What octane fuel should I use - 454 engine?

[tmsnyder]

What octane should these be running?   I can get 91 octane, ethanol free just down the street.

I would see how it does now with all of the new stuff on it but 87 octane is below what is speced out regardless of the changes in rating numbers so you may have to go up a grade. Price of running a big block Chevy. The problem with trying to go cheap on the gas is if it is pinging for to long it will burn holes in the pistons and then the money you saved on the cheaper gas? Well, you will spend that a hundred times over on a new engine. Pick your poison.

[M & J]

We run 87 blend in our 1987 P30 454 with all the smog still connected with no pinging and enough power to get up and down the hills of eastern Kentucky. And that's pulling a 16' tandem trailer with our rail buggy on it.

[Rickf1985]

Mine didn't ping last year but has started to ping this year. I don't know if the gas quality had dropped or what. We all know that quality NEVER drops right? N:( W%

[tiinytina]

The cheapest and she runs fine.. a little dieseling sometimes 7.4mpg avg no matter what.. higher octane gets you more power but like when we put banks on.. justbecuase you have power on these.. doesn't mean you should use it.. ie climbing at 55.. yea 6.0mpg but I was doing 55 up hill Appalachians... LOL.. 45 or so with the big rigs.. 6.9 or so...

[Oz]

I did a search and noticed we have an octane question in the Topics for All Chassis, but it starts with the 413, but members will of course want to know if it's different from engine to engine, so I split this off to a stand-alone topic and will if the question comes up for other engines so they are more specific and easier for everyone to find.

[tmsnyder]

Thanks Oz!

I did a search and noticed we have an octane question in the Topics for All Chassis, but it starts with the 413, but members will of course want to know if it's different from engine to engine, so I split this off to a stand-alone topic and will if the question comes up for other engines so they are more specific and easier for everyone to find.