Gas octane??

[threevie77]

just bought a 2008 suzuki king quad 400fs. The manual says 87 octane or higher. Any advice on what runs best in these machines......87, 89, 93 octane? thanks in advance!!

[Stoopidbot1]

Welcome to the site. I use the highest pump gas available. Usually 91 here.

[mywifeknowseverythin]

If its stock go with the 87....No sense in wasting money.....

[DirtDemon]

I agree with MWKE, higher octane fuels are really only needed in high performance machines. Regular should do you fine for the most part. The only real benefit it would give you is that it burns a bit cooler.

[mywifeknowseverythin]

How did you like our Advice!!!

YOU ARE WELCOME!!!!

[DirtDemon]

I detect a note of sarcasm there.

[gaquad]

Anything higher than 87 is a waste in a standard compression engine.

[Smoothbassman]

Yeah I run 87 or 89 as mid grade is cheaper at some stations due to the ethanol content.

[ZZ71]

The only thing to watch out for it Ethanol, even 10% can cause problems. In engines which are used infrequently or stored for periods of time ethanol can separate from the gasoline and settle to the bottom of the tank and cause problems. The typical shelf live of E10 fuel is 90 days or less.

Ethanol can cause significant problems in many different applications due to the differences in properties compared to gasoline:

Ethanol is hygroscopic, which means it has a tendency to absorb water. When ethanol absorbs water, it readily separates from gasoline and, because it is heavier, falls to the bottom of the tank. The ethanol/water mixture in the bottom of the tank degrades relatively quickly. Ethanol contains less energy per gallon compared to gasoline. Based on this, many new vehicles have computer systems that sense and correct for high ethanol content. Small engines and most power sports equipment are not programmed to detect this and a lean burn situation results. When the ethanol rich mixture is pulled into the engine this lean burn increases combustion temperatures significantly, which can lead to severe engine damage. When a mixture of water and ethanol degrades and creates gums, varnish and other insoluble debris, fuel flow passages can become narrow or plug, significantly affecting engine performance. When the correct amount of fuel cannot flow to the engine, equipment becomes difficult to start and performance becomes unstable.

So I would recommend buying fuel that does not have ethanol in it. Often the premium fuels do not. Of course there are fuel additives you can buy but I won't comment on any brand names. Some are good and some seem to be a waste of money, chose wisely. Friend owns a PS dealership and he tells me he has stocked some and found very few of them work as claimed.

Edited June 28, 2010 by ZZ71