Stephen Coker

Which fuel is better or are they equally the same?

EOEUMC

iTrader: (5)

Neither!

Tesco is better and cheaper lol

BBB3

iTrader: (7)

Shell FTW

smiffywhu

Shellvpower is 99Ron
Bp ultimate is only 97Ron

Tesco momentum is also 99

thenewgalaxy

Shell V-Power would appear to be the best for your car according to what people say, however finding concrete information about the fuel is quite difficult. Shell's marketing is full of crap imo, trying to impress people with pictures of Ferraris and giving NO information about the fuel at all.

Tesco 99 is fuel mixed with bioethanol to up the octane rating, I think older versions of the Shell stuff have been the same but someone I know has suggested the latest Shell V-power is a true 99-ron petrol.

The BP stuff is 97 RON and afaik this is not enough for turbocharged Impreza models regardless of what is stated on the inside of the filler cap.

Ste1988

I've always used tesco momentum 99 and never had a problem. Plus you can use your club card and double up the points so it keeps the Mrs happy lol

MattyB1983

iTrader: (51)

Shell 99ron fuel is best.
Tesco stuff Is also fine according to tuners I've spoken to.

Avoid the other brands.

Rusti

iTrader: (4)

I have used all 3 when I had a DC5 and it ran badly on Tesco's, however the difference between BP and Shell was surprising V-power made it quieter and more responsive.

Since then i have always run V-power.

MattyB1983

iTrader: (51)

I've never been a fan of tesco fuel, or any cheap supermarket fuel to be honest.
All my 'performance' cars have been run on shell optimax or the equivalent 99ron fuel they sell.

GONZO01

iTrader: (6)

First choice:- V power nitro plus
Second choice:- tesco momentum (only if nowhere near a shell)
Third choice:- **** in my tank
Fourth choice:- bp (would be further down the list but you get the point)

New_scooby_04

iTrader: (4)

In order of preference for an Impreza

1. Shell V power
2. Tescos 99
3. Esso SUL
.
.
.
99. Coal
100. BP Ultimate

romford-boy

This is pretty empirical / concrete!

Trinity

iTrader: (28)

Tesco 99 is like rocket fuel for me, both the Impreza and the old S3 Golf ran much quicker and cleaner on it compared to Shell.

But I mapped for Shell as there are more Shell stations around.

JohnD

iTrader: (5)

Avoid BP Ultimate unless it's an emergency eg you're about to run out of fuel, but then resist using too much boost.
Just about every mapper will tell you to avoid the stuff.

JohnD

EOEUMC

iTrader: (5)

No its not. The supermarket fuel was ordinary unleaded and not super unleaded as it was called back then
And as its so old there all different now. Needs to be done again with today's fuel

romford-boy

Yeah, never suggested it was Momentum, but shows the value of Shell over BP. Certainly more accurate than hearsay and urban rumour

JGlanzaV

iTrader: (3)

Do you have any evidence to back this up? I would be interested to see it!

Dont see why not, Fuel is produced to a standard so they are all much of a muchness.... I cannot tell a difference between Vpower and Tesco on my 500hp scoob, ran it on both for 20+k miles.

Add the methanol, and thats a whole different ball game

EOEUMC

iTrader: (5)

But then where's the evidence that Shell is better?
Oh and check out your local Tesco and Shell and you will see Tesco is cheaper lol

JGlanzaV

iTrader: (3)

Im not saying there is evidence for either been better, you made the claim it is better so I would like to see how you back that claim up Personally I dont claim either is better as per my post above, I cant tell the difference

Tesco might be cheaper in some places :P

specialx

Having a dyno is a sure fire way to prove what fuel is better and after years of testing we found V power to be the best pump fuel followed by Tesco 99

romford-boy

Sounds a good starting point

johned

So why is bp ultimate so bad?.

stonejedi

iTrader: (51)

SHELL.SJ.

RS_Matt

Will a car using 99 that was mapped for 97 be even safer than a car mapped for 99 that is using 99?

LuckyWelshchap

How/why?

A car is mapped for specific fuel.
Map it for one, fuel it with another and what can you read from a dyno ?

The only difference would be if one was actually, say 98.7 RON and the other was 99.2 or whatever.

I can't tell the difference between 0-60 in 4.0 or 4.5 tbh, and I can only 'believe' that mine runs smoother on Momentum.
I can prove however that it does more mpg on it.

Oh - and I'd NEVER trust Tesco with my car, yet many SN members said it would be OK - and it is.

Btw - last full tank was Shell Nitro+. Haven't noticed any difference tbh.

Osimabu

iTrader: (2)

Superb!

Incidentally, can anyone advise please the best mapper to use for running on coal?

Matt_STi

Silly question......

do all shell garages stock Shell V power 99?

Lunchmoney

James Watt

MattyB1983

iTrader: (51)

My understanding is that the likes of tesco add chemicals to their fuels to increase the Ron rating and quality. Hence all that issue tesco had a few years back with cars breaking down shortly after leaving the station.
For me personally, I'd rather buy from a company who specialise in fuel and oil rather than one that specialises in food but sell fuel because it's a money spinner. If I have to pay a few pence more for that privilege then so be it. I don't run my car on a tight budget so it doesn't concern me.
Shell has never giving me any issues so I've no reason to change.

LuckyWelshchap

Not sure what you mean by 'safer'.

However, you'd be wasting money.
Ignition timing (mapping) is altered to take account of the lower efficiency of combustion (ie. the lower octane), so whatever fuel goes in the timing etc. will remain the same.

It's why it's deadly to put 95 in a car mapped for, say, 99. The ignition settings are such that the fuel would pre-det.
The other way around and the more efficient fuel is still ignited later, so there's no benefit.