GASOLINA

[Daniele]

Quick question, I can find what everyone is using for gasoline? I've been using just 87 unleaded but would it be beneficial to utilize mid grade or premium... I tend to get a smell when I floor it or go decently fast for a small amount of time, and I was told that happens with crap gas. But also I thought I was told not to run premium.


Additionally, after your tranny fluid change, do you all plug it up and change or refresh the settings for the transmission ? I am not the best with remembering the names of things but I can certainly describe it lol, tha is

 

[Johnbigdog]

Welp, fords spec for h.p. and torque have an annotation that the numbers were on 93 octane. I also recall that the owners manual days the car can run on 87, but 93 is by no means going to hurt the car. Your not going to get everything out of the car when you smash the go pedal.


If you dont have the owners manual you can download it from fords website from the owners website.

I dont think there is a car that doesnt make some sort of odor on hard acceleration. On hard acceleration, the car runs rich and this will react differently with the catalist. You shouldnt be smelling in the cabin unless you have a body leak, or there is a car ahead of you.

You can have the transmission shift strategy reset with a scan tool, a battery disconect may reset this too, if you want. Is it really important, no. I would not consider this an essential thing. Keeping the fluid in good condition yes.

 

[802SHO]

I was going to say don't run 87 only run premium and no setting change required after all fluids changed.

 

[luigisho]

Are you aftermarket tuned to run a particular octane of gas? The factory computer programming is able to adapt timing to run most grades of gasoline. The higher the octane the more timing it can advance and should run better.

It seems counterintuitive since 87 octane has more energy than premium-- but premium formulas keep the fuel from igniting too early as the piston compresses the air and fuel toward the top of the cylinder (called knocking or preignition). The computer will retard ignition timing when it senses preignition and that typically will cause a little slower acceleration.

If you are running a budget and gas gets too expensive you won't hurt anything running 87. The computer will compensate

 

[luigisho]

I agree if you stomp on it you can smell unburned fuel pretty often in any vehicle. If it is all the time then you have an issue and I would imagine that might set off a sensor light of some sort.

 

[Johnbigdog]

From the 2016 owners manual version 2

 

[jman1200]

I use 87 during Winter and 93 during Summer months. I do not need the extra hp when its too slippery to unleash the beast.

 

[Joshw0000]

Mine is tuned for 93 but I'm almost sure I read in the manual that it was preferred to run 93 octane from the factory.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

 

[jman1200]

As @Johnbigdog shared, manual states that the minimum should be 87

and that premium fuel should be used to achieve maximum performance.

 

[Zpak]

Yes, can handle 87 but should run 93. I’ve tested it more than once in the first year I owned mine and not only did I see noticeable performance improvement but better gas mileage as well. Nothing drastic, but better nonetheless.

 

[Joshw0000]

In NC, you can score 93 octane for like $2.19/gallon right now.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

 

[b4black]

When you get on it, and smell something, does it smell like sulfur? (rotten eggs or natural gas)

Catalytic converter slowly collect sulfur from the burned gasoline. When you get on it, the catalyst gets hot and the sulfur comes off all at once - and you can smell it.

 

[Harold C. McManus]

I have used 93-octane in my 2015 SHO for two years. I noticed an improvement in acceleration and overall performance when I upgraded. I also add a bottle of STP fuel treatment on a regular basis. It may be my imagination, but she seems to take it pretty well. It is a great car to drive on the open road.

 

[DouglasB_SHO]

93 is only "required" if you have a tune for 93. In stock tune, the car will figure out the spark/fuel mix is needed for the fuel you put in. Even with cold air intake mod, the car still figured it out -- as optimized by Ford. If you put in an aftermarket tune, you should have a choice of what octane fuel, then follow that. Knowing that my SHO is not driven daily and that gasoline loses about 1 octane per month when sitting, I set my tune for 91 and when I am at home, I fill with 93. On road trips, knowing I will use up whatever mix is in the tank, I will fill with 91 or 93 (which some states don't seem to have), and then top off with 93 (always available here in Northern Virginia) when I return home and know the car will sit for a few weeks.

 

[Zpak]

In NC, you can score 93 octane for like $2.19/gallon right now.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

I just bought 93 at Costco in northwest Indiana for $1.53. Top tier premium baby! Unbelievable

 

[Knight]

Ford clearly states that the power ratings for the car were achieved using 93 octane fuel:

https://media.ford.com/content/dam/...016/2016-Ford-Taurus-SHO-Tech-Specs-FINAL.pdf





Nothing is achieved by running 87 octane in a SHO other than an illusion of cost savings...which is often negated by a decrease in fuel economy.

 

[802SHO]

I noticed this 5 or 6 posts back that the OP has ghosted this thread. I think it's just fricken weird

 

[Zpak]

I noticed this 5 or 6 posts back that the OP has ghosted this thread. I think it's just fricken weird

I thought the same thing yesterday.

 

[jman1200]

Nothing is achieved by running 87 octane in a SHO other than an illusion of cost savings...which is often negated by a decrease in fuel economy.

I've found that fuel economy is just slightly better when using 93 vs 87 octane fuel (11.3 vs 11.5 l/100km in my case)
A liter of 87 was around $1.1 vs. $1.45 for 93 around here, the $0.35 -0.40 difference still stands with the current gas prices. So if you do the math you do save some money, so it is not an illusion.



I save between $300 to $400 every Winter by switching to 87 and I am fine with not having the extra hp because everything is too slippery to drive like a maniac. I rather spend that on beer than on hp that I am not going to use.

For those living closer to the Equator it might be a totally different decision to make, we all bought an SHO because we love the power and acceleration so why use 87... we want every single hp to be available every second of the day, and that is why I switch to 93 during the other seasons.

Here is an article about this: https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a28565486/honda-cr-v-vs-bmw-m5-ford-f-150-dodge-charger/ The Ford F-150 only gained 0.6 mpg using 93 octane fuel.

 

[Knight]

As with all things, YMMV. The last vehicle I conducted some 87 vs. 93 octane testing on was an early 2000s BMW and the difference was 3-4 mpg, all things equal (consistent commute).

With regard to winter conditions, that's of course your call. On snow tires and occasionally driving up in the mountains, I want all the power available.

You don't need to "drive like a maniac" to appreciate the differences. Throttle responsiveness, passing power, etc. all still factor into the way a vehicle behaves in any scenario.

Now with regard to prioritizing beer...no argument there!