Gasoline, emissions standards, and driving habits

[Stanley]

So we pay more for worse gas and can't take our business elsewhere (unless we live in Blythe).

If what I've read is correct, increasing octane more than required to prevent detonation will reduce performance and mileage.

The homemade octane booster with acetone sounds interesting. Wanted some more information and did a web search, but found so many differing personal experience opinions, and so many theoretical opinions, that I don't know any more than before. I'm using some acetone today, fiberglassing a rusty place on the truck, it works well cleaning polyester resin off the brushes and softening old fiberglass for better adhesion of new fiberglass. I've seen it melt various plastics, but it sometimes comes in a plastic container. It evaporates super fast. Doubt if a very thinned-down mix would damage fuel pumps, etc., some say it does, some say no. I'm in the process of changing fuel hoses to lined marine grade that keeps the ethanol away from the rubber - can't change the fuel bowl/nozzles hoses though.

Read that some Berryman's octane booster contains acetone, but a link to their spec sheet didn't work. Their better (higher octane possible) booster's are advertised to be for Mexico/off road only.

If acetone's safe and works to reduce detonation it seems a lot cheaper than adding octane booster or race gas.

[djwarner]

If what I've read is correct, increasing octane more than required to prevent detonation will reduce performance and mileage.......

If acetone's safe and works to reduce detonation it seems a lot cheaper than adding octane booster or race gas.

Increasing octane from a pump beyond what's needed will only lighten your wallet.

I used acetone as an additive in my 2002 Q45 with no ill effects. Added 5 ounces at each 17 gallon fill up. Adding more than this percentage does not increase octane.

[gnosez]

5 oz of acetone in 17 gals of gas would raise your octane from say 91 to 91.2 at best. Adding a 50:50 mix would actually increase your octane number quite a bit. Using say 3 oz of acetone plus a little bit of lead per gallon of 91 octane gas would increase the octane level to about 96. Five oz and no lead won't do as much.

With a CR of 12.2:1 I have to be a bit careful what goes in my gas tank and anything under 100 will cause it to start knocking under WOT applications.

[Captain_Zeros]

12.2:1, hot damn