Is higher octane gas worth the $208.00 increase in gas costs per year? Does the higher octane premium gas result in better mileage? Is better fuel economy attained by using premium gas? Does higher octane gas enable your car run better?
It will cost you $208.00 annually if you fill your car with premium gas instead of regular. The difference between regular fuel and premium fuel is about twenty cents per gallon. Therefore it will cost you $4.00 more per tank if you use premium gasoline instead of regular gasoline. This assumes you have a 20 gallon tank and you fill up about once per week.
Looking at the higher octane question of increased fuel economy, does it help? The bottom line answer is emphatically no!! High octane premium gas does not increase fuel economy one bit. The octane rating is a number that has nothing to do with how efficient it is in creating energy to run your engine.
The octane rating of gasoline is a relative number showing the amount of isooctane in the gasoline as opposed to the amount of heptane in the gasoline. To make it simple, the octane rating is a representation of how much energy it takes to ignite that gasoline. This octane measurement does not indicate the amount of energy the gasoline produces, which would be an indicator of fuel economy. The final answer is:octane rating and increased fuel economy have no relationship whatsoever!
The next question, does premium gas make your car gain performance, does it run better? The answer is the same as the fuel economy answer, no!! It has been shown that there is no significant difference in the way your car runs if you use premium gasoline.
I have to add this one caveat, in regards to performance gain, there is the possibility that your vehicle could show a little horsepower gain with premium gas as opposed to regular gas but it would be so small that it would be almost impossible to notice. This small increase in horsepower really only is there because it can give car makers a little extra marketing fodder by using a claim on horsepower as part of their advertising.
Car manufacturers utilize this slight horsepower gain to market their cars claiming more horsepower by optimizing and designing their cars to take advantage of higher octane premium gasoline's anti-knock properties. Engineers and car experts agree that if you opt to use regular gasoline in your car designed for premium gasoline, the loss of horsepower is so small, you will not be able to detect any difference.
There is a misconception that you can void your warranty or harm your car if you use regular gas and your car maker suggests that you should use high octane premium gas. Most car makers admit that using regular gasoline even when the owner's guide suggests the use of premium gas won't void your warranty. They also stipulate that using regular will not damage the engine.
When you next stop at the gas station, try regular gasoline instead of premium. Your immediate benefit will be saving $4.00 right away on that tank of gas. Pay attention to how your car runs with regular octane gasoline. If it seems to run fine, if you cannot feel any difference and if you do not hear your engine knocking, then continue to purchase lower octane regular gas. You will see a savings of over $200.00 per year!
