Owner's Manual
Be sure the posted octane is at least 87.
If
the octane
is
less than 87, you may get
a
heavy knocking noise when
you drive.
If
it’s bad enough, it can damage your engine.
If
you’re using fuel rated
at
87
octane or higher and you
still hear heavy knocking, your engine needs service.
But don’t worry if you hear
a
little pinging noise when
you’re accelerating or driving up a hill. That’s normal,
and you don’t have to buy a higher octane fuel to get rid
of
pinging. It’s the heavy, constant knock that means
you have a problem.
What about gasoline with blending materials that
contain oxygen (oxygenates), such as
MTBE or alcohol?
MTBE
is
“methyl tertiary-butyl ether.’’ Fuel that is no
more
tha~
15%
MTBE
is
fine
for
your
vehicle.
Ethanol
is ethyl or grain alcohol. Properly-blended fuel
that is no more than
10%
ethanol
is fine for your
vehicle.
Methanol
is
methyl or wood alcohol.
I
NOTICE:
Fuel that is more than
5%
methanol is bad for
your vehicle. Don’t use it.
It
can corrode metal
parts in your fuel system and also damage plastic
and rubber parts. That damage wouldn’t be
covered under your warranty. And even at
5%
or
less, there must be “cosolvents” and corrosion
preventers in this fuel to help avoid these
1
problems.
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