What Grade Fuel?

In the UK it's only Esso super that is ethanol free, and that's not everywhere in the country.

 

After the way my old clio 197 ran on cheap stuff wherever it came from i only use v power or equivalent in engines i care about. It ran well on v power, tesco99 or bp ultimate but didn't like much else, it kept stalling, cutting out when idling and struggling to keep pulling at high revs which is where all the power was on that thing.

 

I stuff any old shit in mine.

 

Don't know about bikes, but my van on diesel v power is much smoother and literally feels like the load has lightened it just pulls effortlessly, I do not notice a mileage improvement and only put it in occasionally, as a side note I used to work at coryton oil refinery on the Thames estuary near grays, petrol tankers from a whole host of manufacturers used to fill up there including supermarkets...I am aware of additives and don't know who had what but as said supermarkets do not have oil wells.

 

Good point. I have also visited Coryton and been shown around as a guest. Seen the road tankers with a range of different names painted on the sides, filling up with the same stuff. Some folk get very precious about fuel brands, it seems.

 

V Power for me when possible, if not, always the higher octane from a reputable brand (Esso, BP, Texaco).
Some petrol station franchises do take the p*ss though with the mark up per litre on V Power - it ranges from +8p per litre to +11p per litre. Not much difference on the bike, but I use this in my car too. Probably wasting money, I know...

 

I remember an interview on TV with a Shell technician who worked on additives and detergents for fuel. In her case it was diesel fuel, but I venture that the same will hold true for petrol.
What she said was that the more expensive fuel with additives is beneficial in that it keeps the system cleaner. However, there's no need to use it every time. Her routine was to fill up with the expensive fuel once every five times, and the other four with cheaper fuel. She said it was unnecessary to use the additive laden fuel every time to get the benefits from it.
So I follow her example(ish) and occasionally fill with the expensive stuff but mostly the cheaper option. That's both in my Multi and my diesel car. I know diesel has to work as a lubricant in the HP fuel system, and diesel produces some nasty by-products which need dealing with whereas petrol doesn't, but it's a good practice to follow.

 

For £50 a year difference between cheap and expensive I'll put in the expensive...