I have always tried to use 89. There was an in depth thread years ago on this forum about it. I remember the benefit was gas mileage. I think in owners manual it recommends 89 for a 2016 F6b.
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I have always tried to use 89. There was an in depth thread years ago on this forum about it. I remember the benefit was gas mileage. I think in owners manual it recommends 89 for a 2016 F6b.
Honda says use 86 or higher. Most regulars are 87 so fine. I thought it was agreed in this thread higher octane does nothing toward better performance or mileage. Only needed if you experience pinging or recommended by the manufacturer as does BMW and HD.
I think paying more at the pump, causes riders to ride slower and save gas.;)
There's a big difference in MPG when doing 80+MPH on I-10 compared to 70 on other highways.
Actually, as the octane in gasoline increases, the energy content (BTU/gallon) drops slightly. It isn't enough to make a measurable difference in performance or mileage.
Since higher octane gasoline contains no more energy, it can only increase performance by allowing an engine to run more efficiently, usually via higher compression and/or advanced ignition timing.
Back in the '50s major oil companies ran ad campaigns promoting the amazing benefits of high octane gasoline. I doubt they ever dreamed those ads would create myths that would last for generations. Even the story about the 100 MPG carburetor oil companies paid to keep a secret eventually faded away.
Pure gasoline has roughly 114,000 BTUs per gallon. E10 has a few thousand less. If an engine is running properly on fuel with enough octane to prevent detonation, it is physically impossible for a higher octane fuel with the same energy content to somehow 'find' additional horsepower.
Maybe we need to think about it this way. A modern engine is designed to generate a certain amount of horsepower. If you feed it crappy gas, the engine management computer will detune the engine to prevent damage, resulting in less horsepower. When you switch back to fuel the engine was designed for, the engine will run optimally, and you'll 'get back' the power you lost with the crappy gas.