Premium fuel - Yay or Nay?
- Thread starter Felixlamb
- Start date
R.E92 said:R60BBA said:Busterboo said:Which, in an M3, you should!
Well, when in Germany I actually get 100 RON V-Power, but in France and Belgium I’ve only seen 98.
But did the same in my 3.0si (and in fact noticed more difference between V-Power and 95/98 on that car more so than my M3. However saying that my M3 has never seen a drop of 95 and won’t during my ownership and so I’ll never really know).
Is your name Rbobba or is the plate hinting towards your occupation as a thief (robber?).
Yeah I stole your girl.
Oh wait didn’t you know?
For my two pence worth, I do fill my car with Sainsbury`s premium generally, find it a very good fuel, and for the extra £2.50-£3.00 a tank full not bank breaking, I know the car forums are full of this debate, and contrary to poplar belief, you don't always get what you pay for - e.g. politicians 
When you think in Cuba they have run car engines for 100`s of thousands of miles on kerosene or paraffin, does make you wonder
When you think in Cuba they have run car engines for 100`s of thousands of miles on kerosene or paraffin, does make you wonder
Busterboo said:
My Mercedes is the other way round and states 98 ROZ for maximum performance, though you can use 95 ROZ, the SL500 states at least 95 RON and the AMG’s are all 98 ROZ (why they can’t use the same term
)I use 95 RON because the performance is enough for my everyday needs
ihadablackdog
Senior member
Is there any point putting Tesco Momentum99 in an unmapped 20i?
Attleborough, Norfolk
ihadablackdog said:
I recently did a weekend away that took two tanks of fuel.
The first was a full tank of Momentum 99 which I ran to fumes but then had to fill up with standard unleaded.
I don't think I ran enough on the Momentum for it to display any great difference in consumption.
I noticed no real difference in performance or smoothness of running.
However, after less than 10 miles on the standard unleaded, my wife said' why has it stopped popping on the over-run'.
The difference was quite significant, surprisingly.
ihadablackdog
Senior member
Thanks. Yeah, its a manual.
Currently using Tesco bog standard. Not sure what the price difference is. I think BP Ultimate is about 10p more than normal unleaded, I'll have a look next time.
Currently using Tesco bog standard. Not sure what the price difference is. I think BP Ultimate is about 10p more than normal unleaded, I'll have a look next time.
Premium fuel is not so much about performance increases although it will by its burning characteristics maybe give you a couple of BHP as the ECU advances the ignition.
It is primarily about the cleaning agents in the fuel.
You do get what you pay for in fuel and cleaning agents are of premium importance especially in direct injection petrol engines.
I would be quite prepared to lay a cash bet that a 35i run on supermarket fuels is dirtier inside than a premium fuelled engine.
Saying that I believe that Tesco actually sell ESSO fuels anyway!
It is primarily about the cleaning agents in the fuel.
You do get what you pay for in fuel and cleaning agents are of premium importance especially in direct injection petrol engines.
I would be quite prepared to lay a cash bet that a 35i run on supermarket fuels is dirtier inside than a premium fuelled engine.
Saying that I believe that Tesco actually sell ESSO fuels anyway!
Tesco Momentum is actually really good fuel. Since I self-tune my car I have it pushed right to the limit of knock on premium fuel so I regularly log the engine knock sensors.
Tesco Momentum is the best, then it's a tossup between Costco Premium and Shell VPower. Costco used to be as good as Tesco but they changed supplier so only have something like 97 or 98 RON fuel now whereas Tesco is at 99.
Costco premium is by far the cheapest, Tesco Momentum tends to be 2 or 3p more and Shell Vpower is usually around 12p more per litre.
Tesco Momentum is the best, then it's a tossup between Costco Premium and Shell VPower. Costco used to be as good as Tesco but they changed supplier so only have something like 97 or 98 RON fuel now whereas Tesco is at 99.
Costco premium is by far the cheapest, Tesco Momentum tends to be 2 or 3p more and Shell Vpower is usually around 12p more per litre.
R.E92 said:
Your findings here though seem to promote the obvious benefits of higher octane rating, which at 99 is obviously going to make Tesco's better. If nothing else, your experimentation has proved that the claim of 99 must be well founded.
However, Shell, for one, extol the virtues of the better cleaning performance of their fuel.
I cannot find any comparison with Momentum for that (and I doubt any of the companies would be willing to publish too much anyway)
So, it is conceivable that you may be better off ceding 1 point of octane rating, in exchange for better cleaning properties.
I feel we will never get to the end of this discussion with a satisfactory conclusion.
Comes down to personal choice to a great degree.
If you're a short term owner, go for the one that gives the best performance (or tuning potential)
If you want to keep the car forever, then maybe go for the best cleaning one.
enuff_zed said:
Both Costco and Tesco advertise cleaning additives in their fuel. The high ethanol content in Tesco fuel should also further help to keep the combustion chamber clean.
I've not seen anything that would persuade me that Shell do anything better than the rest in that regard. I trust Costco fuel more than any other because their fuel stations have a high turnover so none of the fuels are sat for too long and the brand as a whole operates on a philosophy of high quality rather than price driven items. Based on their pricing they seem to operate the fuel stations purely as a membership perk and to get people into the warehouse.