Who's using premium gas and who's using basic gas?

[EatDirtFartDust]

If I had ethanol free gas available, I would rather use 87 octane e-free than contaminated premium

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[euchre_u]

Premium............................$3.69 here in Colorado

Premium - $3.09/gal at Costco in west Houston this weekend. Going with the 91 octane for my 3.5 PB.

 

[Zyvin]

I’ve used a few tanks of each. Avg 20.8 with both in 3.5 eb.

 

[EatDirtFartDust]

After learning about the advancements Ford has put into the 3.5 ecoboost, and the fact that I have a lifetime warranty on the engine, I’ve decided I’m going to use regular octane fuel instead of premium.

I’m still going to use premium in my 2.0 ecoboost MKZ, because it’s a 2015.
Have used premium since I bought the car at 50k miles and now up to 100k and still runs nice and smooth:
Replaced spark plugs at 60k and will do again at 120k.

 

[Tosh]

If I had ethanol free gas available, I would rather use 87 octane e-free than contaminated premium

We have ethanol-free 92 octane available here - $4.75/gal US. I've been blending it 50/50 w/E15 89 octane - $3.75/gal - and getting good results. The engine runs super smooth, great power, decent MPGs. I know it's not economically sound to run high octane, but the computer knows how to adjust for it, so there is a performance gain, which I like ;-}

 

[Whiskey]

Black top tank filler so I run the cheapest fuel that ain’t yellow in my PB. I guess somebody gotta buy that expensive fuel they put in that high octane tank. My racing days are over and I don’t much care if I get 5 or 10 more horsepower even if my ECU made the required changes.

 

[Gros Ventre]

The discussion of octane, etc must recognize that using a higher octane than the engine is designed for does not bring more energy to the table. In essence using higher than 87 octane is just pushing money out your tailpipe. Now, if you're doing some heavy towing, in the hottest of summertime, going up in octane for that run is not a bad idea in that it gives you a bit of margin over potential engine detonation during long term, high power, high intake temperature operations.

 

[bigdaddycool21]

87 on a regular basis and every 1000 miles or so I'll fill up with 93 then back to 87 why not

 

[Graygoose2021]

89 all the time.

 

[sysop]

Since Ford recommends it for towing and I never know when I'll need to strap on a trailer, I use premium. Ran premium on my 2015 for 183,000 miles and had no fuel or induction issues.

I live in the mountains and have noticed enough of a difference that it is worth it to me. If on the throttle it does make a notable power difference, but I tend to stick with the speed limits so what I see most in my day to day driving is that I use the throttle less when using premium. My truck always has nearly 1000lbs of materials and tools onboard, so that may be adding to the benefits I see.

We were in a bit of a wintertime heat wave when I first picked my truck up and I was initially getting just over 20MPG. Temps took a nosedive, as did my MPG. It got as low as 18.3MPG. That was using the remote start repeatedly and also leaving the truck run for long periods of time to melt the snow off. Over the past week, temps have normalized, and my MPG has steadily been climbing.

I have a bone stock 2022 long wheelbase Lariat with the 3.5l Ecoboost and the max tow package. I have had it just over a month.

Here is a video that has a good explanation of the conditions where premium fuel is most useful.


This was at my most recent fillup:

 

[DBL R]

I use 92 octane. Any high performance engine should use higher octane fuels, forced induction by definition is a high performance engine. The owners manual even states that to get the manufacturer stated performance one should use higher octane fuels. Specially they mention higher octane fuels for towing. With how long these tanks last for, I’d hate to have to wait 500+ miles to flush lower octane fuel from the tank if needed to tow heavy.

 

[Pelican]

I've only been using 87 in my 3.5L. Haven't had an issues with 87 and the mileage seems respectable. In fact, I once achieved 62.8 mph (see attached picture). Just kidding, I just filled up and was coasting down a hill, which is why I achieved the 62.8. As you can imagine, as soon as I stepped on the gas, it fell quickly. Over my lifetime ownership (7/9/21 to 2/22/22), I have averaged 19.4 (see attached) since purchasing it new (9,874 miles to date), which I estimate is 30% city and 70% highway with a little Eco mode mixed in. In Eco, I've achieved 21 --> 23 consistently. Overall, I'm happy with the mileage considering I upgraded from a 2002 Ford Ranger 4x4 with a 4.0L that was a guzzler.

I chose the run 87 in this F-150 because my wife is on her 2nd Explorer Sport with a 3.5L in both and we have had zero problems with either and we cilled them with 87 with the exception of two fill ups while on vacation. After we made a few trips to Key West, FL in them and pushed them to the limit (> 100 miles in the blazing sun) and through the hills of West Virginia, we were sold. I would have purchased the PowerBoost , but for me the I was concerned about it being a new motor and the payback just wasn't there considered I'm planning on trading this F-150 in on an F-250 in a few years.

I know this wasn't part of the original post, but I've been having the Ford service center near me use Motorcraft Synthetic Blend every oil change. I strive for 3-->3.5k per change. It may be excessive to change this frequently, but I figure what's an extra oil change per year at $45 including a tire rotation and my other vehicles that were purchased new achieved over 300k miles with the same oil change habits.

Good luck with your Gen 14's!

 

[ekaddo]

Dude on this channel calls out the owners manual in F150 for 85 octane gas:

 

[Zyvin]

I like this guy. He’s pretty funny.

 

[SuperRaptor]

I've only been using 87 in my 3.5L. Haven't had an issues with 87 and the mileage seems respectable. In fact, I once achieved 62.8 mph (see attached picture). Just kidding, I just filled up and was coasting down a hill, which is why I achieved the 62.8. As you can imagine, as soon as I stepped on the gas, it fell quickly. Over my lifetime ownership (7/9/21 to 2/22/22), I have averaged 19.4 (see attached) since purchasing it new (9,874 miles to date), which I estimate is 30% city and 70% highway with a little Eco mode mixed in. In Eco, I've achieved 21 --> 23 consistently. Overall, I'm happy with the mileage considering I upgraded from a 2002 Ford Ranger 4x4 with a 4.0L that was a guzzler.

I chose the run 87 in this F-150 because my wife is on her 2nd Explorer Sport with a 3.5L in both and we have had zero problems with either and we cilled them with 87 with the exception of two fill ups while on vacation. After we made a few trips to Key West, FL in them and pushed them to the limit (> 100 miles in the blazing sun) and through the hills of West Virginia, we were sold. I would have purchased the PowerBoost , but for me the I was concerned about it being a new motor and the payback just wasn't there considered I'm planning on trading this F-150 in on an F-250 in a few years.

I know this wasn't part of the original post, but I've been having the Ford service center near me use Motorcraft Synthetic Blend every oil change. I strive for 3-->3.5k per change. It may be excessive to change this frequently, but I figure what's an extra oil change per year at $45 including a tire rotation and my other vehicles that were purchased new achieved over 300k miles with the same oil change habits.

Good luck with your Gen 14's!

On a turbo engine I'd say 5k for full synthetic would make more sense for longevity.

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