supermarket/shell/bp fuel

[benjamescook]

Hello all just looking for some opinions on the following.

I religiously use Shell standard diesel in my remapped Fabia VRS. A few months ago due to bad planning on my part i ended up having to put Morrissons fuel in. There was an instant negative change with my car. The engine was noisy, it was clunky to drive and there was a significant loss of BHP and torque. I then started to fill up with standard Shell stuff again and it took a good 2-3 months for the car to 'feel' like a VRS again. The other day i put a tank of V-Power in and the difference is again very noticable. The car is quieter, smoother to drive and there is a definite increase in the way the car feels.

Has anyone else noticed anything similar or have any comments? Ive looked on the search but theres nothing definitive to what im asking.

One things for certain, i wont be using supermarket fuel again.

Cheers to all in advace. Ben

[R1chard]

Im the same, I have always used shell fuel but If I get caught short and have to use another filling station like I had to the other day (asda) :( which is quite a rare occasion I only put in £5/£10 worth untill I can get to a shell station

I dont really notice any difference though lol I keep telling my dad to stop filling up at morrisons !

[cjb]

I always used whatever was nearest. Noticed a slight MPG drop on Total fuel, otherwise no diffference.

[benjamescook]

Thats a good point i forgot to mention the MPG. Running on Shell i was gettin 50-52 MPG when i filled up in Morrison it dropped to 40-43MPG and its still sat on about 45MPG now so although the engine is smoother again its still not as economical as it was.

[smithy-]

Mines remapped, i always put ultimate or v power in, however this is only for peice of mind as i found no difference at all in the feel or mpg. The thing i find makes the most difference is the outside temperature and the moisture levels in the air. I used to run a 480hp cossie and a rolling road print out was nearly 40 ft lbs difference in an air temp of 2 degrees over an air temp of 17 degrees.

[devonutopia]

Quite amusing as my car is remapped about as hard as you can, and I chuck any old stuff in, with millers DS4 though. Never noticed lacking performance from tesco city diesel to normal shell/BP diesel. I certainly have never noticed any difference using bp ultimate or shell v power diesel.

[oilburninnut]

having run on awesomes rr a few times,i can confirm with the garphs if needed that there is absolutly no difference in so called super fuels when it comesdown to power,i ran mine virtually from new onsuper,after the map it ran 173bhp 346ft lbs,then fuel went up and i ended up using only supermarket fuel,i ran the car again on the same rr a few months later and got exactly the same results,with exactly the same shaped graph and everythng,any power loss is all in the mind.

[Lofty86]

The "super" fuels usually just have injector cleaner in.

Thats why your not allowed to use millers with superfuels.

[Fred Bloggs]

Hmmm, Morrisons, ASDA, two companies well known for owning their own oil refineries? You're kidding yourself. here in the North West all the road fuel sold comes out of Shell Stanlow at Ellesmere Port. Same thing applies across the UK. South Coast = Exxon near Southampton, South Wales = Chevron in Pembroke, Scotland = INEOS Refining, Grangemouth etc...

[x4cs]

I use BP ultimate and have once used sainsburys standard stuff in my fabia vrs and i noticed a fair difference in acceleration. its noticably better when using the BP ultimate....

thats my 10p's worth !

[markyvrs]

I've tried most stuff. I find thats its all the bloody same. Paying extra for having 'Ultimate' or 'V-Power' stuck on the end of the name is a fools game.

I mostly use Total (standard), Esso (standard) and Morrisson's 'City Diesel'. Used V-Power once or twice and it failed to make any improvement to my life.

[VWD]

Found the only thing to make any difference is price - so mostly I use Esso - on the way to work which mirrors Tesco for price -double bonus - cheapfuel without going out of my way .

[Sonic_Vrs]

Quite amusing as my car is remapped about as hard as you can, and I chuck any old stuff in, with millers DS4 though. Never noticed lacking performance from tesco city diesel to normal shell/BP diesel. I certainly have never noticed any difference using bp ultimate or shell v power diesel.

I agree.

Any 'difference' people feel I'd put money on it being psycho sematic.

[Tailhappy]

How about the Total Excellium? I use standard Total fuel as a rule with a shot of Millers and it (Fabia vRS) runs well, but when I tried the Excellium I found no real difference apart from slightly improved performace due to the lightening of my pocket due to the extra cost over standard diesel.

TH

[Spud26]

I wouldn't touch supermarket fuel i know they tend to be cheaper but they have less additives/lubricants etc.

I use BP with the millers oils additive it runs cleaner and quieter when cold.

Normal fuel with a additive is as good if not better than premium fuels.

[Decron]

I wouldn't touch supermarket fuel i know they tend to be cheaper but they have less additives/lubricants etc.

No they don't.

It all comes from the same place and the same tanks and it all conforms to EN590. By all means if it makes you feel better by buying BP and getting fleeced then thats down to you but supermarket fuel is just as good.

[Spud26]

The fuels do come from the same place and do meet the correct standards but supermarket fuels are a lesser grade than Total,Shell etc.

When there was all the problems with the petrol contamination (too much silicone, used to prevent diesel frothing)

We were imployed by morrisons to go through all the claims to sort out the compo to pay for the genuine claims. Some were funny there are alot of scumbags in this world which will try anything to get money!

In doing this we were able to see what percentages of what additives should and shouldn't be in the fuel.

In the supermarket fuel there was less cleaning and lubrication additives.

[oilburninnut]

The fuels do come from the same place and do meet the correct standards but supermarket fuels are a lesser grade than Total,Shell etc.

When there was all the problems with the petrol contamination (too much silicone, used to prevent diesel frothing)

We were imployed by morrisons to go through all the claims to sort out the compo to pay for the genuine claims. Some were funny there are alot of scumbags in this world which will try anything to get money!

In doing this we were able to see what percentages of what additives should and shouldn't be in the fuel.

In the supermarket fuel there was less cleaning and lubrication additives.

that may be,but i have rr graphs that prove there is no difference in performance of whichever fuel you choose to use:thumbup:

[Timewarp]

The "super" fuels usually just have injector cleaner in.

Thats why your not allowed to use millers with superfuels.

Not allowed? Who says?

I've been doing this for years with no problems. V Power and Millers. Car runs like a dream, I always notice it feeling a bit different if I don't use this combination.

[BRUN]

we recently had a few cars in work with 'bad fuel'

all of them were regular supermarket fuel users, 2 of the cars were less than a year old

[Decron]

we recently had a few cars in work with 'bad fuel'

all of them were regular supermarket fuel users, 2 of the cars were less than a year old

You will get that with so called "Proper" fuel from any of the usual places. Our local Sainsburys gets fuel from the same tanker that stops first at the local Shell garage. I use supermarket fuel (When I have to use mineral diesel) because I prefer giving my money to them over the others, never had any issues with performance in 10 years with it.

[DriveMeBananas]

Hmmm, Morrisons, ASDA, two companies well known for owning their own oil refineries? You're kidding yourself. here in the North West all the road fuel sold comes out of Shell Stanlow at Ellesmere Port. Same thing applies across the UK. South Coast = Exxon near Southampton, South Wales = Chevron in Pembroke, Scotland = INEOS Refining, Grangemouth etc...

It is true that all of the oil comes from the same sources and is refined in the same plants and often delivered in the same lorries.

These tanker lorries have different compartments for different grades of fuel.

In the process of refining the crude oil a wide spectrum of products are produced from gas, petrol, diesel, lubricating oil, through to heavy oil which is the kak left over which they sell cheaply as a fuel for ships (it is like tar and smells bad).

There are lots of grades of fuel and many different additives.

The fancy shell and BP fuels have additives which help to clean the engine, the fuel is a different colour (usually blue) and smells different to standard diesel.

There is also a tax free diesel which is stained red so that it can be identified as having no tax paid, it is just normal diesel.

Whilst the combustion properties of standard diesel may be the same as the fancy shell and BP fuels, I do notice a difference with the smooth running when I have used the more expensive product, I stick a tank in from time to time to clean the engine out.

When the engine is cleaned out it does perform better as it does when you have had it serviced. Clean oil and filters along with clean fuel has got to make a difference to the running of the engine.

I use 2 full tanks of diesel per week so I normally go with the cheaper option.

[Decron]

This is another one of these groundhog threads that seems to keep coming round. Debate after debate (And some of them get quite involved in the science around the cetane rating) the conclusion is always thus:

[Kandy]

PD130 engine, can't tell the difference whatever I chuck in.

[devonutopia]

Fresh tank of tesco cheap rubbish this morning + double dose millers. Car going very nicely indeed.