Just picked up a GT & was wondering why the manual calls for 87? All the V8's I have owned all required 91 or higher. WIll it hurt anything if I deviate from the owners manual & run 93? Is there any noticeable power difference between the two? Not too concerned about the MPG's but is that affected as well? Thanks.
Team MF Member #510 Posts: 2423
Joined: 11/19/2006 From: Southern Cali Status: offline
Yep. Unless you run an aftermarket tune, the stock programming although the PCM will adjust won't have a noticable difference. Run a programmer with a 93 tune and the difference from stock will be amazing.
A lot of people can't use 87 though as the car will ping. Mine does so I have to run the next step up in octane. This happens even with my tunes. But I noticed the pinging only happens when the engine is cold, once it's warm I don't think it does it any more. I would love to find out why some of these cars do this.
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2006 GT Premium Vista Blue Auto K&N CAI AeroForce Interceptor dual gauges. XCal2 w/ Brenspeed tunes Corsa axle-back exhaust Corsa crew member/founder.
Only run what the manufacturer recommends, in this case 87. Octane's not quality but rather the volitility-rate at which it burns. But as the others have said, get a tune then run 93 w/more power!!!
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06 Vista Blue GT 5-Speed C&L CAI, Steeda Strut Tower Brace, UDPs, LCAs Flowmaster American Thunder, FRPP 4.10s Hurst Shifter, SCT w/ BRENSPEED Tune
the only car that would run more hp with higher octane is the new bullit mustang, because it's tuned to detect the higher octane and change the timing.
also guys we should mention running a higher octane without a tune will cause more carbon buildup quicker so then you can have some fun with the TSB on removing the plugs!!!
I put 87 all the time, i would recommend a good gas station because ive heard plenty of storys of stations using cheap 87. Gotta use the big guys who are profiting a couple billion a year :)
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2006 5spd Mustang GT- Black with red int upgrade; skr500. Stock for now! Best 1/4 Mile-13.32@104.5mph 60ft-1.997*Bone Stock w/street tires*
I have my car tuned and I've been using the 87 performance tune from Bama because of gas prices. Is the change to 93 with the appropriate tune worth it for the power? The 87 tune never impressed me a lot, but I figured it was the fuel I was using. Also, does anyone else use the Bama 93 race tune on a daily driver or is that bad to do? Thanks.
Ditto on the "no gain" using anything over 87 octane with the stock tune. And with a custom tune, you'll notice a significant change from the stock 87 tune and most of the custom 87 octane tunes, let alone the higher octane tunes. Use the search feature as there are TONS of info on this subject.
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Rick 07 GT Prem, Alloy, MT, 3.55s, Steeda CAI/Xcal2 w/Brenspeed tunes, 14" shorty, 275/40/18 Goodyear Eagle F1 Allseasons on SVT 2007 Cobras, FRPP Stingers
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Is there a noticeable difference between 93 & 87 octane? - 
