1200RT Octane Rating

[Rinkydink]

OK, rode the '06 RT and am thinking seriously about trading the '04 RT in on one. I did a search and probably due to my miswording couldn't come up with anything. My '04 ran fine on mid-grade(89)gas. Does the 1200 "require" premium fuel (91) to prevent pinging or have you guys found mid-grade to work ok?

[CMWingfield]

Hi Link,

The 89 grade works well in the R1200GS! No pinging. We missed you at the Halloween Beemer Bash this past weekend. Beautiful weather!

Mike

[Deans BMW]

The new R1200 engines do not ping due to Knock sensors that will retard the timing at the first indication of "pinging"

[FIRST_BEEMER]

It`s recommended to use 91 octane. You can run the lower grade but with a compression ratio of 12 to 1 I would think at 47 MPH you could run the 91. I do.

It`s more than just $$. Return for that same $$$ would be a better ride performance and

[Leo Flor]

If you want to enjoy all of the 110 bhp promised by BMW, you will have to fill it with 93 (R+M)/2 octane. But you can use a lower grade if that's only what's available. The R1200RT is equipped with knock sensors to prevent pinging when burning lower-octane gasoline.

 

93 (R+M)/2 is equivalent to the 98 RON specified in the owner's manual. (R+M)/2 is the octane method used in North America and RON is the method used in Europe. I find 93 (R+M)/2 common in many areas of the US but 91 is the highest in others like most brands here in Ontario where I live. To get the best performance from my R120RT, I fill up with Sunoco's Ultra94 which, as the name suggests, is 94 (R+M)/2 octane. If you are concerned about the high cost of gas, you can blend 2 parts Ultra 94 with 1 part 91 octane to get the required 93 octane .

 

Compression ratio on the R1150RT was 11.3:1; that model needs only 91 octane. The R1200RT's compression ratio is 12:1; hence, the higher octane requirement to obtain the 110 bhp and 85 ft-lb that it is rated at. You can get 15 bhp more from the R1200RT than the R1150RT, but nothing in life is free.

 

Good luck, whether you decide to trade up or not. I find the R1200RT a huge improvement in engine performance and riding dynamics over my previous R1150RT. But my decision to trade up was largely due to the upgraded engineering / technology .

[R4ND0M_AX3]

Just a note that the 1200 engine does use knock sensors to detect when the engine IS pinging. Then it will try to do what it can to reduce the pinging. But it will not garantee that no pinging will occur. There is only so much timing the ECU can pull.

 

Having said that I think the bike will run and learn just fine on the common lower octane fuels but like stated above you will have reduced performance and maybe even worse fuel economy.

[Rinkydink]

Thanks for the replies. Not so much worried about the money, just curious how much difference the higher compression ratio made. 91 octane is pretty much the highest rated fuel I see around here.

Hey Mike, I was/am doing the moving thing as my house sold faster than expected. I'll be at the next one.