The higher octane prevents knocking in the engine. I think that it is really only for boutique cars like an older Jag or Ferrari and Maserati.
On Sat, May 29, 2010 at 7:23 AM, Tracy Curtis <tlcurti...@gmail.com> wrote: > > > Rave, I've had to tell people about the Wisconsin mornings when the > steering wheel is too cold to touch. A lot flat out disbelieved me. And my > family still tries to tell me to warm up the car even though most mechanics > now go so far as to say that idling is bad for the car. And on one of those > Wisconsin winter days, when I spent nearly an hour trying to de-ice the > outside of the car enough to drive it and left it on to help, the > temperature gage never moved beyond that absolute cold place until I drove > it. > This same now 16-year-old car seemed to increase its mileage each time I > thought seriously about getting rid of it. I think it hears me talking > about it. > > The premium fuel thing is interesting. I can't see myself buying a car > that requires or even recommends it. My understanding is that if it's > required, using something else worsens the exhaust and the performance. But > a regular car can't take advantage of the high octane and thus gets no > benefit. > > > On Sat, May 29, 2010 at 7:54 AM, Kelwyn <ravena...@yahoo.com> wrote: > >> >> >> I live in Wisconsin and I learned the "no need to warm up car" dictum from >> Click and Clack the Car Talk guys. Once it starts, the car will warm up the >> same whether it is sitting still or moving. Of course, a warm vs. a cold car >> makes a BIG difference to the driver! >> >> ~rave! >> >> >> --- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com <scifinoir2%40yahoogroups.com>, Keith >> Johnson <keithbjohn...@...> wrote: >> > >> > >> > >> > I must admit, several of these were myths I still believed, especially >> the whole concept of warming up the car on a cold morning. >> > >> > >> > >> > ********************************************** >> > >> > >> http://green.yahoo.com/blog/daily_green_driving/62/six-gas-mileage-myths.html >> > >> > >> > >> > Six gas mileage myths >> > >> > >> > >> > Do Americans care about fuel economy as oil spills into the Gulf of >> Mexico and gasoline hovers around $3 a gallon? You bet they do, though they >> also have a fair number of misconceptions about how to squeeze a few more >> miles out of every drop. >> > >> > The Consumer Federation of America's (CFA) most recent survey says that >> if we had a 50-mile-per-gallon car fleet today, we'd save more oil than the >> entire proven reserves in the entire Gulf of Mexico. And people care about >> that. >> > >> > According to Jack Gillis, author of The Car Book and a CFA spokesman, 87 >> percent of respondents said it is "important that the country reduce its >> consumption of oil," and 54 percent said it is "very important." >> > >> > An amazing 65 percent of Americans surveyed support a mandated >> transition to a 50-mpg fuel economy standard by 2025. That's a tough >> standard, some 15 mpg better than the ambitious goal set by the Obama >> Administration (35 mpg by 2016). >> > >> > "The expectations of American consumers are reasonable and achievable," >> Gillis said in a conference call." CFA says that Asian carmakers, compared >> to the U.S. competition, are offering twice as many vehicles with 30 mpg or >> better. "It's shocking that so few of today's cars get more than 30 mpg ," >> he said. >> > >> > Mark Cooper, CFA's research director, noted that in five years of the >> group's polling, the public's views have stayed remarkably consistent: >> Americans want less dependence on Middle Eastern oil and higher fuel-economy >> standards. >> > >> > People care about fuel economy, but they're misinformed about how to >> actually achieve it. The federal government's fueleconomy.gov site (very >> useful to check cars' mpg) just published the "Top 10 Misconceptions About >> Fuel Economy." >> > >> > Here are a few big myths: >> > >> > • >> > >> > It takes more fuel to start a vehicle than it does to let it idle. >> People are really confused about this one and will leave a car idling for >> half an hour rather than turn it off and restart. Some kids I know started >> an anti-idling campaign in the suburbs and are shaming parents into shutting >> down their cars. Idling uses a quarter- to a half-gallon of fuel in an hour >> (costing you one to two cents a minute). Unless you're stalled in traffic, >> turn off the car when stopped for more a few minutes. >> > • >> > >> > Vehicles need to be warmed up before they're driven. Pshaw. That is a >> long-outdated notion. Today's cars are fine being driven off seconds after >> they're started . >> > • >> > >> > As a vehicle ages, its fuel economy decreases significantly. Not true. >> As long as it's maintained, a 10- or 15-year-old car should have like-new >> mileage. The key thing is maintenance -- an out-of-tune car will definitely >> start to decline mileage-wise. >> > • >> > >> > Replacing your air filter helps your car run efficiently. Another >> outdated claim, going back to the pre-1976 carburetor days. Modern >> fuel-injection engines don't get economy benefits from a clean air filter. >> > • >> > >> > After-market additives and devices can dramatically improve your fuel >> economy. As readers of my story on The Blade recall, there's not much >> evidence that these "miracle products" do much more than drain your wallet. >> Both the Federal Trade Commission and Consumer Reports have weighed in on >> this. There are no top-secret 100-mpg add-ons out there. >> > • >> > >> > Using premium fuel improves fuel economy. You might as well write a >> check to BP if you believe this. Only use premium if your car specifies it. >> > >> >> > > > -- Celebrating 10 years of bringing diversity to perversity! Mahogany at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mahogany_pleasures_of_darkness/
