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Halcyon
24-03-2011, 22:04
I fill my car with Petrol at Tesco and some people have been saying that every so often I should fill up at a station such as Shell, BP, Texaaco, etc as the fuel is better and it is good to give your engine some better quality fuel.

How true is this?

Is the higher octane stuff such as that offered by Shell any better for the engine and prolonging my cars life?

Thanks,

halcyon.

Paul
24-03-2011, 22:08
Sounds like complete bull to me.

Peter_
24-03-2011, 22:09
If I remember correctly the fuel supermarkets buy is no different from Shell, Esso or Texaco as they buy the cheapest on offer and use their own tankers.

The High quality fuel is supposed to be more beneficial for use in high performance vehicles but considering the price difference I would stick with standard fuel as with everyone else.

More answers here.http://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100907021537AA9SNSx

martyh
24-03-2011, 22:11
I fill my car with Petrol at Tesco and some people have been saying that every so often I should fill up at a station such as Shell, BP, Texaaco, etc as the fuel is better and it is good to give your engine some better quality fuel.

How true is this?

Is the higher octane stuff such as that offered by Shell any better for the engine and prolonging my cars life?

Thanks,

halcyon.


I have been told the same thing by a mechanic , i use diesel and use a diesel additive which does improve performance in my van .As for using named brands then yes i would agree that they are better quality and since supermarket fuel is priced the same (shell is actually cheeper at the moment near me i use shell and don't need the additive

Halcyon
24-03-2011, 22:12
Thanks. I definately think I'l stick with supermarkets then if it makes no difference.
It's a lot cheaper than the other petrol stations.

Arthurgray50@blu
24-03-2011, 22:12
I have never so much crap in my life, I buy fuel from various garages, including supermarkets.

Its like saying, don't take a rolls to Tesco's as they do a better fuel than if l took a Ford to Shell.

Osem
24-03-2011, 22:17
I saw an old Fifth Gear episode today in which they compared BP Ultimate, Shell Optimax and regular supermarket unleaded. They tested each fuel on each of 3 cars (a family runaround, a mid range car and a high powered model) under controlled conditions and found the higher priced fuels made no difference to performance in the low spec car but did make a significant improvement to power output and torque in the higher powered cars.

Halcyon
24-03-2011, 22:27
So by not having a high performance car (my little 1.25 Fiesta), it will be fine on the supermarket stuff then. Yay :)

martyh
24-03-2011, 22:37
The main difference as far as i know is the additives that shell ,esso, texaco ,ect put in their fuel ,they all have a secret formula .Carbon build up on the piston heads is much less with premium fuels (especially with diesels)

There is however a "urban myth" that supermarket fuel is sold so cheap because it is close to its sell by date .I know that petrol does lose some of its octane power with storage but i wouldn't imagine fuel is stored that long so i have no idea as to the validity of this myth

Pauls9
25-03-2011, 14:02
Would the occasional use of injector cleaner or other additive be of use in the average runabout?

Welshchris
25-03-2011, 14:06
i dont think a runabout has that kind of injectors, they do have antimatter injectors tho..

http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Danube_class

:-D

Pauls9
25-03-2011, 14:11
Thanks mate :scratch:


:D

Hom3r
25-03-2011, 17:20
I've been using supermarkets to get my fuel for at leat 15 years and have never had any problems.

I think it is just a ploy by the oil companies to scare you in buying from them.

Tali
25-03-2011, 19:58
Petrol is petrol is petrol. I used to work in a supermarket petrol station and we used to buy our petrol from Texaco, Amoco and Total. It all comes out of the same pipe at the terminal. The supermarkets are able to charge a little less because they (well used to) market it as a loss leader.

Hom3r
25-03-2011, 20:03
Petrol is petrol is petrol. I used to work in a supermarket petrol station and we used to buy our petrol from Texaco, Amoco and Total. It all comes out of the same pipe at the terminal. The supermarkets are able to charge a little less because they (well used to) market it as a loss leader.


I heard that some garages make more money from the goods in their shop than the fuel.

Fingy
25-03-2011, 21:13
From what I know there is very little profit in petrol, profits are from the random stuff you are tempted with in the shop.

dazzer89
27-03-2011, 18:51
I've been using supermarkets to get my fuel for at leat 15 years and have never had any problems.

I think it is just a ploy by the oil companies to scare you in buying from them.

Supemarket fuel is of low grade and has added bio diesel like reclaimed oil.

Get two diesel cars and run them for 10,000 miles, one on Supermarket fuel and the other on branded like Shell or Esso.

Take apart the high pressure diesel pumps and notice the damage to the one that's been running on Supermaket fuel.

I've got a Mercedes S320 CDI and I wouldn't dream of using Supermarket fuel, I'd sooner drive the extra 5 miles to get a branded fuel.

I laugh when I see the ques at the local Tesco for so-called cheap fuel @ 2p cheaper a litre than a braned fuel up the road, all they are saving is 8p per gallon, 8p's worth of petrol isn't going to get them far. :dunce:

Halcyon
27-03-2011, 19:35
Dazzer, do you have any evidence to prove this?

haydnwalker
27-03-2011, 21:12
Supermarket Fuel is the same as any other fuel. Tesco actually source their fuel from Esso Fuels. I'm not sure which fuel companies are used by the other supermarkets though.

Dazzer: Where do the supermarkets get their "lower grade" fuel from?

Answer: The same refineries that the branded fuel stations do. The difference with branded fuel stations is (especially BP) they rip you off. The Branded stations are just franchises, so they aren't owned by the actual fuel companies, but independent dealers who get to set their prices etc.

martyh
27-03-2011, 21:57
well supermarket diesel does contain a percentage of bio diesel ,i know this because it tells you the percentage on the pump ,i also know that some diesel cars/vans cannot use bio diesel but i dont know if that means 100%bio diesel or the mix that supermarkets sell

I had heard that by 2010 all diesel in the EU had to contain a percentage of bio diesel can any one confirm this

Chris
27-03-2011, 22:06
Most forecourt diesels are now 7% bio. I believe that this is due to an EU ruling, although I've not been able to track the linkage down yet.

---------- Post added at 22:06 ---------- Previous post was at 22:04 ----------

Get two diesel cars and run them for 10,000 miles, one on Supermarket fuel and the other on branded like Shell or Esso.

Funny that you've not noticed the stickers these two brands in particular have started putting on their pumps, stating that their diesel is now 7% bio.

I've got a Mercedes S320 CDI and I wouldn't dream of using Supermarket fuel, I'd sooner drive the extra 5 miles to get a branded fuel.


A fool and his money are quickly parted ... ;)

Welshchris
27-03-2011, 22:11
The Only people i will never fill up with is ESSO and thats through personal prefernece from years ago. Years ago there were Two Esso garages in our town and my dad would obviously use the closest one and started having a lot of problems with his car and so did quite a number of people who used there start having problems. Turns out it was linked to high water content in the fuel. Not long after this Esso shut up shop on that garage and was completly demolished with nothing said by them even though there were a number of complaints.

martyh
27-03-2011, 22:28
Most forecourt diesels are now 7% bio. I believe that this is due to an EU ruling, although I've not been able to track the linkage down yet.



here you go (http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:91J2ihuyJGQJ:www.globaldenso.com/en/topics/files/common_position_paper.pdf+EU+diesel+standard&hl=en&gl=uk&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESghf3xDP-oaI7MuTCl1seuBW3YOyWszF33ewR7jFEtTFj2jAGLGRfDuLEm4 KOaNlv8JT8y6vcWY-YGDok64Uo4JWcc8I01aSA_z26wdc_O17RkvtHxmGXhBDRvKdLl f39V0DP4n&sig=AHIEtbT-18JQrd0Jixpc8wN3kaATCA0Frw)


yes that is percentage of FAME added to all diesel sold in the EU now regaurdless of the seller

so the answer is that basically all EU diesel is the same doesn't matter if it's shell ,texaco or morrison .Having said that there are other additives that premium brands may add to give a enhanced product that differs to other brands but they all have to meet the same minimum standard
EN590

roger skillin
28-03-2011, 10:32
This remind of the myth where idiots think pubs water down their beer LMAO

martyh
28-03-2011, 10:37
This remind of the myth where idiots think pubs water down their beer LMAO


I think it's one for Mythbusters :)



there was another myth that Ansells beer went downhill when the stopped using canal water to make their beer ,it must be true my grandad told me :D

Kymmy
28-03-2011, 11:29
Only difference between sellers of petrol is additives, the petrol is the same no matter where you buy it from as for example in Manchester it'll all come from the Irlam depot.

I notice though a lot of people on here are getting confused between regular and super which is purely the octane rating.

Supermarket petrol will have less additives in it (added when it's pumped into the tanker) which may be detergents or a better lead alternative. Over a 1000 miles it won't make much difference but over 100,000 you may see a difference but then again it all depends on the state of the engine, oil used, last serviced, style of driving..etc.. but on a test bench there are noticeable results..

So in short buy cheap and there shouldn't be an issue, in fact buying cheap at a supermarket where there's high demand is likely to give you fresher petrol (it does have a shelf life) than buying from a branded garage in a smaller part of town.

dazzer89
28-03-2011, 11:49
Dazzer, do you have any evidence to prove this?

Gee Diesel Services at Hucknall near Nottingham. Ask the owner there about Supermarket Fuel and the damage it does to high pressure diesel pumps.

Chris
28-03-2011, 11:56
Unless he has performed experiments in controlled conditions, I can't see how his status as a garage servicing mechanic qualifies him to make an authoritative statement about the fuel.

roger skillin
28-03-2011, 12:00
I think it's one for Mythbusters :)





Yeah lets give it to Adam and Jamie to investigate while Carrie dances in a skimpy bikini :)

dazzer89
28-03-2011, 18:47
Unless he has performed experiments in controlled conditions, I can't see how his status as a garage servicing mechanic qualifies him to make an authoritative statement about the fuel.

But these mechanics (as you call them) see the damage done to high pressure fuel pumps and turbos by supermarket fuels on a daily basis.

Gee Diesels are Delphi agents and have all the technology in their garage to monitor wear and tear on fuel pumps, turbos and injectors.

He's not a bad mechanic, he's got the contract for the Ambulance service in Nottinghamshire and is the local agent for Venson, the company who supply Nottinghamshire Police with all their vehicles. :rolleyes:

Chris
28-03-2011, 18:51
I never said he was a bad mechanic.

I said, unless he has performed experiments in controlled conditions, he is not in possession of the information needed to state that supermarket fuel has caused the damage he has observed.

You say they 'see the damage done to high pressure fuel pumps and turbos by supermarket fuels on a daily basis' - not correct. They see damage. They do not see what caused the damage, unless they have exhaustive data over an extended period, for example two pumps side by side, one known to have been run exclusively on supermarket fuels (or even mostly), and one exclusively run on branded fuels.

dazzer89
28-03-2011, 19:05
I never said he was a bad mechanic.

I said, unless he has performed experiments in controlled conditions, he is not in possession of the information needed to state that supermarket fuel has caused the damage he has observed.

You say they 'see the damage done to high pressure fuel pumps and turbos by supermarket fuels on a daily basis' - not correct. They see damage. They do not see what caused the damage, unless they have exhaustive data over an extended period, for example two pumps side by side, one known to have been run exclusively on supermarket fuels (or even mostly), and one exclusively run on branded fuels.

Never said you called him a bad mechanic. :rolleyes:

Chris
28-03-2011, 19:12
Never said you called him a bad mechanic. :rolleyes:

Sure you didn't.

Anyway, I notice you're no longer complaining about supermarkets putting bio in their diesel. Could this be because you are now aware that your favourite branded diesel is also 7% bio?

Given the care you claim to take over what you put in your Merc's fuel tank, I'm surprised you didn't already know that all diesel is now up to 7% bio.

dazzer89
28-03-2011, 19:16
Sure you didn't.

Anyway, I notice you're no longer complaining about supermarkets putting bio in their diesel. Could this be because you are now aware that your favourite branded diesel is also 7% bio?

Given the care you claim to take over what you put in your Merc's fuel tank, I'm surprised you didn't already know that all diesel is now up to 7% bio.

Bio is bio it depends what you are mixing it with?:o::o: I have no problem with Shell or any other of the mainstream garages like BP, ESSO, Total etc etc.

Chris
28-03-2011, 19:35
Bio is bio it depends what you are mixing it with?:o::o: I have no problem with Shell or any other of the mainstream garages like BP, ESSO, Total etc etc.

Which is not what you said the other day:

Supemarket fuel is of low grade and has added bio diesel like reclaimed oil.

Get two diesel cars and run them for 10,000 miles, one on Supermarket fuel and the other on branded like Shell or Esso.

:scratch:

Halcyon
28-03-2011, 19:41
At the end of the day I'm saving a few pounds when I fill up at Tesco and get club card points too so that is a good thing.

Chris
28-03-2011, 19:51
Of course it is.

I have opted for supermarket fuel at every available opportunity since I got my first car, and that's nearly 20 years ago now. I have never experienced a damaged fuel system or had any other part wear out in a way attributable to inferior fuel.

Peter_
28-03-2011, 19:55
As it has already been said in this thread all tankers fill up from the same bunkers and the is no difference in the quality if the was it would have been on the lies of Watchdog by now.

Supermarkets would not do this as the bad publicity would affect instore sales.

martyh
28-03-2011, 20:14
As it has already been said in this thread all tankers fill up from the same bunkers and the is no difference in the quality if the was it would have been on the lies of Watchdog by now.

Supermarkets would not do this as the bad publicity would affect instore sales.


I agree ,remember this ,and the lengths that tesco and morrison went to ,to compensate the customers affected even though it wasn't their fault



The contaminated fuel was eventually traced back to four tanks at a Vopak storage facility in West Thurrock, which fuel supplier Harvest Energy said contained "unusually high levels of silicon".
Harvest Energy shares tank facilities at the depot with another oil company, Greenergy, which supplies both Tesco and Morrisons. In a statement, Greenergy said a component understood to have been used by Harvest Energy in the production of unleaded petrol had tested positive for excess levels of silicon.


http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/6421783.stm

Peter_
28-03-2011, 20:56
Now imagine if they were thought to have damaged engines with by adding Bio Fuel to the mix.

martyh
28-03-2011, 21:01
Now imagine if they were thought to have damaged engines with by adding Bio Fuel to the mix.

exactly ,i will not deny that there are differencies but nothing that will harm an engine ,it's like the difference between heinz ketchup and tesco own brand ,both ketchup ,but slightly different niether will harm you

Tali
28-03-2011, 22:50
All the pumps will also also have a sticker next to the nozzle confirming the EN/BS standards number that applies to the fuel.

The tank monitoring equipment in the garage will monitor the water content of the under ground tanks. Also, water and petrol don't mix, the petrol will float (or the water will sink) in the tank. The weights and measures people will also sample the fuel as well as ensure the pumps are callibrated correctly.

The only damage I saw in 5 years at working at a filling station was when people put the wrong fuel in their car and drove off without realising.

There were times when the wrong fuel was dropped by the tanker, but the internal controls and procedures would pick this up before we re-opened after a delivery.

RUSTY
29-03-2011, 14:20
Petrol is petrol is petrol. I used to work in a supermarket petrol station and we used to buy our petrol from Texaco, Amoco and Total. It all comes out of the same pipe at the terminal. The supermarkets are able to charge a little less because they (well used to) market it as a loss leader.

This information is 100% correct.

TJS
31-03-2011, 12:59
Right, I know alot of you are saying its Bull-****

But, we have a Renault Clio Dynamique (06 plate) 1.6 litre + a Smart For Two 0.8 litre (05 plate) and they both seem to be affected when we use supermarket petrol, Well Morrisons petrol to be precise.

The renault clio, when we fill up at esso averages 45 - 48 MP/G and generally feels relatively responsive for a car of its size + engine size, when we've used morrisons fuel, we're lucky to get 35 - 37 MP/G, and there seems to be almost a lag from when the accelerator is pressed to when the car actually does anything, this has been tried a couple of times switching fuels.


On the smart car, using esso fuel we can achieve around 52 - 60 MP/G or about 250 miles per tank (20 litres) On the morrisons fuel it drops sharply to 35 - 50 MPG and we achieve about 150 miles per tank of petrol. and the car seems much less responsive.


Now i'm not saying this is the case with all but for the extra bit of money you usually have to pay verses supermarket from my experience is actually worth it.

Plus, we actually pay less for esso then we do for morrisons, £1.25 per litre V £1.32 last time we filled, but I think thats an unusual case because the esso garage is on a main road through our village with morrisons being the next one down so they under-cut to stop people filling there as much when doing shopping :p:

roger skillin
31-03-2011, 13:16
Plus, we actually pay less for esso then we do for morrisons, £1.25 per litre V £1.32 last time we filled, but I think thats an unusual case because the esso garage is on a main road through our village with morrisons being the next one down so they under-cut to stop people filling there as much when doing shopping :p:

Blimey when did you last fill up? Wish i had somewhere within a 200 mile radius that supplied petrol at £1.25 per litre

Chris
31-03-2011, 13:30
Your experience would be way, way beyond what even the branded fuel suppliers would claim as a benefit of using their product ... I think you need to look a little more closely at the type of driving you did in the week after each fill and approach things a little more scientifically if you want to arrive at a valid comparison of the quality of the different fuels.

Hom3r
31-03-2011, 14:21
In the 4 years that I have owned my 55 plate Mondeo Ghia X TDCi, and I have only filled up at the supermarkets.

Only twice have I used shell and that was on holiday in Cornwall as it was the nearest fuel station, and no local supermaket fuel stations.

I have never encounter any problems in the 30,000 miles I have driven.

TJS
31-03-2011, 15:02
the smart car has the same driving each time to work and back, or into town, but the difference is really noticeable, on the esso fuel it gets up to national speed limit fine and within an acceptable time about 11 seconds or so, on the morrisons fuel it just seems to hover around 55 MPH and struggle to get up to 60, and seems to use a lot more fuel doing so. The cars automatic so gear changes aren't the issue and its regularly serviced at mercedes so no problems.

The clio is used for all kinds of driving so i suppose that one isn't quite so accurate of a comparison.

---------- Post added at 15:02 ---------- Previous post was at 15:01 ----------

Blimey when did you last fill up? Wish i had somewhere within a 200 mile radius that supplied petrol at £1.25 per litre

1 1/2 weeks ago :)

joglynne
31-03-2011, 15:25
Sounds like a good time to remind members about this UK Fuel Prices search site that can be set to give you a run down of the cheapest fuel/suppliers in your area.

http://www.petrolprices.com/

Oh ...and I have never had cause to suspect that this site generates any spam.

martyh
31-03-2011, 18:06
Right, I know alot of you are saying its Bull-****

But, we have a Renault Clio Dynamique (06 plate) 1.6 litre + a Smart For Two 0.8 litre (05 plate) and they both seem to be affected when we use supermarket petrol, Well Morrisons petrol to be precise.

The renault clio, when we fill up at esso averages 45 - 48 MP/G and generally feels relatively responsive for a car of its size + engine size, when we've used morrisons fuel, we're lucky to get 35 - 37 MP/G, and there seems to be almost a lag from when the accelerator is pressed to when the car actually does anything, this has been tried a couple of times switching fuels.


On the smart car, using esso fuel we can achieve around 52 - 60 MP/G or about 250 miles per tank (20 litres) On the morrisons fuel it drops sharply to 35 - 50 MPG and we achieve about 150 miles per tank of petrol. and the car seems much less responsive.


Now i'm not saying this is the case with all but for the extra bit of money you usually have to pay verses supermarket from my experience is actually worth it.

Plus, we actually pay less for esso then we do for morrisons, £1.25 per litre V £1.32 last time we filled, but I think thats an unusual case because the esso garage is on a main road through our village with morrisons being the next one down so they under-cut to stop people filling there as much when doing shopping :p:


Now that's interesting ,i own a transit van for my work and always fill up at morrison because they are usually cheaper ,but recently i noticed that Shell is about 4p a litre cheaper so this week (tuesday) i filled up with Shell regular diesel and noticed a big difference in the power and smoother running compared to what i normally get from morrisons.Since my van always runs heavy at about 3-3.5 ton then it is easy to notice the difference

For those interested and with petrol cars shell petrol is currently at 127.9 against morrison 132.9

Hom3r
31-03-2011, 18:16
For those interested and with petrol cars shell petrol is currently at 127.9 against morrison 132.9

The cheapest near me is Petrol 132.0 and Diesel 137.9.:mad:

martyh
31-03-2011, 18:21
The cheapest near me is Petrol 132.0 and Diesel 137.9.:mad:

Thats what you for living on a moonbase :D

TJS
31-03-2011, 21:14
Now that's interesting ,i own a transit van for my work and always fill up at morrison because they are usually cheaper ,but recently i noticed that Shell is about 4p a litre cheaper so this week (tuesday) i filled up with Shell regular diesel and noticed a big difference in the power and smoother running compared to what i normally get from morrisons.Since my van always runs heavy at about 3-3.5 ton then it is easy to notice the difference

For those interested and with petrol cars shell petrol is currently at 127.9 against morrison 132.9

I'm glad im not imagining it :D our smart car really seems to hate the morrisons petrol, you can accelerate and it just seems as though its doing nothing then judders to life, using just standard esso it seems to start accelerating the moment you put your foot down :)
:)

dazzer89
01-04-2011, 06:08
Right, I know alot of you are saying its Bull-****

But, we have a Renault Clio Dynamique (06 plate) 1.6 litre + a Smart For Two 0.8 litre (05 plate) and they both seem to be affected when we use supermarket petrol, Well Morrisons petrol to be precise.

The renault clio, when we fill up at esso averages 45 - 48 MP/G and generally feels relatively responsive for a car of its size + engine size, when we've used morrisons fuel, we're lucky to get 35 - 37 MP/G, and there seems to be almost a lag from when the accelerator is pressed to when the car actually does anything, this has been tried a couple of times switching fuels.


On the smart car, using esso fuel we can achieve around 52 - 60 MP/G or about 250 miles per tank (20 litres) On the morrisons fuel it drops sharply to 35 - 50 MPG and we achieve about 150 miles per tank of petrol. and the car seems much less responsive.


Now i'm not saying this is the case with all but for the extra bit of money you usually have to pay verses supermarket from my experience is actually worth it.

Plus, we actually pay less for esso then we do for morrisons, £1.25 per litre V £1.32 last time we filled, but I think thats an unusual case because the esso garage is on a main road through our village with morrisons being the next one down so they under-cut to stop people filling there as much when doing shopping :p:

I rest my case.

---------- Post added at 06:07 ---------- Previous post was at 06:06 ----------

Now that's interesting ,i own a transit van for my work and always fill up at morrison because they are usually cheaper ,but recently i noticed that Shell is about 4p a litre cheaper so this week (tuesday) i filled up with Shell regular diesel and noticed a big difference in the power and smoother running compared to what i normally get from morrisons.Since my van always runs heavy at about 3-3.5 ton then it is easy to notice the difference

For those interested and with petrol cars shell petrol is currently at 127.9 against morrison 132.9



Oh dear and again, I rest my case.

---------- Post added at 06:08 ---------- Previous post was at 06:07 ----------

I'm glad im not imagining it :D our smart car really seems to hate the morrisons petrol, you can accelerate and it just seems as though its doing nothing then judders to life, using just standard esso it seems to start accelerating the moment you put your foot down :)
:)

My my my and again.

Paul K
01-04-2011, 06:28
Our old petrol focus (52 plate) was always filled up with tesco fuel, never saw any issues with it, when we got our 08 plate Diesel fusion we continued to use supermarket fuel to start BUT after a long road trip one day we were nowhere near a supermarket and needed to fuel up. After filling with Shell standard diesel we were surprised to notice a response difference in the engine, it always seemed a little laggy previouosly but now was pulling lower range revs easier and building up speed faster.
We thought it was coincidental but allowed the fuel to run down and then filled up again with Tesco, the lag returned. Since then we have always used Shell and have seen a slight increase in MPG and an increase in performance. We don't know how true the anecdotal information online is but some are saying that the newer diesel engines (the ones with lower emissions) seem to struggle with supermarket fuels due to particulate sizing.

dazzer89
01-04-2011, 06:41
Our old petrol focus (52 plate) was always filled up with tesco fuel, never saw any issues with it, when we got our 08 plate Diesel fusion we continued to use supermarket fuel to start BUT after a long road trip one day we were nowhere near a supermarket and needed to fuel up. After filling with Shell standard diesel we were surprised to notice a response difference in the engine, it always seemed a little laggy previouosly but now was pulling lower range revs easier and building up speed faster.
We thought it was coincidental but allowed the fuel to run down and then filled up again with Tesco, the lag returned. Since then we have always used Shell and have seen a slight increase in MPG and an increase in performance. We don't know how true the anecdotal information online is but some are saying that the newer diesel engines (the ones with lower emissions) seem to struggle with supermarket fuels due to particulate sizing.

The DPF should clear itself out Paul when you floor the motor. Some cars now don't have the DPF, my Merc doesn't have a DPF.

Halcyon
07-03-2024, 11:42
BUMP!



Yeah I know, it's a topic I posted back in 2011....


But...I was wondering, does anyone use major big petrol stations for the fact their fuels are meant to contain better engine cleaning chemicals and are said to be better for cleaning out the engine?

Hugh
07-03-2024, 11:51
Article from Which from last year says not much difference between supermarket and brand petrol.

https://www.which.co.uk/reviews/new-and-used-cars/article/supermarket-petrol-quality-what-you-need-to-know-aWlmN3O20LKI?utm_source=LexusOwnersClubUK&utm_medium=ForumLinks

Personally, I fill up at Costco (Skoda Kodiaq 1.5SE)

https://www.costco.co.uk/fuel-q-and-a

There are two aspects of fuel quality which depend on the fuel brand and the individual retailer: deposit control additives and forecourt maintenance.

Deposit control additives:
Every grade of Kirkland Signature™ Fuel contains deposit control additive that keeps your engine protected and running like new.

Variations in deposit control additive formulations are the main difference between brands of fuel. Kirkland Signature™ Fuels have been proven to clean deposits and restore dirty engine components to like-new performance.

Station Maintenance:
Good station operation and maintenance means the fuel is filtered and that contaminants, such as sediment and water, do not find their way into our members' vehicles. Costco fuel stations are well-maintained by our capable attendants so you may be confident that the fuel going into your car is clean.

Costco uses fuel filters in the petrol pumps to catch particles or debris larger than 10 microns in diameter. For comparison, the average human hair is seventy microns thick.

Costco uses ethanol-compatible filters designed to catch sediment, water, or phase-separated ethanol and water mixtures.

Costco's electronic sensors continuously monitor our underground storage tanks for water.

Taf
07-03-2024, 12:34
I always use supermarket petrol. But one place I use had severe problems with its diesel due to contamination when the tanks were refilled. Quite a few breakdowns due to it.