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Comment by devy | Hacker News Reader

   SKYACTIV-X is the world's first commercial gasoline engine to use compression ignition, in which the fuel-air mixture ignites spontaneously when compressed by the piston.

Just pure curiosity, I wonder if SKYACTIV-X engine would also also consume diesel or gasoline/diesel mixtures?

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Almost certainly not, as diesel and gasoline have very different self-ignition properties.

I wonder whether this engine will specifically require you to fill up with NON-premium gas.

To elaborate, higher octane fuel exists solely to prevent self-detonation in higher compression engines by slowing the fuel's burn rate.

I suspect that when operation in compression-detonation mode, it will inject the fuel late enough into the compression stroke that the difference between 87 and 97 octane fuel won't be that big of a deal.

If it does make a difference then I would expect they would design for the higher octane rating gas to prevent user-error.

I anticipate the engine's control computer will be able to adapt in any case. It's like the Mercedes driver who puts in 87... it'll work, and the gas is cheaper, but the tradeoff is the engine runs in "poor fuel" mode and is less efficient, eliminating any savings.

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