Would running 91 octane on a k20a3 (87 octane) for three years cause CAT to go bad?
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Would running 91 octane on a k20a3 (87 octane) for three years cause CAT to go bad?
Hi guys,
My friend (2002 ep3) calls me one day and says he got a CEL. I tell him to go to honda and check it out and it turns out to be a code for a bad CAT. He swears its cuz of his AEM CAI, but i know he's full of it cuz he doesnt know jack squat about cars.
His car is completely stock, except for the AEM CAI, but the one thing i see him doing to his car ever since he got it three years ago was that he would ALWAYS fill up with 91 octane. I tried to explain to him numerous times about the adverse affects of running a higher octane than needed, but he swears that his CEL would always come on if he filled up with 87 octane. In fact, when i ask him why does he use 91, he simply says "its just habit..."
Ive done numerous hours of research here on ht, howthingswork.com, and other online forums on the topic of octane so i have a pretty decent idea of how it works. So my question is, would 3 years of running 91 octane on an engine that only requires 87 octane cause it to fail so soon?
James
My friend (2002 ep3) calls me one day and says he got a CEL. I tell him to go to honda and check it out and it turns out to be a code for a bad CAT. He swears its cuz of his AEM CAI, but i know he's full of it cuz he doesnt know jack squat about cars.
His car is completely stock, except for the AEM CAI, but the one thing i see him doing to his car ever since he got it three years ago was that he would ALWAYS fill up with 91 octane. I tried to explain to him numerous times about the adverse affects of running a higher octane than needed, but he swears that his CEL would always come on if he filled up with 87 octane. In fact, when i ask him why does he use 91, he simply says "its just habit..."
Ive done numerous hours of research here on ht, howthingswork.com, and other online forums on the topic of octane so i have a pretty decent idea of how it works. So my question is, would 3 years of running 91 octane on an engine that only requires 87 octane cause it to fail so soon?
James
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Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 7,027
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From: Connecticut
Re: Would running 91 octane on a k20a3 (87 octane) for three years cause CAT to go bad? (Jedi_Sol)
The higher the octane, the harder it is to burn. He probably has a high HydroCarbon rate, (unburned gas), which i would imagine over time would cause a bad cat... but 3 years is a little nuts. I think its just a fluke.
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Jedi_Sol
Acura RSX DC5 & Honda Civic EP3
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Sep 29, 2005 08:46 AM
