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[sawbelly]

My wife and I are obtaining a '69 Sptifire from upstate NY in the near future.  We live in Santa Barbara CA.  Anyone from California recommend a certain type/brand of gas and additive that you know, based on experience with CA blends of gas, will be agreeable with a '69 Spitfire? Any input would be appreciated.

Sincerely,
Steve Fort
Santa Barbara

[herald948]

I'm from NY, not CA, so I can't say much about gas available out there. However, I suspect all you can do is experiment with various brands of 93 octane "Premium" gas and see what your car likes best. It's possible you could use a slightly lower octane, but I doubt it. As for additives, none should be needed, especially if you were thinking lead substitutes or the like. They're not necessary. Period.

[charley fitch]

I have been in California now for 30+ years.  The best thing to say is stick to the better known brands and leave the corner grocery/gas store alone.  I like to use Chevron best with Shell and Texaco next.  I do use premium virtually always.  On my TR3 and 4 I have changed the heads to hardened seats. Not sure what your Spitfire has.
Most of your gas now has ethanol so you likely cannot avoid it.  It is wise to look at the Octane number when purchasing gas.  I was in Colorado and the neighboring states last summer and noted that the octane numbers were lower than Calif. gas on all grades of fuel.  So the premium was, I recall at 91 or less.
Charley Fitch

[sawbelly]

Thank you for the responses.  The highest octane I have seen here in Santa Barbara is 91.