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Possibly a huge mistake!

3K views 30 replies 17 participants last post by  mujjuman 
#1 ·
I put 87 octane in my tank. Wasnt even paying attemtion. Not uaed to buying 91 or higher and didnt realize it till after it was already in. only put 1/2 tank in. SES light is on. Car still runs great though. Just need some help.on figuring out what to do since I was I a total fool. Anybody experienced this before or even tested it?
 
#2 ·
Not a big deal. Unlike the old days, our cars are equipped with knock sensors which retard the timings when low-octane fuel is used. You lose some power and efficiency, but there won't be any lasting damage. Just fill up with 93 when you get the chance and all will be fine.

It shouldn't throw an SES, so that might be a different issue altogether. I'd get the codes pulled for that.
 
#4 · (Edited)
Buy a bottle of octane booster at any auto parts store and add it to the fuel tank. That should take care of it.

 
#5 ·
Huge mistake? Drive it and forget about it. Refill with premium and get on with life.
 
#6 ·
Did you put kerosine on it or something lol. My girlfriend puts regular on my car all the time, I have yet to see a SES light. Sure it doesn't perform as well as it should but aside from that nothing bad ever happens. You may want to pull the code from autozone maybe the gas station you went to is water down their cheapest gas.
 
#9 ·
The reason Im worried a little is because right after I put the gas in the SES light came on, the gas cap was just recently changed because it was leaking andi just got rid of the SES light and now its back on so thats why I rose suspicion. Im gonna put some octane booster in it and see what happens.
 
#10 ·
Wait a day or two before adding anything, and if you DO, make it Techron instead of octane booster, some brands have bad crap in them.
 
#17 ·
you can do like i do and go to the parts house and borrow their code reader it doesnt cost anything and as little as I use the reader it makes way more since to spend my money elsewhere :dunno:
 
#18 ·
also if ya add a octane booster I favor Lucas products they have always performed well in all the cars I have owned
 
#23 ·
100 octane ?!? Good grief, that sounds like aviation gasoline!! (Not to be confused with jet fuel, a totally different kerosene based stuff with waay lower octane)

Besides the almighty Peake, currently at $140, someone mentioned in another thread the Equus Innova line of scanners which are supposed to read and interpret brand-specific DTCs. Some appear priced far less than the Peake at Amazon. See www.CanOBD2.com.
 
#26 ·
I'm sure everyone already knows this, but just in case:

Race fuel in street car
How does 'octane' work?

All 'octane' means is the ability to resist detonation due to compression (as opposed to detonation due to the spark plugs). Higher octane doesn't give you any more power or make your car faster or anything - it is just more 'stable'.

If you are not getting knock, putting super high octane fuel in your car is nothing but a waste of money, and - due to the ability to retard the timing - putting low octane fuel in your car won't hurt the car either, but it will hurt performance and gas mileage. The best thing to do is to stick with 91 octane fuel - or 93 octane if 91 is not available. There is no advantage to going higher, unless wasting money makes you feel good about yourself or something. :D

And, for those who want to argue about additives and what not: if you want additives, buy a bottle of Lucas or Techron.

Anyway, a little off topic, but I just wanted to clarify before someone skimming through the forum thought it was a good idea to spend $12/gal on racing fuel.
 
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