using regular gas

holy crap dude. You've got serious anger and/or envy issues. Get over it.

FWIW, our taxes alone is more than triple the national income average but if my car doesn't require premium to run efficiently, then I'll use less.

Wealth gives me options. Options come from knowing where to spend my money and where not to. Given a choice, I'd rather spend the money on good and frequent synthetic oil changes rather than high octane fuel when it does nothing for either performance, longevity or mpg.

Maybe it's *you* who thinks it makes you look big and important pouring high octane in your tank at the gas station. I don't have such an identity issue.

Reply to
01dyna
Loading thread data ...

Oh I think my analysis was a lot closer to being spot-on than anyone cares to admit. Not picking on you personally as an example, but precisely at those who do 'put on aires' to make others believe they are more successful than they really are and in fact the very pot they piss in is leveraged practically to the point of crumbling under the weight of the 2 mortgages on it.

If you cannot afford the gasoline, you cannot afford the car. Period.

I retired this past May after 33 years with the same company as a licensed Professional Engineer, starting out as a 'summer hand' on an offshore oil rig. I took a 2-year leave of absence in 1980/81 to get my masters in civil engineering, then came back and advanced over the years to the position of Senior Engineer with 4 direct reports and 16 people under them. Try as I may I'm consistently an 8 handicap on the golf course but am pretty proud that all 5 of our kids graduated from college. We haven't as much in savings as I'd like to have but everything we do have today is ours. If it's in the driveway or garage or in our home or worn on our backs, it's not leased or financed or on plastic. It's all paid for.

-- Hooked On Ebonics, Lesson 1: Use the word "forclose" in a sentence. FORCLOSE: If I pay alimony dis mont I gots no money forclose.

----== Posted via Pronews.Com - Unlimited-Unrestricted-Secure Usenet News==----

formatting link
The #1 Newsgroup Service in the World! >100,000 Newsgroups---= - Total Privacy via Encryption =---

Reply to
New Owner

My owners manual states 87 octane minimum while the dealer mechanic recommended 91-93 octane (I'm not biting the semantics thread of premium/super/regular). I have run both 87 and 91-93 and have let the car decide which one and it prefers the 91-93 octane. It gets slightly better mileage (both city & highway) and did not have the hesitation problem which thread was so prevalent the past couple of years. The RPM's are also lower for equivalent MPH.

I don't know about the other posters in this thread but I agree with you in that many people I know driving the "upscale" autos cannot afford to maintain them or don't know how to maintain them. I am seeing many more posters asking for help and having responses telling them to read the owners manual. A good friend who is a BMW mechanic (he specializes and dealers go to him when they get the tough ones) will not service a new customers car without reviewing their service records for oil changes and other periodic required maintenance. No records, no service. I asked him why and he said if they could not afford to perform the required maintenance then they did not know how to properly maintain a car and he did not want to have them as customers.

Reply to
bluto

I've followed the thread, and even with all this personal information, I still don't understand what makes you so resentful.

Reply to
DaveW

As a member of ASME, I know for a fact that "Senior Engineers" don't make anywhere near what would be consider "wealthy". As far as his "direct reports", four isn't that much, nor is 16 "people under them". Anyway, I've owned five late model Lexues (2 GX's, 1 ES, 1 LS and an RX). And with the exception of the GS's, the only difference I've seen in everyday driving between 87 and 91 octane was in my wallet.

I'll add the caveat that is in *my* area under *my* driving conditions. As always, YMMV.

Reply to
01dyna

Thanks for all your very professional replies to this and other newsgroups.

*********** You're welcome!

************

FYI-

1998 Sienna, 3.0 V6, 215,000 miles Last Xmas I took a little trip to West Palm Beach, FL from the Baltimore, MD area. I drove straight through each way. I noticed that my best fuel economy was achieved on 87 Exxon purchased in North Carolina, in both directions. I suspect the fuel blend is different there. I get nearly the same mpg (22-25 highway cruising) from the Sienna (on 87 octane) as you get from the LS but I've gotten better (27/28 mpg from several tankfuls) when I was driving across the high plains of Wyoming at around 75 mph. For commuting I can't measure a consistent benefit of higher octane fuel but on the highway with a loaded minivan premium does deliver more mpg.

YMMV

************** That is great mileage for a Sienna! You must have a steady foot, which I believe is the trick to maximizing fuel economy.

My weakness is when I am following a vehicle that blocks my view, like an SUV, van, or truck. Rather than drafting a vehicle that is probably doing a good job of cutting the air ahead of me, I just have to get around them in order to have a clear view of the road ahead.

Reply to
Ray O

you just don't get it, it is not about being able to afford the gas, it is about not buying into the marketing hype that premium is better for your car, in the case of a lexus it just isn't true and spending the money for premium is just a needless waste of money. and nobody gives a hoot about your resume! __________________________________________ Never argue with an idiot. They'll drag you down to their level and beat you with experience.

Reply to
jdoe

Oh, come on now! That is ridiculous. There is no relationship between engine performance and/or octane and the ratio of engine revolutions to tire revolutions.

Perhaps you also upped the tire pressure by 5+ psi? That might make a very slight difference due to the greater tire circumpherence, but I doubt if you could even notice it.

[snip]
Reply to
Jay Somerset

I am now driving a 2007 GS350 so I'm interested in your statement "except for the GSs". How was your experience different with different fuels in the GSs?

I believe it was stated in this thread that using regular instead of Premium will not "harm" the engine. Is that known to be true?

Also, why would Lexus make their cars potentially less attractive to buyers by saying they require premium if they do not really and can work just as well with regular? Is it true that they say regular fuel for cars bought in Euope?

Jeff

Reply to
<Jeff

You may want to reexamine your premise, Jeff. The requirement for premium fuel makes the Lexus *more* attractive to some buyers.

Reply to
St. John Smythe

..sportier car = lead foot. ;-). Seriously, I think the engine in the GS's are more "sport tuned" and I *do* notice less knocking and better throttle response. Top end speed or anything else? Probably not much difference.

Having said all that, I think the *quality* of the fuel, regardless of the octane level is probably a better indicator of drivability and knocking than anything else.

..every car manufactured since..oh gawd..mid 80's have anti-knock sensors. Timing is automatically adjusted by the computer to adjust for varying levels of octane.

...marketing?

Reply to
01dyna

They're not making their cars look less attractive to buyers. They're actually making the cars look MORE attractive to buyers. "Oh, look at me and my car! It REQUIRES "premium" fuel!!! See? I must buy premium everything! Therefore I must be a premium human being!"

It's all psychology.

Note the Honda Accord, aimed at the average Joe. Spec in the owner's manual says regular gas--but engineers claim the fuel map is such that using premium gains you 10hp.

But they can't say that, because they want the Accord to be the midrange car. Then they put the same engine into the TL, and say "must use premium".

It's all a mind game.

Reply to
Elmo P. Shagnasty

You're becoming a caricature of yourself, john. Let's recap:

Elmo posts that Honda are putting the identical engine in a Honda and an Acura and requiring different fuels.

Your natural conclusion? That this is more evidence that Lexus owners are clueless!

You are nothing if not consistent. You even found a way to slip the "dolled-up Camry" in there. You must be really proud of that one to use it so often, even when it has nothing to do with the thread you post it to.

What do you drive, john?

Reply to
DaveW

A dolled up blow up doll.

Reply to
01dyna

MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.