Can I run my 440 on 95 oktane?

[clausoe]

It's my almost stock 440 that currently runs on 98 unleaded with additive for the valves. I would like to use 95 because it,s cheaper here in norway.

[clausoe]

I just want to add that 1 gallon or 3,8 litres will set you back 8,17 USDollars here now.

[Todd Wilson]

I run a stock 440 on 91 octane here and it does ok. I think with higher octane I could put the timing up a tad more but not much. My 440 does not like ethanol blend gas at all.



How do you guys afford to buy gas over there? Is the economy so different over there that its not a big deal to pay that much for gas? At close to 3$ a gallon here the Chargers and old truck arent getting driven like they did 4-5 years ago due to cost?!


Todd

[Rack]

$8 for a gallon of gas?!

I will never complain about gas prices again. Ever.

[Bandit72]

$8 for a gallon of gas?!

I will never complain about gas prices again. Ever.

until there 8 bucks a gallon here

[dodge freak]

I think the cost of living is about the same or less, remember they have better health care-drugs cost far less and dentist visits are less ,same with other stuff. Gas is so high because its tax very high but then the government gives more services so it works out the same. But I never lived there so thats just what have hear.

[DanishDude]

I just want to add that 1 gallon or 3,8 litres will set you back 8,17 USDollars here now.

How much is a litre of 95 Octane in NOK, please? Your $8,17 seems a bit high.

I get the price for a US gallon of 95 her in Denmark to 'only' cost around $6.6 at today's exchange rate. A price difference of 23% between neighbouring countries seems a bit excessive. 

The high gas prices in parts of Europe is due to historic reasons. Basically everything is already suitably adjusted, so no-one seems to mind too much:

*) We drive smaller cars than what we see on TV in the US. SUVs are non-existant. V8s a rarity in an ordinary family car.
*) People tend to live closer to their workplace and the rest of their family.
*) Working families with more than one car is unusual.
*) Tax from gas has in part been funneled into public transportation to the point where you don't actually need a car if you live in one of the larger cities.
*) Cities are built 'in a huge mess' with every type of infrastructure mixed up all over the place. Meaning that, say, shopping centers are generally located close to where people lives and works etc.
*) People tend to have different groups of a family living relatively close to each others, and we find friends in our local neighbourhood. Driving a few hundred miles for a few hours of activity or a visit is a rare occurrence in general.
*) Cities and towns are very densely populated, so the half a million souls in my home town (the second largest in Denmark) are all within a 5 mile radius including suburbs, parks, lakes and whatnot (and half of that area is water due to the harbour). Thus there is never far from A to B for most of us.

Etc.

It has actually been suggested that if the international oil prices doubled(!) from the present level, the Danish government could nearly mitigate the increase in gas and fuel prices by backing off on the taxation percentages. They are already raking in huge sums as it is. That way such an increase in gas prices would go largely unnoticed by most of the population, while a doubling of the price on oil probably would feel rather unpleasant in the US and many other parts of the world.

Note that other energy sources (electricity, central heating etc.) are priced/taxed to a similar level, so saving energy is an art form often practiced around here. 

Frank.

[WINGMAN]

    My stock 440 in the Daytons will not run good on 93 so i get some 110 at $5.75 a gallon and mix it 50/50, It LOVES IT. JR

[Duey]

Guys, Clausoe is talking RON (European), not AKI (North American, = RON + MON/2).  95 RON is about 90-91 AKI to us...premium.  Euro RON 98 would be like our Sunoco 94 stuff...

Clausoe, if you have CR of about 9.5:1 or less, you should be okay with 95, but any higher compression or having an engine with poor quench (> .040") is asking for trouble if you don't carefully set up the timing...detonation could result and nothing kills an engine faster than sustained detonation.

Cheers,
Duey

[firefighter3931]

A simple compression test will tell the whole story. With iron open chambered heads anything over 160 psi is pushing it on pump premium. Looking at Duey's calculations, the 98 octane stuff looks to be close to what we have for pump premium in this area. Elevation also comes into play as well when determining the octane requirement for any engine. The higher the elevation....the less octane required. The timing curve can be adjusted (shortened) if you're experiencing any issues. The plugs will also show signs if you're experiencing any predetonation so it might be worthwhile to pull a few and have a look. Also ; a plug that is the incorrect heat range can promote detonation....

Plug reading for detonation :

(1) little black specks (carbon/oil) on the porcelin
(2) little silver pieces (aluminum) attached to the porcelin
(3) small pieces of the porcelin broken off

Hope that helps


Ron

[clausoe]

Thanks for the help guys.

DanishDude: I tanked yesterday and the price was almost 13 krone per litre. 13 krones on the DNB valutakalkulator turned out to be 2,15 USD, times 3,8 and that is where i got 8,17 USD for a gallon. What does a litre cost in denmark?

[DanishDude]

What does a litre cost in denmark?

1 litre of 95 is around 10.30 DKK as of today. Using your number of 13 NOK I get a price in Norway of $7.94 per US gallon, so your math isn't off. 

Oy! Thought that Denmark and Germany had the highest gas prices, but I was wrong it seems. No wonder that Norwegian rescue team doesn't mind at all coming down here for our races, being paid for it and all. 

Frank.

[clausoe]

To be exact, in my town yesterday 95 oktane cost 11,75 and 98 oktane cost 12,75.