Quote:
Originally Posted by TBarCYa
According to the specifications on their website, Mercruiser says 87 octane fuel.
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And that's the key bit of information.
Higher octane fuels actually burn slower than lower octane fuels, and are specifically for use in engines that would experience pre-ignition (the fuel mixture - air and gas, ignites BEFORE the spark plug fires). Pre-ignition is AKA pinging, detonation, etc. The engines compression ratio, cylinder head combustion chamber design, ignition timing, camshaft lobe design, and at what temp the engine runs all factor into what octane gas the engine needs.
Higher octane gas is more resistant to pre-ignition and burns slower than lower octane gas. If your engine is not suffering from pre-ignition when using 87 then there is zero to gain by using a higher octane gas. Indeed, you could even see a slight decrease in performance (though you'd be hard pressed to notice).
Dan
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