My new v9

[DoubleGuzzi]

Ohhhhh.............. A gas thread 

A lot of hot air? 

[Vagrant]

I spent 37 years in the wholesale distribution of Stihl products. In tech first, sales next and as an owner the last ten years. I have never seen or heard of an issue with Stabil. Stihl even puts a bit in there oil for safety. That said If I could only buy one it would be Startron. When I leave Az for nine months both bikes get both brands and 91-93 Shell gas. Sixteen years doing this and never an issue and the bike will run out the nine month old gas fine when I get back.
Seafoam is amazing stuff. We used to call it "tune up in a can." But it contains ethanol or alcohol I don't recall which.  Great for cleaning up the carbs etc but not so much for storage.
The issue is the HS pump gas and it doesn't matter what the pump says you have no clue as to what is in it. Back during the gas shortage of the early 70"s we were seeing saws seizing up in some locations and they did have the proper oil in the gas. The problem turned out to be every form of the distribution chain was allowed to put in 10%. The original fuel manufacture, the independent driver of the delivery truck, and the station buying the fuel. When we started testing and it's a simple test anybody can do we found as high as 50% ethanol especially in N. Minnesota and the UP. Much of their fuel came from Canada at the time.

[SIR REAL ED]

Ohhhhh.............. A gas thread 

Or perhaps, a very low viscosity oil thread.....   

[SIR REAL ED]

I spent 37 years in the wholesale distribution of Stihl products. In tech first, sales next and as an owner the last ten years. I have never seen or heard of an issue with Stabil. Stihl even puts a bit in there oil for safety. That said If I could only buy one it would be Startron. When I leave Az for nine months both bikes get both brands and 91-93 Shell gas. Sixteen years doing this and never an issue and the bike will run out the nine month old gas fine when I get back.
Seafoam is amazing stuff. We used to call it "tune up in a can." But it contains ethanol or alcohol I don't recall which.  Great for cleaning up the carbs etc but not so much for storage.
The issue is the HS pump gas and it doesn't matter what the pump says you have no clue as to what is in it. Back during the gas shortage of the early 70"s we were seeing saws seizing up in some locations and they did have the proper oil in the gas. The problem turned out to be every form of the distribution chain was allowed to put in 10%. The original fuel manufacture, the independent driver of the delivery truck, and the station buying the fuel. When we started testing and it's a simple test anybody can do we found as high as 50% ethanol especially in N. Minnesota and the UP. Much of their fuel came from Canada at the time.

Very interesting.  I've used non-ethanol gas with Sta-Bil added that has been stored as long as two years with no issues.

[Bulldog9]

I spent 37 years in the wholesale distribution of Stihl products. In tech first, sales next and as an owner the last ten years. I have never seen or heard of an issue with Stabil. Stihl even puts a bit in there oil for safety. That said If I could only buy one it would be Startron. When I leave Az for nine months both bikes get both brands and 91-93 Shell gas. Sixteen years doing this and never an issue and the bike will run out the nine month old gas fine when I get back.
Seafoam is amazing stuff. We used to call it "tune up in a can." But it contains ethanol or alcohol I don't recall which.  Great for cleaning up the carbs etc but not so much for storage.
The issue is the HS pump gas and it doesn't matter what the pump says you have no clue as to what is in it. Back during the gas shortage of the early 70"s we were seeing saws seizing up in some locations and they did have the proper oil in the gas. The problem turned out to be every form of the distribution chain was allowed to put in 10%. The original fuel manufacture, the independent driver of the delivery truck, and the station buying the fuel. When we started testing and it's a simple test anybody can do we found as high as 50% ethanol especially in N. Minnesota and the UP. Much of their fuel came from Canada at the time.

I'm not a fan of the normal stabil, but I have used the Marine version to good effect.

Years ago I switched to seafoam, and I used that as a regular additive as well as a fuel stabilizer. Over the last 25 years, I was frequently ''gone' Or anything from 9 to 20 months at a time. Always made sure my fuel was stabilized with the seafoam. I've never had a single fuel related issue even with exclusive ethanol based fuels, Even in my carbureted vehicles.

People don't believe me, but with use of seafoam in my gas during the season and of course during the winter, I never once in 40 years and 100k miles of riding my xs1100 had to open or service the carbs.... Of course, being that I've left the bike sitting for the last 14 years, that's going to change if I ever decide to try and run it again.

Bottom line is use. What works for you. I've had limited access to ethanol-free fuel, and the one time I tried it in my 1997 BMW M3, it threw all kinds of check engine lights and codes because the car wasn't ready for it lol.... I decided that it wasn't worth the extra cost and never put it in anything again.

[kballowe]

hahahahahaha  I'm surprised that I didn't see "octane booster" in this thread.


I use 87.  If it pings then I use 89. 
Rinse, repeat.

[mechanicsavant]

Do you feel better with a balanced diet or eating fast food regularly? The small $ differences & healthy engine should be enough reason 4 higher octane. “Pinging”is to be avoided @ all costs !

[Kev m]

Do you feel better with a balanced diet or eating fast food regularly? The small $ differences & healthy engine should be enough reason 4 higher octane. “Pinging”is to be avoided @ all costs !

Eeehhhhhhhhh, except that's not a really good comparison.

Or maybe it is but we're good at fooling ourselves.

Let me explain using the same or similar analogies.

The jist of your argument is that if something is good (octane) then more (higher) is better.

If we consume 100% of the daily requirement of a vitamin, then there's no benefit to consuming any more (we literally piss it out).

Or say oxygen is good, so more is better right? No, too much (too high a percentage) will burn our lungs.

How about water? Drinking too much will literally kill you.

So back to octane. What's wrong with too much?

Too much leads to incomplete combustion, which translates into carbon deposits which can damage an engine over time.

If the manual calls for a pump octane rating of 91 then 93 isn't "healthier" and 100+ is dumb.

So like anything in life it's about balance.

Fair?

[Tkelly]

My wife always put premium in her Miata,said the car felt faster.When I filled it up with regular she never noticed a difference.

[Dave Swanson]

I'd be more motivated to keep the ethanol out my bike.  Being surrounded as you are blessed to be by numerous gas stations with non-ethanol options it would be a no brainer for me to choose that. 

You may not realize it, but I am jealous of how easy it is for you to get non-ethanol.   

[Bulldog9]

Eeehhhhhhhhh, except that's not a really good comparison.

Or maybe it is but we're good at fooling ourselves.

Let me explain using the same or similar analogies.

The jist of your argument is that if something is good (octane) then more (higher) is better.

If we consume 100% of the daily requirement of a vitamin, then there's no benefit to consuming any more (we literally piss it out).

Or say oxygen is good, so more is better right? No, too much (too high a percentage) will burn our lungs.

How about water? Drinking too much will literally kill you.

So back to octane. What's wrong with too much?

Too much leads to incomplete combustion, which translates into carbon deposits which can damage an engine over time.

If the manual calls for a pump octane rating of 91 then 93 isn't "healthier" and 100+ is dumb.

So like anything in life it's about balance.

Fair?

It's also important to note that the reason why high octane fuels were loaded with detergents is because the higher octane by nature Is more resistant to detonation/combustion. Therefore would often lead to extra deposits, hence the need for detergents.

Unnecessary use of high test or high octane fuels is actually bad for your engine.

[Dirk_S]

Eeehhhhhhhhh, except that's not a really good comparison.

Or maybe it is but we're good at fooling ourselves.

Let me explain using the same or similar analogies.

The jist of your argument is that if something is good (octane) then more (higher) is better.

If we consume 100% of the daily requirement of a vitamin, then there's no benefit to consuming any more (we literally piss it out).

Or say oxygen is good, so more is better right? No, too much (too high a percentage) will burn our lungs.

How about water? Drinking too much will literally kill you.

So back to octane. What's wrong with too much?

Too much leads to incomplete combustion, which translates into carbon deposits which can damage an engine over time.

If the manual calls for a pump octane rating of 91 then 93 isn't "healthier" and 100+ is dumb.

So like anything in life it's about balance.

I didn’t read mechanicsavant’s comment to mean that one should throw the highest octane into all engines. I see his comment “well-balanced meal” to simply mean proper fuel which, according to the compression ratio and the manufacturer’s spec, Premium fuel (not Super Premium, mind you) appears to be that proper, well-balanced “meal” for these bikes. To my untrained brain, at least.

Also, be careful—“works fine for me” can be likened to “I smoke a pack every day, and live to be 95 years old.” Maybe there’s accumulated damage happening over time that one isn’t necessarily aware of. Anecdote: My father, a former carpenter & self-employed construction contractor, has always been a braggart, and for many decades would tell me that the doctors always told him he was in great health, despite smoking a pack every day. Well, today, at 67, his knees are toast, his back is crap, he has an aortic aneurism due to high blood pressure, and has had COPD for almost a decade now. He lived in the “everything seems fine, so everything must be fine” fantasy for too long, and refused to consider the goings-on at the cellular level that eventually build up.

[bad Chad]

The factory has recommend 90 octane ( North American method) since at least the late 90s. There is a reason they make that recommendation.

[Kev m]

I didn’t read mechanicsavant’s comment to mean that one should throw the highest octane into all engines.

It's possible I'm being pedantic, but his unspecific use of the phrase "higher octane" doesn't expressly limit the comment to the specified octane rating and leaves the reader with the possible interpretation "any" higher octane rating is good.

Or stated another way his comment didn't specify higher than what? If it's higher than the recommendation, then my warning applies.

I simply wanted to take the opportunity to note that a common error or misconception that people apply to fuel is the old "nothing but the best for my baby" logical fallacy that if X is good, then X+ must be even better. It's often not.

[bad Chad]

I know several automakers that recommend high test, say the vehicle will operate on lower octane if used without damage, as the computer will automatically detune the motor to run on lower octane. They say as a result the detuned motor will not make as much power.

As said earlier, the v85 and I assume v100 have knock sensors, so the computer will essentially act similar to the autos.   I don’t know if other Guzzis have the same tech.

[Bulldog9]

Talking about high octane..... After 2 to 3 weeks of non-stop home improvement projects mostly wrapped up yesterday.

To celebrate I opened up a bottle of old Forester single barrel Rye.... I'm normally a one and done sometimes two pores and of course at a gathering will indulge a bit more.

This stuff was very smooth and very tasty so of course I found it fairly quickly and gave myself a second 2oz pour. About halfway through it hit me.....

This morning when I got up and looked at the bottle I noticed that it was 133 proof!

And of course in the interest of a balanced diet being that that's where this thread has gone, I also enjoyed a nice cigar while sipping the second pour.... And you know what? The wife is out of town, so I'm going to do it again tonight

[Tkelly]

From what I can find,Guzzis didn’t have knock sensors before 2024.My Stelvio experience using regular  tells me that the motors were built to take regular or anything else .So I will be trying my seat of the pants knock sensor to see if the v9  likes regular.Apparently knock sensors can fail,maybe causing more hassle than they avert because they change the combustion mixture automatically so you wouldn’t know if your octane is too low.

[Kev m]

From what I can find,Guzzis didn’t have knock sensors before 2024.My Stelvio experience using regular  tells me that the motors were built to take regular or anything else .So I will be trying my seat of the pants knock sensor to see if the v9  likes regular.Apparently knock sensors can fail,maybe causing more hassle than they avert because they change the combustion mixture automatically so you wouldn’t know if your octane is too low.

Knock sensor input primarily causes the ECU to retard ignition timing.

I don't believe it usually has an effect on the air/fuel ratio which is primarily based on mass air sensor (don't know any motorcycles that use this) or MAP sensor (speed-density) along with inputs from the temp sensors, TPS, and CPS with modification in closed loop from O2 sensors.

But things are always evolving.

[SIR REAL ED]

Talking about high octane..... After 2 to 3 weeks of non-stop home improvement projects mostly wrapped up yesterday.

To celebrate I opened up a bottle of old Forester single barrel Rye.... I'm normally a one and done sometimes two pores and of course at a gathering will indulge a bit more.

This stuff was very smooth and very tasty so of course I found it fairly quickly and gave myself a second 2oz pour. About halfway through it hit me.....

This morning when I got up and looked at the bottle I noticed that it was 133 proof!

And of course in the interest of a balanced diet being that that's where this thread has gone, I also enjoyed a nice cigar while sipping the second pour.... And you know what? The wife is out of town, so I'm going to do it again tonight

If you put a match to a shot glass of that stuff, will it burn?

How about spitting a mouthful of that stuff on an open flame?  Video please.

I you think about all the bad gut bacteria you are killing, it could be considered medicinal....

[Vagrant]

The way I figure it if you spend your whole life trying to live safely aiming for the max amount of years you will still die. But you will at that point be wishing you had actually lived your life.
I have a close riding friend 78 just like me. He couldn't possibly spend all his money before he exits this place but he won't buy a new bike because he doesn't know how much longer he will live or be able to ride. NUCKIN FUTS!
I just went out and bought a new V7 Greenie sport for the same reason. And even though it will be 100 tomorrow I bet I get in the first 150m miles.
To each their own.
I also poured a double Scotch then realized there was only one more left in the bottle. Seeing as tomorrow is garbage pick up I felt the need to keep the driver employed so I forced that third shot down. Can't you tell by this dribble?

[Tkelly]

In the immortal words of Tom T Hall,who we saw live when we attended the 79 WV Guzzi Rally,faster horses,younger women more money,more whiskey.In our case faster motorcycles and more whiskey.

[SIR REAL ED]

The way I figure it if you spend your whole life trying to live safely aiming for the max amount of years you will still die. But you will at that point be wishing you had actually lived your life.
I have a close riding friend 78 just like me. He couldn't possibly spend all his money before he exits this place but he won't buy a new bike because he doesn't know how much longer he will live or be able to ride. NUCKIN FUTS!
I just went out and bought a new V7 Greenie sport for the same reason. And even though it will be 100 tomorrow I bet I get in the first 150m miles.
To each their own.
I also poured a double Scotch then realized there was only one more left in the bottle. Seeing as tomorrow is garbage pick up I felt the need to keep the driver employed so I forced that third shot down. Can't you tell by this dribble?

According to my chemistry professor, "Alcohol is a solution!"

[Huzo]

According to my chemistry professor, "Alcohol is a solution!"

Actually Ed, it’s an organic molecule.
I’ll stand corrected but I think it’s an organic molecule with the OH minus ion attached.
Not sure ‘bout that though…

[Huzo]

The way I figure it if you spend your whole life trying to live safely aiming for the max amount of years you will still die. But you will at that point be wishing you had actually lived your life.
I have a close riding friend 78 just like me. He couldn't possibly spend all his money before he exits this place but he won't buy a new bike because he doesn't know how much longer he will live or be able to ride. NUCKIN FUTS!
I just went out and bought a new V7 Greenie sport for the same reason. And even though it will be 100 tomorrow I bet I get in the first 150m miles.
To each their own.
I also poured a double Scotch then realized there was only one more left in the bottle. Seeing as tomorrow is garbage pick up I felt the need to keep the driver employed so I forced that third shot down. Can't you tell by this dribble?

I thought you made perfect sense.

[faffi]

Worth noting that before the knock sensor retard the timing, there must first have been knock. Over enough time, all those knocks could cause some damage to the engine internals.

[Kev m]

Worth noting that before the knock sensor retard the timing, there must first have been knock. Over enough time, all those knocks could cause some damage to the engine internals.

I was always taught the sensors were so sensitive they would detect the slightest beginnings of it and stop it right away.

I should also add that the industry has other methods with which I'm less familiar but ion sensing ignitions which detect the conditions that could produce knock and make changes before it even occurs.

[Vagrant]

I just finished my first 200 mile day on a 26 sport. I'll wait a while for a real review but if the 2016 v7II is a 62 corvette and the 17 III is a 69 Z28 the 26 is a 2015 Camaro.

[Bulldog9]

I just finished my first 200 mile day on a 26 sport. I'll wait a while for a real review but if the 2016 v7II is a 62 corvette and the 17 III is a 69 Z28 the 26 is a 2015 Camaro.

LOL, that's not a good comparison