No, it's more expensive to produce everywhere. Around here, government subsidies make ethanol fuel cheaper than non-corn.

I run 93....it's too hot in florida and the bike runs hotter with the lower grade gas. I get pinging and detonation running anything lower. I've tried different plugs too and did not help.

:evillaugh: :p:p:p:p

I was serious.

im from the uk i run my bike on regular unleaded which is 95 RON

we also have super unleaded which is 97 RON and some fuel stations have recently started offering 99 RON

this is only of benefit on tuned cars and bikes that were designed to run on it imo, like mitsubushi evo's that have been mapped for that octane rating etc there is no benefit from running it in your bike.

Tried water and then a 10% alcohol blend. I couln't run worth a damn after a litre of the 10% blend. The bike ran like crap too but I'm reluctant to switch to water...

-D

9.4:1 , FTW

In NY 10% Ethanol is the standard. There is a station local to me that advertises no ethanol and I have confirmed I get about a 6%-7% better mileage on my TSX. The Superhawk is another story. I think I run richer with the no ethanol fuel. I do know that my idle goes down with the no ethanol fuel and I have to adjust it up to keep from stalling. I am guessing that with this fuel the low speed jet is to rich thus lowering the idle rpm.
I suspect the fueling system in my car recognizes the good stuff and optimizes the injectors, while the hawks lowly carbs can't do any of that

You give your car too much credit.

87 Less calories. Cheap, low-commuter diet. ;)

91 to 94 depending where I go. I ran some 87 and the bike ran fine but felt a lot ssmoother with the 91. For the extra 8 cents a liter on a 10 liter fill I really won't loose sleep :)

I've heard this many times, although it doesn't quite add up, so there's got to be something else to it.

Ethanol has about 65% of the energy of gas. 90% gas and 10% ethanol gives you about 96.5% of the energy of pure gas.

Also, in CA at least, the 10% ethanol is a maximum, so they could be putting in some amount less than that. Ethanol has a higher octane rating so I assume that means they're mixing it with lower octane gas to get to 87?

Well, in fact, he is giving it the right amount of credit. It really is a matter of a chemistry problem. FI vehicles use an O2 sensor to monitor the air fuel mixture. The algorithm in the computer is look for "x" AMOUNT O2 in the exhaust. When the vehicle uses an oxygenated fuel like alcohol, the stoichiometric ration is different than pure gasoline, causing it to see this as a "lean" condition, or too much O2, and enriches the short term fuel trim until the correct amount, "x", is reached. If that fuel is used consistently, that enrichment becomes part of the long term fuel trim logic.

Is it recognizing the fuel, no. Is it recognizing the O2 levels, yes.

Union 76 was the last leaded premium in California, 92 octane. All my riding buddies used it. When 76 took the lead out (might have been '87 or '88) they started using alcohol in large enough amounts that it turned the insulators red on my CB700SC. When I saw that I quit using 76 and so did my buddies.

Before i worry about what octane, i worry about who the fuel supplier is for each station..

I have a serious issue with ethanol. I work in the fuel industry and i have pulled out the sludge that water + ethanol + fuel create. normally fuel and water seperate, (and they set the tanks at an angle to try to keep the water out of your fuel) but we have noticed that with the addidtion of ethanol, they are starting to gel and bond together. Since working here, there are only a few gas stations that i will use (Valero being the main one) because of the quality of fuel and the lack of ethanol they use.

If you guys saw the amount of sludge i have pulled out of shell station tanks, you would probably shit yourselves.

Valero stations (at least around me) have the highest standards for tank testing and cleanout.

The same goes for ultra low sulphur diesel. That shit is causing more problems than freightliner and international know how to deal with.

My point exactly. It does not recognize "better fuel". It simply recognizes the A/F mixture is off and adjusts accordingly.

Lame Poll, no 93 options, It's 93 Octain for me here in TN.....

I stand corrected. My 2005 Honda sales brochure states 9.4:1 on the spec page.

But with over 32,000 miles of carbon deposits in the combustion chamber, mine is now 9.5:1.:rolleyes:

Don't want to turn this into an ethanol bashing. I know the numbers, BUT on MY car for MY very repeatable 85 mile/day commute, utilizing both the onboard computer for visibility into my MPG during the week and then confirming the numbers at a fill up I get 6% - 7% better with the non ethanol - typical MPG in the summer for this commute is 31.5 +/- 0.5 for fuel with ethanol and 33.5mpg +/- 0.5mpg without. I know, not a blind test, and I could possibly be unintentionally influencing the outcome.

I have nothing remotely repeatable about my Superhawk rides so I cant conclude anything about the non ethanol gas in my bike other that I have to turn up the idle slightly as compared to the ethanol spiked gas.

i thought the guy at my local part supplier was lying when he said his petcock and tank were full of sludge from the ethenol causing the bike to not start... now this is the 5th or 6th time ive heard this i guess oil companies are the best at "learning from their mistakes :rolleyes:"

I use 87 octane. We use "corn gas" (ethanol) here in Hawaii by State decree. Once every couple of months I will run a couple gallons of 100+ octane through it even though doing this probably has minimal effect on engine health. The exhaust smell from the high octane gas is very different from the 87 stuff.

That must be Gasohol (10% ethanol) right? Can't run E85 is a standard engine, can you?

Yes, Gasohol is what we use. Attracts water too. Regular gas is available for aircraft and boats because when their engines stop running, the consequences are a little more serious.

Last Summer I repeatedly took the carbs off my sooz 750 to fix problems. I noticed after a 2-3 week period the ethanol seperated from the Gasoline. Small light brown blobs were floating on the bottom of the carb float bowls. It also froze all the jets on a friends bike because he let it sit too long. I now use a stabilizer or fuel treatment on any fillup. Especially on lawn mowers or snowblowers. Machines that may sit for a while without usage are at the highest risk. Car is unnecessary because its driven daily.

well ill be going to get some sea foam today bike has been sitting all week and im getting paranoid.

If you only ride occasionally, go to your local small airport a befriend a pilot. Airplanes run on 100 low lead. My SH loves this stuff. 100 octaine, NO ethonal (proven to be so bad for engines that is is banned from use in aircraft), and has addatives to prevent varnishing. This fuel stays good for years in the tank.

:popcorn: +1

This is very comforting......:roll: I guess on the bright side someone is going to have to fix all these engines/problems, thus more jobs will be created.
I'm seeing fuel go "stale" or "gum/jell" in as little as three weeks just sittng in small engines. Carb clean. Bummer.:banghead:

I heard on the News recently the gov is upping the allowable level of ethanol to 20%. That'll suck. Avgas rules. I run fryer fat in my F250 and 93 in my SH.

I've heard it's due to the ethanol reacting with the water in the gas.

Kinda reminds me of the problems with Dexcool. Works perfect in a laboratory, but in the real world, in a cooling system with air in it, it turns to jell-o.