Premium vs. Regular Gas.

Cadillac is the only one which comes to mind. Several years ago they redesigned the Northstar to make the same power from regular as it previously required premium for.

John

My Acura CL 3.0 liter, 6 cyl. runs fine on regular 87 octane as is recommended in the factory manual.

I second that and was very impressed, not only with the engine and car, but the result. Last May I flew to Salt Lake City for a couple days, then rented a Cadillac Deville (big car) to drive to Reno and return. Being a bit intimidated by this behemoth, as I've never even sat in a Cadillac, I nursed the thing around SLC for 3 days. Oddly enough, the dash readout initially, was in Metric and I couldn't figure out how to change it to Decimal right away. (There was no owners manual in the car) The mileage on the trip computer said 10 litres/100 kilimeters, which translates to around 18 mpg+/-. I figured that wasn't too bad, considering the gas prices. By the time we set out westbound, we corrected the readout to decimal. Heading for Bonneville on Rt 80, we nursed the car along at 60-65mph, taking in whatever sights came along. The trip computer started to indicate higher mpg. To my astonishment, by the time we neared Wendover, it was reading 31.2 mpg. I checked the instantaneous mileage on the trip computer and it was bouncing around

34-36-29, etc. This was backed up, by the fill up at Wendover. It only took 3+ gallons. Amazing! I think this is the best kept secret GM was ever foolish enough to keep. On the return trip, weeks later, I threw caution to the wind and ran around 75-80, again achieving around 28mpg, which in a 4500 Lb car is exceptional. Unfortunatley, though, regardless of the great mileage and creature comforts, I could never bring my self to buy a GM car...

A friend of mine has a 3 or 4 year old Lexus ES300, which runs on regular gas. Not sure if the newer year models do.

However, I need to comment on your assertion about "expensive maintenance considering the price of gas". I say don't look at the price of the gas. Focus on the difference in price between regular and premium. It's usually $.20/gal. At 15,000 miles a year and 25 miles/gallon (which is conservative for my TSX), that equates to an additional cost of $120/yr or only $10/month. For that additional cost, I'd get the car that I want and not worry about whether it runs regular or premium.

Of course, if you drive significantly moree miles per year or get significantly less than 25mpg, that monthly cost difference will increase.

Dunno if this is what you're interested in, but the base model rsx uses regular

I don't see how the kind of gas used equates to expensive maintanance however. Unless you're factoring the cost of gas into the maintanance cost equation.

'98 3.2 TL.... 60K, never sniffed premium. Purrs like a kitten, but roars like a lion when you tromp on it. I figure what it doesn't know won't hurt it. Seriously, the choice is between shitty gas, or shittier gas. Why complicate life any further?

Unc