I was wondering if Sainsburys 97 octane super unleaded was the same as Optimax. It is the same octane and a whole lot cheaper at just 2p more than 95 octane unleaded.
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I thought that we had established beyond doubt that supermarket petrol was pretty much water and not only will destroy your car but also your social standing.
Branded petrol on the otherhand will increase your cars BHP by a factor of 10, mean the engine is actually 'newer' after the run than before it and give you automatic membership of the Groucho Club and fresh breathe and a glossy coat to boot.
The fact that they are identical is irrelevant I tell you irrelevant, oh sorry I forgot the 'detergents'...
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Peter
Super unleaded has been around for at least 15 years and is needed for some engines that cannot run on 95 Octane fuel. I remember there were a few high performance cars that this applied to in the early to middle 1990s. I suspect that modern ECU make this irrelevant, but the ECU can now adjust the timing and firing of engines to take advantage of higher octaine fuels. Saab were the first to do this, so buying 97 octane may be beneficial in extremis.
Optimax (98 OCtane?) is different again and claims to improve the burn of the fuel in the cylinder leading to sharper performance, smoother and cleaner engines and sometime better economy. I have run Optimax for at least four years. I have noticed some improvement in smoothness in 4-cyl Merc engine but not in my 6-cyl Volvo or boxer Subaru. Certainly the emmisions on my cars ahve never been better and at MoT, the testers say they have never seen cleaner exhausts. I cannot comment on economy as I rarely worry about it.
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Espada III - well if you have a family and need a Lamborghini, what else do you drive?
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>>Optimax (98 OCtane?) is different again
I'm sure that when unleaded was first introduced, that super unleaded was 98. I'm sure that it is on the continent.
Optimax is no different from any other higher-octane petrol.
Some engines benefit from higher octane petrol, some don't. For those that do, buy it. For those that don't, don't waste your money.
Simple as that. And Optimax will not improve your social status!
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>>Optimax is no different from any other higher-octane petrol.
By which of course I mean Optimax is no different from any other 98 octane petrol.
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Normal Unleaded: 95Ron
Most Premium Leaded: 97Ron
Optimax: 98Ron
New Tesco Super: 99Ron
As far as I can work out, it's the "bang per ml" or Joules per unit of fuel that's higher with the higher numbers.. My car manual and filler cap state only to use 98Ron or above. Bit expensive though!
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Some 95 per cent or more of the petrol I've put in my VWs over the last 13 years have been bought at the local Tesco.
Two Jettas notched up six figure mileages and I know at least one is still being used (it's now 15 years old) - none of these VWs have had any problems with the MOT emissions test and, in fact, were well within the criteria laid down.
Re RON levels - I seem to recall that the most expensive leaded petrol used to be 98 for a long time.
At our local Tesco the Super version is around 40p a gallon more - not that it worries me...:-)
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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