Asda/ Tesco Petrol

[Jimmygixxer]

Does anyone ever notice a difference with Asda or tesco's petrol?
Im convinced its not as good.
Ive noticed when using the supermarket petrol in the past my bikes have ran worse.
I noticed it the other day on the fazer. I was running low so i called into Asda for a fill up. The bike was running really smooth before i went in.
About half a mile down the road all of a sudden the bike seemed less responsive and a sudden buzzyness came through the handle bars, sort of like the buzz you usually get at 6000 rpm but throughout the rev range.
Ive had this happen on other bikes, they just seem to run roughly on it and seem more tempramental when starting smoothly on the choke in the morning.
Cars dont seem to pick up on this the same as ive never had a problem in the car.
Makes me wonder why its always cheaper.
Anyone ever notice this?

[acid drop]

I buy petrol from asda tesco morrisons sainsburys esso shell  never noticed any difference in the bikes performance, same with the car i buy diesel all over the place and still no difference in performance

[darrsi]

Not one for supermarket fuel, but always notice a bit of oomph with Shell V-Power.

[ChristoT]

I'm a skint student, so always fill up at Asda in Hatfield (cheapest fuel for miles). I reckon it's on par with most 95 octane fuel, and the bike runs OK with it. Maybe I don't notice more expensive fuel on 33 brake?

I do put in better fuel occasionally, to give the bike a wee bit of a clean out, but recently due to funds (or lack thereof), it's been Asda all the way. The bike still starts, goes in the right direction, doesn't blow up... good enough for me!! 

[Dead Eye]

I usually use Sainsburys for all my fuelling needs (unless there isn't one nearby). I've never found any real difference between the supermarkets with the bike but I have found that it's not overly keen on higher octane fuels

The car on the other hand - it seems to hate fuel from Tesco and it loves higher octane fuels, but that's not surprising since its a lovely 2.5L V6

[bandit]

No problems here to, as all the major supermarkets don't have their own fuel depots I wonder were they get it from , I must admit when the bikes been unused for a while I tend to put the fuel in the car & put fresh in the bike as said they don't like even slightly stale fuel. I remember (& older guys on here also) that supermarkets started off with low sulphur fuels which stopped that horrible buildup of yellow sh#t on the end of your car exhaust.   

[Lawrence]

I stick in whatever's cheapest and not noticed any change with any fuel.
 
The only time I've ever used a specific brand/type was when I had a car that was mapped to run on 97+ ron, which always got super.  If it's not mapped for high octane, or capable of learning (which the fzs won't be since it's old and it has no ecu) it'll make no difference.

[ChristoT]

I stick in whatever's cheapest and not noticed any change with any fuel.
 
The only time I've ever used a specific brand/type was when I had a car that was mapped to run on 97+ ron, which always got super.  If it's not mapped for high octane, or capable of learning (which the fzs won't be since it's old and it has no ecu) it'll make no difference.

I would have thought though that on a carbed bike which uses fuel volume rather than octane level as its control would get a bit more power out of higher octane fuel, more bang per revolution?

[Lawrence]

Higher octane gives more power by allowing more ignition advance, not by producing a bigger bang.  Modern knocks will listen for knock and advance/retard it as necessary to cope with higher/lower octane fuel.

[Enceladus]

as an ex tanker driver i can confirm that all fuels are basically the same.
i used to load at immingham (texaco) and there was me in a Jet tanker, plenty of supermarket tankers and several other "branded" tankers filling up at the same pumps.
given the size of the pipes, there is no way that the fuel can be "blown through" to change the source between tankers.
also, at the filling points there are only 5 connectors (petrol, super unleaded, gas oil, diesel & kerosene) and an electrical overfill and vapour recovery equipment so no way of changing fuels there.
as the systems have to be sealed for safety purposes there is no way of adding anything extra en route, or at the forecourt.
any difference can only be the change in octane rating given from the super unleaded vs regular unleaded.
hope this helps clarify a bit.

[DryRob]

A guy I know who owns a garage and works on a lot of diesel taxis said to alternate fill ups between supermarket and petrol station diesel but Enceladus has blown that theory out of the water.

[Dead Eye]

I must have just had a bad batch from Tesco then... ah well, their loss, not mine

[darrsi]

You've only just twigged that one? 

[darrsi]

I tend to buy it more during "summer" or drier weather ( ).
I rarely use the 95 stuff, i'll either use 97 octane as regular, or 99 every few tank loads.
The throttle response with the 99 is very noticeable though, but as it's primarily my work bike then it's really not too necessary stuck in traffic. 

[para300]

Up until now I've only ever put 95 oct into my fzs600.  Can i use 97 of 99 Oct without causing any damage?  Sorry if I sound abit thick

[darrsi]

Up until now I've only ever put 95 oct into my fzs600.  Can i use 97 of 99 Oct without causing any damage?  Sorry if I sound abit thick

Sure can, try the 99 first and you'll notice the difference much more.

[darrsi]

I came out of my work the other day and the traffic was so bad in EVERY side road that i got forced in the opposite direction to where i live.
Sometimes even a bike can get stuck, i only use pavements as a last resort (like a month ago) 

[69oldskool]

Even my 66 yr old Mum notices the difference between supermarket fuel & branded   No really!
 
 
Tried V power in Fazer,engine sounds 'wrong'
maybe i have wrong plug grade? Not sure if i've 8's or 9's fitted, both listed in owners manual, sure one would be more suitable for higher octane than the other~
But which, Anyone?
 
Oddly My old xj600f loves V power,so much so i won't use anything else.
 

[JZS 600]

 Using higher octane fuel than your engine requires actually gives no benefit and may be a waste of money. This is because virtually NO engines require 98 RON over 95, and the market for ‘super’ fuels seems to be based on people’s misunderstanding of octane ratings and the placebo effect of filling up with ‘more powerful’ fuel – making motorists think their engine is running better in some way.What do the fuel companies say then, to justify the “increased power” claims for the super grade fuels? Some companies say that while all fuels contain cleaning additives, ‘super’ fuels contain more or better detergents to keep the injectors cleaner than standard fuel. Others say the fuel is a few percent denser which gives slightly more power per litre. These benefits may be marginal though in comparison to the extra cost involved so it is worth ensuring that your engine will actually benefit before filling up.Some engines actually do need higher octane fuel, such as race engines with very high compression and some turbocharged engines, such as the import version of the Nissan Skyline. Also, a few vehicles, such as the new BMW K1200R motorbike, can sense knock and adjust their engine tuning to take advantage of higher grade fuels. Another user commented that the 2004 BMW 330 also does this, according to the driver’s handbook it makes 231 BHP on 98 octane and 221 BHP on 95. This ability is apparently widespread amongst German performance cars using Bosch / Siemens electronic engine controls.

[Dead Eye]

Different vehicles / engines will respond differently. My experience is that fuel-injected engines with a half sensible ECU will be better setup to make the most of higher octane fuels. Some performance derived cars will naturally perform better on higher octane fuels.

I'm sceptical about higher octane fuel in the Fazer - I tried 97 RON once but the bike didn't seem overly happy with it. However, I'm happy to give it a bit more of an extended try so for the next few fill-ups I'm going to try out Shells V-Power and see what happens - my engine can't get much worse :P

For those that are interested, Fifth Gear did a test a while back (it also notes as to why Turbo engines are better suited to higher octane fuels)

Fifth Gear Fuel test

[69oldskool]

http://www.fueltechexperts.com/2008/07/18/do-you-really-need-an-octane-booster/

[darrsi]

My bike runs sweet on the 99, but i generally use 97 as standard.
It's not too keen on the 95 and i notice a difference when i use it.

[taylor]

i also got a transit van, the lad i used to carry in the back allways moaned about the smell in the back when i bought diesel from sainbury,s,  i wont put in in my car, or use them for the bike, it,s shit, i use about 200, a week just for the van so not a small user.

[caretaker]

i use shell cos the cops dont fill up anywhere else. also a mate races a ktm which doesnt run very well on normal but runs ok on v power. i fill up with normal and use vpower every third tankful. works for me.

[Lawrence]

Using higher octane fuel than your engine requires actually gives no benefit and may be a waste of money. This is because virtually NO engines require 98 RON over 95, and the market for ‘super’ fuels seems to be based on people’s misunderstanding of octane ratings and the placebo effect of filling up with ‘more powerful’ fuel – making motorists think their engine is running better in some way.What do the fuel companies say then, to justify the “increased power” claims for the super grade fuels? Some companies say that while all fuels contain cleaning additives, ‘super’ fuels contain more or better detergents to keep the injectors cleaner than standard fuel. Others say the fuel is a few percent denser which gives slightly more power per litre. These benefits may be marginal though in comparison to the extra cost involved so it is worth ensuring that your engine will actually benefit before filling up.Some engines actually do need higher octane fuel, such as race engines with very high compression and some turbocharged engines, such as the import version of the Nissan Skyline. Also, a few vehicles, such as the new BMW K1200R motorbike, can sense knock and adjust their engine tuning to take advantage of higher grade fuels. Another user commented that the 2004 BMW 330 also does this, according to the driver’s handbook it makes 231 BHP on 98 octane and 221 BHP on 95. This ability is apparently widespread amongst German performance cars using Bosch / Siemens electronic engine controls.

Unless it's mapped to run on 97+ ron, or intelligent enough to use it properly, it won't have any effect.
 
Just be glad we don't get the shite 'regular' unleaded from the US.  At 87-91 octane you may well notice a difference with that stuff