Considering transporting my '02 Jag VDP to the Middle East, but very concerned over the cost of gas in Israel, 90-octane (RON95) is $8.60/gallon (8nis/liter) at the moment and there are only two commonly-available grades of unleaded gas in Israel, the other is 93-octane (RON98) which is over $11/gallon! Can the 4.0liter live on 90 in a country of extreme driving? (Jerusalem & Eilat are built on extremely-steep mountains, Eilat has summer temperatures over 110F, the Negev desert has hours of straight baron roads safe for 100+mph cruising, albeit illegal, lol..)

This is probably the highest price of anywhere on the planet and at Southern tip of Israel you are just 20-miles away from Saudi Arabia where gas is just $0.49/gallon!

 

Wow! $0.49 a gallon! That is painfully low considering how much we pay for fuel in Britain which is £1.35 a litre, higher in some rural areas. I think the UK could be more expensive than Israel if my maths is correct, which it probably isn't! :P

I've just filled my 4.0 with 99 Octane and it seems to love it, I had used 95 standard from the same petrol station. I'm not sure how it would live on 90 though, I think the owners manual has information on this in it.

 

The car has knock sensors so it will be just fine. I run 87 in mine all the time. I only occasionally hear a ping when I am standing on the throttle during hard acceleration while the car is warmed up. That is the only time I have ever heard it ping.

 

Which sounds rude, but I believe the owners manual states that RON 95 is the recommended fuel octane level.

 

Lol, I sort of did RTFM, the fuel filler area says "premium fuel only" which is open to interpretation as to what grade constitutes premium

Stu, the RON95 price in Uk is exactly the same as Israel, almost down to the penny/shilling/agura: 8 nis (shekels) = 1.36 British pounds = 1 liter of fuel

 

My reply is not really serious, but I wonder if you could add a little high-proof whiskey or other liquor to the gas as an "octane booster"? After all, booze might be cheaper than gas over there!

 

I've run 87 octane in mine a few times, and mine did NOT drive ok. It stumbled on anything over light/moderate throttle as the ignition was retarded due to pinging. I also got restricted performance. I only use 93 now. I've used 89 many times in the past and it was totally fine even under WOT.

 

There are 2 different ways of measuring octane rating; RON, which is what most of the world seems to use, and the American way, which gives much lower numbers than RON.
You mention that 95 RON is available, and that is what is required for the car; no problems.
But listen for pinging
Pete

 

My experience may not apply to many Jag owners who drive more aggressively than I do (I'm old!). But I have been using 87 octane almost exclusively for the past 5 years in my 02 Jag XJ8, 4.0. (Owners manual recommends 93 octane). No knocks, no stumble, no problems so far. The 93 octane gives slightly more pep on acceleration but no other discernable difference (as I drive). No problems with long trips in extreme Texas summer heat. I can't imagine it would damage anything to try the lower octane to see if the performance difference is worth it. My guess is that if you have a really heavy foot you will pay the premium.

 

I have been using 89 octane (recommended is 93). Saying that 93 is now over $4/gal. I have had no problems with 89.

 

I usually run Shell premium form the USA, but filled the tank last time with regular from Canada, maybe 83, or 85? I could not tell the difference part from the 30% price difference!