Cheap Petrol isn't always best

[Tony]

I thought I would share this with everybody. I was talking to a guy from BP the other day and he told me that if you have a new car and are worried about performance, fuel efficiency and the durability of the engine then don't buy low grade petrol. He said that Tescos and Morrisons bought the lowest grade fuel possible and should be avoided. Obviously working for BP he could have been brain washed, what do you think?

[greatscotuk]

I wouldn't be suprised if Mr BP was doing his bit for his company there. It's a compelling pitch, but when you consider that supermarkets often offer some of the cheapest fuel prices around, mainstream suppliers such as BP are going to try to dissuade users from buying there. Despite whether it's true or not, you get what you pay for and I have no quarms about buying fuel from either Tesco or Morrisons.

[Jorumian]

I think when someone states something like that, they have to really back it up with some kind of evidence. The lack of it merely makes it an opinion really, and given who he works for, it would be fair to assume a degree of prejudice against any company that is perhaps a threat.

It's also quite a clever policy. If he is saying that to be greener and cleaner and prolong the life of my car's engine, I should pay for the more expensive fuel, then that costs more. Which means I have to work more to cover the extra cost, which means, for a lot of people, more car journeys, more energy used at work, which means more greenhouse emissions...

If Petrol companies were REALLY concerned about being green, they'd make the better quality fuels the cheapest and offer free conversions to LPG or biofuels for car owners interested and motivated enough to make the change. Yep, it would eat into profits massively, but it's definitely green!

And totally idealistic of course, Capitalism doesn't work that way!

[Witch consumer]

Didn't Top Gear do a piece on this once? I can remember them backing up the theory that supermarket petrol is inferior, (although I assume Tesco don't have their own refinery - yet) the reason I remember it is because Supermarket fuel always used to be a couple of pence cheaper than the big boys but the cheapest petrol near us is a Shell garage.

I also object to the supermarkets making us spend in their shops before we receive petrol at a 'discounted' price. Needless to say, I now neither shop at their stores nor buy their petrol.

[Tony]

Contrary to popular belief, super unleaded petrol is unlikely to make your engine more economical. You can save a little at every fill-up by making sure you get all the fuel you’ve paid for out of the hose – lift the hose up high so the remaining fuel drains into the tank before replacing the nozzle.

Form the Times - http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/dri...cle4124781.ece

However, I have seen posts on other forums saying that it does make a difference with performance cars. The fuel types have British Standards:

* European/ British Automotive Fuel Specifications for Diesel Fuel, BS EN 590
* European/ British Automotive Fuel Specifications for Unleaded Petrol, BS EN 228
* European/ British Automotive Fuel Specifications for LPG, BS EN 589
* British Specification for High Octane (Super) Unleaded Petrol, BS 7800
* British Specification for Leaded Petrol, BS 4040
* British Specification for Commercial Butane and Propane, BS 4250
* British Specification for Fuel Oils for Non-Marine Use, BS 2869
* British/International Specification for Petroleum Fuels for Marine Oil Engines and Boilers, BS MA 100/ISO 8217
* MOD Defence Standards for Fuels and Lubricants

It makes sense to me that some providers will exceed these standards and others will try to exceed them as little as possible to save a few quid. This is only going to make a difference to performance cars, if what I read on the other forum was true.

Did Top Gear mention anything about performance?

Tony

[Jorumian]

In addition to what Tony posted, I came across this yesterday.

'Super fuels' a waste of money for most cars | This is Money

According to Which "The standard fuels we tested were all up to the job, whether from a major fuel brand or a supermarket."

"There's no conclusive evidence to show that super fuels are better for your car in the long run – so in a time of high oil prices, why would you choose to pay more?"

[Paul Carcone]

I tend to agree that the "super fuels" are probably a waste of money unless you are driving some form of performance car - and I also agree that lower grade fuel is probably not a good idea.

I noticed a huge difference in my old MG Midget when I used BP/Shell as opposed to budget fuels - although it didn't like Esso for some reason.

Of course, with the petrol price war being quite hot at the moment, there is not very much difference in terms of price between the supermarkets and the fuel companies own outlets...

[scotchlass]

I always use the standard unleaded for my fuel and it is usually a Tesco garage. One of my friends recently told me that their fuel is inferior to other and that I should fill up at non-supermarket garages once in a while. I do this now anyway as even though fuel is getting cheaper my local Tesco is still more expensive than others in the area!

[Tony]

A friend of mine filled up with something called Ultimate - it was late at night and she was tired. It was 7p a litre more than standard fuel. So we are saying that what BP is saying on their site is not true:
BP Ultimate UK - About BP Ultimate (petrol) - Why should I buy BP Ultimate?

Q. More performance, less pollution - surely you can't have it both ways?
A. With BP Ultimate you can. BP Ultimate burns more efficiently and cleans your engine as you drive to deliver sharper acceleration and improved responsiveness while producing less harmful emissions. You should expect a cleaner engine to last longer. And BP Ultimate gives you a significantly cleaner engine than regular fuels. Plus you get more mpg.

They don't make a big thing about the increased mpg so it must be minimal