Reply With QuoteIt's only harmful to your wallet.
You only need to use higher grade gas if your engine is pinging.
Premium Grade Gas
Hey everyone, just curious to know if it would harmfull to the 1.6 if i began to run Premium gas in the motor of the Miata. Please let me know, all i have ever used previously is premium.
It's only harmful to your wallet.
You only need to use higher grade gas if your engine is pinging.
No more Miata
Why would you want to run premium in a car that doesn't require it??
It won't harm the engine in the slightest... but it won't help it, either.
Warning!moment ahead.
The octane rating of a fuel measures the fuel's resistance to premature ignition, also known as "knock" or "detonation". The higher the octane number, the higher the fuel's resistance to pre-ignition. Switching a car to a higher octane fuel does not - in and of itself - increase power output.
Now, you can do some things to an engine that will increase power, and require higher octane fuel in the process to prevent potential pre-ignition issues, such as milling the deck or head to raise compression ratio, advancing the ignition timing, increasing the boost on a turbochraged engine, etc. However, the higher octane fuel required to prevent pre-ignition in these cases is not the source of added power, but merely an unwanted requirement caused by other changes that were made to increase power output. Not cause, but effect.
Running a higher octane fuel than required will not add power to any engine, unless that engine is equipped with a very effective O2 sensor, knock sensors, and the ECU programming to advance the timing to the point where preignition is detected in the cylinders (way before you or I could hear it), and then back off slightly. The vast majority of Miatas - certainly those through '01 - are not so equipped.
In fact, higher octane fuel is more resistant to combustion, and using higher-than-required octane fuel can in some cases cause accelerated wear to emissions and ignition components.
Iain
"We don't stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing." - George Bernard Shaw
Man I hate when that happens!Originally Posted by altiain
Warning!
What he said! ^
is it just me or do i get better gas mileage when i use higher octane?
when you get gas, choose one that is at least a top tier fuel. (those are the ones that have the goverment mandated minimum cleaning additives) chevron has twice that, and the shell vpower has 5 times that. the vpower is a 93 octane gas. one more reason i use this gas is that i have advanced my timing drasticly. (on another note, did you know a miata can still run strong with 20 degrees btdc????? that only with premium though, thats premium with a small amount of pinging at WOT....) anyways, these are a few reasons why i run premium, (actually i just run vpower, in my 1.6l. too much? maybe, but cheap insurance for a clean combustion chamber, knock prevention, etc...)
just my .02
Did you miss the following from Class today?What does you car Dyno out at with 20 degrees of timing??It won't harm the engine in the slightest... but it won't help it, either.
Warning!
Now, you can do some things to an engine that will increase power, and require higher octane fuel in the process to prevent potential pre-ignition issues, such as milling the deck or head to raise compression ratio, advancing the ignition timing, increasing the boost on a turbochraged engine, etc. However, the higher octane fuel required to prevent pre-ignition in these cases is not the source of added power, but merely an unwanted requirement caused by other changes that were made to increase power output. Not cause, but effect.
Yah, yah...
Umm....could this be why you're called BAM!?
90 MX5 281k miles! - euro spec, Porsche Riviera Blue w/black hardtop, 97 motor swap, vintage Borbet rims, GC, FM shock hats/frame rails/rear sub-brace, AGX, sway bar, stb, Fidanza/ACT combo, EBC Yellows
92 COMMA SM - new paint coming soon...
never had the chance to dyno that one. although bigdmiata sold it to us like that, we'll both testify (adam too) that its a pretty quick 1.8! too bad he cant drive, or hed set a better time in ennis (JUST KIDDING MAN!!!!!) well, that cars gone (with the ex) r.i.p. (the car)
PS, the timing was @ 20 when i checked it, not set there intentionally (by me anyways) i think the unorthodox pulley install was ruched or somethign bythe previous owner...
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