luckydawg003

Can a 2012 Mustang GT run on 87 Octane, or does it need premium 93 octane?

bakerjd

Unless it has a custom tune specific to 93 Octane, it will run just fine on 87 Octane

luckydawg003

So is 87 the recommended fuel from Ford. Just like the 05-09 models. I'm just not sure with the new 5.0 engine. Cause I heard it had like 10 more hp if you run 93 octane on it.

knightryder

The 5.0 V8 will run on 87 octane but premium fuel of 91 octane or higher is recommended for best overall performance. When you run 87 octane the engine's ecm retards ignition timing among other things to prevent engine damage which lessens performance.

NightMare_12GT

it gets 402 hp with 87 octane, 412 hp with 91 octane. it will run great with 87. Ford does not specifically give a recommendation on fuel. they only say it makes a little more power with 91+ but it will run just as good on 87 (minus the peak 10 hp loss)

Dragonetti

It will run fine on 87 but I can tell you that you can fill the difference using 93. Mine will hardly brake the tires with 87 but will burn them down running 93. I know it sounds crazy but it's true.

FordService

Hi luckydawg003,

This is Deysha from Ford Customer Service. This info will be provided in the owner guide, which is available at www.fordowner.com. This is the recommendation for this vehicle as advised by knightryder:
Octane recommendations (5.0L V8 engine)
Your vehicle is designed to run on regular fuel with an octane rating of 87 (R+M)/2 or higher. For best overall performance, premium fuel with an octane rating of 91 (R+M)/2 or higher is recommended.

Deysha

adidas04

I have done several 300+ mile drives in mine and have found that my highway MPG is actually 1 to 2 mpg better with 87 (thats highway driving only). In the city I use 91 or higher for the HP...I don't notice an MPG difference in the city between 87 and 91.

Nuke

If you intend on using higher than 87 octane, then you may as well get a custom tune and take full advantage. The extra 10 HP is crank and looks more like 30-40 crank or more with the tune.

brazeagle

Just want to thank you VERY MUCH for posting, it really helps us out there to make educated decisions.

Thank you FORD, thank you Deysha.
Safe driving
brazeagle