I have read numerous threads with peoples views on premium Vs standard fuel. On my previous 2011 petrol Vrs the difference when run on Vpower in terms of power, acceleration and economy was easily noted.

I now own a new CR Vrs Octavia, purchased in May 2012.

The first 6000 miles were completed using only Shell extra diesel.

The results were 53.2 MPG over that mileage.

I decided to see if Vpower made any difference for the 3000 miles before the first service and reset the computer. My driving style and mileage have not changed, so this test will be as objective as I can make it, although I will make comment on the subjective side of smoothness, acceleration etc.

So far the car has traveled 1100 miles.

MPG so far 52.6.

Smoother- Yes but negligible.

Acceleration- No discernible difference.

The other area is additives/cleaning power of premium fuel, which is far harder to evaluate. I drive BMW 525D/530D and X5 3.0D at work and they use basic diesel and get used very hard to high mileage with no injector/engine issues, so I am not so sure it will make much difference.

I am paying an extra 8 pence per litre for Vpower, so with the MPG being less, there is (so far) no economic argument for the premium fuel.

I will update just before the cars 10K service, which should be end of October or early November.

I run V-Power too to but do not see any massive MPG difference at all. As I do a lot of little journey drives at moment I am using it as I am told it burns cleaner for DPF etc God knows if thats right but its still cheaper for me to buy shell V Power than it is for you to buy tesco value diesel in UK.

You will notice little difference as you are already using shell diesel which is full of additives. I'm sure you would notice a big difference if you used supermarket diesel then went to v.

If you go to the shell website and have a read up on the V-Power diesel it states that it produces slightly less power low down then regular diesel, but slightly more higher up the rev range. It's main selling benefit is unseen as it is it's part GTL formula that provides a significantly cleaner burning fuel. Upshot is cleaner internal engine components/less soot.

I use it for this reason.

Edit - went to provide link but shell site has slimmed down their info ! However, a quote from wiki -

"

V-Power Diesel is a blend of regular petroleum-based diesel and synthetic diesel, created using gas to liquids (GTL), along with some extra additives designed to clean the injection system and improve injection pump and injector lubricity.

One characteristic of V-Power diesel is that it is a lot clearer and odourless than normal diesel, mainly due to the synthetic GTL component.

The fuel is slightly less dense than regular diesel so, per volume, the unit energy is actually lower than regular diesel. This is offset, as the fuel tends to ignite more readily (and thus has a higher cetane rating) than regular diesel, and a side benefit of this is that it tends to produce less soot during combustion.

"

I noticed absolutely no difference when running v-power.

Millers additive gave a difference in mpg and performance, and works out cheaper than v-power.

V power have me just under one MPG vs Tescos value derv. Then again I did have a long airport run in that tank so with comparable driving it would probably have given me less.

I'm all for super unleaded over standard but don't really see the point with diesel.......

Final result.

Shell extra diesel 53 mpg over 6k miles.

Shell Vpower diesel 51 mpg over 3k miles.

Its just not worth the extra so going back to standard.

I like V-Power diesel, in my Transit it feels crisper and smoother, and I got 49.6mpg on a run out of it! Its my own van so I would prefer to use a cleaner burning fuel with better lubricants to keep the injectors and piston crowns in good shape, maintaining power. I've not noticed any low down drop off in performance over a good standard diesel. Recently I've been using Sainsburys Diesel and its the best of the supermarket fuels IMO, I normally get idle issues with Tesco.

Its worth the extra expense for the cleaning benefits and extra protection for the fuel system components.

I like V-Power diesel, in my Transit it feels crisper and smoother, and I got 49.6mpg on a run out of it! Its my own van so I would prefer to use a cleaner burning fuel with better lubricants to keep the injectors and piston crowns in good shape, maintaining power. I've not noticed any low down drop off in performance over a good standard diesel. Recently I've been using Sainsburys Diesel and its the best of the supermarket fuels IMO, I normally get idle issues with Tesco.

Its worth the extra expense for the cleaning benefits and extra protection for the fuel system components.

Is it worth the extra though? No evidence to prove your engine will last longer. Only shells word on that and thats advertising. Fuel is already expensive enough as it is without paying an extra 6-8p a litere for it. Just put a tank of v-power through it every now and again if you are concerned but to be honest modern fuels all have additives in them anyway to clean and protect your engine so i doubt very much that v-power and the likes could ever be realistically justified.

The differences in performance are so slight that makes them irrelevant for dailiy driving only in F1 are they concerend about extracting every tiny percentage of power thats available to shave a tenth or 2 off their lap times. This kind of behaviour is ludicrous for a road car on a commute.

Is it worth the extra though? No evidence to prove your engine will last longer. Only shells word on that and thats advertising. Fuel is already expensive enough as it is without paying an extra 6-8p a litere for it. Just put a tank of v-power through it every now and again if you are concerned but to be honest modern fuels all have additives in them anyway to clean and protect your engine so i doubt very much that v-power and the likes could ever be realistically justified.

The differences in performance are so slight that makes them irrelevant for dailiy driving only in F1 are they concerend about extracting every tiny percentage of power thats available to shave a tenth or 2 off their lap times. This kind of behaviour is ludicrous for a road car on a commute.

Where did I say it will make my engine last longer? Its simply going to maintain the components to a higher standard than normal fuel. Read up about GTL, its good stuff. Modern diesel dont lubricate like it used to, V Power Diesel has additives to increase the lubricity of the fuel, its the best diesel fuel on the market and I will put the best fuel in my vehicles even if it doesnt have a real performance benefit.

Where did I say it will make my engine last longer? Its simply going to maintain the components to a higher standard than normal fuel. Read up about GTL, its good stuff. Modern diesel dont lubricate like it used to, V Power Diesel has additives to increase the lubricity of the fuel, its the best diesel fuel on the market and I will put the best fuel in my vehicles even if it doesnt have a real performance benefit.

But its a van??? Hardly a cherished sports car. Who cares if its insides are in a slightly better condition than if normal fuel was used. A van is a work vehicle for lugging stuff about, generally you treat them like dirt. No point having a van if you too scared to put stuff in the back of it for fear of damaging its precious wood panel lining and ruberised floor mat.

I can understand somewhat putting performance fuel in a nice car but not a van. As shell themselves say its "ferrari fuel for the road" or something like that. I doubt they had transit drivers in mind when they marketed it.

But hey its your money if you want to hand more of it to shell then thats up to you but i dont think they need any more TBH.

When the time comes that I start drinking the stuff, the line "V-Power diesel is that it is a lot clearer and odourless than normal diesel" will be a good reason to buy the posh stuff. Until then, I'll stick to burning the cheapo.

You will notice little difference as you are already using shell diesel which is full of additives. I'm sure you would notice a big difference if you used supermarket diesel then went to v.

Exactly, stick to a decent brand Shell, BP. Esso etc not the super rated "it will give you 1000000 hp more" brand it just doesnt work.

When i ran my diesel caddy and bmw always used shell (partly as the station was on the way home from my mums lol)

But its a van??? Hardly a cherished sports car. Who cares if its insides are in a slightly better condition than if normal fuel was used. A van is a work vehicle for lugging stuff about, generally you treat them like dirt. No point having a van if you too scared to put stuff in the back of it for fear of damaging its precious wood panel lining and ruberised floor mat.

I can understand somewhat putting performance fuel in a nice car but not a van. As shell themselves say its "ferrari fuel for the road" or something like that. I doubt they had transit drivers in mind when they marketed it.

But hey its your money if you want to hand more of it to shell then thats up to you but i dont think they need any more TBH.

Not been funny but your missing the point. I own the van, i RELY on the van, it has to be clean, respectable and reliable for my business. I dont treat it like dirt, i respect it, I do the same for all my vehicles regardless of it being a commercial or not.

Transits are well known for EGR and injector issues and as an owner i'll do everything I can to reduce the risk and maintain it. Money well spent IMO

Another one for Millers additive and standard Shell here.

I ran my A3 PD140 on ordinary shell and millers diesel additive - cheaper and gives a similar result.

For me it was less smoke when giving it some stick as it was running Revo code.

Paul

Gosh its too expensive as it is without paying for premium stuff !

I don't know if you are all aware of the fair fuel campaign

see www.fairfueluk.com

and www.fairfueluk.com/campaign_support.html

Not sure this is the right place to mention this or if its against the rules. I attended Parliament twice last year and lobbied my MP. We have the most expensive fuel in Europe and pay about 83p per litre in fuel duty and VAT.

I would urge you all to support the campaign. We have been sucessful in 1) stopping the last three price hikes 2) Getting an enquiry into the whole fuel market in the UK. Robert Halfon MP is introducing a private members bill to have all the costs broken down on all fuel receipts so the public know exactly were there hard earned cash is going.

Never driven an Octavia diesel but drove an Audi A4 3.0 tdi for several years. This is some engine with huge waves of torque at 233 bhp.

No question in my mind that it "felt" better to drive on Shell V Power Diesel. Hard to put into words but more responsive, more free and seemed less "friction" between tyres and road. I'm in the fortunate position of not needing to care about £s per year motoring so would say if it gives you more enjoyment behind the wheel go for Premium ie V Power or Ultimate. If costs are mounting for you, you'll get more enjoyment knowing you are bearing down on motoring costs so stick to acceptable lower grade fuel at best price.

I doubt if anyone should use premium on low power engines below 1.8 tsi or 1.9 tdi , however, eg Ford Fiesta, Seat Ibiza or the like.

In the end we can't prove either way whats right and wrong. I suspect that it's just a matter of personal choice and always will be be.

My mate had a Ford Transit that drank diesel.

So much so, he switched to marked agricultural diesel and saved on the fuel duty.

Still not satisfied, he then switched to home heating fuel to save even more!

If a fuel saving premium diesel was available in Ireland I feel sure he would have used that instead.

My Transit isnt old, Its Euro4 compliant and common rail (2008) so not a chance of using anything else.

As usual a lively debate.

The bottom line for me is cost.

I do 25K per year.

With Shell extra diesel it costs me £ 3062 per year (£1.429)

With Shell Vpower it costs me £ 3400 per year (£ 1.529)

It would be interesting to hear from any very high mileage Octavia owners' on what issues they have had.

If you are doing 25,000 miles a year or an average or 2100 a month, you are best placed to know.

? How are you working things out, is it on 50 mpg?

25,000 miles divided by 50 mpg is 500 gallons.

4.546 x £1.529 = £6.95 a gallon x 500 = £3475 (slightly more, but near enough)

4.546 x £1.429 = £6.49 a gallon x 500 = £3248 " " " " "

are you saying that you get Further or better MPG on the Cheaper Shell Extra diesel. You only require 470 gallons.?

4.546 x £1.429 = £6.49 a gallon x 470 gallons = £3050

Normally the extra MPG with the more expensive fuel equals out the difference.

For you it must be a no brainer, cheaper fuel & use 30 gallons a year less.

53 MPG on the cheaper diesel.

I would have expected it to be the other way around.

(£6.95 x 470 = £3266..50)

??? Or are my figures wrong? sorry if they are.

I think i would get supermarket diesel & save even more money, your Shell fuel is very expensive.

http://www.petrolprices.com

george

Used to do between 25k and 30k business miles per year plus about 5 to 8k personal.

My Mondeo diesel didn't seem to mind Tesco fuel in the 2 years I ran it. The previous cars doing similar milage were petrol and I never saw sufficient improvement to justify the extra cost of premium fuels (in terms of running / power / economy).

Now doing around 10k total miles per year and car is happy on Tesco diesel so far at the 20k+ point.

sk4gw-

On Shell extra I averaged 53 MPG

On Vpower only 50 MPG.

There was no change to my daily drive or style of it as the majority is on motorways.

With my petrol Vrs I had last year I ran it on Vpower as I got more to the gallon, more power (it was obvious) so the extra cost was offset.

Diesel premium fuel makes no sense, well not to me anyway.

I've read a lot about the premium diesel. Then I read some more. This is debated on every car forum and on others too.

The consensus seems to be:

• If you have a re-map its a must.
  
• Branded fuel is better than supermarket fuel.
  
• The difference between the premium and the branded is marginal.
  
• The difference between the supermarket and the premium is significant.
  

In my experience Shell VPower gives me no more MPG than Shell Fuel Save but is a little quieter and very smooth at tick over. Its not worth the 8p premium though as I do 18k miles a year.

Occasionally my local Shell garage has a VPower day where its discounted by 4p so I buy a tank at this price to give the pipes a clean.

I always use Shell fuel save as I drive pass a garage (why do they still call them garages?) than is within 1p of the supermarkets. With the shell points card it works out as the same as the supermeerkats.

I've moved onto to Forte treatments. After extensive reading of all the debates on the car forums, a £10 dose a year will clear the pipes and I'll stick to the Shell fuelsave.