I've just noticed this fuel has become available here on the Costa del Sol. The price is about 4.5 centimos (approx three pence) per litre more than standard Shell Diesel. Normal gasoleo A diesel is 0.94.6 Euros and this stuff is 0.99 Euros point something per litre.
Is this premium worth it in real life as opposed to petrol company claims - whatever they may be?
Roger. (Costa del Sol, España)
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I haven't seen it in the UK & the shell site for UK doesn't list it. Sooo, you have an oppo to review & report back for all of us here! Give it a few tankfulls & let us know what you find please!
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www.bayingbasset.com
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I work in Germany where V-Power diesel is one sale, and travel back to the UK regularly in my 2004 BMW 320D Touring (auto). I thought I'd give it a go, as the claims on Shell's website www.shell-tankstelle.de/440.asp seem to be worth investigating. My usual trip across Holland and to home is pretty much the same, sticking to speed limits - usually the car will achieve 50mpg (according to the computer).
I can confirm that V-Power does reduce noise from the car, which is definitely less grumbly than on ordinary diesel. The fuel also seems to have got rid of a mild misfire at around 2000rpm, but otherwise I have not noticed any driving or performance gains. MPG on my last trip home worked out at the same 50mpg as before.
So, this may be a performance fuel, but I have a feeling that I'd have to get the car's brain remapped to get any benefits in that department. It could be worth filling with V-Power once a month to get the injectors really clean, though.
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V-Power is a brand name of Shell, used in place of Optimax. (I think Optimx is used in UK and AUS and V-Power in the US and lots of the rest of the world).
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In the UK isn't Shell Extra diesel the equivalent of V-power?
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IIRC Optimax is used for petrol in most of Europe and V-Power for diesel, one can only assume that they would also use the V-Power brand for diesel here if they could, perhaps someone else has V-Power registered in the UK within a relevant trademark category. Otherwise I understand that V-Power is the same as Shell Extra sold here.
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No, V-Power is the 'premium' brand name for both Shell Petrol and Diesel in much of Europe. In some countries (e.g. Germany) you also see Shell V-Power Racing petrol - which is the 99 Octane version. In UK and AUS they use the Optimax brand name for petrol, don't know about the Diesel.
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V-Power is not the same as Diesel Extra, nor Optimax. If you read Shell's blurb, it is manufactured using Gas To Liquid (GTL) technology, from natural gas, and is therefore a completely different fuel. That's why it's clear in colour and does not smell like ordinary diesel. Also the cetane rating is "more than 70", which I understand is very much higher than ordinary diesel fuel. In Germany it's only around 10 cents a litre more than normal diesel.
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We recently did a 6500 km. round trip from home to the UK & return. Going we used mostly V power or another premium diesel if no Shell station was handy. We took three days going to Dunkirk, crossing to Dover with Norfolk Line (68 euros return).
Our Fabia 1.9tdi averaged 4.8 litres per 100 km. going to Nottinghamshire. While in the UK we did about 1000 km, using the cheapest diesel we could find - well you all know UK fuel prices:( .
Our return journey was somewhat stupid, particularly for old 'uns like us (70 & 68). From Dunkirk we drove to Tours, where we overnighted. Next day we started at about 7.15 am and1800 + km. & 20 hours later, arrived home with no stops apart from "comfort" breaks, thus saving two hotel nights and two dining out meals.
We used ordinary diesel on the way back, but of course with the journey pattern being so different it's not easy to compare the fuels used. Our consumption on the whole trip worked out at 5.1 litres per 100km.
I cannot honestly say that I noticed any measurable difference in economy or performance between using premium or ordinary diesel - except for the cost of the fuel!
Overall, I calculated that the cost of driving to UK, (toll roads wherever possible and including four nights in cheapo hotels), was quite a bit less than return flights for two from Malga to East Midlands or Sheffield/Doncaster plus hiring a car in the UK for 5 weeks.
Roger. (Costa del Sol, España)
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No, V-Power is the 'premium' brand name for both Shell Petrol and Diesel in much of Europe. In some countries (e.g. Germany) you also see Shell V-Power Racing petrol - which is the 99 Octane version.
Seems that you are correct re France and Germany at least though I am sure I have seen Optimax elsewhere in Europe, perhaps I am mistaken.
In UK and AUS they use the Optimax brand name for petrol, don't know about the Diesel.
They clearly dont use Optimax for diesel here, Extra is the premium. There must be a resosn why they cannot use V-Power in the UK or perhaps English speaking markets.
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Just to bring this discussion up to date, I have now been using V-Power diesel in Germany for about 3 months in my 2004 BMW 320d, and there are significant benefits over the ordinary Shell diesel fuel. Most noticeable, particularly on reverting to ordinary diesel for a week, is the reduction in engine noise. Running on V-Power there is a startling reduction in noise, and the performance is most definitely smoother and more 'linear'. The car's refinement is really not far off a petrol model, when running on the V-Power, and normally this could not be said of the 320d. There is no overall reduction in fuel consumption, but the car is definitely more fun to drive (perhaps that's why the fuel consumption is not improved). I see that Shell are selling V-Power petrol in the UK, and I hope that they roll out the diesel as well, but it will be interesting to see if the price premium is as modest as it is in Germany (around ?0.10 per litre). In rip-off Britain I expect it will be much more expensive, like BP's Ultimate Diesel. So, I can now give V-Power Diesel an enthusiastic thumbs-up.
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