Which fuel? Supermarket or not?

[DevSK]

Hi guys,

So I've recently been wondering if there's any difference between standard supermarket fuel, or standard branded fuel (BP, Shell, Esso etc).

To be clear, I'm not talking about super-fuels here (V-Power etc).

Any knowledge on the matter? Id be keen to hear from 2.0 TFSI owners too. Since getting my car I've been going to BP, but to be honest I only go there based on people saying supermarket fuel isn't great - this could just be hear say though.

 

[Daggerit]

Basically all the fuel comes from the same refineries, manufactured to the same standards, as far as I’m aware. For the regular octane there should be little to no difference.

The higher octane stuff generally has the different companies own additives and that’s where you’ll start to see different properties, but the octane rating will still be as advertised.

Hope that helps!

Edit: Until I put the tuning box on my car I ran Sainsbury’s standard fuel with no issues in the S4. Now run their super unleaded and seems to go the same as any other super unleaded.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Spaceman_RS3]

Dans right allthe 95ron fuel in Scotland and north England comes out the same tank in Grangemouth. The Asda Morrison’s Tesco bp shell etc tankers line up next to each other and get filled up. The only difference come in withhow each forecourt manages there tanks and how they are maintained.

 

[Kakatk]

Some years ago my wife had a MG Metro turbo & we used to fill it along with our weekly shop at the Sainsbury’s petrol station. That was until it started developing a misfire, so I took it to the local rolling road and he asked what petrol I was putting in it and advised against supermarket petrol. I swapped to BP and the misfire went away.

 

[AdaPl]

I've recently read an article in Autocar where Steve Sutcliff is running an Audi RS3 long term car. he had reported some missfire issues and limp mode since running supermarket fuel. He said he put some super fuel in from another forecourt and the missfire went away!

 

[DevSK]

If in doubt, get the manual out...which is what I've just done lol. So for anyone interested (in the petrol models), take a look at the attached screenshot.

It sort of contradicts itself by first saying that 95 RON is recommended, but then it says 98 RON is recommended but you can use 95 if 98 isn't available?!

So on one hand it answers my original question about standard fuel vs standard branded fuel...i.e. as long as it's 95RON it doesn't matter. But it now raises the question of if we should be using 98RON as standard?

 

[Joetidman]

Honestly, just put Shell V max in. Is it worth a few quid on your £50k motor?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[MOA4B9]

The standard 95 octane petrol comes from the same refinery so shouldn't make a difference where you buy it from. Supermarkets don't have their own refineries. The super petrol will probably make some difference as each company has their own recipes for making it.

 

[wideboybloke]

This is one of those topics that comes up from time to time. I made my decision in the matter when a contributor said that she had worked for Morrisons on the petrol side and that their tankers filled at the same place as the Esso tankers. It’s one of those subjects that attracts horror stories that put doubts in your mind, but I’ve been using supermarket fuel since 2002 when a newly opened Morrisons filling station became my nearest and I’ve never had engine problems.

 

[DevSK]

This is one of those topics that comes up from time to time. I made my decision in the matter when a contributor said that she had worked for Morrisons on the petrol side and that their tankers filled at the same place as the Esso tankers. It’s one of those subjects that attracts horror stories that put doubts in your mind, but I’ve been using supermarket fuel since 2002 when a newly opened Morrisons filling station became my nearest and I’ve never had engine problems.

The contributors to this thread have helped me make my decision - that I will happily use supermarket fuel. As you've said there, it was more the convenience of whichever station is near me more than anything. And I have a sainsburys petrol station quite close by .

 

[Spaceman_RS3]

Some years ago my wife had a MG Metro turbo & we used to fill it along with our weekly shop at the Sainsbury’s petrol station. That was until it started developing a misfire, so I took it to the local rolling road and he asked what petrol I was putting in it and advised against supermarket petrol. I swapped to BP and the misfire went away.

That the forecourt poorly maintaining their tanks or poor water ingress prevention as it would be the same fuel in each tank the Sainsbury’s and the bp station

 

[rcb27]

Costco RON99 for my 1.4 TFSI until I get bored of stopping to Costco for fuel. It basically costs same as RON95 everyday fuel from my local supermarket and about 12p a litre cheaper than the RON99 offering from the Shell across the road from me. The cost difference was about 2p cheaper than the nearest supermarket for standard fuel and 8p cheaper on premium.

I found on a recent trip to Canada they have a wider range (and a lower starting grade) for their fuel. RON92 (badged AKI 87) seems to be the everyday standard over there compared to our, universally available, RON95.

 

[Bristle Hound]

Shell V-Power in both our cars
Using the Shell loyalty points card it works out no more expensive than the Supermarket petrol TBH

But I do understand for a lot of people its about the most convenient petrol station for them

BTW both of our cars are 2 litre petrol turbo's which, in my experience, always run better on V-Power

 

[DohNut]

Never really paid much attention to premium fuels but seeing as 98 RON is recommended and my nearest garage is Shell, I think I’ll give V-Power a go in the new car.

 

[PR.]

Since I got mine last year I've used Tesco Momentum99 mostly because I've a Tesco 1 min down the road, however I was on holiday a couple of weeks ago and they had a Shell garage nearby so tried some V-Power stuff, seems to have a bit more go, but then I can easily invalidate my opinion by saying I've also switched to the Auto drive profile around the same time after using Comfort for the last 12 months, so I'm no help at all!

 

[V6_Man]

Supermarkets are to buy groceries. For fuel you have 'proper' petrol stations like for example Shell, Shell and Shell.

Btw, what is Morrison


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Syed Shah]

Since I got mine last year I've used Tesco Momentum99 mostly because I've a Tesco 1 min down the road, however I was on holiday a couple of weeks ago and they had a Shell garage nearby so tried some V-Power stuff, seems to have a bit more go, but then I can easily invalidate my opinion by saying I've also switched to the Auto drive profile around the same time after using Comfort for the last 12 months, so I'm no help at all!

Fifthgear ran some tests with different types of fuels, from asda to shell v power. long story short it proved that shell v power defo gave the car a more noticeable boost in performance. Rolling road also proved that the type of fuel you use does indeed affect stuff like power etc. Car showed more bhp with shell v power than competitor brands

 

[Spaceman_RS3]

Fifthgear ran some tests with different types of fuels, from asda to shell v power. long story short it proved that shell v power defo gave the car a more noticeable boost in performance. Rolling road also proved that the type of fuel you use does indeed affect stuff like power etc. Car showed more bhp with shell v power than competitor brands

Tesco 99 gave less knock on the engine compared to v power when I was testing it so I run tesco99. That test am pretty sure didn’t use Tesco 99 so v power was always going to be the best since it was the highest Ron rating

 

[Spaceman_RS3]

Costco RON99 for my 1.4 TFSI until I get bored of stopping to Costco for fuel. It basically costs same as RON95 everyday fuel from my local supermarket and about 12p a litre cheaper than the RON99 offering from the Shell across the road from me. The cost difference was about 2p cheaper than the nearest supermarket for standard fuel and 8p cheaper on premium.

I found on a recent trip to Canada they have a wider range (and a lower starting grade) for their fuel. RON92 (badged AKI 87) seems to be the everyday standard over there compared to our, universally available, RON95.

Yea Canada etc use a different scale for petrol grades but hey basically the line up so there base 92 or whatever is same as our 95

 

[SRB93]

I wonder if we will ever have the discussion of where you get your car charged up if not applicable at home

 

[Joetidman]

I wonder if we will ever have the discussion of where you get your car charged up if not applicable at home

If that day comes I’m moving to the US, the last bastion of the combustion engine


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[NeilHD]

I wonder if we will ever have the discussion of where you get your car charged up if not applicable at home

Ha, yeah don't go to Tesco - their own brand electricity is not as good!

 

[Flowrider99]

If in doubt, get the manual out...which is what I've just done lol. So for anyone interested (in the petrol models), take a look at the attached screenshot.

It sort of contradicts itself by first saying that 95 RON is recommended, but then it says 98 RON is recommended but you can use 95 if 98 isn't available?!

So on one hand it answers my original question about standard fuel vs standard branded fuel...i.e. as long as it's 95RON it doesn't matter. But it now raises the question of if we should be using 98RON as standard?

Read it again and you will see that the manual is stating that the correct RON fuel is stated on the fuel flap. If 95 RON is recommended then you can use 91 only if 95 is not available, if the fuel flap states 98 RON then you can use 95 if 98 is not available.

 

[Flowrider99]

Fifthgear ran some tests with different types of fuels, from asda to shell v power. long story short it proved that shell v power defo gave the car a more noticeable boost in performance. Rolling road also proved that the type of fuel you use does indeed affect stuff like power etc. Car showed more bhp with shell v power than competitor brands

What vehicles and engines did they use for the testing?

 

[Daggerit]

What vehicles and engines did they use for the testing?

Think it was just a 2.0T Golf if I remember rightly...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Flowrider99]

Never really paid much attention to premium fuels but seeing as 98 RON is recommended and my nearest garage is Shell, I think I’ll give V-Power a go in the new car.

Recommended for what car? Its not recommended for a 2.0 TFSI.

 

[Flowrider99]

Think it was just a 2.0T Golf if I remember rightly...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Not exactly conclusive then. I wouldn't base anything on the tests done on one car/engine.

 

[Boosted_Six]

95ron unleaded is practically the same at source regardless of retail outlet. Only Storage conditions affect the quality. Busy forecourts generally overcome storage issues as the fuel isn't sat for long before the next tanker. Your Audi by UK /EU law needs to run correctly on 95.

The Case for Super is clear however... if you are tuned / modified or want to extract the best possible performance from your car go ahead and use it.

 

[T07]

I’ve always found supermarket fuel to run noticeably rougher on my old skoda sdi. Never ran as good. It may come from the same refinery but was under the impression each batch had different additives/ grade

 

[SRB93]

If that day comes I’m moving to the US, the last bastion of the combustion engine

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

And V8s

 

[DohNut]

Recommended for what car? Its not recommended for a 2.0 TFSI.

I thought the OP said it was per manual. Have I mis-read here? Oh well.

 

[Dammad]

I heard a wee tale from someone that serves fuel that the heaters in some garages are higher than they should be, that has the result of dispensing less fuel, and I'd bet can take the edge off the fuel too, but that's just a rumor

Sent from my BBD100-1 using Tapatalk

 

[Flowrider99]

I thought the OP said it was per manual. Have I mis-read here? Oh well.

I see what you mean. The OP has misread the owners manual, he needs to look on the fuel flap.

 

[Syed Shah]

What vehicles and engines did they use for the testing?

Golf gti edition 35

 

[DevSK]

Read it again and you will see that the manual is stating that the correct RON fuel is stated on the fuel flap. If 95 RON is recommended then you can use 91 only if 95 is not available, if the fuel flap states 98 RON then you can use 95 if 98 is not available.

Yep, my mistake! Cheers!

Also, I can confirm that the sticker on the inside of the 2.0TFSI's cap reads 95RON.