howdy cHarley,

i stand corrected on roz/ron-rm/2 confusion. it was a late night last night on the east coast and my above post shows that.

RON however = Reasearch octane number.
r+m/2 = RdON = Road octane number.

also, i can stand by my comments regarding the manual and the frame. i'd have to assume the frame sticker takes precedent over the owners manual much the same as the emissions sticker under the hood of the car or the calibration number on the door jam would over a manual.

i think we can all agree though that
using lower octane than recommended can cause harm to any
vehicle.
as i stated, using higher octane than recommended will generally not benefit the great majority of vehicles (2 and 4 wheel) on the road.

wiki quote regarding high octane fuel=more power misconception:

Many high-performance engines are designed to operate with a high maximum compression, and thus demand high-octane premium gasoline. A common misconception is that power output or fuel mileage can be improved by burning higher octane fuel than a particular engine was designed for. The power output of an engine depends in part on the energy density of its fuel, but similar fuels with different octane ratings have similar density. Since switching to a higher octane fuel does not add any more hydrocarbon content or oxygen, the engine cannot produce more power.

 

i don't understand the last 2 posts so I am going to keep using premium....haha

 

It should be ok, but go and slap your dad for taking your bike out and for being a cheap *** and putting the wrong fuel in it. You should be fine, but get 91 or grater in there as soon as you can.

 

what harm? I never use anything other than 89 octane. 22k miles on the current ride and no pinging of any kind.

 

Its a good idea to run any air cooled motor above the octane rating it calls for.

Air cooled motors are not stable like water cooled motors are, and engine temps effect just when detonation happens.
Traffic jams and carbon buildup on lean burn air cooled motors is a BAD combination.


The difference between regular and premium gas per tank is not much, maybe a buck.

Modern cars and bikes have knock sensors, so you can run regular gas in almost anything modern, but trigger the knock sensor and it retards the timing, which reduces power output and efficiency.
In cars, running regular in a car that calls for premium retards the timing, which lowers power output and efficiency so the net result is you get less power and worse mpg, which gives the same cost per mile, but lower power output. You save nothing.

In the winter/cool weather, you can often get away with mid grade gas as things are cooler and don't tend to detonate as much.
Driving gently will also keep you out of the knock sensor on cool days.

Brett