Lead in gasoline was used a cheap method to achieve high octane, which allowed the engines to be tuned fo more advanced timing which generally translated inot faster performance, better gas mileage, and smoother running.
With the lead having been removed some of the highest octane gas is only 92 or 93 compared to the 99 which these cars initially were designed to run on.
The down side to all the leaded gas was that it contributed greatly to an internally dirty engine. The benefits of using today's cleaner gasolines far outweigh any disadvantage from not having lead in the gas. I wouldn't spend any more money on lead substitutes, and try retarding the timing very slightly to see if that eliminates the pinging--that would be the logical method for addressing low octane fuels.
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Mark Kesner
64-66 Model Manager,
VTCI
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Mark Kesner
64-66 Model Manager,
VTCI
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