premium fuel for k75 yes or no

[burntstick]

pretty sure the answer is yes to premium but would like to hear arguments for and against , for any bike for that manner. thanks heaps !

[Laitch]

I've bought into the tale wrought by big oil and big moto that octane makes a difference in this engine so I use 89 octane (US) most of the time with occasional fill-ups of 92. The way I ride, the bike averages 50mpg. It runs and idles well. The difference in cost between regular and mid-octane is usually around a buck or less per fill-up. I'm not squeamish about using 87 if that's all there is, or if the others are off-the-scale in price, but they'd need to be way out there.

I use old lawnmower gas in my plow truck, when I have any.

[Tuco]

comp ration is 10:1 so I use premium mostly. seems to run even better on non ethanol  fuel but thats not always available.

[Gio]

I've always believed that anything higher than oem specs is just a waste of $ ... the Subaru is quite happy on regular, the Goose prefers premium and to your question -  ran premium un-leaded in the K whilst in the UK - much easier to avoid the dreaded ethanol / bits of corn thing here in Canada than I believe is the case in the US ..?

Gio

[F14CRAZY]

For the first while I ran premium or at least midgrade in mine but I've been using only 87 for at least the past 20k miles. I don't hear or feel any knocking at any load or rpm. Bike doesn't accelerate any faster with higher octanes.

I understand things like compression, boost, and other times where higher octanes should be used but it seems this is not one of those cases.

There's a member here who's run only 87 and he bought his new. He has over 180k miles and it's still running fine.

[Scott_]

I'll take any octane that is NON-ethanol...... but normal around me without ethanol is only 91+ octane premium, then only at 2 locations.

[rbm]

The K100 / K1100 rider manuals recommend "Super (Premiun 4-star) for 4-stroke spark ignition engines; min octane 98 (RN) / 88 (MM)"  So, you should probably run 89 PON (North America) minimum.  Anything more is wasteful.  In certain cases I fill up with 91 PON Shell V-power only because Shell guarantees 0% ethanol in this grade in Canada.

[WayneDW]

Only need to spend extra money on premium if the engine is pinging on low octane.  I only run the cheap stuff and have not ever had a problem.  Yes, it has ethanol in it and I have never had a problem.

[johnny]

greetings...

see that sticker on the tank of the brick of the corn...

thats right... unleaded premium gasoline...

i use no corn ethyl when available... and no corn regular when available... the no corn regular is getting hard to come by...

dont be fooled by "premium"... these days 87 is premium unleaded... above that is super premium and supreme and stuff like that... just more antiknock with no more energy... gotts to go no corn if you want more energy... or nitro methane of course...

im no petrol chemist... butts i am staying at a holiday inn express right now...



j o

[Chaos]

always just run regular in my K75, now with corn don't have a choice here.  After 185,000 miles I would say it is probably OK to scrimp on gas.

[The Mighty Gryphon]

I doubt that I will ever open the throttle wide enough yo get the engine to knock.  At the throttle opening I normally run at, the cylinder pressure doesn't get anywhere near the ping range.

Having said that, I have seen enough problems with ethanol in the boat business to want to avoid that crap in my bikes every chance I get.  Fortunately, there are two stations selling no corn, one near home and the other close to where I work so it's easy to indulge myself.  I figure it cost me about an extra $40 a year to run real gasoline in my babies.  When I am on trips, I don't worry so much about putting moonshine in my bike because it's only in there for a couple of hours before it's burned up.  As soon as I get home though, it's back to the real stuff.

[motodude]

Been runnin' 87 since '91 in 75s and 100s.  No worries.  No problems. You're throwing money away purchasing the more expensive products.  And, if you live in an area where they put alcohol in the gas, you run a larger risk of getting "bad" gas by purchasing a product that has sat longer in the tank at the station collecting water.

I do spring for premium (91-92) when it is non-ethanol.  And, that's because the mileage improvement is measurable. Not because of the gas but because of the lack of filler (alcohol).

Tom

[The Mighty Gryphon]

Good point about fresh gas.  At the places I get my no-corn the tank is smaller so the fuel isn't stored as long.  Another thing to consider is that the vintage car guys use a lot of it as well.  I was told by the owner of the station near my home that his no-corn tank gets refilled as often as the 87.   He's amazed at how far some people come to buy his no-corn, and how much of it he sells.   

[billday]

In certain cases I fill up with 91 PON Shell V-power only because Shell guarantees 0% ethanol in this grade in Canada.

Another reason to move to Canada.

[vintagemilano]

Not really a reason to move to Canada, BC has mandated % ethanol in all gasoline sold in the province.  http://www.empr.gov.bc.ca/RET/RLCFRR/Pages/default.aspx

[Brad-Man]

For all my lawn equipment and3 motorcycles I have been using 90 octane no-ethanol gas.

I get 2 five gallon cansata time.

There is finally a location that Sells 87 octane no ethanol close that I' ll use for the lawn machinery but that means I'll have to get another gas can and label it...

[Gio]

@ vintagemilano ... maybe another good reason to move to NS then as I'm not aware of any such a requirement for bits of corn here on the east coast! Having said that - I do miss the west coast (lived there for almost 20 years) ...

Cheers!

Gio

[orforester]

[beemrdon]

I've used 87 and 93 and can't tell the difference.