Tesco fuel or branded

[grober]

Think the message about using a petrol/diesel station with high turnover is a very relevant point,which equally applies to tyres and car batteries also.

 

[m2287]

I use whatever fuel is nearest, I never notice any difference...

 

[Bakili]

Watched 5h gear yesterday on Discovery channel
Test was carried on VW Golf GTI

http://youtu.be/WTaBngvsPrc

 

[Dieselman]

Watched 5h gear yesterday on Discovery channel
Test was carried on VW Golf GTI

Fifth Gear Fuel test - YouTube

On a cost per Bhp basis they are in this order, from highest to lowest.

1. Bp Ultimate
2. Shell Vpower
3. Esso Supreme
4. BP Unleaded
5. Asda Unleaded

Can anyone categorically say there are any other benefits, as the cost is worse for the premium fuels.

 

[Dieselman]

Erm yes! (I've been in fuel retail for 20years)

And nothing wrong with it provided u know it is what it is and you are happy that it may not have identical nutritional benefits to beef!

Who says horsemeat is less nutritional than beef? Being leaner, it's probably better for us.

You work in fuel retail...how does that demonstrate to us that supermarket fuels are not as good?

 

[m2287]

MB seem to employ many people who don't have a clue about mercs!!!

 

[Dieselman]

MB seem to employ many people who don't have a clue about mercs!!!

But they don't say we have to believe them.

 

[m2287]

If I believed them, I'd have convinced myself I'm actually driving an ml320, that's what came up when I gave them my reg :/

 

[cbsml270]

If yours is anything like the RX-8 that I had, any problem is more cr@ppy engine related. Worst car I've ever owned and I've had some rubbish.

My RX8 ran like a dream. Drank like the QE2. Pitty mine sold for next to nothing as it was rotor tested at 7.5 across the board. Loads of bad examples mean they are dirt cheap.

 

[Godfrey]

Some say the additives are added by the tanker drivers as they load up whatever destination delivery they are headed for. So if that is true, you are a the risk of a human error whichever brand you choose.

The tanker driver didn't mention any participation like that, just that he was queuing at the same tap along with other branded tankers.

I do appreciate that my motorbike benefits from the dearer option of fuel but was just saying that the run of the mill diesel/petrol is most probably just as good whether from Asda or 5 pence dearer elsewhere.
I quite like a veggie oil/diesel mix for the Defender anyway

 

[Godfrey]

I tend to use Morrison for fuel these days as the engine runs that bit quieter (relative as its a diesel). It might be the sludge in the fuel but it sounds better. Don't bother with MPG figures as they change so much on driving style, traffic and air temperature so just fill and go.

A bit of veggie oil does that for my Defender, but if you put in too much and start to lose the diesel clatter you lose performance and it requires preheat.

Perhaps Morrisons use a higher biofuel content?

 

[Godfrey]

I'm a hateful engine geek and did quite a few tests on fuels with my 500e.

Essentially I had no performance improvement with regards to the butt dyno. I used to get a smoother hot idle from both Tesco 99 and V-Power and before that Optimax.

What I did see was a regular drop in mileage from 550 to 500km from a tank over many many tankfuls. I average pretty much bang on 21mpg when using V-Power and was pretty much exactly 10% less on Tesco 99. This was over about 5 tanks of each when I was doing the back to back testing, yes I was single at the time

Now my 110 Defender which currently has 218,000 miles on it, it is running well as i'm a diesel guy by trade and I only get minimal smoke when running into the governor or when off boost on a cold engine. I have run it on a 50/50 mix of Rapessed oil and diesel, Extreme winter fuel in the north of norway down to -36 Degrees, 5 litres of old engine oil after filtering and i've even run it with 5 litres of EP90 in the tank. This was all added to a nearly full tank of diesel. On all these mixes and once warm the engine never smoked. When I fill with Morrisons diesel though it will start smoking after just a couple of miles. Time and time again so now I never touch Morrisons diesel.

I did run a tank of BP Ultimate diesel when I first picked up the Defender which seemed to improve it but I think this was mainly down to giving it a long run at speed (Well 65mph for an old Defender counts as speed ) more than the fuel itself.

There was a post on Pistonheads a long while back and one of the guys who designs the mixing system for the fuel. He explained very well how the base fuel is the same but the amount and quality of the additives changes quite a lot between tanker fills depending on who wants it.

Personally I fill up the Merc with V-Power and the Defender with whichever branded fuel station i'm closest to.

I think getting fuel from a station that needs regular fresh deliveries is also important as it can go off quite quickly.

Dave!

Same here. I burn nearly all my used and refiltered engine oiI in my 300tdi. have been told to avoid EP90 as a fuel for some reason. I think someone who knew more than I do said that it is high in sulpher?

 

[Mr E]

Erm yes! (I've been in fuel retail for 20years)

And nothing wrong with it provided u know it is what it is and you are happy that it may not have identical nutritional benefits to beef!

As an independent automotive industry consultant we've looked at the research that been done into this over the years...

IMHO, all things taken into account, I'm very happy to put Tesco Diesel in mine. You may notice a difference from the additive pack in a more tuned engine, but any vehicle with regular servicing / oil changes will be fine running whatever fuel package is available in the UK. We have never recommended a particular fuel package to an OEM for any of their vehicles unless a higher octane / centane rating was required.

Beef and horse - very similar nutritional values. And if you knew what went into a lot of beef cattle in terms of feed additives, drugs, etc, you may want to think again. It's a slightly different story with organics, but again having looked at the whole market there are just as many nutritional issues too.

In other words, you need to look at the whole story, with an independent view, and take a realistic view of risk (which most persons can't, unfortunately).

 

[andystyler]

I've tried various ones in my C63 but now just use Shell's Optimax. Had 27 mpg average this morning (motorway mainly) - its a record high

 

[Tiff]

My old X1/9 used to take 8-15 degrees advance on the timing when using V-Power instead of supermarket fuel. After a tank of the good stuff, it'd pink like mad on the 95 until I knocked the timing back, the difference in performance was very noticeable.. and my garage smelt a lot nicer with the Shell. My bikes liked the V-Power too, and it certainly cleaned out the carbs, and didn't go off over winter.

I keep record of every fill with the Vito, and my lowest MPG from a tank has been 27.8, highest 32.6. The fuel card allows Shell or Esso, and I've found that when entering the figures for Esso they have always been towards the higher end of the range. 2, sometimes 3 tanks a week so 270-280 quids worth of fuel a week at times.

Not saying one is better than t'other but all fuels CAN'T be the same.

P.S.
Why is petrol yellowish in the UK and blue in Germany?

 

[Tiff]

Same here. I burn nearly all my used and refiltered engine oiI in my 300tdi. have been told to avoid EP90 as a fuel for some reason. I think someone who knew more than I do said that it is high in sulpher?

EP gear oils contain additives which attack Phosphor Bronze bearings in gearboxes and should not be used. I imagine Fuel pumps may contain similar bearings so will eventually eat away at them.

 

[Gibby53]

My mate has just had a difficulty with his E220 CDI. Basically it went into ' limp home' mode and a quick check with a diagnostic tool showed fault in EGR valve. A Trawl though EBay showed a replacement at £375 + VAT. Anyway, a quick removal and clean of the valve rectified the fault but the cause was suspected to be caused by running supermarket fuel.
It may be a few pence per litre cheaper but may cost more in the long run.

 

[boxbrownie]

My mate has just had a difficulty with his E220 CDI. Basically it went into ' limp home' mode and a quick check with a diagnostic tool showed fault in EGR valve. A Trawl though EBay showed a replacement at £375 + VAT. Anyway, a quick removal and clean of the valve rectified the fault but the cause was suspected to be caused by running supermarket fuel.
It may be a few pence per litre cheaper but may cost more in the long run.

Unless you can prove the cheaper fuel caused this problem there is not much point to this post, otherwise it is just scare mongering.

 

[Dryce]

My mate has just had a difficulty

suspected to be caused by running supermarket fuel.
It may be a few pence per litre cheaper but may cost more in the long run.

Yeah yeah.

And 18 months ago I had a misfire after using branded fuel?

Coincidence - who knows.

And when I hear stories from friends/neighbours/colleagues where oddities happen the finger basically points 50:50 between branded and supermarket.

 

[flango]

Unless you can prove the cheaper fuel caused this problem there is not much point to this post, otherwise it is just scare mongering.

I can prove it I've seen engines stripped down run on supermarket fuel for town use only and they've failed before 70,000 miles. I've also seen engines stripped run purely on V power and they are as clean as a whistle. Draw your own conclusions but after 34 years in the game I know which fuel goes in my car

Poor fuel is a known contributor of EGR and fuel pump related issues