Has anyone put any additives into their gas? Are fuel treatments a good thing or just a waste?

Waste of time and money. Think of it this way - the gas companies want to sell you their gas, and they are very competitive - if there was an advantage to any of the additives they would put it in. In fact they do put all sorts of additives in. The ones they don't put in are the ones on the shelf - because in testing they weren't worth it.

The only additives that may be useful - but not on yours - is an octane booster sometimes useful for old high performance engines, or a lead additive for really old ones that need lead.

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Grant Johnson

Share the Dream!
at: www.HorizonsUnlimited.com

I agree with Grant. And this is generally true of all motors, bike or otherwise: They are a waste of money. The money you spend on the product usually is much greater than any benifit. The only exception might be an additive when laying the bike up for an extended period of time.

The KLR will run fairly well even on cheap low octane stuff. There's a little better economy with premium but I doubt it exceeds the extra cost.

Kurt

I see there are some know-it-alls on the board. TWO of 'em actually!

Additives are very helpful, and definitely not a waste of money. I don't know what the hell they are thinking by saying they are a waste.

Question: If you fill up your tank and there just happens to be some water in the gas, what happens?

Answer: Once the water gets atomized and sprayed into the engine, your engine will sputter and possibly stall.

Solution: If you know you are getting gasoline from a questionable source, carry a bottle of water remover/octane booster!

Come on, put some logic behind it fellas. Not all products are scams you know... In fact most additives ARE useful products. For instance, the next time you take a trip to mexico or some place and you notice your engine sputtering a little ways down the road because of the low level of octane in the gas, you'll be thankful you had an additive with you.

Also, if you put low octane fuel in your motorcycle you may be causing premature wear on parts. Use an minimum of 87 octane. 83-85 isn't enough, and you may get a heavy knocking. 89+ Octane is what your machine deserves if you care for it, and an additive once in a while to purge the system of any water.

With a limited amount of space to carry things, additives would be at the bottom of any list of items I want to lug around. I'd rather carry extra water or even coffee. Hey, it's a motorcycle and as such if your going to take into area's of the world where bad gas is an issue, there are going to be bigger problems than that to worry about I bet. And anyway, with this type of riding, you have to expect your machine to wear harder than the average pampered round-town put-put. All the motorcycle has to do is get me around reasonably safely and reliably. If it breaks at some point (which it will) I'll fix it. Of course maintenance schedules have to be adjusted according to conditions where practicle.

Kurt

Question: If you fill up your tank and there just happens to be some water in the gas, what happens?

The water will sink to the bottom of the tank and join the other water wich has been there for a long long time. Luckilly the designer also knew this and took some precousions in the design of the fuel-tap to make sure the condensated water stay's in the tank...

On the other hand, on old fishing-boat's they usually add some water to the gass-flow to boost the engine-output. Since water has a higher expansion ration then gasoline when it's heated.

On chevy high-output engine's they even have a system called H2O-injection to boost up the power...

It seems water is not only the source of life... but also the source of many misunderstandings.

Of course, don't go pouring water in your tank now... I'm talking about drop's

For the rest... aditive's (beside's octane-booster's etc..) are a waste of monye in my opinion.... and the opinion of many research team's
But.. I must confess.. I alway's wonder... when ever there is a new super-product on the market... should I... or should I not. In the end I alway's not

Maarten

How about Stabil, for when you are storing your bike for a period of time? I bought some and added it to a full tank of gas, after it being recommended on the KLR Yahoo list. Is that stuff a waste?

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Brett - 1999 KLR650
http://www.ridefar.com

Hai Brett,

I don't know it, but these kind of "aditive's" could be usefull. I wrote "aditive's" in qutations be course, in my opinion, it not a real aditive. It's a "one time only kind of thing" with a special purpose. A fuel-producer would not put this stuff in becourse it's not for everyday use.

There are also cleaning-liquits you pour into the tank. They also do a good job, but are for one time use only.

Best is to find a lab-test of the stuff.

I remember clearly the "Slick" oil-aditive. It was suposed to reduse internal friction and the producer claimt this could be proven becourse the idle-speed would rise a bit after putting it in. Very plausible.
A lab-test (by a oficial testing facility) concluded that indeed the idle speed went up a bit, but that fuel-consumption did not decrase, engine-output did not increase. Both signs that there was no reduction of internal friction. There was no conclusion on the engine-wear since this would involve multiple long testing to get an average.
But if friction does not reduce... we all know enaugh I guess.

Maarten

Stabil would be my one exception for those unlucky enough to have to lay up a bike. It prevents varnish build up in the fuel system as the gas (petrol) ages. Just don't forget to run it through the system a bit.

Kurt

Yep, I did run the bike for a bit after I added the Stabil to the tank. I was told it would help prevent the carb from gumming up. We'll see as I should be getting the bike out very soon!!

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Brett - 1999 KLR650
http://www.ridefar.com

How about the use of leaded gas in a KLR? I'm planning a trip from the US down to Costa Rica or Panama, and I understand that leaded gas may be all that's available in some areas (especially past Mexico).

Will the KLR run well on poor quality, low octane, or leaded fuel?

Thanks,
Kevin

Leaded gas shouldn't be a problem with the KLR as it doesn't have a cat. As far as low octane, I haven't found the stuff that wouldn't make it go. Just doesn't run as strong is all.