Is racing gas worth the extra cost?

[kawi rider 13]

I ride at about an intermediate level, fast enough to hang with the local guys but not fast enough to pass them, and I saw some vp 112 octane race gas at the bike shop today and I wanted to get it but it was $92 for 5 gallons, I'd like to try it just to see what kind if difference it makes, but does it make a noticeable difference in power? Btw I'm running 91 octane pump gas right now

[gimped up]

Carbd or efi????

If carb you may need to rejet.

[Nickx65]

To answer your question , we really need to know what kind of bike you have or what the compression ratio of your motor is .....

If your bike is stock, unmodified then, No,,, you don't need race gas , it will do Nothing for performance .

[717 MOTORSPORTS]

If you're running 91 right now,then no you do not need race fuel. No, race fuel will not make your bike faster.

[cgirouard423]

I'm running 4 gal of 91 mixed with 1 gal of 108 VP in my 06 YZ 125. Runs better on this. Didn't have to reget.

[Alec Sharp]

Just mix some octane booster with your normal gas and you basically have the same thing, that's what I do with my 2 stroke

[ickfinger]

save your $, unless you have extensive motor work.

[orangyktmthing]

If the internals are stock, then you are throwing your money away. If you ride a two stroke, the money would be better invested in getting your squish band modified, if it hasn't been already.

[CrRdrFrLfe]

Like everyone has said already. Only use it if you have engine work done that requires it. In my case my 2000 cr250 has 12 to 1 compression. Factory its 7 or 7.5 to 1 so I need the higher octane of vp110.

[orangyktmthing]

Like everyone has said already. Only use it if you have engine work done that requires it. In my case my 2000 cr250 has 12 to 1 compression. Factory its 7 or 7.5 to 1 so I need the higher octane of vp110.

The 7 or 7.5 to one is when the powervalve is opened. When the powervalve is closed, the compression ratio is actually higher than that.

[717 MOTORSPORTS]

If you are able to run your bikes on pump gas without any detonation such as pinging then you do not need any race fuel, or octane boosters whatsoever and doing so can actually make your bike run a little slower. Most octane boosters at best are a waste of money, and nothing more than snakeoil

[Mx Factory USA]

We done a lot of testing with race fuel on the dyno as we have some bikes in the 250 B limited class for Lorettas. We seen gains from 1-2 HP in a bone stock 2013 RMZ 250 from running VP U4.4 simply because the added oxygenation burns better than pump gas. 4 strokes benefit from lower octane ratings, 2 strokes benefit from higher octane. Tuning engines with different octane ratings is done to simply prevent detonation not add HP. Also for anyone considering race fuel with 2 stroke applications you have to check the fuels gravity range, a range of .715 or greater is needed or the oil will not stay suspended..

Edited July 13, 2013 by Mx Factory USA

[KcDavis]

Just mix some octane booster with your normal gas and you basically have the same thing, that's what I do with my 2 stroke

And how much octane booster does it take to do that? ?

[Jpellum14]

Just mix some octane booster with your normal gas and you basically have the same thing, that's what I do with my 2 stroke

Always thought bout doing that to, is it pretty safe?

[Alec Sharp]

And how much octane booster does it take to do that? ?

I haven't ridden in a while so I'm not sure but it says on the bottle when you buy it

[Alec Sharp]

Always thought bout doing that to, is it pretty safe?

I used it all last year and I still use it in all of the gas that I put in my bike and my bike hasn't given out on me yet so

[Jpellum14]

I used it all last year and I still use it in all of the gas that I put in my bike and my bike hasn't given out on me yet so

Good enough for me. Our local gas station sells 91 non-eth fuel so that would b a good mixture to boost it A lil, because I'm not using ethanol fuel @ all. Ilook for deals and that's a cheap way of getting a few extra octane points.Instead of paying all that money on race gas when it's not needed in my stock bike..

[Mx Factory USA]

Good enough for me. Our local gas station sells 91 non-eth fuel so that would b a good mixture to boost it A lil, because I'm not using ethanol fuel @ all. Ilook for deals and that's a cheap way of getting a few extra octane points.Instead of paying all that money on race gas when it's not needed in my stock bike..

Octane boosters are a scam.

For example, if a bottle says it'll raise your octane by 7 points. This is what they mean:

91 Octane + 7 Point Octane Boost = 91.7 Octane.

Total waste of $$$.

[SnowMule]

Wow there's a lot of misinformation in this thread.

First, and probably the biggest point to make:

Higher octane does not equal higher performance. Got it?

"Octane rating" is simply a fuel's resistance to preignition, otherwise known as "detonation" or "pinging".

In fact, it takes MORE energy to fully ignite a higher-octane fuel than it does a lower-octane one. This energy comes in the form of heat or pressure.

The "best" octane fuel to run in an engine is the lowest octane that doesn't det.

Ethanol comes in well over 100 octane. By blending ethanol in the fuel, the octane rating of the fuel is effectively being raised. Ethanol also has a 9:1 stoich ratio for combustion, requiring more fuel for a complete burn (Gasoline is about 14:1). E10 blends require more fuel in the combustion chamber and more energy to ignite than E0 "pure gas". This is why it's such a scam...

Turbo'd sleds run much hotter and compress the mix more than a N/A snowmobile does. When you factor in altitude, you start to need higher octane fuel to prevent the engine from pinging at higher RPM's and as boost pressure increases. That's the ONLY time i've ever felt the need to run anything more than 91 pump gas.

91 is just fine in all but highly modified motors. You're better off spending 20¢/gallon more and sourcing your fuel from a supplier that doesn't blend it with ethanol. So no, race gas is not worth the extra cost.

[Kitchener]

Great info, Snow Mule.

I'm more tempted to try race fuel to get away from ethanol than any anticipation of a performance gain. With regards to your final comment! I wish I knew where to begin to even look for ethanol-free pump gas! Is there any handy dandy website that points you to such a thing in one's area?