super market fuel!
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Dean_T
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It says it all really....You can't draw definitive conclusions just from the colour of the fuel ! Need to analyse the fuel properly to see if it conforms to BS EN 590:2009.
The main difference between fuels are the additives introduced to it. The base stock is the same, apart from Shell VPower, which is a GTL, gas to liquid diesel, made from methane by a GTL plant in Qatar.
I use Shell Vpower in mine in an attempt to minimise soot in the DPF.
The main difference between fuels are the additives introduced to it. The base stock is the same, apart from Shell VPower, which is a GTL, gas to liquid diesel, made from methane by a GTL plant in Qatar.
I use Shell Vpower in mine in an attempt to minimise soot in the DPF.
All cars in Britain are mapped for 95 RON fuel standard anyway, there's no need to go above that if your car is standard, usually when you get a remap though the tuner will ask what type of fuel you want it mapped for. I'd only ever use Momentum or VPower as they are the only two 99RON fuels in the UK
For the petrol (and diesel equivalent), I use the following in order of preference :
Shell Vpower
BP/Texaco/Esso 97/98 RON SU
Indy/ Supermarket 97RON SU
Also I choose busy filling stations when possible as they will have the highest turnover of fuel, so it has less chance of "going off" or picking up contaminates.
I don't notice much difference between the different SU, but 95 makes a huge difference, much less torque and the car idle is not as smooth.
Shell Vpower
BP/Texaco/Esso 97/98 RON SU
Indy/ Supermarket 97RON SU
Also I choose busy filling stations when possible as they will have the highest turnover of fuel, so it has less chance of "going off" or picking up contaminates.
I don't notice much difference between the different SU, but 95 makes a huge difference, much less torque and the car idle is not as smooth.
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I only use Momentum and I do that because there is no other alternative where I am located.
There are no 'Majors' in the North, due to the distribution not being profitable. So, Tesco it is, on the 99 RON.
I did find that the car was bad for pinking on 95 RON, so I changed to Momentum pretty sharpish after the first rattles were heard.
I would need to burn the equivalent of 10 litres to get to a Shell or BP garage and it just isn't happening.
There are no 'Majors' in the North, due to the distribution not being profitable. So, Tesco it is, on the 99 RON.
I did find that the car was bad for pinking on 95 RON, so I changed to Momentum pretty sharpish after the first rattles were heard.
I would need to burn the equivalent of 10 litres to get to a Shell or BP garage and it just isn't happening.
I've always hated supermarket fuel but that is purely down to my owning and modifying cars really. V Power all the way! Always has been and always will be. I remember coming back from Skeg'vegas one weekend in my Subaru that had crap fuel in it cus i dropped a clanger and didn't find any V Power quick enough, I came off an island and floored it, it pulled back, kangaroo'd and I thought I had wrecked it. Just simply not good enough fuel as my car was mapped to V Power at that time. Ruined a good clear road run did that! lol
possibly a BP publicity scam to get more people to buy their fuel over supermarket fuel
the reason I think this is because they HAVEN'T named who the supermarket chain is that allegedly sells bad fuel, but that's exactly what people would want to know so they don't damage their cars
the reason I think this is because they HAVEN'T named who the supermarket chain is that allegedly sells bad fuel, but that's exactly what people would want to know so they don't damage their cars
Not true, my Mazda MPS and Toyota corolla compressor both had to have 98 Ron minimum. They would run like crap without either tesco or vpower, and after so many counts of knock ****** they would switch to a lower ignition timing map with less power.
After spending the past few years remapping both my own car and other peoples, I can safely say that BP ultimate is the worst one of the "premium fuels" and found no difference between momentum or vpower.
After spending the past few years remapping both my own car and other peoples, I can safely say that BP ultimate is the worst one of the "premium fuels" and found no difference between momentum or vpower.
I get less range from tesco fuel
I filled up £20 at both
Tesco : 160 miles
BP.: 200 miles
I heard BP FUEL is more thicker too ?
I filled up £20 at both
Tesco : 160 miles
BP.: 200 miles
I heard BP FUEL is more thicker too ?
s3_trev
Northern Ireland
Anyone that considers their car their "pride and joy" should be nowhere near a supermarket for fuel!! No doubt there will be someone along shortly who claims there is nothing wrong with it, there normally always is!
I stay away from supermarkets and use "normal" shell or BP diesel, I've tried with BP ultimate and Vpower diesel too
I've always had diesels so can't comment on the quality of petrol...
Maybe it's placebo but I always have to pay 1 or 2 penny more per litre for BP compared to shell but the car feels like it runs better on BP and it Deffo gives me better economy on BP
I've always had diesels so can't comment on the quality of petrol...
Maybe it's placebo but I always have to pay 1 or 2 penny more per litre for BP compared to shell but the car feels like it runs better on BP and it Deffo gives me better economy on BP
Since my subaru days I've stuck with premium brands where possible but I travel up north quite a bit so often have no choice on what I buy. Can honestly say that my 3.0tdi Audi (unlike the scoobys) runs just the same no matter what I put in it.
My neighbour was a senior bod at the Grangemouth refinery and assures me that all tankers coming out of there are carrying the same stuff, regardless of what petrol station they are heading for.
I go for Shell when possible but who really knows for sure?
My neighbour was a senior bod at the Grangemouth refinery and assures me that all tankers coming out of there are carrying the same stuff, regardless of what petrol station they are heading for.
I go for Shell when possible but who really knows for sure?
I think they all carry the same stuff but I imagine it's the additives that make the difference. i assume different companies will use different recipes for their additives?
Stride
Registered User
I read somewhere that Tesco momentum 99 is a not a true 99 RON but a 5% bioethanol blend which is how it achieves the 99 RON status. I just filled my S3 with momentum last night fOr the first time and I thought it seemed a bit sluggish but it might just be my imagination.
Both Shell V-Power and Tesco Momentum 99 contain ethanol, up to the max permitted percentage 
Marketing and Advertising is a powerful thing
In the UK, we have a limited number of refineries/storage in the country (12, of which only 1 in Scotland - Grangemouth). All fuel, branded and supermarket, comes from the same hole in the ground or ocean, and gets refined and stored in the same refinery tanks. Southern supermarket tankers draw their fuel from the Esso Fawley refinery, this also feeds via a pipe to the Shell Hamble depot, and a pipe to the West London Terminal that feeds Heathrow.
It's all the base stock, that gets delivered to Shell, Esso, Texaco, BP, Asda, Morrisons, Tesco, Sainsbury's etc. Same with Stanlow on the Wirral, Lindsey at Grimsby etc.
The difference comes when the tankers fill up - the driver punches in a code when filling, and the correct additive package gets added to the tanker "pot" for that particular brand/type of fuel.
Stand outside any refinery for long enough (and you'll get arrested), but you'll also see all the different tankers from Shell, Asda, BP, Esso, Morrisons etc. all drawing from the same point.
Marketing and Advertising is a powerful thing
In the UK, we have a limited number of refineries/storage in the country (12, of which only 1 in Scotland - Grangemouth). All fuel, branded and supermarket, comes from the same hole in the ground or ocean, and gets refined and stored in the same refinery tanks. Southern supermarket tankers draw their fuel from the Esso Fawley refinery, this also feeds via a pipe to the Shell Hamble depot, and a pipe to the West London Terminal that feeds Heathrow.
It's all the base stock, that gets delivered to Shell, Esso, Texaco, BP, Asda, Morrisons, Tesco, Sainsbury's etc. Same with Stanlow on the Wirral, Lindsey at Grimsby etc.
The difference comes when the tankers fill up - the driver punches in a code when filling, and the correct additive package gets added to the tanker "pot" for that particular brand/type of fuel.
Stand outside any refinery for long enough (and you'll get arrested), but you'll also see all the different tankers from Shell, Asda, BP, Esso, Morrisons etc. all drawing from the same point.
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For high-performance turbo cars, it's perhaps more relevant to compare the MON rating, rather than the RON.
Both Shell V-Power and Tesco Momentum 99 have (minimum) 99 RON values.
However, the MON figure is derived from a more demanding test, more reflective of todays engines, with higher RPM, higher head loads imposed during testing.
In this case, Shell V-Power has a 86 MON and Tesco Momentum 99 has a 87 MON.
In the UK, we only display RON on the pumps, but in the US/Canada and a few other places, the display is (R+M)/2, hence why you see different figures on the pumps across the pond.
Both Shell V-Power and Tesco Momentum 99 have (minimum) 99 RON values.
However, the MON figure is derived from a more demanding test, more reflective of todays engines, with higher RPM, higher head loads imposed during testing.
In this case, Shell V-Power has a 86 MON and Tesco Momentum 99 has a 87 MON.
In the UK, we only display RON on the pumps, but in the US/Canada and a few other places, the display is (R+M)/2, hence why you see different figures on the pumps across the pond.
Stride
Registered User
Interesting.......the general vibe I have picked up is that Shell v power is the best. This is not necessarily the case then.
It probably has a better detergent package than most other fuels, but then if you are in a 8P TFSI, then the detergent package is never going to touch those valves, so other than injector cleaning - all other benefits are dubious !
Independent testing report of Tesco Momentum 99, if you are interested:
http://www.tescopfs.com/content/downloads/mbk_12_0311_2.pdf
ASA False Advertising by Shell:
http://royaldutchshellplc.com/2011/10/27/asa-bans-shell-fuelsave-advertising-false-claims/
Independent testing report of Tesco Momentum 99, if you are interested:
http://www.tescopfs.com/content/downloads/mbk_12_0311_2.pdf
ASA False Advertising by Shell:
http://royaldutchshellplc.com/2011/10/27/asa-bans-shell-fuelsave-advertising-false-claims/
leegsi
Registered User
Funny thing is when Thorney Motorsport were being sponsored by TESCO 99 they 'did a test' and it came out on top over other big brands.
When they lost the sponsorship they didnt recommend them lol.
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=302977
When they lost the sponsorship they didnt recommend them lol.
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=302977
Stride
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What a surprise.
I only ever use V-Power or Momentum,and couldn't tell the difference,if there really is any.
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I used to work on Shell Platforms in my days as an Offshore Supervisor. Getting away from the point of this thread slightly, there is a lot of disturbing information and facts on the Royal Dutch Shell PLC website.
The fact that the ASA pulled the adverts in the link for being misleading and using unsubstantiated claims, is merely the tip of a massive and very ugly iceberg.
Have a read through the content of the site, you WILL be horrified.
Thanks for posting the link @veeeight, very informative and a real eye opener.
