Are there any luxury cars (Audi, Lexus, Acura, Infinity, BMW, Mersedes,
etc.) that run on regular gas (i.e., designed to run just fine on
regular 87 gas without problems)?

I see that even the cheapest models like Acura TSX and Lexus IS 250
require premium gas, which means expensive maintenance considering the
price of gas nowadays...

Is the US octane rating different to that in the UK?
As far as I'm aware the lowest octane on general sale here is 95

<success_ny (AT) yahoo (DOT) com> wrote

success_ny (AT) yahoo (DOT) com quipped:


Gas, IMHO, isn't "maintenance". It's fuel. As for premium vs
regular, do a google search on that. The threads are frequent and
"spirited".

old man wrote:

I specifically asked about luxury cars. Cars like Toyota and Honda run
on regular gas just fine.

<success_ny (AT) yahoo (DOT) com> wrote


I live in so. cal area commuting 80-100 miles per day. Bought my 2002 GS300
in Dec. 2005 with 73k. Car is now coming up to 90K service. I have been
running 89 octane since the recent run up in gas price. Car averages 17mpg
with traffic and 21 on a recent Vegas trip. This is right in the wheelhouse
of maufactures specs. I think I may get a mile or two at the 90k service.
They will replace the timing belt water pump and spark plugs at this
service.

That did'nt answer the Q

<success_ny (AT) yahoo (DOT) com> wrote

"old man" <dl (AT) spoofmail (DOT) notme> wrote

The answer is "yes - but". "Yes" because all new cars calling for premium
have knock sensors which retard the timing so that no damage will be done by
87 (R+M/2) octane fuel. "But" because the resulting lower fuel economy will
most likely more than eradicate any per gallon savings - so using 91 octane
may actually be less expensive.

Now see Elmo's post for particulars.

Tom K.

"Elmo P. Shagnasty" <elmop (AT) nastydesigns (DOT) com> wrote

Usually, but not always the case. I recently spotted a couple of stations
in central PA selling 87 octane at $2.85 and 93 at $3.45. It would be nice
if the manufacturers would provide figures showing the percentage
differences in mpg and hp at 87 and 91 (or 93) octane so that we could
actually crunch the numbers.

Tom K.

I've got a 2001 GS300. On the open road on premium (usually Shell) I can
get ~27 MPG and on rare occasion, 28 MPG. I live in Texas, so not many
hills.
-d
"billyzoom" <bilyzoom (AT) gte (DOT) net> wrote

success_ny (AT) yahoo (DOT) com wrote:
While technically not a car, my 2005 Lexus RX330 runs fine on the
recommended regular unleaded gas.

It was one of the reasons I decided on this versus a BMW X3