"Linnhoff, Eric" <elinnhoff@smmc.saint-lukes.org> wrote:
>
>Sadly enough, Topekas version of Amoco Premium is only 91
>octane, but at least it's not that ground water polluting,
>cancer causing, makes-your-car-run-like-crap reformulated
>stuff.
Many moons ago, I left my sea level lair on the east coast,
and headed off to Nevada to compete in the Nevada Open Road
Challenge. Along the way, I noticed that the fuel octane
at the service station pumps dropped as the altitude
increased. The race course, Nevada highway 318, is roughly
at 5500-6500 feet above sea level.
When I got to the event, one of the regulars told me that
I should dump out the 15 gallons of 93 octane fuel that
I lugged across the country, and instead run with the
local super unleaded. Why? At altitude, higher octane
fuel doesn't burn as hot. I think that I recall him
saying that his Mustang was like 10-20 MPH slower running
flat-out on the higher octane fuel. It isn't a matter of
timing advance, but rather energy released in the explosion.
Anyway, my sources say that Forbes Field is 320 meters above
sea level. I don't believe that altitude will play a big
role in whether 93 octane fuel is too hot for a stock-class
car, but it's something that you might want to keep in
mind. Personally, I'm packing 5 gallons of fuel from
home, since air density is no problem in my car anyway.
Driver density IS a problem, though..... :-(
-Arthur ("TerraTrip-indicated 151 MPH in a Volkswagen" edition.)
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