Thinking about spring...and maybe firing the truck up.

[Yellow Truck]

I'm over on Vancouver Island hiding from winter, and thinking about moving here to leave winter forever. Questions about moving from 3,500 feet to sea level:

• Is the engine less sensitive to octane and less susceptible to pre-ignition?
• Aside from resetting the jets (downed the jet sizes by two according to QFT's recommendation), will the idle and mixture need adjusting?

Have to go home and have my hip repaired, but should be able to start and work on the truck by June, not much later than I would have given when the weather finally breaks in Alberta.

[machoneman]

Sea level will give you a nice hp boost! And yes, to less sensitivity on both sides of your question.

If you need to change the A/F idle, it won't be by much. Check your power valve too as a change here may also be beneficial. Don't know your C/R and fuel now used but a lesser octane (say 92-93 down to 87) fuel may help your wallet out too. Agree on the two jet sizes down but... experimentation (jets, A/F settings, pump shot, a minimal PV change and even minimal engine timing changes) to optimize the existing engine combo to a much lower altitude is worthwhile. Just use new fuel from the new locale and new spark plugs for checking how well your changes turn out.

More real world experience here: http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/general-4x4-discussion/1398929-tuning-carburetor-lower-elevation.html

[Yellow Truck]

Thanks Bob. I did a little digging and it seems Chevron offers 93 octane here and it seems Exxon (Esso here) sells a 93 as well. I noticed that Petro Canada only offers 91 on the Island, in Calgary they offer a 94 octane product, Husky offers a 94 as well. I was getting more run on with Shell's 91 octane in Calgary (3,500 feet) and based on some advice here switched to one of the 94 octane fuels even though they run 10% ethanol.

[My427stang]

My advice, don't change a thing.  Run it for a while and let it talk to you, you haven't got enough seat time in it since the fix to know what it likes, so changing it would be a fool's errand IMHO.

My hunch is that all those things may be true,  but likely will not change as much as you may think.

[Yellow Truck]

Ross - hope to get some seat time in it starting in late May. I'm having my left hip repaired on March 27, and it will be at least two months before I can depress the clutch!

Then I want to be out on Vancouver Island before winter closes in, which can be as early as Oct. 1 out here. We will see how it plays out.

My real concern was with not getting 94 octane on the Island, in fact, not getting any of the fuels I have experience with.

[Drew Pojedinec]

Ross just said what I was thinking.... drive it.  adjust later *if* needed.

[gdaddy01]

shoot , my junk does not run the same from tank full to the next , depends where I buy gas more than the octane rating . none of mine like 87 .  high test cost more , but not as much as pistons . I did that back in the eighties .