Guest bastaad525 Posted November 8, 2002 Share Posted November 8, 2002 Was wondering if there was a better solution to getting higher octane for my high CR (10.3:1) motor, as regular store bought octane booster is too expensive and seems to be pretty well known to do very little. Well someone suggested to me that the chemicals Toluene and Xylene (primary components of laquer thinner) were great for raising octane and also cheap, at roughly $4 per gallon. One gallon added to 10 gallons of gas would give roughly a 2 point increase in octane. And no not the 'points' you usually think of when you think octane booster... but FULL points i.e.: from 91 to 93 octane. One of the most interesting links I found is a thread on a forum for guys driving old hot rods, it's here: http://www.clubhotrod.com/forums/showthread.php?%20postid=1900%5C Some guys on there have been using this stuff for more than 5 years and haven't seen any adverse effects from using it, such as increased engine wear or eaten thru fuel hoses. Anyways I just thought all this info was really interesting and I think anyone running a high CR motor that has to either a)retard timing enough to significantly hurt performance or b)has to spend a fortune on race fuel should check this link out. At $4 or even $8 extra for two gallons to add to a full tank and get some 3 points octane boost this seems like a really great trick.... By the way I know a lot of people do ask if higher octane really does increase horsepower... I have a friend who drives a *grrr* supercharged miata that dynoed on regular 91 and then filled up with some 100 octane and got like 6 extra hp at the wheels with no other mods. Seems proof enough to me... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Night_rider_383 Posted November 8, 2002 Share Posted November 8, 2002 From what I heard and read toulene is what octane boosters really are just in small amounts. I found this a few mo. back on the web. Richard Lassiter's "How to Mix Your Own Brew" FORMULA 1 Toulene R+M/2...114 Cost...$2.50/gal Mixtures with 92 Octane Premium 10%... 94.2 Octane 20%... 96.4 Octane 30%... 98.6 Octane Notes: Common ingredient in Octane Boosters in a can. 12-16 ounces will only raise octane 2-3 *points*, I.e. from 92 to 92.3. Often costs $3-5 for 12-16 ounces, when it can be purchased for less than $3/gal at chemical supply houses or paint stores. FORMULA 2 Xylene R+M/2...117 Cost...$2.75/gal Mixtures with 92 Octane Premium 10%... 94.5 Octane 20%... 97.0 Octane 30%... 99.5 Octane Notes: Similar to Toulene. 12-16 ounces will only raise octane 2-3 *points*, I.e. from 92 to 92.3. Usually mixed with Toulene and advertised as *race formula*. FORMULA 3 Methyl-tertiary-butyl-ether (MTBE) R+M/2...118 Cost...$3.50/gal Mixtures with 92 Octane Premium 10%... 94.6 Octane 20%... 97.2 Octane 30%... 99.8 Octane Notes: Oxygenate. Very common in octane booster products. Has lower BTU content than toulene or xylene, but oxygenate effect makes the gasoline burn better and produce more energy. FORMULA 4 Methanol or Ethanol R+M/2...101 Cost...$0.60 - $1.75/gal Mixtures with 92 Octane Premium 10%... 94.3 Octane (Methanol) 10%... 94.7 Octane (Ethanol) 20%...Not Recommended Notes: Methanol is wood alcohol. Ethanol is grain alcohol and found in Gasohol in 10% ratios. Both alcohols are mildly corrosive and will eat gas tank linings, rubber and aluminum if used in excessive ratios. Main ingredient in "Gas Dryers", combines with water . FORMULA 5 Isopropyl Alcohol and Tertiary Butyl Alcohol R+M/2...101 Cost...$0.60-$1.50/gal Mixtures with 92 Octane Premium 10%... 94.5 Octane 20%... Not Recommended 30%... Not Recommended Notes: Similar to Methanol/Ethanol. Isopropyl Alcohol is simply rubbing alcohol. MAKE YOUR OWN OCTANE BOOST How to make your own octane booster (this is the basic formula of one of the popular octane booster products). To make eight 16 ounce bottles (128 oz = 1 gal): 100 oz of toulene for octane boost 25 oz of mineral spirits (cleaning agent) 3 oz of transmission fluid (lubricating agent) This product is advertised as "octane booster with cleaning agent *and* lubricating agent!". Diesel fuel or kerosene can be substituted for mineral spirits and light turbine oil can be substituted for transmission fluid. Color can be added with petroleum dyes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bastaad525 Posted November 8, 2002 Share Posted November 8, 2002 heheh yeah I see that same info in quite a few places on the net. there's a link to that info on the page I gave the link to. And actually the off-the-shelf octane booster is still mostly made up of toulene, as I understand it, it's just that in the small bottles it comes in (12-16oz) you'd have to buy about 10-20 bottles per full tank of gas to really get any effect out of it, at $5 a bottle, as opposed to just buying one full gallon of the stuff for $4. Pretty nuts... the companies that bottle and sell this octane boost are really making a killing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Breeze77z Posted November 8, 2002 Share Posted November 8, 2002 Be a little wary of Dyno readings, a dyno is like any other scale, in that the reading you get is only a percentage of the max weight (or power in a dyno's case) the scale can hold. So if your friend with the Miata is using a 2000hp (common) or even just a 1000hp (equally common) dyno, and is pulling say 200 at the wheels or flywheel, 6hp is not even a 1% discrepency on a 1000hp scale. Then take into account engine temp, exterior air temp, humidity and who knows if the gas octane was the cause of the increase, or say a little cooler air temp or more thoroughly warmed up engine oil? I'm not trying to start an argument, just trying to save people a few bucks whose engines don't ping on even the cheap gas Pat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bastaad525 Posted November 8, 2002 Share Posted November 8, 2002 heheh well that's well and true... the main thing is at least he didn't LOSE any power. I'm not preaching higher octane as a means of increased hp though, so let me correct my post a little. The main purpose of the higher octane for my friend with the miata, as well as for me, is to eliminate or in his case, keep detonation from happening. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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