kapusta

All this talk about premium fuel reminded me of something. If you ever get a fuel whose octane rating causes pinging in your engine (especially true for the high compression/high perf BMW engines) then stay away from any fuel additives etc. Instead use 100% pure toluene that you can get in a hardware/paint store. Toluene has an octane rating of 114, so usually a gallon or two for the full tank will be enough.

Toluene is probably the best, but also the least economical octane booster. It was used as the "rocket fuel" by formula 1 cars in the past. For more info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toluene

craigm1841

thanks for the info, but I am gonna pass on this one.

mrfva

I'm with you on this one Craig ...

"Toluene at 100% can be used as a fuel for both two-stroke and four-stroke engines; however, due to the density of the fuel and other factors, the fuel does not vaporize easily unless preheated to 70 degrees Celsius (Honda accomplished this in their Formula 1 cars by routing the fuel lines through the muffler system to heat the fuel). Toluene also poses similar problems as alcohol fuels, as it eats through standard rubber fuel lines and has no lubricating properties as standard gasoline does, which can break down fuel pumps and cause upper cylinder bore wear."

kapusta

It's still better than Ethanol with respect to that and you do get 10% of it in regular gas. Remember I'm not saying use it as your fuel, I'm saying it's the safest thing to add to rase your octane rating. The only reason Ethanol is used instead of Toluene is because of EPA requirements. Toluene is much better for your car than Ethanol which is a pure alcohol that destroys your standard rubber fuel lines even faster...

craigm1841

still, i will just put 93 from a reputible gas station known for quality in my car. I prefer sunoco or chevron

swajames

Some interesting reading. I suspect there is indeed some method to the madness here.

http://www.elektro.com/~audi/audi/toluene.html

DRANGED

Let us know how it works after you throw a gallon in your P-car.

mrfva

+1

swajames

craigm1841