# Premium unleaded vs.. Regular unleaded



## Brian's plowing (Dec 9, 2017)

Just wondering what peoples thoughts are about premium unleaded fuel over regular unleaded, I use premium fuel in my snowblowers and lawn equipment as well as treating the fuel with sea foam here in the Chicago Illinois area, it seems that running premium fuel prevents much of the fuel issues and the machines run better. I am also a firm believer in running full synthetic 0w30 oil, either amsoil or royal purple in my 4 cycle snow blowers and 10w30 amsoil or royal purple in my lawn mower.


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## GustoGuy (Nov 19, 2012)

I use non ethanol 91 octane for collector cars and outboards and small engines since 10% ethanol blends are not good for small engines. As to octane the engines only require 87 to 89 octane at best but the alcohol is especially problematic on small 2 stroke engines like some single stage snowblowers have. I use Amsoil in all my gasoline engines and I have a 2003 Hyundai Elantra GT with 413,000 miles and it still has the original engine and original transmission.


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## crazzywolfie (Jun 2, 2014)

ethanol free fuel is a must. most of the time you can usually only find it at the gas stations in the 91 octanes if it is available at all in your area. it is all i run in my carbed engines and it makes a huge difference. even my truck notices the difference as i have noticed recently when i tried running regular gas in it again. with fuel injected engines you can run whatever you want but carbed engines are picky. as far as oil goes i think amsoil or RP might be a bit overkill but never hurts. i just run standard motor oil. i can't really see running standard oil causing any issues. most of the engines on older snowblowers are still running great with sometimes no oil changes at all. just keeping the oil topped up.


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## guybb3 (Jan 31, 2014)

A tree removal buddy of mine only uses premium in his saws and other power equipment for this reason. He said that the dealers tell him there is no ethanol in premium fuel.


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## 10953 (Sep 4, 2017)

guybb3 said:


> A tree removal buddy of mine only uses premium in his saws and other power equipment for this reason. He said that the dealers tell him there is no ethanol in premium fuel.


sadly those dealers like many here, are not being very truthful to your buddy, mass is like nj and many other states as far as emissions that follow CA carb rules. all grades of gas here and up there contain 10% ethanol to reduce emissions . i travel to the cape often and have asked, 
yet by using only premium grades he is wisely protecting his machines, those little 2 strokes pack a compression ratio higher than most cars today with DFI 
premium gas burns slower reducing chances of spark knock/pre detonation, burn cleaner than the lower grades thanks to more and better additives


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## Brian's plowing (Dec 9, 2017)

I have heard that the premium here in the Chicago area has ethanol in it but for some reason is seems to be more stable and the machines seem to run better on it. Both of my machines are both 4 cycle and seem to run better and start easier too. Use sea foam in the gas and synthetic oil and they seem like they easier to start and run nicer.


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

Brian's plowing said:


> I have heard that the premium here in the Chicago area has ethanol in it but for some reason is seems to be more stable and the machines seem to run better on it. Both of my machines are both 4 cycle and seem to run better and start easier too. Use sea foam in the gas and synthetic oil and they seem like they easier to start and run nicer.


Just looking at the pump will tell you if it has ethanol or not..
Illinois requires labeling:



> Illinois Labeling Requirements for Ethanol.
> If the fuel contains more than one percent of ethanol, Illinois requires that the gasoline pump be clearly marked with the maximum amount of ethanol included in the blend. Some states do not require that ethanol be labeled, so it would be difficult to know if the gasoline contains ethanol.


https://web.extension.illinois.edu/ethanol/vehicles.cfm

Scot


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## Toro-8-2-4 (Dec 28, 2013)

This has been discussed at great length here in the past......you may want to do a search of past posts if you want to hear every opinion and fact.

I agree that with a 4 cycle you only need 87 octane and getting ethanol free gas would be more helpful. The only exception would be if you have a highly carberized cylinder head and a higher octane would prevent knocking (pre ignition).

On 2 cycles it is a different animal as mentioned above. Most 2 cycle manufactures recommend 89 or higher......I think Husqvarna recommends 92. But don't quote me on that.

You would be better off spending the extra money on ethanol free gas which is typically 91 octane. You can used it to mix your 2 cycle gas and in your 4 cycle OPE.........
If you can find it. Some airports (Av gas) and marinas have it. 

If you find that the 87 octane runs crummy try another gas station. It is probably something else. Not the octane level. Use a busy gas station. I have read that gas stations that go through their gas quicker have a lesser chance of water condensing in the tank. Good luck.


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## crazzywolfie (Jun 2, 2014)

87 powershift said:


> sadly those dealers like many here, are not being very truthful to your buddy, mass is like nj and many other states as far as emissions that follow CA carb rules. all grades of gas here and up there contain 10% ethanol to reduce emissions . i travel to the cape often and have asked,
> yet by using only premium grades he is wisely protecting his machines, those little 2 strokes pack a compression ratio higher than most cars today with DFI
> premium gas burns slower reducing chances of spark knock/pre detonation, burn cleaner than the lower grades thanks to more and better additive


chain saws and small engines are a different bread of machines compared to the larger styled engines that are used on snowblowers. the ethanol in the gas dries out the metering diaphragm which can cause them to run like crap or not at all since they metering diaphragm acts like the float in the larger engines. if it is not working properly it can cause it to flood out or not get any fuel at all. i have replaced many. i have repaired many engines that just required a new metering diaphragm including the nice echo straight shaft trimmer i got from the garbage which are usually about $300+new.


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## 10953 (Sep 4, 2017)

crazzywolfie said:


> chain saws and small engines are a different bread of machines compared to the larger styled engines that are used on snowblowers. the ethanol in the gas dries out the metering diaphragm which can cause them to run like crap or not at all since they metering diaphragm acts like the float in the larger engines. if it is not working properly it can cause it to flood out or not get any fuel at all. i have replaced many. i have repaired many engines that just required a new metering diaphragm including the nice echo straight shaft trimmer i got from the garbage which are usually about $300+new.


LETS PLEASE stay on subject! 

i believe the subject is grades of gas like 92. not having ethanol in the USA state of massataxus when it indeed does , not what's inside a 2 stroke carb that fails because of ethanol which many of us mechanics in here are also are well aware of. 

my post was about hightest in a number of states in the USA where many people are miss informed with a statement from some dealership employees telling people hightest doesn't have ethanol when it in deed does. here on our gas pumps in these states must be boldly marked with stickers stating ethanol content. 10%,15% or 85% 

miss informing people about octane blends stating not containing, is as bad as many machine dealers telling buyers the kohler courage SV or K700 series motor on that fancy new mower has hydro lifters when they don't' ,(only commands do) so they can bang them for a valve adjust hours down the line when they crank over hard. OH your valves went out of adjustment, 2 hours of labor please

and yes i'm a very firm believer in hightest in any motor, esp. 2 strokes due to their higher compression , better additives, cleaner fuel systems,less carbon


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## Toro-8-2-4 (Dec 28, 2013)

Brian's plowing said:


> I am also a firm believer in running full synthetic 0w30 oil, either amsoil or royal purple in my 4 cycle snow blowers and 10w30 amsoil or royal purple in my lawn mower.


I would only add that most lawn mower engines don't have oil filters and changing the oil on OEM schedule is a very good idea vs. trying to extend and use synthetic. For most people that is once a year or every 30 or 40 hrs of run time. Briggs will recommend a SAE 30 for use over 40 deg F. If you use a 10w-30 it is fine but expect to burn more oil. The mowers I work on seem to have much more carb related or non engine issues than internal engine issues. Use the synthetic if it helps you sleep better at night but changing the oil on schedule with dino oil will get you to the finish line for less $.



87 powershift said:


> LETS PLEASE stay on subject!
> 
> i believe the subject is grades of gas like 92. not having ethanol in the USA state of massataxus when it indeed does , not what's inside a 2 stroke carb that fails because of ethanol which many of us mechanics in here are also are well aware of.
> 
> ...


The only comment I care to make is that using the slur Massataxus gives the impression that MA has high taxes. This is a term that some in talk radio coined many years ago and they used it repeatedly. In fact MA has about average taxes when you look at all 50 states. Income, sales, property, etc. From time to time magazines like Forbes and Money will list the most common taxes and their rates in all 50 states. MA is far from the lowest or the highest. It is somewhere in the middle.


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## paulm12 (May 22, 2015)

I'm also of the mind that premium gas for small 4-cycle engines is not worth the cost. As long as the gas is fresh, and from a top tier supplier (this can be looked up online), then 87 octane is fine. Ethanol free is certainly preferred, but I have not seen any technical study that shows 91 octane performing better or containing any more necessary additives than 87 octane for these engines.


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## crazzywolfie (Jun 2, 2014)

paulm12 said:


> I'm also of the mind that premium gas for small 4-cycle engines is not worth the cost. As long as the gas is fresh, and from a top tier supplier (this can be looked up online), then 87 octane is fine. Ethanol free is certainly preferred, but I have not seen any technical study that shows 91 octane performing better or containing any more necessary additives than 87 octane for these engines.


i can't speak for small engines but i notice a huge difference between performance between 87 and 91 octane fuel in my truck which is carbed. now i think when it comes to stuff like snowblowers i don't think it really effects performance. just usually the 91 octane gas is ethanol free most of the time which is why it is usually recommended but even then i think that is starting to become less true with more gas stations. i know around me shell is the only 1 i know is 100% ethanol free in the 91 octane. utramar doesn't say how much ethanol is in the 91 if there is any but they do say there is 10% in the 87 and 89. other gas stations don't really say on the pumps so i just avoid them and run what i trust. i have never had an issue with the shell premium gas yet. the stuff that was in my snowblower when i fired it up this winter was nearly a year old and it still runs perfectly on it. no carb related issue so far this winter.


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## guybb3 (Jan 31, 2014)

87 powershift said:


> here on our gas pumps in these states must be boldly marked with stickers stating ethanol content. 10%,15% or 85%




iirc don't the stickers say what the MAX may be? I'm not looking to argue, I just want to get as much info as possible. I was also told the entire stae of Maine has an ethanol exemption. Has anyone else heard this?


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