[snoopyspaz]

New to the board here...

With my experience in engines knocking, being my last couple of cars were honda's, my honda del sol (civic chasis) was a high revin' high compresion motor and with different grades of fuel you will notice increase/decrease in power with the various grades. My wife drives a Honda crv and the same thing, this motor has an 8.xx:1 ratio and even with a low ratio, you feel the difference of lower octane fuels as compared to higher ones. My '03 silverado ss says in the book 91 is the lowest grade i can have and since have only used 91. With all my vehicles and the little bit of experiences with motors, I would say there is a huge difference in octane levels to what the performance will be. The manufacturer says 87 will work, and it's true, to a degree, but remember that it isn't going to last as long as say a motor that is fed 91 octane. Have to remember there are exceptions to the rule and I'm not saying that if you have a vehicle that is running on 87 octane and runs great to go out and spend more money, whatever works for you more power to you, just saying that in my experience the higher octane fuels make a difference.

My fatehr-in-law explaned that the higher octane fuels burn "cooler" allowing for a cooler chamber and allowing to disapate the heat better. With heat you create friction and wear the parts faster over time. So in theory, you will have a longer life motor fed higher octane gas. As we all know theory's aren't fact and you have to factor in maintenance and other factors as well. In the long run, a higher octane fuel will help but this is just my opinion and my experiences. Hope that helps some a little.

Peter