Octane Boosters - Good or Bad

[gsb876]

Tried some octane booster for a go like and didn´t notice any difference to normal optimax performance???

So dont think i´ll bother in future, mapped to run optimax anyhow:)

[clive]

Hi Jon and welcome,
Anders ( boss of 76 over here) told me that he had yet to see an octane booster that actually raised the octane the couple of points they all seem to claim.

Schtoo,

Here\'s barrel of worms to open, l had a printout years ago that from memory explained that RON and MON rating varies around the world considerably !!

This was back in the days when l was buying 130 octane AV gas back door from a small airport for my racecar, damn stuff smelt of rotten vegetables.

[TonyBlair]

Cheers for the info Clive... I won\'t bother with any octane boosters - unless you want to tell me which airport was supplying you the 130 RON fuel  

But on the serious side, I will get her re-mapped as soon as possible. I am looking at getting a new ECU and have been recommended by a few people that Apexi Power FC & Commander is a good choice. Anyone use these, or know of any \'just as good\' but cheaper alternatives?

Cheers.

[the lemster]

hmmmmm
all very interesting

I have a 93 fd3 and it is running lumpy.... see my thread

could it be that I havent had it remapped since it came from the land of the rising sun?....

do run it on optimax/ or superunleaded if the opty isnt around when I need it...

now I am nervous....

anyway... any advice noted

[davefrith]

Lemster

Have you had your car checked over by a specialist before hammering it over here, if not i suggest you do

don\'t want to cause any damage if its not running right

its easy to crack a tip if you hammer it when its not running right

[TonyBlair]

Lemster,

I\'m no expert by a long way! However all the research I have done on these cars tells me to just get it checked out asap by a specialist whenever there are problems with the engine.

Some problems can be solved easily and cheaply - if they are looked at when the problems start, if you continue to run it when it\'s un-happy you may end up with even bigger problems then when you started.

Ask the nice people on here if there are any specialists in your area.

Jon.

[Rixio]

have any of u guys tried using nitrox power boost or ecotek power boost foam or sumthing similar(de-coking spray/foam) to clear out the engine and exhaust from dirt and grime deposits on ur rx\'s?... iv got 4 spare bottles of the stuff sitting in the garage just wondering if i cant use a couple on my rx (wen i get the damn thing turnd on!)

[Rixio]

any1 for the above question???

[Sean]

I used that spray stuff thats supposed to de-coke the engine - you are meant to spray it up the air intake (after the filter) while the engine is running - a week later my car went to rebuild land. Not sure if this stuff made a difference or not, but i wont be using it again!!!!:(

[Rixio]

ooooooooo its a good job i havnt used it then any1 else used them and had any probs or is this just a one off>??

[davefrith]

he\'s not saying that it was DEFINITLY the result of the product

I\'d ask a engine builder before you used such a product if you feel the need to

Personally I wouldn\'t imagine it makes any difference, if you engine isn\'t running right, it won\'t fix it

[gsb876]

Not sure how this cleaning spray acts on a rx but on conventional cars theres a well known story that on older cars you shouldn\'t use it as with wear and tear the carbon deposits actually coat the engine covering any holes that may have appeared through time. Once you\'ve sprayed the carbon cleaner the holes are exposed meaning damage to the engine??

Not sure if this is true for the rx though??:confused:

[andrewrx7]

Threads like this always seem to cause confusion!! Well, I am anyway!

From some of the replies, there seems to be an implication that any imported RX should have a programmable ECU fitted and re-mapped.

In simple terms:

1) for a non-modded car, 92-96, 96-99, and 99-02

      a) if using standard unleaded, is this true??

      b) if using Optimax, is this still true??

2) for modded cars of all years, is this true??

[davefrith]

In Japan petrol is 100RON, here it is 98RON (Optimax)

Jap Cars are designed to run on 100RON, if you want to change your ECU to ensure the car is running perfectly on UK fuel then you can

Before I got my Apexi ECU I ran on Std ECU no problems at all, all depends what mods you have etc and how your fueling is and what boost you are running yady yada yada etc

[andrewrx7]

So, assuming a standard 280 bhp RX, NO mods, how crucial is it to use something like an Apexi?

Are the problems between 100 and 98 (or even 97) ROn fuels, REAL  or PERCEIVED ??


Just trying to understand this, and whether to justify spending, what is not an insignificant amount of money, getting an Apexi ECU plus the time/effort to map it properly.

Cheers