Whats the best octane forthe the Ecoboost
#21
Senior Member
I would like to see that in some literature...All I have seen about octane was it might help in higher heat and heavier load situations...when it comes to the Ecoboost. I have noticed (using my Android and Torque App) that the timing does adjust while driving.
#22
So by using a higher octane the engine should run smoother under load????? I have noticed sometimes while driving on the interstate at 70mph with the cruise control on my truck will feel as though it has a very very very slight miss fire while going up a steeper grade. The engine goes under load but it doesn't down shift out 6th to 5th. Doesn't happen all the time and its very hard to notice when it does happen. I drive 6 1/2hrs every two weeks Florida to Louisiana / Louisiana to Florida (435 miles one way) to and from work. So I have plenty of time to learn my engines characteristics while driving. So guess what im getting at is should I spending more $$$ on higher 93 octane. Im also starting a thread about why there is soot in the EB exhaust tail pipe.
#23
Senior Member
Octane dictates how much compression the fuel can withstand before detonation...it does not increase the BTUs of the fuel. The power that results from using a higher octane is a result of a higher compression engine and/or advanced timing. Octane by itself does nothing to increase power or energy value of a gallon of fuel.
Octane is used to avoid pre-detonation or self-ignition without a spark. It is the opposite of Cetane which is the value looked at when using Diesel...you want a High Cetane Number (the higher the Cetane the lower the Octane) to give Diesel a quicker "fire" under compression without a spark.
For Gas, at most retail outlets, they blend in Ethanol which delivers a higher Octane Number...BUT...it yields a Lower BTU Value per gallon (hence lower mpg with this blend). You just can not ignore the specific values of fuels.
Gas ................. 114,000 BTUs/Gallon
Summer Gas ......114,500 BTUs/Gallon
Winter Gas ....... 112,500 BTUs/Gallon
Ethanol Blend ... 111,836 BTUs/Gallon
Diesel .............. 129,500 BTUs/Gallon
Bottom Line: You can not get more energy out of a gallon of anything than the BTUs contained in that said gallon.
Octane is used to avoid pre-detonation or self-ignition without a spark. It is the opposite of Cetane which is the value looked at when using Diesel...you want a High Cetane Number (the higher the Cetane the lower the Octane) to give Diesel a quicker "fire" under compression without a spark.
For Gas, at most retail outlets, they blend in Ethanol which delivers a higher Octane Number...BUT...it yields a Lower BTU Value per gallon (hence lower mpg with this blend). You just can not ignore the specific values of fuels.
Gas ................. 114,000 BTUs/Gallon
Summer Gas ......114,500 BTUs/Gallon
Winter Gas ....... 112,500 BTUs/Gallon
Ethanol Blend ... 111,836 BTUs/Gallon
Diesel .............. 129,500 BTUs/Gallon
Bottom Line: You can not get more energy out of a gallon of anything than the BTUs contained in that said gallon.
Winter gas is blended with more "light" components that will atomize more readily at cold temperatures. These "light" components are lower Molecular Weights and thus, release less energy when combusted. Combine that with the deeper vacuum gas engines draw at colder air temps, and winter mileage suffers more.
Another common wive's tale is that higher octane produce worse mileage and/or less power when that octane is not needed. This is not true. Resistance to detonate does not reduce the energy released or burn slower once lit. In fact, the opposite can sometimes be true. In some cases, highly refined high octane race gasoline can make more power than pump gas using less timing advance.
Octane rating, btu content, and burn rate are not all the same thing, and can be varied independant of each other.
Something else worth mentioning is that the Mustang 5.0 has two different power ratings from Ford, depending on fuel octane only. This is because the Mustang runs, what most would consider to be, too much compression/timing advance on the base tune. It then uses feedback control on the ignition timing to run on the edge of detonation. [Maximum timing advance before detonation normally does not make maximum power, but on this engine it does.] The truck 5.0 and the EB do not have this same dual power rating. This leads me to believe that if octane made a power difference in the EB, Ford would have given it a dual rating also.
Last edited by engineermike; 01-01-2012 at 06:43 PM.
#24
Originally Posted by hillwood24
Where can you find non ethanol fuel? All the ones around here say up to 10% ethanol. And ethanol is such a joke too. Costs more to make than its worth, and we get terrible mileage as a result. Reminds me why I vote Republican.
#25
Race Red '12 XLT SCrew EB
JoeWee3.5 probably uses premium for a couple reasons,
1) resistance to detonation. This is a high compression, force induction motor and while the programming compensates for this the manual still recommends running premium in severe duty applications such as towing.
2) Premium fuels usually have more detergents as well. most applications this will have no real benefit as regular grade usaully has more than enough detergent, but if you have seen the black soot in the EB tailpipe this may be a good investment.
personally I prefer a mid grade from my local Exxon. I used to deliver Exxon fuels and know that station has only a Regular and Premium tank. Their Mid grade is the same price as the regular and is a 50/50 blend of premium and regular. so I am getting a little better octane and more detergent for the same price.
1) resistance to detonation. This is a high compression, force induction motor and while the programming compensates for this the manual still recommends running premium in severe duty applications such as towing.
2) Premium fuels usually have more detergents as well. most applications this will have no real benefit as regular grade usaully has more than enough detergent, but if you have seen the black soot in the EB tailpipe this may be a good investment.
personally I prefer a mid grade from my local Exxon. I used to deliver Exxon fuels and know that station has only a Regular and Premium tank. Their Mid grade is the same price as the regular and is a 50/50 blend of premium and regular. so I am getting a little better octane and more detergent for the same price.
#26
Senior Member
2) Premium fuels usually have more detergents as well. most applications this will have no real benefit as regular grade usaully has more than enough detergent, but if you have seen the black soot in the EB tailpipe this may be a good investment.
personally I prefer a mid grade from my local Exxon. I used to deliver Exxon fuels and know that station has only a Regular and Premium tank. Their Mid grade is the same price as the regular and is a 50/50 blend of premium and regular. so I am getting a little better octane and more detergent for the same price.
As for the "black soot", I think it is more from the fact that the Ecoboost does not have an EGR (mechanical) and uses the engines own characteristics :
This EcoBoost truck engine also features twin independent variable camshaft timing, or Ti-VCT, to help save fuel. Ti-VCT provides extremely precise variable – yet independent – control of timing for intake and exhaust valves. Ti-VCT also reduces emissions, especially in situations when the throttle is partially open.
***http://media.ford.com/article_displa...le_id=33260***
This means it will run a bit rich to reduce NOx for emissions
#27
I've have been using Shell 87 octane in my 2011 ecoboost since day one. I now have 7000 miles on my truck and have read a few threads where people are using higher octane/premium fuel. Has anyone noticed a difference in performance or mileage using a higher octane/premium fuel? Is it worth the extra $$$
it's worth the extra cost for higher octane fuel for me....93 octane gets me 2 more miles per gallon average than 87 octane.............5 more bucks a tank full is not that big a deal....for better mpg and performance.
Last edited by Georgiaboy5.0L; 01-01-2012 at 09:56 PM.
#28
So if Joewee3.5 is calling BS on higher octane getting better gas mileage and you are agreeing, can one of you please explain why Joewee3.5 only uses 93 octane?
Like I said earlier, I'm not disagreeing with you. I just want to understand why someone would pay extra for premium when they don't get any benefit from it. What else is there that I'm missing?
Like I said earlier, I'm not disagreeing with you. I just want to understand why someone would pay extra for premium when they don't get any benefit from it. What else is there that I'm missing?
Last edited by Joewee3.5; 01-01-2012 at 10:40 PM.
#29
Just Another Member
Thanks. FWIW, I haven't seen straight gas in years. Everything in my part of the country is E10, which sucks.
#30
Thanks for the information on this site. I found out the closest non ethanol gas is 77 miles from me. Looks like it would be very handy on long trips to plan your fuel stops and be able to take advantage of the benefits!