Pontiac 1996 Grand Am Owner's Manual page 224

A
CAUTION:
You can be injured and your vehicle could be
damaged if you try to do service work on a
vehicle without knowing enough about it.
Be sure you have sufficient knowledge,
experience, and the proper replacement
parts and tools before you attempt any
vehicle maintenance task.
Be sure to use the proper nuts, bolts and
other fasteners. "English" and "metric"
fasteners can be easily confused. If you use
the wrong fasteners, parts can later break
or fall off. You could be hurt.
, ,
~
Fuel
Use regular unleaded gasoline rated at 87 octane or
higher. At a minimum, it should meet specifications
ASTM D4814 in the United States and CGSB 3.5-M93
in Canada. Improved gasoline specifications have been
developed by the American Automobile Manufacturers
Association
(AAMA)
for better vehicle performance
and engine protection. Gasolines meeting the AAMA
specification could provide improved driveability and
emission control system protection compared to other
gasolines.
Be ,sure the posted octane
is
at least 87.
If
the octane-is
less
than 87, you may
get
a
heavy knocking noise when
you drive. If it's bad enough, it can damage your engine.
If
you're using fuel rated
at 87 octane or
higher and you
still hear heavy knocking, your'engine needs service.
But don't
worry
if you hear
a
little pinging noise when
you're accelerating
or
driving up a hill. That's normal,
and
you
don't have to buy a higher octane fuel to get rid
of pinging.
It's the heavy, constant
knock that
means
you have a problem.
If your
vehicle
is
certified to meet California Emission
Standards (indicated on
the
underhood tune-up label),
it is designed to operate on fuels that meet California
specifications. If such fuels are not available in states
adopting California emissions standards, your vehicle
will operate satisfactorily on fuels meeting federal
specifications, but emission control system performance
may be affected. The malfunction indicator lamp on
y o u instrument panel may turn on and/or your vehicle
may fail a smog-check test. If this occurs, return to your
authorized Pontiac dealer for diagnosis to determine the
cause of failure. In the event it is determined that the
cause s f the condition is the type of fuels used, repairs
may not be covered
by your
warranty.