Automakers Want 95 Octane Gas To Completely Take Over
by Erik Shilling (Jalopnik) … Higher compression ratios, and thus higher octane, can have the additional benefit of greater fuel efficiency if the engine is built that way from the start, however. Which is why automakers are now lobbying for a new, global standard of 95 octane at fuel pumps, eschewing all that 87 octane, 91 octane, and 93 octane swill we’ve been pumping into our cars for years.
Here’s Automotive News:
In testimony Friday before the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s environment subcommittee, Dan Nicholson, General Motors’ vice president of global propulsion systems, said making 95 octane the new regular aligns the U.S. with Europe and is one of the most affordable ways to boost fuel economy and lower greenhouse gas emissions.
GM, Ford Motor Co. and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, working with the United States Council for Automotive Research, are seeking just one grade of fuel: 95. That would eliminate today’s grades, generally 87 octane for regular, 88-90 for midgrade and 91-94 for premium. Even though premium gasoline costs about 50 cents more per gallon than regular, Nicholson says moving to 95 octane would cost consumers far less.
Speaking during a panel discussion at SAE International WCX World Congress Experience in Detroit the day before testifying before the house subcommittee, Nicholson said a 3 percent fuel economy improvement could be attained for less than a 3 percent increase in the cost of fuel.
This is all a bit hypothetical, since an industry-wide shift to 95 octane would require a fundamental retooling of engines going forward to account for higher compression ratios with which to fully realize any of the benefits of the higher-octane gas. But on a visceral level 95 octane is exciting, since it was fun that one time in high school when I put 94 octane gas in my Volvo 240 wagon and pretended that it had suddenly turned into a high-performance race car. READ MORE
Auto Exec: Raise the Octane Rating of U.S. Gasoline for Bump in Fuel Efficiency (Environmental and Energy Study Institute)
Premium is the New Regular: Automakers Want to Kill 87 Octane (TheTruthAboutCars.com)
Mr. Dan Nicholson
Vice President, Global Propulsion Systems, General Motors, on behalf of United States Council for Automotive Research Witness Statement
