Tesco Fuel Again?

[flango]

So the fuels are different - due to the adittive packs. Which means that it does make a difference which brand of fuel you choose.

The issue is that unless you have access to independant testing data, it is anyone's guess which fuel is actually better.

And customers end-up going by the marketing hype.

(PS - My understanding is that the above does not apply to Shell V-Power, which is the only car fuel in the UK that is made separately from other fuels).

The other issue is the petrol station itself... where contamination can occur regardless of fuel brand.

I would have thought that large/busy petrol stations, e.g. at motorway services, are less likely to suffer from local contamination, due to high turnover and presumably better and more robust maintenance procedures?

Our fuel and lubricant additives division supply the majority of the majors and there are significant differences between the packages supplied to the various companies. Also specs change and packages are frequently updated. So there is a difference but like Markjay says spec is usually turned into marketing B.S. so the consumer doesn't know what to choose. So you pay your money and takes your chance.

Personally I use Shell and Texaco so make of that what you will. When I went for another super unleaded instead of V Power I ended up with the problems posted above. Not down to the fuel and additives but down to poor tank management and stale fuel

 

[Alex225]

To be honest I haven't used anything by Optimax/V-Power since I bought a Clio 172 back in 2003. Was mapped to make the most of a higher octane so I stuck with that in any performance car I've owned.

Bought a diesel Saab 9-3 runabout and that starts and seems to run better on V-Power diesel. Plus having a Shell station round the corner means that's the one I go to.

I've always avoided supermarket fuels and had a friend who made a successful claim from Tesco due to a fuel pump issue after their fuel was iffy.

 

[Deleted member 6183]

Where's Dryce these days?

He held strong views on this subject.

 

[chrispynuts]

Water in Fuel

Yes all the companies draw from the same tanks hence the random contamination but did you know that when the main distribution and storage points get a delivery the fuel is chased up the delivery pipeline with water that is supposed to catch in a sump and be drained off. The water is used to chase the fuel as in some storage facilities the tanks can be quite some distance from the delivery point (as here in Belfast the tanks are about 600 to 800m and the delivery pipe about 200mm in dia from where the fuel delivery ships birth) and to leave all that fuel lying in the pipes can be costly and dangerous

 

[markjay]

....nd to leave all that fuel lying in the pipes can be costly and dangerous

Not sure about costly... a litre of bottled water (sourced from the spring two valleys away) costs twice as much a litre of fuel (dug up from the depth of the Saudi desert) - when purchased in the same petrol station........

 

[Drew sl]

Iv noticed Tesco never seem that fresh on fuel, car doesn't get to excited about it

 

[paul_f]

Around here the supermarket fuel stations always seem a lot busier than the others.
So if they are selling more fuel, there are more chances of errors being made when deliveries occur

 

[ItalianTuneUp]

Anecdotal, I know, but I almost always buy diesel from supermarkets and have never had any issues.

 

[219]

It's a car forum, you should have used dipstick!

Sadly , there aren't as many dipsticks around these days as there used to be

 

[219]

How does the RAC man know this, does he supervise the buying, has he any proof, or is he just listening to hearsay, ? I suspect the latter. I have used supermarket fuel more often than not for at least 15 yrs. without any problems, just because it's "Shell or BP" dosent mean the filling stations tanks cannot leak or let water in to contaminate the fuel.

I don't have any evidence to prove this , but my guess would be that water gathers in storage tanks due to the formation of condensation within the tank , thanks to the difference in temperature between the ( cold ) underground tanks and that of warmer ambient air , drawn in from above ground through the breather system as the tanks are emptied .

Moisture from the slightly warm air will condense on the cold inner walls of the tank once it is sucked in . I know this happens in my own central heating oil tank , and we periodically have to siphon off from the bottom to get rid of water . Aircraft fuel tanks are the same , hence the pre-flight check draining a little fuel from the underside of the wing into a sight glass . There is also no reason why road vehicle fuel tanks should be immune to this either , yet how many drivers drain off the bottoms of their tanks to remove water ? I have only once drained off a diesel tank to change the strainer - although diesel vehicles do often have water traps . Sometimes the contamination may occur in the vehicle tank rather than in the filling station storage tank ?

 

[219]

I don't. But having searched for confirmed contamination incidents today (i.e. reported in the news with the retailer admitting liability, as opposed to an individual alleging it on a forum) some of the 'top 5' I listed came up with none, and others came up with multiple occurrences. So it didn't appear to correlate with volume sold.

Happy to be corrected if you have contradictory evidence.

Bill , I know this is being wise after the event , but could you , before alerting the filling station , have contacted weights & measures authority ( or whatever the responsible authority is called ) with your suspicions and had them carry out a surprise inspection , taking samples from the pumps for analysis ?

 

[219]

So the supermarket chains buy up the last remaining drops in old tanks and flog it on to their customers? Come on, if that's the case BP etc would need to be knocking down and building new stations at astronomical rate per day to meet the demand from supermarkets which have 44% of the retail market, not to mention that petrol stations numbers are in decline.

I'd imagine such fuels might be sold onto small , independent outlets who struggle to make any margin on fuel - that is assuming any agreement with their usual supplier does not prevent them from doing this ?

 

[John Jones Jr]

I'd imagine such fuels might be sold onto small , independent outlets who struggle to make any margin on fuel - that is assuming any agreement with their usual supplier does not prevent them from doing this ?

I've no idea Derek. What I do know from looking at potentially purchasing a disused petrol station was that view taken regarding any remains in the tanks would be treated as problematic waste and the soil around the tanks too. Which in turn didn't make the site viable for our specific use due to the costs involved.

 

[Deleted member 6183]

Sadly , there aren't as many dipsticks around these days as there used to be

I disagree entirely.

 

[kjb1]

I'd imagine such fuels might be sold onto small , independent outlets who struggle to make any margin on fuel - that is assuming any agreement with their usual supplier does not prevent them from doing this ?

Id imagine this never really happens, and tanks are ran to lowest safe level possible, then specialist tankers are brought in to recover remaining amounts which are then recycled or disposed of.

What independant would honestly take fuel from an unknown source to potentially spoil their high cost fuel tanks?




Sent from my iPhone

 

[cb1965]

Water is present in most fuel storage tanks for a variety of reasons (condensation being the least of them), but as it separates from the fuel the tank extraction systems are designed for this inevitibility!

 

[ItalianTuneUp]

I have no idea really, but water and oil don't mix easily, so I'd expect them to separate, with water floating on top, and the diesel being pumped from the bottom of the tank?

 

[BenzedUP]

I would rather run out of fuel than put any supermarket fuel in my cars.

 

[ItalianTuneUp]

I would rather run out of fuel than put any supermarket fuel in my cars.

How much of that sentiment is based on facts though? I almost always use Asda diesel and have never experienced anything untoward.

 

[cb1965]

I have no idea really, but water and oil don't mix easily, so I'd expect them to separate, with water floating on top, and the diesel being pumped from the bottom of the tank?

Other way round, diesel floats on water so is pumped from the top with, put very simply, several separator devices in place to prevent water being pumped with the fuel.