What kind of gas should I use

[austinpatton]

I know this is a newb question, but which kind of gas should I use? I just bought a 1995 318ti with 55,000 miles on it. My friend says I should use premium, is he right?

[nyle]

the MINIMUM octane you can put in is 89. I think most gas stations mark that as plus? but yeah. just not regular. i think you can refer to your drivers side door jam sticker. that has info about the gas you should use and tire pressure and all that jazz.


EDIT:

oh. and welcome to the site post pictures of you new ride if you get a chance

[spidertri]

Yeah, I wasn't sure about this either when I first got my ti because the gas door says minimum of 89 while the owners manual says minimum of 90, big difference, lol. However, I tried 89 then 93 and I swear the 93 feels smoother and quieted down the engine. I'm sticking with the premium.

[Chris S]

For some reason I get ~20% better MPG if I fill up with V-Power than regular, seems odd especially as mine's a 316 compact.

[tiFreak]

technically, you can run regular gas, the engine has knock sensors that can detect when you're running a lower grade of gasoline and it will retard your timing, you'll lose performance but if you just use your ti as a dd you won't notice a difference

[Asharus]

I would love to know this as well. The gas door says 89 and the manual says 90, LOL. In NY, Hess only has 87, 89 and 91.

[spidertri]

Run a tank of 89 and then a tank of 91. If they feel the same then you are fine with 89. If the 91 feels better then use that.

[ATF]

You're fine running any of those. I use to run premium because it helped me sleep better at night. The 89 grade is fine for the ti.

[Asharus]

Thanks guys, I'll run 89 and see what 's up.

[briansol]

i'm running 89 this week. seems fine.

next week i'm trying 87. there's a 45 cent price difference per gallon here on it. (87 is about 1.60, 89 is just under $2) so it might be worth it.

[M332TI]

Originally Posted by Chris S

For some reason I get ~20% better MPG if I fill up with V-Power than regular, seems odd especially as mine's a 316 compact.

this is because the lower the rating the faster the burning. hence the sensors retard the timing on 87

91 burns slower than 87s...

i use 91 always. whats 10 cents a gallon?

[CirrusSR22]

I use 89. I tried 91 for a few fill-ups in a row, but didn't notice a difference.

[Asharus]

Just filled up for the first time tonight and I used 89. I'll calculate the MPG on this tank, then I'll try 91 next and compare.

[bimmern00b]

I never see 91 around here so I am always using 93. But oh, how I remember the days of leaded 110...

[angel318ti]

I don't mean to hijack the thread but since I am running Dinan software, should I use 91 octane? I've heard they require 91 or above. somebody correct me If I'm wrong.