(Pardon me if this has already been asked.)

Ok so i live in florida, and our premium gas is 93oct (avalible at all gas stations). BUT! i will most likely be moving to Las Vegas sometime at the end of this year, and their premium gas is a only 91oct.

how much will this hurt my mini's performance?

I know how gas octane works, and i was wondering if the mini will still be able to advance the timing like normal, or will the car start to ping before its max HP output. (if that makes sense?) Because once the car starts to ping the computer will retard the timing back down which in turn will make me lose performace, correct?

...I was thinking of some ways to get my fuel octane back up, and this is what i came up with.

1.) fill up half the tank with 101oct race fuel and the other half with 91oct.
2.) fill up on 91oct and add an octane booster at each fill-up. (waste of money)
3.) run straight 101oct race fuel all the time

It just drives me #%$@! crazy, knowing that im putting a weaker fuel into my car then i would have normally. The two gas octanes may not be that much different from each other, but it really gets under my skin. I guess im just a spoiled brat.

Edit: I just squeeled the tires shifting into 2nd! woohoo!

 

91 will be just fine. I lived in Colorado for years and 91 was all they sold there too. Some of it has to do with the higher altitude not requiring the higher octane, but I don't know the scientific reasoning behind that.

What you will miss is the dense sea level air, as you'll lose some power as your altitude increases and no gasoline additive can change that.

btw. . . those octane booster bottles sold in the stores do a lot less than they seem to claim. When they say they raise octane by 3 points, they mean decimal points not whole octane numbers (91 octane becomes 91.3). They consist of nothing more than toluene, xylene, or a combination of the two. You can go to a paint supply store and buy xylene and toluene in bulk. In order to do anything other than lighten your wallet, you'll need to add 20-30% of toluene/xylene to achieve the target octane level you are after.

Here is a link to a home-brew octane boost recipe: http://www.team.net/sol/tech/octane_b.html

 

this is so..so..so, very true

AND ontop of all that Las Vegas has emissions, here in florida we do not have emissions, so we dont have to pass smog tests. Seems to me i will have to be buying me a stupid "high flow cat"

Ive heard that those octane boosters are pretty much a waste of money, but what about mixing 101oct and 91oct from the gas pump? filling up half and half?

 

A half and half mix of 101 and 91 would give you an 96 octane.

If you did 1/4 101 and 3/4 91, you'd end up with 93.5 octane and that will save you a bunch of money buying race gas. Unless you have modified your MINI's ECU to recognize and take advantage of anything higher, you won't really get any benefit going beyond 93 octane.

However, you'd probably get the best bang for your buck with just a simple 15% supercharger pulley. Your MINI will feel stronger on 91 octane at high altitude than it does right now at sea level.

 

Yucca, you are the man! Thanks for the great info and quick response!