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Car Forum / Driving, Maintenance, Tuning / Maintenance and Repair / September 2007

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AKI

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mike7411@gmail.com - 16 Sep 2007 03:03 GMT
I noticed the gas cap of my BMW says it requires a fuel of at least
89 AKI.  What does AKI stand for?  Does this generally mean I have to
buy the most expensive one of the three choices at the pump in the
U.S.?
M.M. - 16 Sep 2007 03:37 GMT
> I noticed the gas cap of my BMW says it requires a fuel of at least
> 89 AKI.  What does AKI stand for?  Does this generally mean I have to
> buy the most expensive one of the three choices at the pump in the
> U.S.?

Google is your friend...

"The AKI (anti-knock index -- also known as "octane rating") of the fuel
is an average of two different methods of computing the fuel's ability
to resist engine knock. Regular unleaded gas in the U.S. has an
anti-knock index of 87, while mid-grade is usually 89, and premium
typically is 91 - 93. The higher the number, the more anti-knock
protection the fuel offers. "
mike7411@gmail.com - 16 Sep 2007 05:33 GMT
> mike7...@gmail.com wrote:
> > I noticed the gas cap of my BMW says it requires a fuel of at least
[quoted text clipped - 10 lines]
> typically is 91 - 93. The higher the number, the more anti-knock
> protection the fuel offers. "

I read the 89 AKI thing right after I put in 85 octane.  How much is
the 85 going to mess up my car?  Was there any practical way I could
have remedied my mistake once the gas was in there?
Bob M. - 16 Sep 2007 05:42 GMT
> I read the 89 AKI thing right after I put in 85 octane.  How much is
> the 85 going to mess up my car?  Was there any practical way I could
> have remedied my mistake once the gas was in there?

For one tank it won't hurt.  But don't make a habit out of it. The BMW is
designed for 89 octane, so that's what you should be putting into it.
M.M. - 16 Sep 2007 06:22 GMT
> I read the 89 AKI thing right after I put in 85 octane.  How much is
> the 85 going to mess up my car?  Was there any practical way I could
> have remedied my mistake once the gas was in there?

Shouldn't hurt it but you could run in a few gallons of premium when you
have room in the tank.
Ad absurdum per aspera - 19 Sep 2007 16:42 GMT
> I read the 89 AKI thing right after I put in 85 octane.  How much is
> the 85 going to mess up my car?  Was there any practical way I could
> have remedied my mistake once the gas was in there?

Many premium-fuel cars nowadays have knock sensors of one kind or
another that do something to temporarily de-tune the engine (retarding
ignition timing, usually) when knock commences.  I think BMWs have had
this for some years.  Check the owner's manual or look up your make/
model/year (which weren't specified in the original posting) on a
search engine.

Of course, you won't be getting the performance you expect until the
car has the gas it expects, and I wouldn't go in for a smog check
while running the cheaper gas either.  But I doubt you injured the car
at all, especially with just one tankful, unless you've been pulling
heavy trailers uphill or really  putting your foot in the hood
ornament every time the light turns green.  That's what the knock
sensors are for.  BTW, a well-developed spark knock is pretty hard to
ignore, and pretty unmistakably a bad thing that would lead you to lay
off the gas, if you are at all sensitive to what your car is doing.

If knock does commence, putting in a bottle of octane booster and
keeping your acceleration modest (especially on hot days, which
unfortunately some of us don't have much choice about, this time of
year) are good safety measures until you can put in a meaningful
amount of higher-octane gas.  But my bet is that the electronics took
care of it all for you and the symptoms were not noticeable.

Cheers,
--Joe
C. E. White - 19 Sep 2007 17:17 GMT
>I noticed the gas cap of my BMW says it requires a fuel of at least
> 89 AKI.  What does AKI stand for?  Does this generally mean I have
> to
> buy the most expensive one of the three choices at the pump in the
> U.S.?

AKI = Anti-Knock Index. It is the US way of stating Octane
requirements. There are two methods of measuring the octane of fuel,
the motor method and the research method. Rather than pick one, the US
requires that gasoline retailers post the average of the two numbers -
(RON + MON)/2.

See:

http://www.chevron.com/products/prodserv/fuels/bulletin/motorgas/1_driving-perfo
rmance/pg3.asp#antiknock

http://www.chevron.com/products/prodserv/fuels/bulletin/motorgas/8_q-a/#11
http://www.chevron.com/products/prodserv/fuels/gas_qanda/api_octane.shtml
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=Gasoline+AKI

Regards,

Ed White
 
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