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      10-06-2012, 01:44 PM   #1
rjberry
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Which fuel?

I realise this may open a can of worms but we'll see

Which is the best type of fuel to use or are the effects so minimal that it doesn't even warrant thinking about it? Supermarket fuel is usually the cheapest but is it as good as the main oil companies standard fuel or is it just worth paying the extra for the extra special ultimate fuel?

The nearest petrol station to me is a Texaco and the times I've filled up I have put in their Supreme Diesel, this is more because I've been in a hurry and that was the only pump free rather than anything else. However, the car does feel smooth and responsive so maybe there is something in it, or I'm just getting used to the car and it's characteristics.

As I don't have anything to compare this against with it being a new car and different to my previous cars I thought why not ask the question and see if the extra pence per litre is worth it or if I should just queue patiently and save my money

So what do you do? Which fuel do you use and why?
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      10-06-2012, 02:54 PM   #2
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Shell fuel save Diesel....I notice a smoother throttle response and slightly better mpg in my current f25 X3 compared to the supermarkets diesel products, however I work for Shell so I may have a slightly biased view.
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      10-06-2012, 03:10 PM   #3
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Never tried the premium Diesel before other than once when I filled up as it was the only diesel a station had and I was out. I didn't notice a difference, and didn't brim the tank either as it was like 4p a litre more. Needless to say, couldn't get any indication of better economy.

Petrol, now that is different between premium and the likes of the high octane derivatives like Shell V Power, IF you drive a high performance car. Only ever put Tesco 100 or V Power in my Subaru Sti.

Coming back to Diesels, Shell seems to be quite competitive vs supermarket fuel in my area, so try to fill up there if possible. Otherwise use supermarket diesel. I figure as long as I put enough tanks of the advanced cleaning additives in on a regular basis I get the good cleaning effect

Not sure I can feel any difference TBH.
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      10-06-2012, 04:46 PM   #4
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There's good reasons why premium petrols are empirically better for certain petrol engines although economically they never make sense.

But I've often wondered what the excuse is for uber expensive diesels like BPO and Shell because I know of no technology that gives more power in a diesel engine.

Hopefully someone can explain and save me having to Google it
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      10-06-2012, 05:12 PM   #5
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I ran the e90 330d on premium, and either via placebo and not, its runs smoother and picks up quicker. When I had to put in Shell standard once, there was a distanct throttle lag at first (I would never ever put in supermarket)

This debate raged on and on within e90post. The main argument was if you have a high performance car (330d/335d) why on earth would you not put the best fuel in for the sake of a few quid?

Fifth Gear did a test and found out Premium Diesel does give more power!

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      10-06-2012, 05:23 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TMP View Post
I ran the e90 330d on premium, and either via placebo and not, its runs smoother and picks up quicker. When I had to put in Shell standard once, there was a distanct throttle lag at first (I would never ever put in supermarket)
I agree completely and only put BP Ultimate in mine - its much more responsive. I've ran this car and my old pre-LCI E90 330d on it and the 6 cylinders love it.
Although a few people running Ultimate in 4 cylinder diesels on the E90post forum said they could not tell much difference - so, from what I've read, the 6 cylinders seem to like it the most.

I also put Shell V-Power in mine once and couldn't tell any difference than normal fuel and not as good as BP Ultimate. Wont be putting Shell in again.
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      10-06-2012, 05:39 PM   #7
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Hmmm ... Cetane, eh?

/does research
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      10-06-2012, 05:44 PM   #8
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I plan to run my 330D on old chip oil
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      10-07-2012, 01:10 PM   #9
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Shell V Power every time for me. Supermarket especially makes my E90 go like a tractor
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      10-07-2012, 01:41 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dopper99 View Post
I agree completely and only put BP Ultimate in mine - its much more responsive. I've ran this car and my old pre-LCI E90 330d on it and the 6 cylinders love it.
Although a few people running Ultimate in 4 cylinder diesels on the E90post forum said they could not tell much difference - so, from what I've read, the 6 cylinders seem to like it the most.

I also put Shell V-Power in mine once and couldn't tell any difference than normal fuel and not as good as BP Ultimate. Wont be putting Shell in again.
I prefer BP Ultimate Diesel as well - plus they seem to put all there proof points on their site.

Shell V-power seemed good in the 330d as well though, just not there standard stuff.
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      10-07-2012, 02:44 PM   #11
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Run mine on snake oil.
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      10-07-2012, 04:31 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TMP View Post
I prefer BP Ultimate Diesel as well - plus they seem to put all there proof points on their site.

Shell V-power seemed good in the 330d as well though, just not there standard stuff.
I may give the v-power another go - maybe I got a dodgy batch, the time I tried it. Its a lot cheaper around my way than Ultimate.
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      10-08-2012, 03:36 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RobUK View Post
Run mine on snake oil.
just out of interest mate, do you run the 328i on Super or Reg ul?

Quote:
Originally Posted by dopper99 View Post
I may give the v-power another go - maybe I got a dodgy batch, the time I tried it. Its a lot cheaper around my way than Ultimate.
Yup...why are BP garages so expensive? I had one exception near me, with the BP garagee attached to the Subura dealer. But then have closed down
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      10-08-2012, 06:08 AM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TMP View Post
...why are BP garages so expensive?
Erm, re-couping the $25 Billion payout for an oil spill perhaps?
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      10-08-2012, 06:45 AM   #15
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TMP

I have only ever used cheap diesel wherever i am at the time but i think i read your views on BP Ultimate before.

I am looking forward to trying it when and if I get my 330d in 9 weeks. My 530d went back 3 weeks ago so havn't tried it yet.
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      10-08-2012, 07:49 AM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TMP View Post
just out of interest mate, do you run the 328i on Super or Reg ul?
If I'm filling up at Shell then it's usually just vanilla unleaded (they do V Power & Regular on the same pump). I have used premium before, but tends to be when there's a queue and doing so will save me time. Not really noticed a difference in the car's behaviour though.

I rarely go near supermarket gas stations though as they are usually the most busy in these parts.

I'm sat on the fence about regular vs. premium. Seems that for every report that says there's a difference, there's another that says there isn't. WhatCar? tested it in a VW Golf GTi 2.0 and reckoned mpg was the same although performance was marginally down which surprised me.
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      10-08-2012, 09:34 AM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RobUK View Post
Seems that for every report that says there's a difference, there's another that says there isn't.
Bang on. Given that there is no universal acceptance / agreement that the premium fuels make a difference, I look at it this way.

I *may* notice an improvement in MPG / Power delivery / refinement etc.
I *will* notice a difference in my wallet.

The difference that I *may* notice is marginal
The difference that I *will* notice is not.
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      10-08-2012, 12:01 PM   #18
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Exclamation

5th gear proved that these fuels are just not worth the money, the worst of which had NO improvements was BP ultimate it made NO improved performance at all, the only "noticeable" one was shell and that was 5BHP at high revs , how often will that be used in every day driving?.
So regular diesel and petrol is fine to use unless you are going racing.
Save your money it's all placebo.
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      10-08-2012, 03:35 PM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by johnbmw6 View Post
5th gear proved that these fuels are just not worth the money, the worst of which had NO improvements was BP ultimate it made NO improved performance at all, the only "noticeable" one was shell and that was 5BHP at high revs , how often will that be used in every day driving?.
So regular diesel and petrol is fine to use unless you are going racing.
Save your money it's all placebo.
errrr.... did you not watch the video above? 5th Gear said they did improve bhp, not by a lot (6 bhp) but that is not exactly "No improvement".
Are you sure you are not getting mixed up with the programme they did on fuel additives? They really are a waste of money and in some cases cars lost bhp. I've tried them over the years and I agree they are a waste of money (eg Millers Sport 4).

I have absolutely no doubt the throttle response is improved with BP Ultimate in my car. I wouldn't put it in otherwise. I dont think it makes the car any faster, but to me it just feel livelier under the throttle foot.

Over the summer I had to put in Morrisons stuff when on holiday and I could tell a difference straight away. Felt like I was carrying 3 extra people in the car and stunted the throttle response. It doesn't make a massive difference, but it is noticeable, and other people have said the same.


I'd say to people try it if you want to and if you dont feel any difference then dont buy it again

Last edited by dopper99; 10-08-2012 at 03:43 PM..
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      10-08-2012, 03:57 PM   #20
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Johnbmw6 must have seen the more recent 5th Gear about posh petrol since that was their conclusion. Obviously the diesel conclusion was very different
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      10-09-2012, 11:41 AM   #21
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Whether high octane fuels makes a difference or not, depends on whether the engine map is being damped down by the knock sensors. This is for petrol engines only.

In my prodrive tuned subaru sti, high octave fuel totally transformed the car, same with my Nissan Skyline.

Key factors, petrol engine, turbo charged, high performance maps.

You will notice now that manufacturers tune power/ torque to set figures. For example BMW 163hp, 184hp, 204hp. These all relate to kw values 120, 135, 150 kw. Pretty rounded off right?

With this in mind, you know that the hardware is being restricted by the tuning on the latest cars, so not sure that would allow the average driver to notice a difference in fuels.
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      10-09-2012, 12:57 PM   #22
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But we're talking about diesels
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