Super Unleaded

[Puntopimp]

Is it really much different to Regular unleaded? and what is the perks as ive been told by one person it makes the engine last longer and perform slightly better when someone else says its all Rubbish.

so i really want to know as its bugging me

 

[HDi fun]

Supercharged (this also includes turbocharged cars) will benefit from higher octane fuel. Naturally aspirated cars less so but some difference will be apparent to a discerning driver.

Modern engines will generally optimise the ignition timing to make best use of the fuel which is being used and so longas you don't go below the Minimum Octane rating you will have no problems.

The bigger benefit with fuels such as BP's Ultimate and Shell's V-Power is the detergency which will keep the engine cleaner, thus offering better performance long term.

My suggestion is to stay well away from all supermarket fuel and use the occasional tank of super for a good cleanout.

My car (BMW 528i - 24 valve six) does give slightly better performance on Super Unleaded but it's quite lively enough for my purposes on standard stuff to be honest.

BP Ultimate Diesel, however, is superb stuff and I'd recommend it to anyone with a high performance diesel car. My remapped 16 valve 2.2 HDi thrived on the stuff and a rolling road test showed 328lbft on BP Ult diesel compared to 305lbft on standard diesel.

 

[obi_waynne]

It depends on the car and how the engine management reacts to it. In higher performance cars it can be worth an extra 20bhp and is really noticeable in older cars and low performance cars there is no difference at all.

Read up on it here
http://www.torquecars.com/articles/fuel-octane-ratings.php

 

[Prince]

I only ever use Shell V-Power (99 Octane) and have noticed quite a vast difference between fuels. To get the full benefits you have to keep using it.

As HDi said, it's cleaner and better for the car. It will also increase the power and once you keep using it, I have found it will out last regular fuel as well.

The only downside is the cost!

 

[HDi fun]

You will never do any harm by using high end fuels. Even my ageing BMW has cylinder by cylinder knock sensing which means the timing can be advanced further (what I meant was that it will self advance further) on Super than it can be on 95 RON standard fuel.

However, my car';s engine is relatively low in gemoetric compression (about 10.2:1) and it's not turbocharged so the gains in power are minimal. Still slightly discernable to an attentive driver yet not enough to justify the cost. As I said, it's lively enough for my purposes anyway.

For diesel drivers I wouild recommend a permanent diet of super diesel based upon my epxerience.

 

[obi_waynne]

With the extra mpg I get on vpower the cost pretty much evens out. I do get a lot more performance though which is a nice plus.

High octane fuels are not necessarily cleaner as this is down to detergents in the fuel.

 

[SLEEPER]

Pretty much as already said . It completely epends on the engine and state of tune

On a high performance turbo engine its not a benefit it is essential but on a stock uk the difference is not often obvious.

I have yet to notice the difference on my 03 civic coupe but have a mtisibishi chariot with a GDi engine and the difference is obvious.
Probably cos the first is a uk spec car and the chariot is japanese spec.

and on the stagea well its mapped for 99 so thats all it will ever see.

 

[Puntopimp]

So my 60 BHP Punto should benefit a little bit lol

I have used the Tesco Super Unleaded nothing special but i noticed the BP brand gives off more kick for me from round abouts but its caining the MPG gone from 38 to 34.7 using BP.

 

[HDi fun]

That's very poor economy. I can beat that in my car which is a 200+bhp 5 series. Try not using the accelerator pedal as a switch

Kind rgds,

P.

PS. I suggest avoiding supermarket fuel completely. It's not laced with the same additive packs as branded fuels.

 

[Puntopimp]

What can i do to boost the MPG as it was nearly 60 when it rolled off the forecourt in 2001 ? should i try that fuel booster you can get from Halfords?

 

[HDi fun]

If the engine is in good nick and working correctly then ten years will make no difference to the economy.

Apart from technical issues the single biggest factors are driving style and journey types.

Get the car fully serviced (use a decent synthetic oil, not some greasy thick mineral stuff) and then start working on driving anticipation and planning. It really does make a huge difference to economy.

 

[RobBentley]

Defo makes a difference. My RS4 runs, to be quite frank, crap on 95RON. Can't say I can tell a different with V-Power/Ultimate Diesel vs Normal however in my 3.6 TDV8 (mapped). Seems the same always!

 

[old-git]

PS. I suggest avoiding supermarket fuel completely. It's not laced with the same additive packs as branded fuels.

Where do they get their fuel from, then?

 

[HDi fun]

Where do they get their fuel from, then?

The same places as 'branded' fuel comes from. But the additive package is not as good.

 

[pgarner]

made a difference of around 8bhp if i remember before my map, dunno since never used reg since then.

but again mine says to use 98 min.

if your punto says 95min then there probably wont be any gain to using the super

 

[manracer82]

higher octane rating so slightly more power last slightly longer improvement depends on ability of engine to utilise this more powerful fuel more expensive as if fuel is not expensive enough so £4£ regular fuel is more efficent

 

[HDi fun]

I think that with care you will probably get slightly more torque with super unleaded over standard fuel so driven with care you'll probably get slightly better mpg. Manfacturer suggests 98RON for mine but the minimum stipulation is 91 for the North American market. I tend to go between 95 BP U/L or Shell VPower 99 RON.

Diesel cars all benefit from Super Diesel, with BP's Ultimate being outstanding in my experience.

 

[Puntopimp]

Is Tesco's 99 Mommentum worth getting??

 

[HDi fun]

Is Tesco's 99 Mommentum worth getting??

In general I suggest avoiding supermarket fuel. Tesco laces its fuel with alcohol to achieve the 99RON rating. There's nothing wrong with this practice as such but it's such a slow seller for Tesco that the base fuel stock is likely to be quite old by the time you buy it.

If you want to use 99 RON petrol then Shell's V-Power is the better option. In your case you won't get much immediate performance benefit, much as I don't. But you almost certainly will wind up with a cleaner engine with regular use.

 

[pgarner]

some cars like tesco 99 over shell vpower. i find tescos slightly more hesitant as my map was set up for vpower.

 

[SLEEPER]

as above but the other way round.

Mine runs noticably better on momentum as it was mapped for it - tuners choice not mine

I would really like to know how people know about things like adding alcohol and I dont mean " someone said"

the above is a serious question by the way - where does this info come from ?

 

[HDi fun]

In response to the first post on this topic there will indeed be people who are totally unaware of any difference in fuels and performance.

They're the same ignorant drivers who'd happilly drive about on bald, underinflated cheap budget tyres; the tracking 15 degrees out of kilter; the PAS rack full of air bubbles and they'd still not notice that something is amiss.

 

[MasterAuron]

97+ only in the Focus or it will poo itself. I use V-power most of the time.

 

[Puntopimp]

Ive tested a couple of 99RON fuels i found the best one i have tried i.e most notible on the engine for the punto is the BP Ultimate but its at £1.44 per litre here.

I notice the gear changes are much smoother and pulling away is much quicker

 

[HDi fun]

Ive tested a couple of 99RON fuels i found the best one i have tried i.e most notible on the engine for the punto is the BP Ultimate but its at £1.44 per litre here.

I notice the gear changes are much smoother and pulling away is much quicker

That is a very subjective comment but I'll let you have it. Subjectivity is sometimes worth more than scientific test results.

I found my remapped Peugeot to be far livelier to drive on BP Ultimate diesel. It was never short of torque on standard diesel but BP Ult did enhance a car that was pretty swift anyway.

 

[Puntopimp]

Aye who needs science any how ^_^ its a shame the chip on the punto can't be remapped or whatever then i could custom is bit more but fiat stopped it
from what ive seen from other punto owners

 

[HDi fun]

Aye who needs science any how ^_^ its a shame the chip on the punto can't be remapped or whatever then i could custom is bit more but fiat stopped it
from what ive seen from other punto owners

it's not going to get any quicker to be honest with you. A simple 80 ish bhp small hatchback car is best used as it is. Service it on time and wait for the insurance costs to plummett.

 

[Puntopimp]

indeed just need to see the docs for next service due ^_^

 

[obi_waynne]

With the lower fuel prices I think more people will be trying out the Super versions of the fuel.

Will you be dabbling? Have you? Did you notice much difference?

 

[T9 man]

My car has only ever had ordinary unleaded petrol once in the tank; and that was the very first free tank full from the main dealer when I bought the car nearly 12 years ago now.

 

[st24]

I have used only premieum fuel for about the last 7 years.