st3v3

a bit long winded but interesting

Copied and pasted from another Forum, this guys father in law also works down at Shell Haven and confirms this is pretty much about the size of it,

"Super unleaded is a fine fuel, but only if purchased from reputable dealers. Esso SUPER, like BP are about the best you can buy. Supermarket stuff is just 4 star without the valve addictive, which itself is just 95 unleaded that has been octane boosted. AVOID AT ALL COSTS. Supermarket petrol is a very dirty fuel. Any engineer of their pumps will confirm that. I have seen the results of their filters and you get everything from feathers to god knows what flowing through supermarket fuels. EVEN SAND.

All Super by law has to be 97 ron, but where its stable enough to hold higher octane, stations are able to advertise its octane as being higher sometimes.

Optimax has a variable octane rating, due to its structure its less stable, but leaves the refinery at 101 octiane. Thats the equivalent to the old 5 star for those old enough to remember it. By the time you buy it, its closer to around 97. This is why its octane isnt always stated.

Normal 95 or 97 fuels wont lose octane, whereas optimax does, but used fresh, its the highest octane fuel you can buy.

All supermarket fuels come from either the Matex or Purfleit refineries for the south east. These only take oil from the eastern block. They are most definately NOT the same fuels as ESSO and such like. They also remix contaminations for other companies then sell the fuel on via supermarkets as well. On average, each 50 litres brought from a supermarket will have 8% contaminates, and 9 grams of grit. I have got 2 test tubes sitting on my desk at work of both ESSO and Tesco regular 95 for simple comparisons when arguing these points with supermarket buyers. There is a bead in both which on the Tesco tube floats in mid suspension due to the grittiness of its petrol. The ESSO falls straight to the bottom. These are random samples taken every few weeks, and the results are always the same.

Texaco is a subsidary of ESSO and both use the same petrol.

There are basically 3 companies which supply fuel to the UK. ESSO, BP, AND SHELL.

Each sells to all the other names you find.

JET, FINA, Q8 and a few other smaller outlets all use SHELL.

TEXACO and TOTAL use ESSO,

Supermarkets use Eastern Block fuels, which are primarily designed for the 91 Ron continent market. These are upgraded in the UK to UK specs by using Butane gas. Hence to avoid.

BP Ultimate is just its old Super grade cleaned up a bit. IE. It goes through another filter at the refinery. Not a bad fuel though, second only to ESSO in quality. Its Diesel is the best in the world for all you Diesel owners.

OPTICRAP. Need i say more. All grades supplied by Shell. Might as well fill from your local FINA station and pop a bottle of Halfarts octane super duper booster plus in.

ESSO 95 and 97 = If you want every pennies worth in quality petrol, look no further. Get it at your local TOTAL, TEXACO or ESSO "

cossiestu

Intersting.... I always thought Optimax was pretty good??

Martyn

On both my cars i find they get less MPG when using Esso whateveritscalled, BP Ultimate and Optimax are both noticably better!

ballin

iTrader: (1)

optimax, dont care wot he says

sjoyce666

so hes saying that ESSO Super Unleaded is the best you can buy

Scott

BillyCabrio

iTrader: (1)

So to cut a long story short...............

ESSO for normal 95ron Unleaded and super+ 97ron Unleaded. Get it at your local TOTAL, TEXACO or ESSO

or

For Diesel..............

Bp for Its Diesel is the best in the world for all you Diesel owners.

Agreed?

Lambchop

iTrader: (1)

very interesting

XRTypeRS

I always use Esso SUL as I once read it has the best MON rating of all UK available fuels and MON is what is important for Turbo engines, not RON (I think MON is meant to reduce tendancy to det at high revs??).

Wonder what they have done to Esso SUL since its "Energy" rebranding?...

NUTS RuS

iTrader: (35)

Optimax with octane booster added My mate works at the local Shell garage and informs me when the deliverys due

Fudgey

iTrader: (4)

i use sainsburys super unleaded cos me mum gives me her 5p off per L vouchers

have done so for a year now...

rapidcossie

optimax is the only petrol to use...period.
a few of my mates that have lnock links fitted to their scoobies say that it shows mega activity on every petrol apart fom optimax and they have the links set on max sensitivity.
not the most scientific way of proving it but it works for me.
esso sul would be my second choice but never ultimate.

Billabong

Hmmm, do you think he happens to work for Esso?

Chipperx2

One question, the old 4 star stuff, is it true the only reason you shoudln't use it in modern engines is because it poisons the catalyst, thus it won't work so If you have a de-cat system there no reason why you can't use it

Billabong

4* was leaded, so yes it'll kill the cat and coat any lambda sensors etc.

Anonymous

Always ESSO SUL cause its local and cheapest

Oranoco

I've always used Optimax in the RS without probs. Occassionally put BP Ultimate in if I can't get to a Shell station.

The bus get's any old crap cos I don't really care about it

Dangerous Malcolm..

Snap.

You save a couple of quid on a Ł30 fill up.

james_birch

i always use optimax but only from a select few garages as i have had a dodgy batch!

caprixpack

i voted for super unleaded which is what i used to run my nissan on but now ive got a capri i run it on leaded 4 star at Ł1.19 a liter

AndyRST

i have always used either optimax or esso super in the RST and not had a problem.

FOr the ST170 its either saisnburys unleaded or shells unleaded depending onwhich is the cheapest that week

Rick

Use wither optimax ot Texaco SUL. Noticed no diff. Super apparently has a higher MON rating than Optimax - which is more usuful in turbo applications.

Smit

iTrader: (5)

my car fookin hates Ultimate filled it up once n the taxi missfired n splutters all over the place...didn't really at the time put it down to the fuel. Anyway's after checking loadsa things without finding a problem i just put it down to the fuel so drove it around not booting it everywhere and basically drove it sensibly. Then filled up again with optimax and the problem was still there but not half as much...

After 2 tanks full the problem dissapeared. never putting ultimate in my car again...it hated it for some reason!

So i'm sticking to what i know my car likes...Shell Optimax

Rob84

Jet stations aren't all supplied by Shell, I work for ConocoPhillips on the humber oil refinery and we make petrol for Jet. i'm pretty sure all Jet stations are supplied by ConocoPhillips but cant be sure. We also supply petrol to the supermarkets through Jet and its all the same stuff...comes out of the same tanks, so all supermarket fuel coming from the Matex or Purfleit refineries is bull.

i would take that info with a pinch of salt tbh

Physio

I've used shell optimax for years now (i have got over 10,000 plus points to prove)

I dont use anything but optimax

TIFF

even in the mondeo AJ?

Physio

Especially the mondeo - it increased it's 0 - 60 from 13 seconds to 12.7



*Disclaimer - i dont really own a mondeo, i just like to humour Tiffany*

Billabong

Smit, I had a similar experience. Couldn't get Optimax once, and so filled up with BP Ultimate.....never again, car ran crap.

TIFF

rabmc

I use q8`s ultimate 98 ron so it says and is chaeaper than essos super

cfoster

i think he mentions that they are suppliers to all the South East ones, not the whole country...

Im gonna try Esso next and see how i get on. Personally never have a problem with Optimax or Ultimate...

Chris

DAN P

iTrader: (1)

optimax in the cossie gimps ,who had it before were useing 95 ron stuff from jet petrol station lol did not like that for some reason


DAN

Linsay

That happened to me the other week, forgot how much the petrol gauge lies in the RS when i start it, it says 1/4 of a tank, then it drops into the red

Had to call in at a BP station and got Ultimate and i think the car runs smoother with it in and seems to get slightly better mpg

I usually get Optimax from a local, busy Shell station as i heard it's best to buy from somewhere busy as if the petrol sits around in the tanks, it gets condensation in and is poor????? just something i heard

RSCAT

im surprised by the poll vote, i thought optimax and ultimate would be much more even.

what do the tuners recommend? i know Stu uses optimax.

sjoyce666

Mike Rainbird

iTrader: (3)

Wouldn't use anything other than Optimax, as my car was mapped on this (as are all Harvey's engines).

pugo

this bloke is talking crap....where is the refinery in shell haven then????? it shut about 5 years ago
there is one oil refinery in the southeast that supplies 90% of the fuel and that is a BP oil refinery at coryton
yes they have shell lorries loading out of there as do sainsburies and the like(inc jet and q8)
so if you buy fuel in the s/east it will more than likely have come from there

super unleaded is the base fuel for ultimate/optimax, the difference is purely an additive put in at the loading racks
Yes 95unleaded and 97s/unleaded will deteriote..normally over 6weeks...even less in the winter so it goes out at higher octane for this reason

all this one fuel makes my car run crap is bollox...its the garage..not the fuel...octane obviously will make a difference, however you buy optimax and wait 2 weeks before mapping or i fill with ultimate today and get mine mapped....who's fuel do you think will have the higher octane rating mon&ron


Pugo

essexrsturbo

why cant i vote!

MaXsteri1

I work for Esso and im pretty sure one of the tanker drivers said our fuel comes from Purfleit.

pugo

yep your right, esso fuel comes from the storage facility(as thats all it is) at purfleet

Pugo

Billabong

Nope, Optimax ISN'T UL + Octane booster additives, it is a product of it's own refinement process, unlike other SUL's.....