My '88 RX-7 (n/a 'vert) runs great... Sometimes. Since last Winter, I've found that it absolutely HATES certain gas, but then I fill up with a nice fresh tank from one of two local stations and it purrs like a kitten again. And I don't mean that it just runs a little rough; it coughs, sputters, doesn't want to start or idle and the exhaust smells sulfury. Only under hard acceleration and cruising does it do OK, and even then I can still tell it's not right.

It's not water in the line, or a dirty fuel filter, clogged cats or O2 sensor.... I'm beginning to believe that there's a bad sensor in it that isn't compensating for oxygenated 'Winter Blend' gasoline, even though I was getting bad tanks all through the summer from most main-line stations. This morning I filled up at the local Getty that it's loved for the past year and found that it doesn't like that one anymore, either!

Does anyone know anything about oxygenated gasoline, or what sensors in the car would interact with it? How do I start troubleshooting this?

Thanks!

 

There aren't any sensors that would cause that behaviour based on fuel type. The only thing that could be close is the knock sensor on the TII, but you have an NA so we can ignore that.

I would look towards the TPS sensor, and consider the bad gas as a coincidence.

 

ASE Master /L! The one thing that keeps comeing up in the tech schools about oxengenated gas is that some cars just don't like. At the Mazda where I use to work just south of Portland Or,we get cars in that juat come from there running bad doring the winter time (Mazdas) So what to ? I don't know.

 

Well, it's happened for a year now and over two dozen tanks of gas.... The gas just can't be coincidence at this point anymore. I don't know that it's 'oxygenated' fuel that's causing my problems, but I'm certain that it runs great with a tank from one station and runs like crap with a tank from others.

Maybe I could sue the EPA....

 

LOL. I'd love to sue the EPA so they start mandating all new cars be build as battery electrics, but that's another story...

OK, if it happens often enough and only when you fill up from certain gas stations, then it's probably not the TPS. The solution then is to find out what they're putting in their fuel, or to just not buy gas from them anymore.

 

OK, it's like hitting your head against a wall. If it hurts its ok to stop.

Serously, your in NJ so your also getting reformulated petro. That stuff just plain sucks. I have 7 cars running right now. 3 of them will not run on the local off brand reformulated oxigenated enthanol based crap. I just found the gas they love the most and use that.

 

Hmmm. My 88 Integra and streetport NA fc love the cheap Arco 87 octane gas, even in winter. The FC even has its timing advanced ~15*. Maybe it is not the 15% ethanol kind, like what would be found in a big metro area.

 

Driving around in NJ hasn't been my problem.... It's the road trips to MD or VA where I'm forced to buy gas off of I95. And now I got a bad tank from one of my two 'good' stations!