being gas prices are very high im curious if performance would be lost if i run 87 oct. instead uv 93..

 

Stick with the 93 it's less than a buck a tank differance[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

 

91 is recommended for stock bore/ compression from the manufacturer

 

i've ran 93 octane at sea level for several years on 11.5:1 piston with no issues of preignition, I do not think that 93 is necesary for stock compression of 9.7:1, Bomb is just staying on safe side with their recommendation but in my opinion 89 octane on the stock piston should be fine and in some cases 89 octane can be as cheap or cheaper than 87 if its the 89 with 10% ethanol blend - at least I see it that way around here.

 

Preignition / Knocking / Pinging is pretty damn easy to hear and I've run 87 for quite some time in both of my DSs with no problems. The plugs look good, the power is all there, it is just good all the way around.

 

87octane made goooooood power on my stock bike, [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

 

What is the worst that can happen by running 87 octane?

 

As long as your running the stock piston, you should be ok. But if your compression is raised any at all without raising the octane, it will cause detonation and burn a hole in your piston and your bike goes up in smoke, [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

 

You can ride on the octane line with no trouble if you are trailing or duning. If you start desart racing or running flat track where you are wide open for extended periods of time, you better not be lean and you better have enough octane. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

 

This tends to be my take, the high octane stuff is more for competition then general day to day use. We mostly do trail riding no real racing. Haven't been to the dunes yet.

I've always believed the brand of gas you choose is almost as important as the octane. Chevron claims to be the "fuel of choice" for the Detroit automakers to use to make their new vehicles smog compliant. Unocal is endorsed by NASCAR but there isn't a single competition race car that uses the standard fuel we buy for our cars.

Personally I like to run a bottle of Techron through my vehicles at least once or twice a year. My Outlander was having a hell of a time getting started and would eventually die if left to idle for a while. I put in Chevron 91 octane plus a dose of Outlaw octane boost and a dose of Techron...took it out and ran it HARD. Seems to have fixed the problem.