Lead substitute for fuel

[Old Mose]

I use 100% gasoline in my bike and until recently was able to buy 3 different grades. Now all I can get is 87 octane at Kroger, in the past I ran 91octane. I honestly can't tell any difference in performance and it will easily turn up to 7000 RPMs on the highway but I seldom turn it past 6000. I know the benefits of lead in fuel when it comes to engine wear and was wondering if anyone had tried the substitutes and any outcome. I am aware the lead substitutes are for off road use only!

 

[16VGTIDave]

The benefits of lead, or their substitutes in fuels are often over exaggerated by those without the required formal education. The main reason lead was added to gasoline was to increase the Anti-Knock Index of the fuel. Reduced exhaust valve and seat wear was another benefit - back in the 1940's. My Father-in-law is a retired Chemical Engineer who worked most of his career for Ethyl Corporation - one of the companies that produced TetraEthylLead for use in gasoline, and he applauds it's removal from all gasoline. Lead, lead substitutes, or other such additives are not required in our engines (or any others with hardened valve seats) and often causes plug fouling and combustion chamber deposits that cause other problems such as Detonation and even worse Pre-Ignition. Just use the lowest octane pure gasoline that your engine will run smoothly on and leave the chemistry for the chemists.

For what it is worth, I am still trying to clear the deposits out of my engine after running an experiment with a bottle of octane booster that was portioned and mixed into 80L (24 US gal) of regular unleaded gasoline a few months ago. I'm kicking myself for doing it as I know better. Learn from my mistake!

As an aside, 7000 RPM is the lower end of the power band on our engines. Try revving the engine to 9000 on occasions where spirited performance is desirable. It should easily achieve that without drama. You may just be amazed as to the performance that has been left dormant. It is a sweet song that is sung at those RPMs! I try to do it every ride and have just rolled over 99000 km (61,500 mi) on my original/stock engine.

As the cool kids sometimes say: Ride it like you stole it!
Or the old timers: Giver her an Italian tune-up!