Filling up the gas tank is routine for many vehicle owners, however, there are details that are good to know for better performance and better economy.
Aside from the prices, do you know how adequate the different types of gasoline are? Do you know what you get when you choose between regular and extra gas? Which one should you choose for your vehicle?
There are two kinds of gasoline: regular gasoline, which has an octane rating of less than 87 and is the most widely used; and there is the extra known in other countries as Premium with an octane rating of 91 or more, with 91 octane and 93 octane being the most common versions.
Octane is the amount of compression a fuel can withstand before igniting. or rather it is a measure of a fuel’s ability to avoid detonation.
Here are some recommendations:
Many people believe that the new car, because it is new, needs extra. Age has nothing to do with it and there are cases where a heavily used engine full of coal requires extra in its old age.
If the manufacturer doesn’t recommend extra for your car, you’re not doing your vehicle a favor by tanking with this gas. Some makes specify the use of extra gasoline, because certain types of engines run better with higher octane fuel.
The octane number of the gasoline, high or low, does not damage the turbo because it works independently of the fuel that is supplied to the already compressed air, in the manifold or in the chamber, if it is direct injection. The turbo goes before that.
A well-known octane booster is tetraethyl lead, which has not been in our gasoline for many years due to its carcinogenic and polluting effects. We have gasoline known worldwide as ‘unleaded’. If an external additive other than extra gasoline uses it, it immediately damages the expensive catalytic converter.
If an engine pistons or rattles, in the long run it will crack the pistons, run hotter than it should, and may fail for this reason as well.
Be sure of your mixture or of using the gasoline that the manufacturer asks for, because, if there is a fault that is compatible with low octane, the car’s computers can memorize the incorrect operation that the scanners show and void the eventual guarantee that covers the engine. .
Caution: When traveling at low altitudes, try to stock up on a larger dose of extra beforehand if you wear a refajo (mix current and extra), because it is not obvious to find it on the road or to be sure of its quality. Always exceed the ratio.
Never drive the engine ‘hanging’, because at low rpm (revolutions per minute) with the throttle open, in the retakes, for example, the filling of the cylinders is not the best and the pressure increases considerably. It is the usual condition in which the piston is heard. Get the tach in the 3,000-rpm zone and up, and shift the gear toward the lower ratio whenever you need it, especially in the mountains. The first is to use it.
The turbo does not require special care or maintenance other than changing engine oil, hopefully synthetic, rigorously and simultaneously with the air filter, which is the element that circulates in the compressor. The time it takes to park is enough for the turbo to slow down and stabilize. This is always spinning, even at idle engine speed.
The ‘range’ or displacement of the vehicle does not determine the octane number of gasoline you should use. This is specified according to the internal conditions of the engine. It can be a popular price car with a need for extra.
The raw material for a combustion engine to work is air. In order to ignite it, fuels such as gas, gasoline, ACPM, methanol and other alcohols will be added, and synthetic gasoline is on the way.
If your vehicle’s owner’s manual suggests using extra gas, there’s a reason. Cars that require this gasoline have high-compression engines, turbochargers, and other high-performance aspects.
Not using extra will not harm the engine however, but some performance may be lost if you use regular gasoline. That’s why it’s important to always use the right kind of gasoline.
It makes no sense to use additives that are offered at the service station if at the same time they offer ‘latest technology’ gasoline, what this indicates is that the station itself does not have confidence in the product it sells.
