Once it comes to motorcycles, it is important to carry out regular maintenance to keep them in good condition, but one thing that is sometimes ignored is the fuel of the motorcycle. The fuel system is extremely important as it ensures that your bike gets the right fuel delivered to the right position and the right amount for the best results. If you’re going to a gas station, there are so many options to choose from that you don’t know which one is better for your bike. Here are some tips on what fuel you need to add to your bike to get the best results.
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You all know so many types of fuel available in the market for your vehicles, so why do you pay extra for higher octane fuel? You already know about the various octane levels in petrol, but do you know what this octane is all about? Let me take you on an Octane Rating Knowledge Trip.
Before you pump any kind of fuel in your motorcycle, it is important that you know what kind of fuel is suitable for your kind of motorcycle. All motorcycles have different engine sizes, and they will all need different fuel sizes. The best fuel you can use for your bike is listed in your owner’s manual. Each engine manufacturer shall determine the minimum octane rating requirement for gasoline. What the manufacturer recommends will provide you with the best motorcycle performance. Each engine manufacturer shall determine the minimum octane rating requirement for gasoline.
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Octane Does Matter: The octane rating represents the consistency, purity, durability, reliability, and heat-bearing power of petrol. But we have different grades of Petrol for various applications, ranging from your motorcycles to spacecraft.
The numerous Octane gasoline ratings are 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 93, and 97, symbolizing purity and sophistication in rising order. At one end we have 87 octanes that you use for your bike as unleaded and on the other side, we have 97 octanes that fuel the superbikes sold in India as Speed 97. High Octane fuels are also costly due to high rates of refining.
Leaded & Unleaded Petrol:
When you guys can rewind back to the year 2000, you’ll note that we used leaded fuel with 0.15 gm of lead per liter. The lead had distinct advantages that helped the engine enjoy a long and stable existence. Yet the presence of lead in petrol meant more CO (carbon monoxide) emissions, which is why the government made the mandatory use of unleaded fuel in 2000. Unleaded fuel is much ‘greener’ fuel, and CO emissions are much smaller, and with honeycomb catalytic converters in car and bike exhausts, pollution rates are very low.
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The Right Petrol for Your Bike:
In India, companies like BPCL, IOC, HPCL, IBP Red and Shell, etc. supply you with a variety of fuel to power your vehicle. High octane fuels have additives such as friction busters that might not suit your bike, plus a higher octane rating means that more heat is being produced in the engine that is not good for your bike’s engine. So the next time you think about filling your bike with Xtrapremium or Power, ask your dealer if it is advisable to use higher-octane petrol. Due to the additives, there can be a slippage of the clutch or slow damage to the engine of your bike over repeated use, so ask properly before filling the fuel the next time.
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To those with superbikes and supercars, Speed 97 is the only super fuel available in India and costs between 65-70 rupees per liter. To my view, if you have a high-performance engine, the price you pay for a liter of higher-octane fuel is justified.