dcBear78
New Member
We must have extra good fuel here in oz. Regular is 91 RON, premium is 95 and super-premium (98 RON) is becoming more common.
Regular Unleaded vs Premium Unleaded?
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streetmaster
New Member
Dont forget about our E10! Shell E10 is 94 RON!
But fuel is expensive downunder & fluctuates wildly!
Up to $1.36/L for regular unleaded (4L = 1 US Gallon)
Premium $1.48/L on a bad day!!
But fuel is expensive downunder & fluctuates wildly!
Up to $1.36/L for regular unleaded (4L = 1 US Gallon)
Premium $1.48/L on a bad day!!
Straight from the manual.
Your Yamaha engine has been de-
signed to use regular unleaded gaso-
line with a pump octane number
[(R+M)/2] of 86 or higher, or a research
octane number of 91 or higher. If
knocking (or pinging) occurs, use a
gasoline of a different brand or premium unleaded fuel. Use of unleaded fuel
will extend spark plug life and reduce
maintenance costs.
So 86 is all thats required and regular gasoline is 87.
Your Yamaha engine has been de-
signed to use regular unleaded gaso-
line with a pump octane number
[(R+M)/2] of 86 or higher, or a research
octane number of 91 or higher. If
knocking (or pinging) occurs, use a
gasoline of a different brand or premium unleaded fuel. Use of unleaded fuel
will extend spark plug life and reduce
maintenance costs.
So 86 is all thats required and regular gasoline is 87.
Not to start an argument here with you as you have quoted from the manual and you are correct but.......
the manual adds this disclaimer in your quote "If
knocking (or pinging) occurs, use a
gasoline of a different brand or premium unleaded fuel. "
Now why would they do that?
Like saying your tires are rated for 120 miles per hour but should they shred on you at that speed, you might want to change them to a higher speed rated tire. It does not make sense.
From my experience with cars and motorcycles, airplanes and helicopter engines of both 2 and 4 stroke versions, my rule of thumb is fairly simple. If the engine is low compression, regular 87 octane is fine but if the engine is high compression, you might need a higher octane rating. Octane means slow burning in Latin. I know Wiki says it is the resistance to autoignition but if you think about it, the higher compressed a fuel air mixture is, the more explosive it is. If it burns too quickly, you get a ping. So they make the fuel burn slower and the higher compression won't cause the ping.
This is old school stuff from the days of my youth and the terms seem to be getting revised so as to not make sense anymore. In a way the explanation makes sense that octane is the resistance to autoignition but how the heck does that happen? It burns slower...that's how. Wiki doesn't even source the word octane to it's Latin root. Neither do a lot of other sites.
So in a nutshell...9.5 to 1 compression and lower is my cutoff point for using 87 octane gasoline. When I go above that and especially above 12 to 1, I usually toss in the 91 octane gasoline. It does depend on other factors as to which octane rating to use such as bore and stroke and the normal operating temp of the engine.
The 2009 and 2010 compression ratio is 12.2 to 1 on the FZ6F and that is borderline IMHO.
FZ1 is 11.5 to 1
YZF-R1 is 12.7 to 1
YZF-R6 is 13.1 to 1
So you can see the same motor with different compression ratios for different models.
Back in the old days I used to go to Long Beach Airport and fill my street legal 1976 Honda factory road racer with 130 octane aviation gas and it loved it. Lots more HP and smoother acceleration. They only have 100ll now.
I don't know if anyone can feel the difference in their bikes between 87 and 91 octane but 87 to 130 was easy to feel.
Since the bike gets 35 to 40 mpg, I toss in the 91 octane FWIW.
bikerchick13
New Member
premo here too.
Wether you use premium or regular is less important then where you get your fuel. Always pick a station that sells a lot of fuel, so it is always fresh, and never fill up when the fuel truck is there. When dumping fuel into the tank they stir up the crud on the bottom of the tank, then you pump that stuff into your tank. I use regular in the Yamaha because it works, and I'm thrifty. I can't get away with regular in my BMW most of the time unless the weather is cool...... alas it requires mid-grade most of the year, sometimes premium during hot weather. Also it doesn't hurt to run some Sea Foam now and then, keeps the system clean. Your injectors will thank you.
That disclaimer means: that if you use a lesser gas from the only game in town, use their premium. OR Use /change to a good recognized gas and not the cheapo stuff. I noticed a significant difference in gas quality in another state that had gas from "local sources". The test is whether your engine knocks with the fuel you normally use!
I agree. I always fill up with "regular" unleaded from Chevron, and the bike runs great. I've tried a few tank of "premium" from Chevron, but didn't notice any difference what so ever. If I have to fill up at a lower quality gas station, I'll usually put in mid or premium because of the lower quality.
High compression and high rpms just makes premium seem like the wise choice. It's only like 10 bucks to fill up here, what am I gonna do with like .60 extra cents anyhow? Lol
Also it's been shown that premium will burn more completely and give mRginally better gas mileage. I got 170 miles before f-trip if I just drive casually.
Also it's been shown that premium will burn more completely and give mRginally better gas mileage. I got 170 miles before f-trip if I just drive casually.
Nope, they are vented, and they take in moisture from the atmosphere as fuel is pumped out of them. Water contamination is fairly common. Water sits on the bottom of the tank until it is stirred up. Water being heavier then fuel will settle back to the bottom of the tank after the tank truck is done dumping fuel.
He got it right, that is the test.
I live in an AG area, we grow lots of nut trees, milk is our largest industry. With trees and cows comes dust and pollen. What ever maybe in the air where you live will end up in the tanks. Some fuel stations tout filters right on the pumps, some don't use them, so maybe a good place to buy fuel would be one of those stations that have fuel filters. I don't believe those filters are effective with water, but the particulate matter should be removed by the filters, assuming they are fine enough to capture the particles. I just realized that I have high jacked this thread, it was supposed to be about regular vs premium fuel, sorry. Now back to the regular program....
As a side interest to this thread...and because it has been mentioned already, what brand of gas do you run?
For me # is Shell Premium and #2 for now is 76 Union Premium.
Anyone have other preferences and why?
I find I get the most HP with Shell 91 in any vehicle.
I stay away from Arco and Vallejo.
For me # is Shell Premium and #2 for now is 76 Union Premium.
Anyone have other preferences and why?
I find I get the most HP with Shell 91 in any vehicle.
I stay away from Arco and Vallejo.
What happened in Vallejo?
redwing-2001
New Member
Because we have a fuel injection system (computer) and manfacturer recommended 87 octane there is no real benefit to using higher octane fuels. Do some research. Here is just one link What Octane Rating of Gasoline Should I Use?
I like shell gas as well. V-Power baby 
It could be all a marketing deal with most stations as there number #1 product they sell is wait for it...... GAS. Still considered a product so you can either believe the hype and marketing for higher premiums like I do :surrender: or just hit the 89 button and go on with your day. I still think bud-light taste better out of the glass bottle than those dumb plastic ones!
It could be all a marketing deal with most stations as there number #1 product they sell is wait for it...... GAS. Still considered a product so you can either believe the hype and marketing for higher premiums like I do :surrender: or just hit the 89 button and go on with your day. I still think bud-light taste better out of the glass bottle than those dumb plastic ones!I consider Bud light in bottles to be the "Redneck microbeer"! And if you want to get real fancy, you pour the bottle into a glass!
And, yes, it does taste better than in the plastic or metal cans. :iconbeer:- Status