Clubjazz - Honda Jazz & HR-V Forums
Other Hondas & General Topics => Off Topic (Non-Honda) => Topic started by: peteo48 on January 29, 2020, 10:59:32 AM
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I don't take the Telegraph but I do follow Honest John on-line. I was talking with a pal about a Tesco 10p a litre discount offer and he says that that's the only time he uses supermarket fuel - the rest of the time he uses Shell Fuelsave which I think is their 95 brand.
Hesitate to bring this old chestnut up again but I looked through a number of Q and A responses on Honest John's website and he definitely has a thing about supermarket fuel. He says that it is all in the additive package and the supermarkets put the bare minimum in as mandated by law. He, personally, puts Shell V Power in a Fiat 500 and BP Ultimate diesel in a Mazda that he own. He denies any connection whatsoever to the oil companies concerned, indeed his focus is on supermarket fuel v branded. He says this is based on years of correspondence with motorists and 50 years driving experience.
He also says that he "knows for a fact" that all car manufacturers have their cars optimized to run on 97 RON or above fuel and that, when EDC and now WLTP tests are done, all cars are tested using branded super fuels. In short your car will run better and more economically on Shell V power or any other branded equivalent.
Is he right? I guess supermarket fuel will do the job and any damage will be many many miles down the line but he is adamant on this.
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Its your choice which fuel you fill up with, my Subaru Turbo runs better on V Power day to day running I use Costco unleaded .My wife's GG Honda Jazz always runs better after a full tank of Shell V power.
I often advise customers to try Shell or BP top spec petrol and add Millars additive to the tank of Diesel vehicles
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My car runs better on 97 RON, even supermarket 97 RON, but not enough difference to warrant the exorbitant price the likes of Shell charge.
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My mpg records show NO change - even after three tankfulls in a row on Shell V Power vs Sainsbury's unleaded 95.
My senses record no change.
Our Yaris D4D is the same..
Maybe I am doing my sums wrong!
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My car runs better on 97 RON
It is not quantifiable better, it just feels a bit smoother, though that could be the placebo effect.
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I have run my car on Tesco 99 Momentum, Tesco 95 and BP 95 for several weeks at a time and found no difference in using any of them that is cost effective in either performance or fuel consumption.
I use whatever petrol is more convenient for me to use, if my local Tesco has an offer on as it has right now that's what I'll use. If I'm going by the BP garage and need fuel I'll call in there.
As for the additives how are you going to tell if one fuel is better than another, you are not going to strip your engine down to examine it are you, assuming that you knew what you were looking for ?
Vic.
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I normally run my cars to 150,000 - 250,000 miles and I have never needed any work done to an engine in years. Modern engines, given proper servicing, run for ever.
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I picked up my new car this afternoon and filled up on the way home. Treated it to Esso but not the high octane stuff. As it goes, the Esso garage is the most accessible to me and only 2 pence per litre dearer than Sainsburys.
Just thinking about Honest John - if he has always used branded fuel he can't know what supermarket fuels are like so even he is going on hearsay to some extent.
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I have run my car on Tesco 99 Momentum, Tesco 95 and BP 95 for several weeks at a time and found no difference in using any of them that is cost effective in either performance or fuel consumption.
I use whatever petrol is more convenient for me to use, if my local Tesco has an offer on as it has right now that's what I'll use. If I'm going by the BP garage and need fuel I'll call in there.
As for the additives how are you going to tell if one fuel is better than another, you are not going to strip your engine down to examine it are you, assuming that you knew what you were looking for ?
Vic.
Quite. Suspect it is to the benefit of the big brands to nurture that little seed of doubt.
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I picked up my new car this afternoon and filled up on the way home.
Congratulations. Hope it gives you many safe and trouble free miles.
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I picked up my new car this afternoon and filled up on the way home.
Didn’t the dealer give you a full tank? Every Honda that I have had (new and used) have always had a full tank of fuel.
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No - about a third of a tank. Same with last car although different Honda dealership. Must be stingy around these parts.
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No - about a third of a tank. Same with last car although different Honda dealership. Must be stingy around these parts.
Always ask for a set of floor mats and full tank of petrol as part of any deal.
As previously mentioned, I used V-Power on my 2009 i-shift back in 2017 and the car drove a lot faster especially on A2 and the extra mpg was noticeable. Used it on my Ibiza as my pupils realised the car going a lot faster...(I m a Driving Instructor.)
But I have been using Asda as they are alot cheaper plus I wasn't near Shell..£120.7. yes the car seems slower but been driving 30 yrs and none of my car suffered engine problems due to fuel.
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Got the mats thrown in - should have asked for full tank!
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I mainly buy supermarket fuel but add a dose of Redex (Wilko sell it at a reasonable price for much of the time) to keep the fuel system clean (or act as a placebo).
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https://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/assets/documents/reports/cat07/1811161339_Carbon_Factors_Petrol_Final_report.pdf
Being a bit obsessive about this topic I have finally found a document that throws some, not a lot, but some light on the vexed issue of additives and who puts what into what fuel.
It's a long and technical read but if you scroll down to section 4:5 and later to appendix 2, you will see a chart of what additives are used.
The striking point is that there are minimum levels and maximum levels and the gap between these levels is enormous. At the highest levels of additives though they only account for 0.25% of the fuel volume so a tiny amount.
Now in the USA they have top tier fuels which are guaranteed to exceed the additive levels mandated by the EPA. We have no such measure in the UK so we really don't know what additive mix goes into any one given fuel. The base fuel is all the same but the additive level is determined by the customer's (in this case the fuel company) requirements.
It would be nice to know who puts what into the fuel you buy.