You guys are funny. The owners manual does in fact "recommend" the use of 91 or higher octane. Will the car blow up on 87? Of course not. But if you're soo cheap that you can't spend a few extra dollars per fill up then maybe you should have just gotten a V6 fbody.

LS1 motors perform better on 91+ octane. Fact! I put so much time and money into my car that I'll be damned if I'm going to put cheap gas in it just to save a couple of dollars each tank of gas.

So let me say to all the newbies that might be reading this thread that GM recommends 91+, I recommend 91+ and "most" ls1tech members use 91+.

 

...And anybody who actually believes it...

 

How on earth can you reconcile .2 mpg? You could easily tie that to temperature changes - slight driving style difference - not to mention taking different roads.

BTW, my car does always perform better after I wax it.

Also, after I vaccuum the interior it idles smoother.

 

That's the best picture you can come up with? If you're going to use pictures to insult people then at least take the time to find a good one.

It sounds to me like you never cared about power or performance. You just liked the looks of the car and are cheap by nature. Which probably explains why there are no mods in your sig. So keep filling up with 87 and more power to you.

But for anyone who thinks these motors run just as good on 87 as they do on 93.....



My picture's at least a little funny

 

Spark Knock

Definition: This is the pinging or rattling noise sometimes heard during acceleration that indicates detonation is occurring inside the engine (See Detonation). Related Terms
• Detonation

Spark knock can be caused by a variety of things including using low octane fuel, over-advanced ignition timing, too much compression (often due to a buildup of carbon in the combustion chamber), by an inoperative EGR valve, and/or by too much heat. If switching to a higher octane fuel doesn't cure the problem, the cause should be investigated because prolonged or heavy knocking can damage the engine.

 

Darren, you and your buddies just don't seem to be understanding what's going on here and are really beginning (way past, maybe) to look silly. Your assumptions about me and mine are irrelevant to the facts, and are quite erroneous. Sad, really, to see someone so wrong and clinging so desperately to such a flimsy position.

The fact is that the LS1 runs without failure and damage on 87 octane in a stock tune.
The fact is that the use of 87 is given the green light in the owners manual.
The fact is shown by many that have done this without problems.

Your opinions are simply that, opinion. But your arrogance and pomposity appears to know no bounds.

 

...A disembodied set of sentences with no apparent connection to any solid position.

 

I think LS1s run best on diesel. At least mine does, makes great power too.



Look guys, here's the facts:

- Your STOCK car will perform it's best and get peak MPG with the use of 91-93 octane fuel.

- Your STOCK car will run, drive, and do fine on 87 or 89 as well, but MPG may suffer by a *slight* amount, and power may also be decreased (just how much will depend on several factors).

I'm not sure why this topic is always such a fight. Personally, I use ONLY 91+ in my LS1s, but there's no reason to fight about this topic. I think all the guys using 87 realize that they *may* be leaving a tad of power on the table, and they've decided that this small amount of HP isn't a big deal. And even though I disagree with that decision for my own cars, if that's what makes some guys happy, I say so be it.

 

I understand perfectly. You're too cheap to spring for 91 or 93 octane and want to justify that by making fun of those of us who are not that cheap.

 

Im not sure if you're classifying me as anyone's buddy here., but I dont think that you are the one who is understanding. I never said that LS1's would not run on 87. Sure, it'll run on it without problems as long as you keep the rpms low and never accelerate hard, but going WOT with it above 3k is pointless. Running 87octane is defeating the purpose of owning a High performance car. spark knock and pinging/detonation are not normal.

A tad better huh? how much was a tad? doesnt sound like it's worth the performance sacrafice to run 87 as opposed to running 93.. when i had my 9" rear with 4.11 gears, i was getting on average, 24mpg on 93 octane. Thats pretty damn good if you ask me.

And what's classified as normal? Driving like grandma and grandpa? There are times when driving fast is appropriate. Going to the track is one. It'll be great when you're running 14's @100mph pinging all the way down the track on 87 octane.

 

you don't always hear detonation!
our cars are designed to RUN on 91^ and yes they will be able to RUN with 87 in the tank,the PCM has spark tables for this fuel but they are limited.
the knock sensor is supposed to detect knock and RETARD the timing,it too has its limitations.
personally i have seen the difference in fuel mileage and that alone makes it worth it to put hi test fuel in my car.
87 octane (400 mile trip) empty-$42.88@ $2.99 per gal
91 octane (same 400) 1/4 tank left i drove it out all around town and managed to get 452 miles.It then took 14.2 gallons to fill up.($45.44)$3.20gal
.21 cents per gallon saved =$2.85(87oct. vs. 91oct.)
1/4 tank is roughly 3.5gal =$11.20
so to save $2.85 at the pump i would be wasting $11.20 on the road
forget that gas prices are higher Giraff Puzzy!

 

RPM WS6, I, too, wonder why there's always a fight about this subject.

From what I can gather there are two groups stirring things up: 1) a certain number of people that can't understand why anyone could possibly ever not want MAX power at ALL times, and 2) a certain number of people that are letting their personal prejudices overwhelm their cognitive abilities.

They are trying to bully and insult people to see things their way without having any true facts to back up their argument. "I would never want to (fill in the blank), therefor you're scum if you would." is about the completeness of their position.

I thank you gentlemen for your thoughts, but the facts remain that 87 will not kill your car. How you feel about that is not the issue.

Peace, out...

 

PLEASE use premium!

 

My SS runs 13.50's STOCK, on a FULL tank of 87. My wife filled it up the day before we took it to the track. 87 Will not hurt your engine. I am going to log some runs on 87 to see if retard is way more then 91. Also for everyone who's says don't do it, Can they tell me what the Dynamic compression of a stock LS1 is?Then we can discuss fuel some more.

 

The most Kr you will see with a stock tune is the classic -4* max, which IMO isnt enough for 87, especially @ WOT. so it will be no more than -4 degrees showing up on your logger

and mr incredible, its not so much about having max power at all times.. Its about having it on tap.. Its better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it. and please- stop copying words from thesarus.com and pasting them into your posts. You prove nothing by trying to sound smarter than anyone. In closing, i just want to say use 93 octane for your car. It will thank you

 

I have personally never disputed that. I've never heard of anyone killing thier car with gas. Unless it was mixed with N20

However, the fact remains that the GM owners manual as well as most enthusiasts here recommend 91 or better gas for maximum performance.

Most of us are not too cheap to put the best gas in our cars. How YOU feel about that is most certainly not the issue.

Thank goodness and good luck.

 

I've filled up on 89 once. This was on a road trip from TX back up to ID. I gambled on making a city but ended up being forced to get gas from a station in the middle of BFE. In TX, there are no shortages of these tiny widdle towns.

I bring this up because I was near empty and they didn't have any premium in stock. I filled about 3 gallons of 89 - ample fuel to make it to a real gas station. Again, not 87, but 89. I experienced no knocking and avoided any kind of spirited driving. Zero issues!

When I was 16, dad borrowed my '94 TA to take my mom out. They didn't have as much $ in the pocket as they thought they did and filled on 87. My father knocked ALL the way home. It's no LS1, but his experience was enough to make me nervous about fueling on regular. My dad is quite the docile driver, might I add.

In short: 89 = OK, 87 = not recommended.

 

If you run say 92 then fill a tank of 87, and just drive, no quarter mile racing, the computer will see knock and start pulling out timing. I would like to see how fast and how far it goes. I have never HEARD knock in this car with 87. But that does not mean anything. No one has produced any dynamic compression numbers yet.

 

I cannot tell the difference between 87&94 but after all this Im gonna start always running 94...just to be safe.

 

Have you ever even put your theories to any sort of test? My best times at the track while I was stock (13.1 @ 109) were run on a tank of 87 octane. Funny that.

Is it better to run 91+ if you're driving the car hard? Absolutely. Do you have to? Not if you're careful and pay attention to whats going on.

As long as people know the potential risks of running a lower octane and driving the car hard then just go about your own business.