wow impressive! If it was struggling the engine would make a high pitched rattle with quicker than normal spark plug failure cadence. Sounds like you have a beast, nice!

Paid $3.07 per gallon this morning, which is cause for great celebration in my part of CT.

AFAIK most trucks run on 87 Octane, except, I presume, the high performance ones.
I heard some years ago that modern electronic ignition is able to automatically retard to avoid pinking if you put lower octane petrol in it than it was designed for.

The K24W Acura motor in my Accord "needs" 93 octane, but runs just fine on 87, which was what was in the tank when I had the motor swapped, and which I have absent-mindedly filled the tank with a few times. It's just a bit sluggish on 87 octane, performing similar to the stock Honda motor it came with. 93 octane gives it a bit more zip - IIRC peak power is around 25hp higher than for the stock Honda motor.

I admit I glossed over the truck detail, I saw V8 and assumed sports/high end car.

American V8's are mostly pretty agricultural, and even in "sporty" vehicles will run on 87 octane gas. If you dig waaay back in this thread, or somewhere on BE, you'll find a post from me that runs something like "I have an F250 and a Mustang GT, one has a lump of a V8 motor, a heavy clutch, a solid rear axle, and primitive suspension. The other one is a truck!"

I did some reading on the interwebs so now I am of course an expert... I also saw that modern engines are able to retune with 87 if specs are 91/93. Im terrified to test that theory though..

Instead of rattling and spark plug failure as you mention sluggishness is now the alternative, going to trust you and the internet on that one!

Paid $3.18 at Costco this morning. Haven't seen it that low in Oregon for a long time. Some of the real cheapo stations are matching it, but most are around $3.49 with tier1 stations as high as $3.99.

Well thankfully I haven't put 87 octane in the Honda this year (my excuse last time, last Christmas, was that I had just got off a flight from London and was tired and stressed), and it's not a mistake I am likely to make again!

$2.519 this morning in Simpsonville. SC. Prices round here have been in free fall these last few weeks.

Sunday 22nd December.
Miami $2.72
Sarasota $2.82
St. Petersburg $2.93

Tuesday 24th
St. Pete $3.15

I get the feeling that we pay more in Tampa Bay than the rest of Florida.

The gas in the greater Charlotte, NC area has been hovering (at the low end) around $2.80 +/- 10c for several months, with occasional spikes up to $2.99/$3.00 (which are quickly reversed), and a fairly steady $3.65-$3.69 for 93 octane, which my X5 and Honda TSX need.

At these prices I have become less concerned about seeking out a saving of a few more cents, though I do still prefer to patronize gas stations with a history of selling gas at competitive prices.

Costco in Burbank CA today: $3.89 for regular, $4.29 for premium.

Last week here in southern middle Tennessee it was as low as $2.49. Yesterday it was $2.57. Accounting for inflation that can’t be far from 70’s prices.

I agree. When we moved to NC in 2003 the price of gas was around $1.25, though it started climbing within weeks, and has never gone back to anywhere close to that price, but yes, I suspect that the current price is, after adjusting for inflation, close to what it was in 2003. But however you slice and dice the numbers, the amount we spend on gas is a tiny percentage of our household budget despite our long commute and owning a couple of not-so-efficient vehicles, though we don't use them for long distance commuting.

Being allowed to work from home a couple of days a week has also reduced our gas bill, as has being able to both drop of and pick up little Miss P from school when I do drive to the office (as opposed to sharing the duty with Mrs P as we had been doing prior to the pandemic), though that has had the curious effect of being that I drive more when I work from home (back and forth to school twice) than I do when I commute into the office as I can drop off little Miss P on the way in to work, and pick her up on the way home (the drive from school to the park & ride is a lot shorter than the drive from home to school).

​​​​​​Ge e whiz! 58 Euro cents / litre (approx).
​​​​​​No wonder you guys are so obsessed!