Fifth gear tested the fuels in the pic attached in a 2012 golf gti.

Stating that for the extra £5 per fill up they were not worth the extra dosh

Thoughts?

Edited 6 October, 201213 yr by bulls20042002

My thoughts = use search function

Yes... I use 95 in the 1.8 TSI , it is specified in user manual

Runs like a dream V power makes no difference to a standard car

its not just about power though is it? If you pay extra for the higher octane rating and get more power that's good, but if you also get higher mpg then the extra power is free.

my fag packet maths comparing supermarket regular vs vpower - fuel was about 5% more expensive and i got 5-6% more mpg, ie it was at worst cost neutral.

Won't make any difference on the 2012 golf. Ihat'll have the TSI engine which is set for 95RON. It's only the TFSI that it makes a real difference on.

I have a Tsi and as such drive for fun not watching an mpg readout. Yesterday I 'had' to fill up (only put £20 in) with standard 95 Ron fuel and I can tell you 100% that I can tell the difference compared to my normal V Power/Momentum.

The engine doesn't even idle as smoothly on the 95 fuel and you can feel and hear it.

I wouldn't use anything but v-power. In all the cars I have had it makes them feel more responsive and smoother to drive.

When they tested 6 years ago and cleared the ECU, it may have been a better comparison.

ECU compensating. The vehicle obviously has to be able to benefit from the higher Octane fuel.

ie Manufacturer Recommended 98 ron (minimum 95 ron) or 95 ron (minimum 91 ron)

Personally for me it is 99 ron as in Tesco Momentum. only 5 pence a litre more.

http://www.en.wikipe...i/Octane_Rating

The fuel flap on my Tsi Vrs DSG states 95 Ron as a minimum Ron.

I run it on 97 Ron Sainsbury's finest cos it's loads cheaper than BP's Finest or Shell

and you get nectar points

Agree entirely with Johnno (obviously a Geordie of some logic and discernment like the rest of us).

Seriously, Fifth Gear don't drive my car and I am convinced there is a more fluid, free response to my new 1.8 tsi Octavia with V Power.

This is all a matter of personal taste and if you can afford the higher performance fuel , go for it.

if you're stuck for cash then you'll get more inner satisfaction from convincing yourself you're bearing down on motoring costs by looking for economies.

I found when i put vpower in the car "felt" better,smoother idle, better drive but mpg went down by 2, normally on momentium

I put Momentum in the VRS last week and I've been struggling to get 30mpg on the commute to work which I easily get with 'normal' unleaded. Never had an issue running the normal stuff

Also to consider is how clean the engine runs. I like to think shell etc run cleaner. May be complete kidology but with very little cost difference I personally don't fill up with anything less than branded 97 (tends to be shell or total).

I've ran all my petrol cars since the early 90's on super - tuned you could tell, standard not much if any difference.

_Kenny_,

last week in your area it was about 5-8 degrees celcius colder each morning, where you running the same car on unleaded

earlier this year when it was frosty mornings?

Probably 10 miles done some mornings last week, before your oil was up to temperature

I can understand getting no improvement but poorer MPG just because of a higher Octane fuel sounds odd.

george

Usually run mine on super but decided to run it on normal over the last few weeks to see if there was a difference. Economy has only dropped by 1-2mpg which I would say is down to the colder weather and engine taking longer to warm up....been frost the last few days.

Struggling to notice and difference in performance either and I'm running a stage 1 remap (map was setup for 95ron but surely ecu would still adapt?) I find it hard to believe that even if it does lose say a few bhp that you could honestly "feel" the difference driving it.

There also seems a large debate that supermarket fuel is poor quality. Having been a petrol station manager for a few years with a well known supermarket we have never had any issues with complaints regarding any sort of quality plus it is supplied from the same refinery as the brand names. Yes the likes of vpower is different from our super and subsequently is dearer but esso and bp are same Ron rating as supermarket and generally a lot more expensive. Supermarkets are lucky to make 1p a litre on fuel....sometimes actually making a loss.

Usually run mine on super but decided to run it on normal over the last few weeks to see if there was a difference. Economy has only dropped by 1-2mpg which I would say is down to the colder weather and engine taking longer to warm up....been frost the last few days.

Struggling to notice and difference in performance either and I'm running a stage 1 remap (map was setup for 95ron but surely ecu would still adapt?) I find it hard to believe that even if it does lose say a few bhp that you could honestly "feel" the difference driving it.

There also seems a large debate that supermarket fuel is poor quality. Having been a petrol station manager for a few years with a well known supermarket we have never had any issues with complaints regarding any sort of quality plus it is supplied from the same refinery as the brand names. Yes the likes of vpower is different from our super and subsequently is dearer but esso and bp are same Ron rating as supermarket and generally a lot more expensive. Supermarkets are lucky to make 1p a litre on fuel....sometimes actually making a loss.

I think people forget the fact that the likes of shell, BP, total, esso etc get the oil from the ground. Tesco and asda are not oil companies so where do you think they get the oil from?? Correct - shell, BP, total and esso and the likes. Its the same fuel. The only differences are the differences are the additives they put in. Supermarkets fuel is cheaper as they can discount it heavily as they make their profits on the food you buy so even a tiny profit on fuel is better than someone else getting any profits.

I think people forget the fact that the likes of shell, BP, total, esso etc get the oil from the ground. Tesco and asda are not oil companies so where do you think they get the oil from?? Correct - shell, BP, total and esso and the likes. Its the same fuel. The only differences are the differences are the additives they put in. Supermarkets fuel is cheaper as they can discount it heavily as they make their profits on the food you buy so even a tiny profit on fuel is better than someone else getting any profits.

Yes but its the additives that are the important thing ask any motor mecanhic and supermarkets tend not to use them , and supermarkets are not very careful about were they get there fuel from look at the tesco farce was it last year many cars with totaled engines

If your car is injection which they all are now and its ment to run on 95 ron 97 will make very little difference

However if like me you have an older car or motorcycle with Carbs higher octane = more power and speed

Edited 8 October, 201213 yr by g0bgb

Noticeable difference between 95 and 99 RON, but then it was remapped with 99 in it, so hardly surprising.

Don't forget that with the cooler weather you will gain some power (or loose less to heatsoak on a Turbo) as the incoming air is cooler = denser air.

Probably at about the best time at the moment on a dry day, cool air and not too much issue with getting traction down (mind not today).

Paul

It will surely only make a difference in engines that are mapped (factory or aftermarket) for higher ron fuel.

Such as the TSI 180 and the older 1.4 16V 100bhp etc.

Phil