have had a quarter tank of gas since sandy ran through here. been out since and to no avail. went out today and after an hour of driving at 20/30 miles an hour, i was down to 15 mile cruising range. found a short line on the VanWyck expressway and got into the line. halfway there i realized the gas station was named Gas Emporium, mind you i only use BP 93. i figured i'd put in 40/50 dollars premium. got to the tank 30/45 minutes later to find out cash only and they only had regular. i was pissed to say the least. i had no choice so i put in $40.00 reg. will the regular gas harm the engine? i won't put it in anymore, i'll run it out and hope i can find some premium gas. should i be concerned with the reg. gas in my car.

 

Just keep an ear out for knocking, and take it easy. The whole "Suck, Bang, Blow" process will most likely be hindered, but at least you can still drive. I would just pretend your in "Limp Mode". If it was me, I would also try and get my hands on some octane booster to increase your points a bit.

 

it won't harm, the computer will retard the timing if needed. just go back to premium when you get a chance

 

It will be fine. The knock sensors will pick up on the lower octane fuel and the ECU should adjust the timing for the lower octane gas. You may notice reduced performance or reduced gas mileage because of that. Once you get a chance just fill up with premium again and you should be good to go. Maybe run a bottle of fuel cleaner with the next fill up if you really are worried about it. Believe it or not there are actually people that run regular gas everyday instead of the required premium, lol.

 

Yep. it'll be just fine. You gotta do what you gotta do...

 

Desperate needs call for desperate measures. Most modern cars can adjust themselves to compensate for a lower octane. So yes its ok, though I wouldn't do it for a prolonged period of time

 

thanx fellas... appreciate all the replies. i will not put regular in my tank again(even though i wasn't planning on doing so anyway). it's like giving your newborn bootleg soda, it's bugging me. you guys said i'll be fine and i believe you. this is the first and last time i ever use reg. in my car.

 

For the past nineteen years and 120,000 miles, I have run my SC400 on regular gas. Premium is recommended. I get 23-24 MPG, and I have had no mechanical issues. I have used premium in my GS350 for the past six months, but I am tempted to move to regular. I suspect that few will agree with this opinion.

 

You'll be good. I'll add another suggestion (but welcome other members to refute it if I'm wrong) - as over a decade ago a family member made the mistake of filling my dad's car with regular. Back then, when the car was just over half tank, we filled it up with the highest octane. Then we repeated this 2-3 times whenever it got to half tank. The idea being that it was better to drive a tank or two at a blended octane rather than a full tank at a regular octane.

 

As others already mentioned, you'll be ok. On another note, its much easier to get gas in NJ. There are hardly any lines. I live in Brooklyn and the lines for gas are ridiculous.

 

try coming to queens.

 

so if i get down to a quarter tank i can fill up with premium?

 

Yeah, if my theory is "right" (which it very may well not be), you should regularly top it up with premium. If you do it every time you hit 3/4s a tank, all the better. That's if my theory is right .

 

IDK M... i've never mixed different grades of gas. sounds kind of iffy. theoretically your theory has me scratching my head . i'll run the reg. out and by then the gas situation here should be a little better, then i'll fill her up with BP 93.

 

I have been putting regular in my F Sport for 2 months, Dealership told me it would be fine. My company pays for gas via fleet card and will only pay for regular unleaded. (tried sneaking mid a few times but it was caught ) The first week i used supreme but do not feel any difference on power nor knocking noises.

Put regular in my 07 GS, 07 M35 sport, 06 FX and all ran like champs.

actually M35 has 168,000 miles and not one issue, knock on wood.

Obviously this is allot higher performance vehicle and if I continue running regular gas will there be any permanent damage?