get away with lower octane if you're always at low rpm and low throttle, but since it's capable of needing higher octane the manufacturer has to state that's what it needs. Maybe if you sit in horrible traffic every day that's fine, but I like being able to put my foot down to pass someone or get up a hill without damaging my engine.

Again this is just based on my understanding but you can't just dump in better gas once and go, unless you drain the tank and reset the ECU the gas left in the tank will bring the mix down to a lower octane and the ECU will still be mapping based on what it has learned from when you ran on lower octane.

I think I saw an article before where Porsche was testing the 996 Turbo engine and they ran it for 100,000 kms on 87 and did not change the oil and the engine was ok. I could be remembering the exact figures wrong but the general idea is there.

Most engines that call for 91 can run on lower octane. What people don't seem to realize is those engines will have their fuel and ignition maps adjust accordingly and start running much richer to compensate for the lower octane fuel thus causing you to have a worse fuel economy, less power and more prone to knock. As a result you likely pay the same amount for the low octane fuel as the higher octane since you use more but you rob your vehicle of performance while potentially damaging the engine and reducing the life expectancy.

I tried running my Lex (non-turbo) on mid grade to save a few bucks.
Car ran like shit.

Never pulled that stunt again.

Can’t tell you how many family friends I’ve witnessed throughout my childhood in Vancouver (Taiwanese) put in nothing but 87 in their (insert 14 dolla balla C/GLK/320i/X3/A4) and completely neglect any form of even the most basic maintenance i.e. oil changes, brakes, tires, etc.

I feel like more than anything this is an Asian thing.

I once had a friend tell me that someone told him it was okay to put 87 in his Lexus if you change the oil more frequently...

It really isn’t that bad lol I been putting it in my Lexus for 120,000kms now after buying it used and I’ve had zero issues and the car has 200,000kms on it. Nothing wrong at all except 1 O2 sensor that intermittently goes out.

https://images.craigslist.org/00w0w_...Qe_600x450.jpg

matching VINs, same owner for 50yrs+

https://vancouver.craigslist.org/van...889206934.html

Nice beatle

Reminds me of my friend who never puts any money into his car and claims it's "reliable as fuck" despite it burning oil/blue smoke, rusted out exhaust, rusted wheel wells, 3 tires that need to be filled at least once a week on rims that are damaged all around and flaking like crazy, bumper hanging on by a thread, several dents, headlight out, tail light out, transmission grinds going into 1st gear, transmission won't go into 2nd gear, dash lights are out, stereo doesn't work, front driver's seat is broken, cracked windshield, rear windshield wiper doesn't work, rear hatch no longer locks, handbrake doesn't hold, etc.

It's a 2007 and under 250,000 km ...

Sounds pretty reliable to me if the car hasn't left him stranded. However, sounds like he treats his car like crap.

It's had to be towed a few times.

Does anyone want a Cayman? Low kms and nice colour. Its a base model but still very fun to drive.

https://images.craigslist.org/00101_...6r_600x450.jpg

https://vancouver.craigslist.org/bnc...887411973.html