does feul grade really matter, and other silly questions

[newenglandlr3]

Well said askewed. I could not have said it better myself.

 

[Amir]

very well said, indeed, askewed. if i had written all that, i would have certainly added the following sentence in the end or at the begining of my post just to be on the safe side ..."i am not a conspiracy theorist and i don't believe in aliens"

 

[rangestormer82]

In response to what askewed has said. First and foremost it costs Rover 28K for every LR3 they build. They sell it to the distributor for about 35 and they then sell it to the dealer for what eventually becomes the invoice price. Having been around the car business since I was 7 years old, I'm well aware of how things work in this (the automotive) world. Higher octane gas is, in essence, a scam. No car, even the hallowed Astons and Lambos and Ferraris, NEED high octane fuel. The higher the performance of your car, the higher they recommend. And yes, you will notice SLIGHT differences with the higher octanes, but nothing drastic will happen to your car towards either end of the spectrum (i.e. amazing performance - horrible engine meltdown). All I can say to anyone posting on any of these forums in a negative way is, do better research. You have every piece of information at your fingertips. And for God's sake do NOT think that because you spent anywhere up to $95,000 for your car that it gives you the right to be an insufferable, complaining, whiny a$$hole. If you think that your car won't have a rattle in it because it's an $80,000 Range Rover, you're wrong. And just because your LR3 cost 50 grand and it goes off road does NOT mean that the center caps won't come off your wheels. These are machines people, and they're not perfect.

 

[grommet]

I'm pretty much done with the octane discussion, but here's one more link for people that won't read any government funded sites:

http://www.straightdope.com/columns/041008.html

 

[madtownrover]

well said Askewed...spot on.

 

[toddjb123]

Good topic, one quick followup question;

Can LR tell if I have not been using 91 Octane if I go in for a warranty issue down the road?

The story I heard is from a friend who owns a Discovery down in NC. He claims he witnissed a very heated customer communication with his dealer...the dealer would not warranty a major engine problem because they claimed the owner had not been using the recommended fuel. He denied this. The dealership claimed they could tell by deposits (?) in his engine that he used a lower octane fuel than required.


So, any truth to that? I'm all for saving some cash and putting 87 or even midgrade in the rover, but I'd hate to run into problems down the road with my warranty.

Thoughts?

 

[w6000]

Good topic, one quick followup question;

Can LR tell if I have not been using 91 Octane if I go in for a warranty issue down the road?

The story I heard is from a friend who owns a Discovery down in NC. He claims he witnissed a very heated customer communication with his dealer...the dealer would not warranty a major engine problem because they claimed the owner had not been using the recommended fuel. He denied this. The dealership claimed they could tell by deposits (?) in his engine that he used a lower octane fuel than required.


So, any truth to that? I'm all for saving some cash and putting 87 or even midgrade in the rover, but I'd hate to run into problems down the road with my warranty.

Thoughts?

Given the knowledge level or lack of knowledge level of Land Rover service people, Iwould love to see them prove that.

 

[bwanajim]

Years ago, when we got our first Discovery (a 1996 SE7), we tried running 89 octane fuel in it. The Disco's response was to throw a check engine warning if we did it constantly. When the dealer read the fault codes, the error would be related to the knock sensor.

We have been using a mix over the last few years - alternating 89 with 92. No check engine lights and no apparent problems as a result.

Now, my 1997 Camel Disco with the wonderful 300Tdi engine will practically run on anything. I once miscalculated my fuel requirements in India, and near the Rothang Pass, I found myself dangerously low. I stopped at a tiny roadside tea shop run by a Nepali family and started asking for diesel. They produced some plastic bottles filled with some stuff they had scavenged from a bulldozer that had slipped off the road and crashed down into the valley. It didn't smell like diesel. It was more oily and greasy-like. Nevertheless, we poured it into the Disco. The old girl smoked like crazy, but burned the stuff and got us over the Rothang (15,000ft) and back down to civilization.

Gotta love that 300tdi!

--Jim

Cheers - Jim

 

[Brutus]

The main reason that Land Rover requires premium fuel is not so the oil companies can make money but because premium fuel has detergents and other cleaning properties beneficial to good motoring. As a certified Land Rover technician I can, in some cases, tell when someone is not using premium fuel. In the long run it will become an issue. My 95 Discovery gets about 12-14 mpg and I will only use premium. If you want to play you have got to pay.

 

[timbo]

I'll let you all be the judge if the detergent package in premium fuels is different or better than regular.

"EPA requires the use of additives to control the formation of engine and fuel supply system deposits in all U.S. gasoline. An interim program has been in place since 1995 which requires the use of detergents to control intake valve deposits (IVD) and port fuel injector deposits (PFID) in gasoline engines, but did not include rigorous performance standards for the additives. The requirements of the interim program have recently been replaced by those of the detergent certification program which requires specific vehicle-based performance testing, using industry-standard test procedures, to demonstrate the effective control of IVD and PFID.

As of July 1, 1997, detergent manufacturers have been required to sell only properly certified detergents to their detergent blending customers. In addition, detergent blenders must blend certified detergents at the prescribed concentration into all gasoline they distribute. Furthermore, distributors must sell or transfer only gasoline and post-refinery components (PRC) properly additized with certified detergents. As of August 1, 1997, gasoline retailers have been required to ensure that all gasoline sold or transferred to the ultimate consumer is properly additized with certified detergents. Implementation of the detergent certification program will realize the full expected environmental benefits of controlling IVD and PFID, namely, reductions in emissions of hydrocarbons (HC), carbon monoxide (CO), and oxides of nitrogen (NOx), and improvement of fuel economy. "

http://www.epa.gov/otaq/regs/fuels/additive/fact7gda.htm