I tried a tank of V power in my SS i.e and it ran notable worse - hesitant and fluffy. My old GPz 550 used to hate it too, the idle was notably rougher. Normal shell 95 from now on.
BP ESSO TEXICO own several other companies, and just like some products in supermarkets the own cheap brand is the same as the expensive name just packaged different. but Tesco has had a bad rap with the quality of their fuel before. Go to what ever your wallet is happy paying for....or how long your fuel light has been on for :smile:
Not true. I used to work for Texaco, not in fuel, but, after 10 years I did pick up some knowledge of fuel. Your right that supermarkets do not make fuel, and that their own brand fuels are bought from majors such as shell, Texaco, Exxon etc But, standard unleaded fuel contains various additives, these are the expensive element, and these are what gives fuel various benefits. Like many manufactured products, there are tolerances for fuel. Supermarket fuel has the bare minimum additives needed to claim the unleaded spec. Unleaded fuel from a fully branded fuel station will have higher doses of additives, and will be towards the higher end of the allowable tolerances. Both are unleaded fuel, but, supermarket fuels just meets the specification. As said, the additives are expensive, and supermarket fuels are blended to a price.
Hard one to call. Engines are designed to work on fuel that meets the specifications as defined by BS or what ever standards they are working too. As long as the fuel meets the correct BS standards, even if it's the lower end of the allowable spec, then all should be ok. As said by others, it's more about how the fuel is stored. For me, I use standard supermarket fuel, unleaded and diesel, in the bike and my car. Then dose them every 6 months with a proper fuel additive.
You are on the right track. i would also agree with most to avoid supermarket fuel if i can. i am suprised at the comment that s/unleaded contains no ethanol, is this true? i thought it was in all pump fuels.
I have always used Sains/tesco for main fuel fill up then usually any petrol station on route So far no running problems with either car or bike
I despair with some of the b*llox that gets posted on some issues..... I already mentioned an EU directive that was issued requiring fuels (that's all fuels, regradless whether it is unleaded, super unleaded, premium unleaded, kerosene, diesel, heating oil etc etc) to have a percentage of bio-fuel. It isn't hard to find the answers with a simple Google search, so why the b*llox, I don't know. Anyway, this is a good place to start for answers. Ethanol AL.
Explain this one to me then. Why is it that when I load my tanker with SUL and Derv the Ethanol pump does not start? In fact it isn't even connected to the loading arms for those products. When I load PUL it is connected and does start pumping? Murco Theale doesn't even have an Ethanol plant at all, yet.
Just read the information available, there is plenty out there..........and it isn't from Wikipedia. And, just because Tesco happens to lift from the same terminal as 'others' in your area, doesn't mean they do in every other area. The R*ps*l terminals 'apparently' have a p*ss poor reputation, so if they lift from there it seems highly probable it will be sh*tty fuel. AL.
Tesco work on lifting from the Major (generic term for refiners that also distribute) that gives them the best price on any given day. The transport company I work for has the contract for Tesco too, and they work on this basis throughout the country. There aren't any terminals operated by Repsol in the UK, that I'm aware of. I've certainly never loaded in one.
I think you will find one in Birmingham for starters, also Harwich, but for Repsol, see Carless......but maybe they have switched over to burning fuels.....also I think there was one in Ipswich, which is now Vopak. Still.....I'm not going to argue about it.......however, if ethanol (or 'bio-fuel') is under the EU directive to be in all fuels, then I reckon you can safely assume that it is. AL.
Carless supply a different sector of the petroleum industry. They don't supply petrol or diesel for road use. The Repsol terminal in West Bromwich closed years ago. I will reiterate once more, despite what you read on the internet, SUL and diesel does not contain ethanol. I'm not talking second hand rhetoric or hearsay, it's my job! If I deliver E5 (industry name for unleaded with ethanol at 5%) to a site that currently has PU50 I have contaminated that site. As you rightly say, I'm not arguing either. However, this thread was regarding the pros & cons of using SUL in a Supersport, so back to topic......................
Yes, back to topic........ BTW.....Tesco for example in conjunction with Greenenergy have been selling E5 petrol containing Brazilian sugar cane ethanol since 2005. It is all defined on the DfT website and in the relevant legislation....albeit not clearly. However, I would think that is a pretty good source to rely on, don't you? AL
Firstly, I never use supermarket fuel in my bike. When I first got my SS I always ran it on Shell super with no problems. Now I run it on any normal unleaded, I can`t tell any difference, except a few more pence in my pocket. My off road bike had always been run on Shell super with a lead additive. Couple of years ago the fuel started to react with the fibreglass tank, causing the inside to peel, I think the resin in the fibreglass was also being pulled out and this ended up causing the slide to stick in the carb. An ethanol proof tank coating from America seems to have cured it. Not looking to argue but if there is no ethanol in super unleaded then I wonder what could have caused this? I`ve had the bike eight years now and had no problems with tank deterioration until a couple of years ago. Everyone I know with a fibreglass tank on their bike has had similar issues in the last few years.
Ummm.....with regard to glassfibre tanks, I wouldn't be surprised if it was causing problems...it's even affecting the metals of older carbs and tanks.....However over the years I have used glassfibre tanks for racing etc etc and after a while they gradually deteriorated and leaked, not just through cracking. I don't know what the current rules are for glassfibre tanks in race use, but I wouldn't be surprised if they were banned...The last tanks we used on the outfits were stainless steel or alloy..... ....my personal opinion is that plastic and glassfibre tanks should not be used for any road vehicle, and maybe all tanks should have the foam filling in them...(but I'll guess the ethanol would break that down)... AL
why exactly is there a law suite? did the polyethyline tanks melt? the fuel in the states is as different again, feels and smells different too. they still use xylene in some of the fuels, not nice for young uns at all. Even when you get down to jetting the differences in uk to usa fuels shows up, jets are totally different sizes for slow running, less differences on the mains. so how does that affect any import??? good post so far!
