Is there a chip that will allow the 986 to run on regular?
06-02-2011, 07:21 AM
#1
Instructor
Thread Starter
Is there a chip that will allow the 986 to run on regular?
Don't the engines nowadays contain knock sensors that detect detonation and automatically retard the spark to compensate.
06-02-2011, 08:34 AM
#2
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Not to sound too harsh, but why? The Boxster reflects driving enjoyment, not saving $2.40 per fill up. Why not run non synthetic oil and fill her up with autozone 50/50 coolant?
IMO you will pay much more in the long run if you skimp the basics on a p-car.
IMO you will pay much more in the long run if you skimp the basics on a p-car.
06-02-2011, 08:45 AM
#3
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Im not trying to be insensitive to your question, but you will pay a little more to keep up your Boxster and it will give you a great ownership experience in return.
06-02-2011, 09:03 AM
#4
Rennlist Member
If you consider that the cost of premium seems to be around $.40 more per gallon, a 15 gallon fillup means you'll be spending about $6 more in gas for high-test. Let's say the average chip/reprogram tends to cost around $400. You'll need about 66 fillups to recoup your investment; around 1,000 gallons. At 20 mpg, that's around 20,000 miles. Not to mention the potential loss in performance, and potential risk of engine damage due to pinging/detonation if the "chip" isn't properly doing its job.
IMHO....just not worth it.
IMHO....just not worth it.
06-02-2011, 10:34 AM
#5
If you consider that the cost of premium seems to be around $.40 more per gallon, a 15 gallon fillup means you'll be spending about $6 more in gas for high-test. Let's say the average chip/reprogram tends to cost around $400. You'll need about 66 fillups to recoup your investment; around 1,000 gallons. At 20 mpg, that's around 20,000 miles. Not to mention the potential loss in performance, and potential risk of engine damage due to pinging/detonation if the "chip" isn't properly doing its job.
IMHO....just not worth it.
IMHO....just not worth it.
--------------------------------
2001 Orient Red Boxster
06-02-2011, 09:59 PM
#6
Drifting
It's not the chip, it's the compression. No chip can change the compression ratio. The knock sensor will already automatically adjust timing to prevent engine damage from low-octane fuel, as could an aftermarket chip, but it hurts both power and mileage to do so. There's no benefit to it.
06-04-2011, 04:40 PM
#7
Race Director
High compression is one of the cheapest ways to gain hp. The effort to compress the air fuel mixture is almost all returned from the initial push back the piston gets once it goes past top dead center.
If the octane rating is correct the spark is triggered at before top dead center and the mixture is burning very well as the piston begins its downward stroke and piston/rod/crank journal are all positioned optimally to derive maximum mechanical energy from the chemical energy of the burning mixture.
When a high compression engine is fed a too low an octane of gas the knock sensors pick up vibrations from pre-detonation and the engine controller reacts by retarding spark.
While this lowers the pressure developed in the combustion chamber and thus eliminates detonation less mechanical energy is derived from the burning of the lower octane gasoline.
Fuel mileage suffers. The car's drivability suffers some too. And the exhaust gas temperature goes up and the components exposed this run hotter.
Too low an octane means poorer fuel economy. Less performance. More heat and more wear and tear on the engine. These are not trade offs I'd make to run some lower octane grade of gasoline.
Sincerely,
Macster.
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06-04-2011, 09:00 PM
#8
Instructor
Thread Starter
Twenty weeks
We don't have autozone around here. Less than 33 weeks.
Ok 20 weeks.
That was what I wanted to know about. You would think the fine engineers in Stuttgart would have programed that in.
I was concerned about that. Sometimes I hit a station that is out of premium. Do I need a chip or is it already figured in the formula?
Is 91 OK, all we have here is 93 and the car requires 94.
We do not have Mobil or BP, Most of the remaining Shell stations stopped selling gasoline a long time ago. I go to Shell to have my Boxster's oil changed. BMW, General Motors, Honda, Toyota, Volkswagen and Audi require gasoline that minimizes deposits on fuel injectors, intake valves, and combustion chambers. But I do not see Porsche on the list. Maybe that will change under VW dictatorship.
76 Stations, Aloha Petroleum, and Chevron carry top tier detergent gasolines out here. http://www.toptiergas.com/why.html
If the knock sensor does the deed, why would anyone make a chip?
That would be like buying virus protection for a Mac!This sounds like retarding the timing will do real physical damage. I like to know how things work. They should have been able to safeguard against this.
At 20 mpg, that's around 20,000 miles.
Potential risk of engine damage due to pinging/detonation if the "chip" isn't properly doing its job.
But yeah I never go lower than 91 octane
Shell, Mobil, and BP
76 Stations, Aloha Petroleum, and Chevron carry top tier detergent gasolines out here. http://www.toptiergas.com/why.html
That would be like buying virus protection for a Mac!This sounds like retarding the timing will do real physical damage. I like to know how things work. They should have been able to safeguard against this.
Last edited by Sumflow; 06-05-2011 at 06:39 PM.
06-05-2011, 07:57 AM
#9
As far as coolant goes, I would not put any coolant in your Boxster coolant system. Porsche recommends only "Porsche pink" or G12 offered by Audi. Both are good for 100,000 miles. And as I was saying with high detergent gas, they offer better fuel mileage also, not just cleaner injectors. I only mentioned BP, Shell, and Exxon/Mobil because they are in the area where I live. I'm sure there are other stations that offer high detergent gas, but they aren't around here. For example, Marathon uses far less detergent in their fuels than the others I mentioned. Less than half as much. I knew going into buying a Porsche that it was going to be more expensive to maintain than average vehicle.
06-05-2011, 06:25 PM
#10
Race Director
I think you're just trying to pick a fight.
The engine designers did a fine job of producing a high compression high performance engine.
To allow the engine to deliver its rated performance certain minimums are required. One is the proper octane of gas be used.
The engine controller with the knock sensors can deal with some less than ideal octane gasolines but there's a limit. The owners manual states very clearly what that is.
If running a low octane grade of gas is important to you, I would have thought you would have done a better job of researching these cars to know that they require premium as a steady diet of gas and bought something else, another brand of car that can run all day on 87 octane gas.
Sincerely,
Macster.
The engine designers did a fine job of producing a high compression high performance engine.
To allow the engine to deliver its rated performance certain minimums are required. One is the proper octane of gas be used.
The engine controller with the knock sensors can deal with some less than ideal octane gasolines but there's a limit. The owners manual states very clearly what that is.
If running a low octane grade of gas is important to you, I would have thought you would have done a better job of researching these cars to know that they require premium as a steady diet of gas and bought something else, another brand of car that can run all day on 87 octane gas.
Sincerely,
Macster.
