Tesco Fuel

[driverjgp]

When we went shopping the other week Tesco was doing an offer where if you spend over £50 on food you will get a voucher for 5p off every litre of fuel you buy on the pumps, so I thought I'd run the tank down before I fill up to get the most out of the offer, so sure enough the petrol low warning light came on and went to Tesco where I filled up with £46 worth of fuel and with the voucher it bought down to about £43, the point is I felt that the car didn't feel as responsive and as quick as my normal fuel (shell regular) I didn't get as many miles to the gallon either.

Has anybody else noticed a difference when using supermarket fuels?

[Zeb]

When we went shopping the other week Tesco was doing an offer where if you spend over £50 on food you will get a voucher for 5p off every litre of fuel you buy on the pumps, so I thought I'd run the tank down before I fill up to get the most out of the offer, so sure enough the petrol low warning light came on and went to Tesco where I filled up with £46 worth of fuel and with the voucher it bought down to about £43, the point is I felt that the car didn't feel as responsive and as quick as my normal fuel (shell regular) I didn't get as many miles to the gallon either.

Has anybody else noticed a difference when using supermarket fuels?

Same fuel, different name.....it comes out of the same refinery. I used to see the lorries come out of Fawley refinery...my there were a lot of different companies!:zap:

BTW YOU MISSED OUT DIESEL IN YOUR POLL! :-)

[Roverron]

When we went shopping the other week Tesco was doing an offer where if you spend over £50 on food you will get a voucher for 5p off every litre of fuel you buy on the pumps, so I thought I'd run the tank down before I fill up to get the most out of the offer, so sure enough the petrol low warning light came on and went to Tesco where I filled up with £46 worth of fuel and with the voucher it bought down to about £43, the point is I felt that the car didn't feel as responsive and as quick as my normal fuel (shell regular) I didn't get as many miles to the gallon either.

Has anybody else noticed a difference when using supermarket fuels?


Yes, even though I always add Millers DPP to the fuel, I find Shell Extra to be the best. I also find that Total diesel is no better than supermarket fuel, of which Morrisons' and Asda's were the worst.

Ron

[driverjgp]

Same fuel, different name.....it comes out of the same refinery. I used to see the lorries come out of Fawley refinery...my there were a lot of different companies!:zap:

BTW YOU MISSED OUT DIESEL IN YOUR POLL! :-)

The poll is to just highlight weather super or regular is the most popular amongst petrol users. :)

[driverjgp]

Yes, even though I always add Millers DPP to the fuel, I find Shell Extra to be the best. I also find that Total diesel is no better than supermarket fuel, of which Morrisons' and Asda's were the worst.

Ron

I agree its the same with the petrol I notice a big difference and if you gave me two cars with the same engine I reckon I can still tell which is running on the supermarket fuel. ;)

[chris75]

Same fuel, different name.....it comes out of the same refinery. I used to see the lorries come out of Fawley refinery...my there were a lot of different companies!:zap:

BTW YOU MISSED OUT DIESEL IN YOUR POLL! :-)

I live near a shell refinery , and its quite right all sorts of firms take fuel from there . But, I am told that it does not have the additives put in that the Shell branded fuels have . In the case of Vtec , it's the additives that make the noticeable difference imo.

[tourerfogey]

chris75 is absolutely right.

Son-in-law is site manager of a Jet outlet (formerly BP) and the branded fuels have different additives than those sold to the Supermarket chains hence the difference in performance - and economy - so, 'cheap' supermarket fuel is often not really as cheap as it seems.

[Roverron]

Same fuel, different name.....it comes out of the same refinery. I used to see the lorries come out of Fawley refinery...my there were a lot of different companies!:zap:

BTW YOU MISSED OUT DIESEL IN YOUR POLL! :-)

I think the additives are added when the tanker is filled. So all may use the same raw derv, but what is in the tankers varies.

Ron

[Tootall]

I know for a fact i get more miles per tank from Shell diesel than from a tank of Morrisons fuel.

[driverjgp]

I know for a fact i get more miles per tank from Shell diesel than from a tank of Morrisons fuel.

So it is not just my imagination.

[JP53]

So it is not just my imagination.

I've not noticed a difference so I will do a few tests over the next couple of weeks however if the up and down temperatures we have been having the last few weeks continue I'm not sure how accurate a guide it will be!

[Rich]

I've been running my 1.8 on Tesco regular unleaded for a couple of years, the car is slow/unresponsive, I've always put it down to the 1.8 being too small an engine to drag a heavy car.

Don't forget though, if you buy a gallon of petrol from Tesco, how much of that gallon has been "watered down" by additives?

You won't be getting a full gallon of petrol, you'll get about 85% petrol and 15% additive, if you follow my drift...

[Tatts]

Been running on BP Ultimate, I seem to get an extra 20 miles per tank.

The car seems a bit more responsive too - might just be placebo effect.

[JohnDotCom]

WOW, so if I switch fuels ill get even better performance from my

RoverRon Box can't wait to experiment.

[Alex30013k]

I always fill up at Tescos - as i love my club card points!

Any way i can fill up one week and the car feels smoother faster etc :D then the next she's slow and noisy! :eek: :confused:

But this could be down to the weather etc.

But i have been running on Tescos for over 3 years now and happy when the club card points come in!!

:pepsi:

:drool4: :drool4:

[Mel75]

Tatts, you are right in your findings, I have used nothing but high grades for years after doing my own tests.

RichK the additives become part of the fuel so a gallon is still a gallon but of higher quality.

Mel75

[Zeb]

Coincidentally I have filled up with Tesco diesel this afternoon - along with adding Redex as usual....so I will take note as to 'feel' and mpg....can't say I expect to see any difference mind...:lol:

[driverjgp]

Coincidentally I have filled up with Tesco diesel this afternoon - along with adding Redex as usual....so I will take note as to 'feel' and mpg....can't say I expect to see any difference mind...:lol:

Don't forget Zeb that you may have some of the better fuel still in your tank, as I said I ran mine down till the yellow light came on, I'd be very interested to hear of other peoples finding petrol and diesel. :trans:

[Zeb]

Don't forget Zeb that you may have some of the better fuel still in your tank, as I said I ran mine down till the yellow light came on, I'd be very interested to hear of other peoples finding petrol and diesel. :trans:

Ah, but my previous tank full was also Tesco's best....so will be trying Shell when it runs down....happily, being a facelift model and only having the one fuel pump I can run my tank down without fear of failure!:D

[driverjgp]

Ah, but my previous tank full was also Tesco's best....so will be trying Shell when it runs down....happily, being a facelift model and only having the one fuel pump I can run my tank down without fear of failure!:D

Can't wait to hear your findings, I also notice there are quite a few of you using super fuel according to the poll, So are there any great benefits? also does it warrant the extra cost? I have noted that V power is an extra 10p litre that is alot of money over a tank full and over a year!!!:wine:

[Dave Goody]

I've been running my 1.8 on Tesco regular unleaded for a couple of years, the car is slow/unresponsive, I've always put it down to the 1.8 being too small an engine to drag a heavy car.

Don't forget though, if you buy a gallon of petrol from Tesco, how much of that gallon has been "watered down" by additives?

You won't be getting a full gallon of petrol, you'll get about 85% petrol and 15% additive, if you follow my drift...

The additives dont water it down, "they beef it up" without any additives you would find your engine would probably self destruct after a few thousand miles, the major companies additive pack is much bigger than the supermarkets Dave

[Commodore]

I know for a fact i get more miles per tank from Shell diesel than from a tank of Morrisons fuel.
The one and only time I ever filled up at a Morrisons forecourt the car was most unhappy (was my last car, a Pug 106, rather than the 75).

Coughed, spluttered and crawled for days until I worked it through.

Unless it is an emergency, I always fill up at Sainsburys. Probably not the best petrol in terms of additives, but where I am it is the cheapest by a mile and the cars seem to like it.

[Tatts]

Can't wait to hear your findings, I also notice there are quite a few of you using super fuel according to the poll, So are there any great benefits? also does it warrant the extra cost? I have noted that V power is an extra 10p litre that is alot of money over a tank full and over a year!!!:wine:


True.

But, 10p/litre = about £5 a tank.

I get around 20 miles per tank more using premium fuel -v- regular unleaded, thats about £4 worth of fuel.

So, it costs 'roughly' £1 a tank more to use. Like I said, the car feels more responsive, and if I believe all the advertising blurb about how much cleaner, greener and efficient it is, then it's worth £1 a tank!

[DJO]

The weekend before last I visited my sister, my brother in law had spare tesco voucher so I filled up on the way home. Never filled up there before in the ZT.

I filled up on their 99RON stuff, and the ZT seems very happy. Seems to be using lower revs to maintain progress on the motorway, and I find I'm having to watch my speed more!

Before that I filled up on the BP expensive stuff and that seemed OK, usually I find a BP so I can get Nectar points!

David

[Rushy Racer]

Somewhere I have read a thread ( on another forum) where Tesco fuel came out better than Shell Optimax & BP. I will try and find it again and post the link but it was by a Company who tuned the K Series engine for the Elise

[Rushy Racer]

Try this
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?f=57&h=&t=221733

[Mel75]

I think people miss the point with petrol every one wants more performance do you realy want to thrash your car,there is enough idiots on the road now that think they are on a race track

With the big companies its not about out right perfomance yes more performance is part, the main idea is to keep your engine clean and in good condition inside thus getting a better burn which also helps the environment this is the main point, if you use top grade fuel your engine will run just as well in years to come as it does now with reduced wear and tear, less polution.

most of you are to young to remember the days of de-cokeing cars because they can hardly climb hills.

forget about boy racer fuel and choose the one thats going to look after your engine best now and in the future, can save a lot of money in the long run.

Mel75

[Tootall]

....happily, being a facelift model and only having the one fuel pump I can run my tank down without fear of failure!:D

Is this a fact first time i can remember this being mentioned or have i been asleep seeing as i 9 times out of 10 run my CDTi down to the light.

[driverjgp]

The weekend before last I visited my sister, my brother in law had spare tesco voucher so I filled up on the way home. Never filled up there before in the ZT.

I filled up on their 99RON stuff, and the ZT seems very happy. Seems to be using lower revs to maintain progress on the motorway, and I find I'm having to watch my speed more!

Before that I filled up on the BP expensive stuff and that seemed OK, usually I find a BP so I can get Nectar points!

David


Hi David and welcome to our mad world, I tried the Tesco Super a few months ago, I have the 2.5 V6 engine and to be honest with you I didn't really feel much difference to Shell regular fuel so I didn't think it was worth the extra 4p a litre, although I will try a tank of V power when my light comes on again so I will post my findings once the test is complete although it will have to be something special to warrant an extra 10p a litre,, I.m not just expecting extra power and a cleaner engine but its miles to the gallon, if it gives me an extra 20 to 30 miles to the tank I would think it would be a good fuel taking into account extra performance when ever you may need it to get you out of trouble and the piece of mind to know that your engine is being cleaned as you drive so surly it would save you money over a period of a year or so?? we will see once i have been through a tankful or two, I would be happy to hear of other people's findings. :chat:

[Lord Minty]

The additives dont water it down, "they beef it up" without any additives you would find your engine would probably self destruct after a few thousand miles, the major companies additive pack is much bigger than the supermarkets Dave

Well I used 'normal' Tesco fuel in my old '92 K-reg 214Si for 13 years/113k miles and it never caused any problems. :driving: I accidentally filled it up with super unleaded once and it made absolutely no difference to the performance either.

Just my 2p.

[driverjgp]

Well I used 'normal' Tesco fuel in my old '92 K-reg 214Si for 13 years/113k miles and it never caused any problems. :driving: I accidentally filled it up with super unleaded once and it made absolutely no difference to the performance either.

Just my 2p.

You may not of noticed a difference if you had a good portion of the old fuel in your tank and the higher octane fuel is not really noticeable in a car with a smaller engine, were with the V6 75 the ECU adjusts the engine settings and re tunes the engine to the better grade fuel (knock sensor)

[Lord Minty]

You may not of noticed a difference if you had a good portion of the old fuel in your tank and the higher octane fuel is not really noticeable in a car with a smaller engine, were with the V6 75 the ECU adjusts the engine settings and re tunes the engine to the better grade fuel (knock sensor)

I always run my cars tank's right down before I fill up so I would have noticed. And I used to use all 103PS of the old 200s K-series had as well!

I filled up my 75 while on holiday with other fuels and I really can't notice any difference whatsoever.

[driverjgp]

I always run my cars tank's right down before I fill up so I would have noticed. And I used to use all 103PS of the old 200s K-series had as well!

I filled up my 75 while on holiday with other fuels and I really can't notice any difference whatsoever.

I must admit I didn't notice any difference with the Tesco super, makes you wonder weather its a con???

[Dave Goody]

Well I used 'normal' Tesco fuel in my old '92 K-reg 214Si for 13 years/113k miles and it never caused any problems. :driving: I accidentally filled it up with super unleaded once and it made absolutely no difference to the performance either.

Just my 2p.

I'm sure this is the case but I would hope any modern engine would last for 113k miles, I certainly hope mine lasts longer than this. If you have used cheap low additive fuel for years one tank of Super unleaded will have no effect at all. The use of high additive petrol should give you extra mpg and life to your engine, I dont think you would notice a performance difference.
I can never understand why people are so fussy about the engine oil they use, often opting for a full synthetic [ which is good] and then put the cheapest petrol in that they can find. The best engine oils and petrols are the ones which have high levels of anti wear/anti oxident/anti foam/anti rust/
detergents etc.
In some cases using high quality oil or petrol after years of cheap stuff can highlight problems as the removal of gum in the engine can cause all sorts of rattles, sometimes death rattles. Ideally top quality fuel from day one should increase the life of your engine. Dave

[Mel75]

when i done my tests i returned another 4mpg but this was years ago i have used top grades ever since my driveing style is also different to most i always have a convoy of tailgaters, if the speed limit is 30 i do 30 unlike most others i am not exempt from these laws, my engines have been 2 to 2.5 ltr and i very rarely go over 3500revs you dont need to with a bigger engine, so anyone that is heavy with the right foot wont see any difference in mpg

forget the performance and mpg and cost, i have a son and a daughter we owe it to our kids to do the best for their environment

so next time your down the pub have one less pint or two less fags and put the best fuel in your car instead, you know it makes sense.

do you think the supermarkets are in a better position than the big oil companies to give us better quality fuels, i dont think so

Mel75

[Dave Goody]

when i done my tests i returned another 4mpg but this was years ago i have used top grades ever since my driveing style is also different to most i always have a convoy of tailgaters, if the speed limit is 30 i do 30 unlike most others i am not exempt from these laws, my engines have been 2 to 2.5 ltr and i very rarely go over 3500revs you dont need to with a bigger engine, so anyone that is heavy with the right foot wont see any difference in mpg

forget the performance and mpg and cost, i have a son and a daughter we owe it to our kids to do the best for their environment

so next time your down the pub have one less pint or two less fags and put the best fuel in your car instead, you know it makes sense.

do you think the supermarkets are in a better position than the big oil companies to give us better quality fuels, i dont think so

Mel75
Well said Mel !! methinks I may be talking to someone like me, who is old enough to want the power under the right foot but only wants to use it if nescessary? I have grandkids and cannot visualise what their world will be like when getting close to 60, they certainly wont be driving cars like mine, they will be illegal. Dave:)

[Roverron]

Well said Mel !! methinks I may be talking to someone like me, who is old enough to want the power under the right foot but only wants to use it if nescessary? I have grandkids and cannot visualise what their world will be like when getting close to 60, they certainly wont be driving cars like mine, they will be illegal. Dave:)

I have to take the politically incorrect opposite view to yours, at least as far as driving is concerned!

It is only a matter of time before we all have to pay very heavily for the priviledge of being able to drive our cars.
This I accept as a necessity and radical action is needed. Except that no politician would dare implement such action.

In the meantime, I see no point in spending thousands on a vehicle, not to mention the running costs, insurance etc and then be denied the pleasure of enjoying the performance because of one's conscience.
Mine is clear - my mpg is the same as it was prior to tuning the engine....

Ron

[JohnDotCom]

Here Here, Ron

I Agree Entirely & My Foot Will Still Be going To The Floor.

Its Like All These People That Wash Out Their Tins Before Recyling, Which Uses More Energy With Water, Heat Etc Than The

Savings On Recycling The Things In The First Place!

[Mel75]

fair point Ron you have a diesel different story all together, i have worked in the oil industry for 33 years now and can tell you there has been millions of pounds spent over the years to get the quality of fuel that we enjoy today and its not just a con to make more money, the con is with the government over 80% price per gallon is tax

based on my 4mpg i get another 52 miles per tank bringing the cost more in line plus having all the other benefits.

and by the way i was made redundant in 1999 when the oil companies sold us out to cheaper operators with it went half my pension so my opinions are not bios towards the big oil companies.

Mel75

[Dave Goody]

I have to take the politically incorrect opposite view to yours, at least as far as driving is concerned!

It is only a matter of time before we all have to pay very heavily for the priviledge of being able to drive our cars. This I accept as a necessity and radical action is needed. Except that no politician would dare implement such action.

In the meantime, I see no point in spending thousands on a vehicle, not to mention the running costs, insurance etc and then be denied the pleasure of enjoying the performance because of one's conscience.
Mine is clear - my mpg is the same as it was prior to tuning the engine....

Ron
What I mean Ron is, I drive within speed limits [ as we all do] but drive a ZT 190 because the power is relaxed and I have a safety margin of power. I dont sit at the lights revving my engine it just wastes fuel and looks silly.
Most people I see enjoying performance are kids in souped up escorts etc.
I was unlucky enough to be at the receiving end of one of these 3 years ago he was killed, both his friends in the car in hospital for 6 months. I am still here because I was not doing the legal 70 mph around the bend, he was, I stopped, he missed me and hit the tree.
re. the underlined sentence in your post, I think this time is here and has been for a while?
I now pay much more heavily for petrol, for tax, and before long going into London etc. than a few years ago. Its my choice to drive a thirsty, high tax vehicle.
I also think at some time a politician will be brave enough to implement action purely out of nescessity.
After saying this I will probably be returning to a 75 Diesel before long, had 2 of these before and will fit one of your boxes as I would like to improve driveability. Dave:lol:

[JohnDotCom]

I Have the 131bhp diesel tourer with Ron's Synergy Box and can say that this makes a world of difference & I have found will give both better Performance & Economy.

[Mel75]

not so with the tins john they still have to be cleaned if not by you then at the recycling plant whats the differance (i`m going to stop now we have gone totally off course with this thread) :argue: :hurray:

Mel75