Octane Boost

[DarkDevil]

I was reading an article where they suggested adding octane boost to a tank of gas thats been sitting over the winter. (I didn't do the smart thing and empty the gas before setting her down) So i went out and bought this bottle of octane boost. It said nothing on it about it ever being to much, it said to put the entire bottle in, and said its effective for up to 52L's of gas. ~13.47Gallons if i'm not mistaking. My tank holds ~15L since it costs about 15 to fill her from empty, at todays prices of .99c and Litre. So i through the entire bottle into the thing not thinking it'll be to much... I haven't had it out on the road yet, or running for extended periods of time (i'm still trying to track down a clutch problem... and have new tires coming in)

Will it be to much? Is high octane dangerous for vehicles not designed for it?

 

[Anonymous]

Empty your tank and start again! I'm not sure the bike would even run. Why any artical would say such a thing is beyond me. All octane does is increase gases resistance to ignition, putting that much in could seriously screw up your timing if it did run with disasterous results. If a vehicle isn't pinging or running very high compression there's no need ever for octane booster.

I personally have never emptied my tank or my float bowls in winter, good way to rust tank in our climate. On the last day you ride your bike before storing it go buy some fuel stabiliser at Canadian tire, add the recommended amout of stabiliser, fill your tank, then ride around for a couple of miles to get it through the system. I personally have never had any problems doing this.

Bottom line is empty your tank!

 

[DarkDevil]

Seriously... can anyone else back this up?

The article said its because when gas sits it loses its octane rating, and by boosting it you revive it up to, and a bit past what its suppose to be, and that extra octane helps remove built up gunk in your gas. (because apparently when gas sits for a long time it glumps up.)

 

[Planecrazy]

Any time you ignore the manufacturer's recommendations you set yourself up for failure ... You started with gas that's probably already degraded, and now you've apparently overcompensated with stuff that probably won't correct the deposits which may already have set up in your system.

Frankly, if I was in your position I'd take the safe route and start over with fresh gas. I have gone through winters where I didn't use fuel stabilizer, and have been lucky (as far as I know), but I always run premium fuel in my bike, so I'm starting out (hypothetically) with a slightly more resistent blend.

These days, though, I ALWAYS use stabilizer before the winter ... why take a chance with disaster when for a few bucks you can pour some valuable insurance into your tank?

My .02
Steve 8)

 

[rosco15]

That octane boost is crap. When they say 4 points they mean .4. So you have probably boosted your octane from 87 to 87.4. I always use fuel stabil and a full tank over the winter. In the spring I run it almost dry and put fresh in. Until I get the fresh in I just ride it and don't beat on it. I've never heard of engine damage from octane boosts. I would just run it dry without hammering on it. My .02 cents.

 

[RacingJake]

Octan boost just slow's down the burn rate of the fuel and if your old fuel has been sitting around for a long time it's probably lost some of it's qualities too. If it's smokes or make's pinging noise than I'd replace the fuel with some fresh stuff.

 

[first timer]

just empty the fuel and put some fresh fuel in, don't be a cheap ass.

-ryan

 

[xDUKEx]

wont hurt it ive done it several times when i couldnt get 110 octane. it will increase performance and it will make yer engine run a little hotter. i usuall fill my tank half full of 94 octane then top it off with 110 that makes the overall octane about 100. here in the states the 110 is about 3.50 a gallon and the 94 is about 2.20. i did this to my first gs1100 and this one is getting the same. it doesnt get real hot here in ohio so im not worried about the extra engine heat it makes it run about 40 degrees hotter. this is just my opinion take it or leave it.

 

[Anonymous]

wont hurt it ive done it several times when i couldnt get 110 octane. it will increase performance and it will make yer engine run a little hotter. i usuall fill my tank half full of 94 octane then top it off with 110 that makes the overall octane about 100. here in the states the 110 is about 3.50 a gallon and the 94 is about 2.20. i did this to my first gs1100 and this one is getting the same. it doesnt get real hot here in ohio so im not worried about the extra engine heat it makes it run about 40 degrees hotter. this is just my opinion take it or leave it.

110 octane huh? I didn't know you could put diesel in a motorcycle!! :lol: :lol: Sunoco offers 100 octane at select stations for high performance cars, but if you siphoned you nieghbors prostock car you could get the 116. 93 octane is the average premium these days.

Last thing I'm going to say on this particular thread. If 15 minutes work and $10 worth of gas is a problem for anyone... buy a bicycle!

 

[Jethro]

It only takes 10 minutes or so to drain the tank. That's a small price to pay for piece of mind.

 

[DarkDevil]

What if i were to siphon it out and throw it in my 2002 Alero on a half tank... could this harm a car as easily?

I have a hard time believing it could do harm at all.. they don't mention not using it on motorcycles... or small gas tank... I haven't heard any horror stories.. just people saying "i wouldn't do that"... true its only a 10 dollar tank of gas.. with a 10 dollar octane boost.. but.. 20 dollars could mean paying for 2 airfreighted parts... (something i never do..)

 

[Dink]

Yes siphon it off and put it in your car, it is only a car after all :wink: then use the car to go and get nice fresh fuel for the bike. And dont ever use an "octane booster" again, they are "snake oil"

Dink

 

[RacingJake]

Go ahead and ride it. The most that can happen is funny looking plugs and the motor will be down a few ponies do to high octan. You can always used it in the lawn mower, they can run on anything.

 

[xDUKEx]

some citgo gas stations offer 110 octane its called cam II, if it doesnt make an engine perform better then why do they run it in race cars? duh!!!! run it thru it will be fine. like i said i run high octane in mine all ther time. love the smell of the stuff coming out of the exhaust too.

 

[Anonymous]

...if it doesnt make an engine perform better then why do they run it in race cars? duh!!!!

High octane gasoline has no more potential energy than regular grade. Race cars use higher octane gasoline because they typically run higher compression engines than anything on the street. The higher octane fuel resists detonation/pinging in those high compression/performance engines, and that is why they use same. Higher compression, not higher octane, makes power. Bottom line...in an unmodified GS engine, use the fuel that Suzuki recommended. If your engine pings (detonates) heavily, first look at mechanical problems, then consider moving up one octane grade. High octane fuel WILL NOT make more horsepower in a GS engine that is already using the recommended fuel, and is not detonating.

 

[Mark Harrop]

Seriously... can anyone else back this up?

The article said its because when gas sits it loses its octane rating, and by boosting it you revive it up to, and a bit past what its suppose to be, and that extra octane helps remove built up gunk in your gas. (because apparently when gas sits for a long time it glumps up.)

Octane is not a chemical that will clean out your gas....this is where the problems always start in octane discussions.

Solo2 is right on the money in his explanation. Octane is a rating (done chemically and very complex) of a fuels resistance to detonation. It's ability to be squeezed into a tight place rapidly and not explode. This is why diesel fuel has a very high octane rating...like 180 or 200 or something really high like that.
Racing gas with a high octane can be squeezed to a higher compression ratio, like 14:1. Diesels run like 40:1...and passenger cars 9:1.
So if you want to get technical, a higher octane generally means more gunk in your gas. Specifically, long chain hydrocarbon molecules that resist being pulled apart. Diesel has long chain molecules, that is why it is more oily and slippery than gas as well.

That being said...

Would it hurt your bike to run it through? That is a tough question to answer. I've seen a guy put actual diesel fuel in a honda cx 500 gas tank, fire it up...have the gas in the bowls slowly be replaced by diesel fuel...

...and then he started panicking as it started smoking like a mosquito-control truck. Once it was all flushed out it finally quit smoking, and I don't think it was damaged.

From what I've seen most folks around here tend to be very conservative in their bikemaintenance/ownership. These bikes are getting so old that it would be better to spend the 5 bucks for some fresh gas and the 20 minutes it would take to change it, then to chance it and screw something up. Parts arent getting any cheaper.

Hope that helped. :wink:

 

[Anonymous]

That's why this site is so great . You get answers that span from myth to scientific, all with there own sense of logic and purpose, background and requirement for a particular end result. Choose any one of them and you must deal with the work, the logic, the outcome.
Generally you need to associate high octane with compression, high.
High octane does not mean" make a low compression engine go faster,"
I think you have your additives mixed up. I believe you are thinking of "Heet", the fuel additive that has alcohol {not just any alcohol} that causes water to burn.
I use this when I suspect water in the gas.
Normally after the tanker has refilled the under ground tanks, the water which has sunk to the bottom now is stirring around.
Mark and Solo are on the money.
You probably didnt even need anything to begin with .
Good luck, no matter what you do I think your bike will be okay, just dont make a habit of the high octane. Regards ikazuki

 

[DarkDevil]

Well, After getting my bike on the road and riding it with the octane boost. It's much better running standard fuel, or, if you'd like, maybe a quarter of a bottle of octane boost. However, it's not worth the money or the risk. I definatly noticed difference, and not a good one, after using the octane boost. Luckly I went away with a fresh refuel.

 

[Mattman]

OK my 2 cents. I run high octane with some boost when i can. as well as CAM 2 I put the cheap stuff in, and let me tell ya. low octane in a 83 1100e does not run well. I do agree with dumping and starting over to much of a good thing is never good.

 

[Anonymous]

...let me tell ya. low octane in a 83 1100e does not run well.

I'm no expert, but 87 octane runs flawlessly in my '81 1100E. I don't think there was any significant change to the engine in '83.

You shouldn't need to add a bunch of aftermarket chemicals to gasoline to run that engine. Perhaps there is a mechanical fault? Of course, all this supposes that the engine is basically stock. With the exception of adjusting the pilot screw on some of my newer bikes, I find that box-stock bikes run better than bikes that have been modded. There are no tuning issues with a stock carb and pipes!