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What grade fuel (US only) do you put in your Street Triple?

28K views 79 replies 27 participants last post by  SV_Hadder 
#1 ·
So I was reading a thread on TriumphRat and there were all sort of opinions on which quality gas to use on ST. Factory manual recommends 87 unleaded, i.e., the cheapest gas at a station. I recently put Shell 93 on mine and I hear a lot of popping on deceleration. I think I am going back to 87 on the next fill.

What quality gas do you use on your ST?
 
#8 ·
The previous streets were 87 tuned and Daytona was 89 tuned (Idk if 3rd changed anything). Running anything else is a waste of money unless you have a custom map for that octane.
 
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#10 ·
I'm normally a big believer in running the lowest octane possible, since it will give a more complete burn. Having said that, I've noticed a big difference in how my STR runs between 87 and 91 octane. I get better mileage on 91, and the bike runs much smoother. Bike is all stock.
 
#9 · (Edited)
We do lots of things for piece of mind. Running higher octane especially on hot days is something I am willing to for a little "piece of mind." Not like it's race gas and going to break the bank.

I come from a Turbo Car world and this is obviously a no brainer there. But then again I only run E85 and it is close to 115 octane.

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#13 ·
^ Directly from owner's manual:
Fuel Requirement/Refuelling
Fuel Grade


This Triumph motorcycle is designed to run
on unleaded gasoline with a CLC or AKI
octane rating (R+M)/2 of 89 or higher for
Daytona 675 and 675 R models, or a CLC or
AKI octane rating (R+M)/2 of 87 or higher
for Street Triple and Street Triple R models.
Federal regulations require that pumps
delivering unleaded gasoline are marked
'UNLEADED' and that the Cost of Living
Council (CLC) or Anti-Knock Index (AKI)
octane rating is also displayed. These ratings
are an average of the Research Octane
Number (RON) and the Motor Octane
Number (MON).
This Triumph motorcycle is designed to run
on unleaded gasoline with a CLC or AKI
octane rating (R+M)/2 of 89 or higher for
Daytona 675 and 675 R models, or a CLC or
AKI octane rating (R+M)/2 of 87 or higher
for Street Triple and Street Triple R models.
Federal regulations require that pumps
delivering unleaded gasoline are marked
'UNLEADED' and that the Cost of Living
Council (CLC) or Anti-Knock Index (AKI)
octane rating is also displayed. These ratings
are an average of the Research Octane
Number (RON) and the Motor Octane
Number (MON).
 
#18 ·
If you look at my screen shot on the first page of this thread and look at the warning at the bottom of the screen shot it clearly states if pinging for knocking occurs to use a higher octane rated fuel.

I would not be running 87 on track anywhere near triple digit heat.
 
#14 ·
90 octane no ethanol. I have to take a 20 minute drive to get the ethanol free fuel. I also use this fuel in power equipment, saws, trimmer, etc. More spendy than the regular ethanol crap...yes. I don't mind though as I like to support the small family owned fuel station (only one who has pure gas around here) and I worked in a repair shop for generators, pumps and such for a couple years and witnessed approximately 50% of the repairs being necessary due to junk fuel. I run premium with 10% ethanol in my pickup which has variable valve timing.
 
#15 ·
Unfortunately, there is no ethanol free gas available anywhere around Chicago, so that's not an option. I have been putting 91 mainly since I got the bike last year, but extra popping on 93 made me think that maybe I should stick with triumph's recommended 87. The manual clearly says 87, but obviously doesn't have anything about Ethanol contaminated fuel.
 
#22 ·
After installing the Arrow map on my bike, my Tech said to use 89 at minimum. Said 87 was fine for stock, but to bump up with the new map. So I run 89. Hell, it's an average of $0.15 more per tank. I can afford that.
 
#23 ·
I too have Arrow on my bike and I am not particularly concerned about the gasonline cost. I just want to make sure I am using the gas that burns properly, provides the best performance and doesn't damage my engine.

I am not sure where your tech came up with 89 minimum recommendation, but I have not seen anything that suggests changing the fuel grade with just after market pipes. I read the documentation that came with Arrow pipes and there was nothing in there that suggested higher fuel grade either.
 
#25 ·
The manual called for 87 in one section. In another section it called for 89. I use 89 just in case. Might try 87.
 
#27 ·
Most tune on 89 for regular street bikes. You run the lowest octane you can without pinging, because you make more power(easier burn) with lower octane. The only reason we associate power with high octane is because race machines need high octane to resisting pre-detination, due to their higher compression.
 
#29 ·
Extra octane could hurt because it's not as clean of a burn causing more buildup.
 
#30 ·
I suppose... but about to click 42k miles (will today) and she's purring like the octane whore she is! Clean bill of health at her last checkup, too. :x
 
#32 ·
Not all gas is equal. When I was running a stage 2 WRX, I remember Cobb's website had a list of recommended brands. Might be worth a look.

Just because it doesn't have ethanol, doesn't mean it's quality fuel.

x
 
#34 ·
Not true, fuel is fuel. Octane is octane, now what ever is added in after is what makes a fuel shitty or not.

Also additives do not do much. When in KC, I stick to the same few Quicktrips as I have never had an issue. Out of town I just try to find the gas stations that don't look like my chances of being stabbed are that high.

There is a site out there that a guy went around testing fuel and found most of the time, it was where the gas was stored and how long it was stored that caused it to be "bad" especially if the storage is allowing water in. Which was pretty common on the older fuel stations.
 
#33 ·
You are getting the popping because you are wasting fuel. Octane does not determine quality and its sad most people think that. The higher octane just means it can be compressed more. Since your bike is tuned for 87, it is not burning all the 93 fuel and that fuel is entering your exhaust and thusly burning off in there.
 
#36 ·
fuel is fuel. Octane is octane, now what ever is added in after is what makes a fuel shitty or not.
Unfortunately, this is not correct. Octane may be octane, but some dealers/off brand resellers may be less than scrupulous about what is really in their storage tanks. You have no idea of what you are purchasing or how they change what is in the tank over the seasons.

Best advice is to buy from a national brand station (Mobile, Shell, BP) that has a high volume business and don't use a higher octane rating that what is needed for a clean fast burn. The oil companies have done a huge marketing/sales job on people to get them to believe that higher octane = more performance. This is not true. Higher octane = less burn rate (reduced chance of pre detonation) which may feel smoother to some, but which really translates into less performance.

x
 
#39 ·
You do realize you just repeated what I said. Gas is gas until a foreign substance is put into it. I agree, don't buy fuel from lower end companies as they typically do not use the same care methods as the others, but in the end minus the foreign substances that can be introduced into the fuel. It is literally all the same. Even the higher brands, like BP have stations that produce poor fuel because their tanks are shit.

If you are putting anything other than what you are tuned into your tank you are wasting money. That is it. It does not perform any differently as your engine is still going to fire for the octane it is rated, while some engines can adjust themselves for the octane rating, like my car. I still put in 91 because that is what the engine is actually rated at to perform best.

For the people complaining about ethanol. That is dumb, the pumps typically say around 10%, but from what I am seeing at least around here in the midwest it is much lower than that and it literally makes zero difference compared to non ethanol when it comes to performance. It also only takes maybe 1mpg off compared to non ethanol. For the price difference, there is no reason to get non.
 
#40 ·
I have the Arrow 3-1 and the Triumph tune I run 93, for no particular reason, bike runs great.

I think a lot of the popping on decel is from the secondary air injection... I don't care, because that's one of my favorite parts. I'd be sad if it quit
 
#41 ·
I have the Arrow 3-1 and the Triumph tune I run 93, for no particular reason, bike runs great.

I think a lot of the popping on decel is from the secondary air injection... I don't care, because that's one of my favorite parts. I'd be sad if it quit
Yes, there is unused fuel. No engine is 100% efficient. The secondary air injection just helps the fuel burn off instead of sitting in the exhaust.

Also it would run great on 87 if that is what you are tuned for.
 
#45 ·
I think the whole fuel thing is being over complicated. Use what's in the manual unless you have mods/tune that suggest otherwise. Set aside the wasting money thing for a second here. I keep hearing this piece of mind thing with using higher octane. What piece of mind are you searching for? You're actually damaging the engine MORE by causing excess carbon buildup. Do what you wish but there is plenty of data out there.
 
#47 ·
Unless you advance timing or change compression a higher octane tune doesn't really do much.
 
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