I drive 2 common rail diesels and wonder if I should keep up the practice of adding a "water treatment" at the end of each winter. I have noticed that the same company makes a dry fuel additive and a cleaner which claims to "demulsify" the fuel to allow the separator to work better. Which if any would work with this sort of engine or should I just do nothing and use only top grade fuel and empty the water trap on the filter every three months?
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Dear Patron, If you buy your fuel from proper garages I wouldn't bother, I have never found any water come out of capillary water traps in all my years of draining them. The garage have 15 micron filters and water traps inside the forecourt pumps. Just make sure you don't let water into the filler when you fill up, or use wet nozzles.
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I too drive two common rail diesel cars & use fuel addatives regularly to avoid diesel problems & have done for some years & I also only ever use a top brand of diesel fuel & have to say I have never experienced any serious fuel related issues other than injector noise & some smoke at times but once a cleaner has been run through no problems at all. I have never even used the water drain.
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I have always purchased the cheapest diesel for years(usually supermarket),have never used any additives,never had any problems and have always passed the MoT's easily.But then I always drive my vehicles hard and make of the revs.Also my shortest journey is about 15 miles and I always disconnect the EGR.
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well iether you are lucky or you don't use low sulphur fuel or run HDI's! It would be worth reading a few websites on low sulphur fuels & you could ask a diesel specialist what they think of some fuels as there the ones who are rebuiling pumps all day! & I value there experience
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I thought it was all ULSD and had been since 2000?
Only in 2009 is it being reduced from 50ppm to 10ppm max.
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Some more info - looks like fuel is going to the dogs!
The first (98/69/EC), set tighter limits for emissions from cars and light vans to apply from 1 January 2001, with more stringent limits to come into force from 1 January 2005. The second (98/70/EC) required all petrol and diesel fuels to be manufactured to new, cleaner specifications also from 1 January 2000 and mandated the use of ultra low sulphur petrol and diesel from January 2005. Subsequently this Directive was amended, requiring member states to move to sulphur-free petrol and diesel(10ppm or less), starting in 2005 and completed by 2009. In the UK, the path to lower sulphur fuels started early on. For diesel, the sulphur level was reduced from 500 ppm to 150 ppm on 1 January 2000 and was reduced again to the current 50 ppm level in mid 1999 and in the case of petrol from mid 2001.
Although the EU Directive requires that sulphur-free fuels (10ppm or less) be made available on a 'balanced geographic basis' starting in 2005, UKPIA member companies have already invested in the order of £600 million at refineries to produce these new cleaner fuels, in response to Government announcements that early introduction was to be encouraged through a duty differential. However, this approach was shelved in 2004/5 as a consequence of continuing high oil prices. Some companies have already started to phase in these new fuels but the exact timing of introduction is a commercial decision for individual member companies. The Department for Transport is expected to publish in early 2007, regulations setting out the timetable for introduction of sulphur-free fuels to meet the deadline of January 2009 contained in the EU Directive. It is anticipated that diesel and super unleaded petrol will be required to meet this specification by the end of 2007 and all road fuels by 2009.
www.ukpia.com/industry_issues/fuels/sulphur_free_p...x
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The reason for lowering the sulphur is that it destroys cats. nearly as effectively as lead.
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I wouldn't bother - in the past 3 years I've not had a drop of water come out of the fuel filter. In fact, I haven't changed the filter in that time either and can't see any reason for doing so.
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If sulfur is being almost removed from fuel what is being put in it to lubricate the fuel pump and injector pumps - or are these items just doomed to fail at say 70k ?
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