Super Coupe Fuel Requirement/thinking of buying

[97catera]

Hey all,
New to the group, and have been looking at sc's lately. What I was wondering is if the sc requires premium fuel, or if it can be run on reg. I've seen the dask and it says "premium unleaded fuel only" but has anyone run their sc on regular on a long term basis and if so, were there any ill effects? Anyways, if the car does require premium fuel, then I won't persue the car anymore. But if it dosen't, I'd be looking for a 94 or 94 sc pref. black with under 100k.
Thanks and have a good one

[Tony8470]

91 octane or above is recommended. I wouldnt run these under that because they are 1. slow 2. risk detonation on lower octane.
I would say that constitutes using "high" octane gas on a regular basis.

[Darkside]

Yup, premium only. I mean, you could run it on regular unleaded but it wouldn't be safe to get on it.......so what's the point?

[dvruger]

Local paper just did a write up on the benifits of premium vs. regular fuel. I wish I'd kept the article now. In brief they came to the conclusion that there wasn't enough benifit from premium (power, milage, etc.) to warrant the additional cost,... UNLESS you ran a supercharged vehicle.
I've been unemployed for a while so I've tried the regular and plus gas in my car, and it runs fine. I just don't get on it. Not as much fun, but it saves money (and gas :rolleyes: )

[fast Ed]

When my SC was still my daily driver, I would sometimes run mid-grade fuel (generally 89 octane in this area) when I was going to be doing a lot of steady "regular" driving, not hoofing on it. As lomg as I didn't go completely full throttle, or keep it in the boost for more than a few seconds at a time, it was OK. More often I'd do this in the winter, with the cooler air giving less chance of detonation.

If I knew that I would be "playing", it always got 91 or better.

cheers,
Ed Nicholson
SCCoO

[stocker 89]

Just last night I put in some 91 octane with ethanol from a local Kum and go I only put in 2.00 which is almost a gallon .... This gas sucked bad it was horrible gas I got ripped off I would go into boost and the car would sputter and detonate this really made me angry ..I don't trust many gas stations around here so I always buy a little to test it first...

I alway use BP ULTIMATE the gold stuff it has never failed me or let me down...

Do not use ethanol a supercharged car unless the motor is already wasted it will for sure cause you problems if you have an efficient motor...

[MilTownSHO]

My SHO's are supposed to get Premium and I always run it, except in my 92, that gets 87 or whatever the lowest is. Never have had a problem, but then agian, it's not supercharged :rolleyes:

[Mike8675309]

I ran 90, 91, and 92 10% ethanol blends in my SC for years with never a problem.

91 octane is 91 octane, regardless of what chemicals were used to get it there.

If a motor is Supercharged or not is irrelevant in regards to using ethanol blended fuels.

[95scred]

i wouldnt let have to use 91 or better gas change ur mind about getting a sc, if u think about it even if u are completely empty and fill it up, its no that much more, i usually put in 10 or 15 dollars at a time which is what a little more then 2 gallons if ur paying $2.00 a gallon and he low grade is $0.40 cheaper but there isnt that much differance here. in my opinion its money well spend to drive a sc

[92redsc]

the guy before me bought my car new and ran amarillo crap gas 86 octane its whole life. at 95,600 it bent a rod, i think part of it was the gas. but i would say you could run 89 and be safe, then run 91 when you want to spank some ricers.

[93SuperCoupeBoy]

Just like anything else...if you don't actually want to pay for the rest of it, dont' get the car. I'm 15, and pay for my own gas, mods, upgrades, etc etc on my SC. I had an LX which ran on crap grade gas, but sold it in favor of an SC even though I knew it would require more money to keep going. In my opinion, if you don't want to run the car how it was intended to be, why bother getting it? Yes, you may be able to run 87 octane, but why bother getting it if you aren't going to treat it like an SC all the time? That doesn't mean flooring it at every light or anything, but the supercharger strapped onto the top of the engine is there for a reason, and the higher grade fuel is recommended for a reason! Anyways, don't let my opinion stop anything, just thought I'd throw my couple cents into the mix!

Nick

[Sweet90SC]

Lower Octane + Higher Compression = Early Detonation...In other words when you Run lower than 90 octane your fuel will detonate (ie explode) sooner this in a way makes your car run like it's timing is off...Thats BAAAAAADDDD!!! Spend a couple bucks more a tank and put in Premium. Your SC will love you for it :p ......

Rick in FL :cool:

[Sandmanownz]

I know this thread is old, but I just got my SC this Sat. and i put the middle grade gas in... cause i wasent thinking and Last night after running little over a half of tank of gas threw it, it started sputtering really bad, i figured it was the fuel, so i went and filled her up with the premium and let it run for awhile and its starting to clear up, still will sputter and die (its only been a day), everyonce in awhile. But its clearning up now and I know I have to use the premium.. oh ya that arrow light kept coming on too.

[JStudrawa]

I know this thread is old, but I just got my SC this Sat. and i put the middle grade gas in... cause i wasent thinking and Last night after running little over a half of tank of gas threw it, it started sputtering really bad, i figured it was the fuel, so i went and filled her up with the premium and let it run for awhile and its starting to clear up, still will sputter and die (its only been a day), everyonce in awhile. But its clearning up now and I know I have to use the premium.. oh ya that arrow light kept coming on too.

Mine has never seen less than 92 octane (MI and GA). I'll go out of my way to get 93 octane, though. I can tell the difference between 92 and 93, as my RPMs are just slightly <2000 at 80 with 93, and just slightly >2000 with 92. I don't notice a smoothness in running or accelerating, but why risk it for $1 or $2 a week?

[trife86]

Just last night I put in some 91 octane with ethanol from a local Kum and go I only put in 2.00 which is almost a gallon .... This gas sucked bad it was horrible gas I got ripped off I would go into boost and the car would sputter and detonate this really made me angry ..I don't trust many gas stations around here so I always buy a little to test it first...

I alway use BP ULTIMATE the gold stuff it has never failed me or let me down...

Do not use ethanol a supercharged car unless the motor is already wasted it will for sure cause you problems if you have an efficient motor...


out here in new york every pump has ethanol in there gas. so you cant get around it, its always ran fine with it, why would it hurt the engine?

[Mike8675309]

Old wives tale. 10% blend ethanol is just fine. It's been in Minnesota for longer than I can recall.

I'd stay away from 85% ethanol just because I doubt our EEC can adjust enough to deal with the fuel/air needs.

93 octane is 93 octane, regardless of if it is straight fuel or ethanol. So the anti-knock benefits are the same. The main difference someone should find is a decrease in efficiency. The btu in one gallon of ethanol is lower than the btu available in one gallon of straight gas. So you'll get more potential for power from straight fuel.

[Flip]

If you can't afford 93 octane, then you sure can't afford to keep an SC on the road. :D :D :D :D :D

[Sweet90SC]

Amen there Flip.. ;) ... if you think a few cents a gallon is bad wait till you have to buy a Master Cylinder...be aware before going into it these cars are costley to run and even more so to repair ...The cheapest I have found for a rehabed MS is around $500.00 :eek: .. I love my SC and It is a hobby Therefore I don't mind spending the money to repair it... Others may feel differently... Just understand what you are getting into :D my .02

Rick

[kevenj90sc]

I thought about running mid grade instead of premium to save money since I drive about 450 miles a week. Then I did the math... I'm getting about 22 mpg (cuz I drive 85+ mph...) so I use about 21 gallons per week.... and mid grade (around here at least) is 6 to 8 cents a gallon cheaper.....so I would save a HUGE $1.26 to $1.68 per week by using midgrade. Spend the extra buck or two a week and put the right gas in the damn thing!

[madmax0877]

I moved from Nor CA to South AL with my SC. Went from 91 premium to 93 premium, and with just that change my MPG changed from 15-17 to 18-23. I don't know if that is the ONLY circumstance that changed the mpg, but I still drove the car the same way, and got those results.

Can't wait to test the 95 octane stuff out here in Germany! :D :D :D

[mannysc]

here In so calif we only have 91 so I have to mix toluene in with my gas talk about $$$$$ mine pings without it . so add $7.89 to that tank of gas.