Scirocco Central

Just a simple one, is the extra 10p a litre extra worth it for vpower diesel rather than just regular diesel

I haven't noticed a great deal in economy so wondered what others say

Gaz

It's one of those age old arguments with people for and against depending on who you ask! I personally use Vpower in my TDI after hearing horror stories about the cheap supermarket diesel and how it can clog up your tank with gunge. Some people i'm sure will say cheap supermarket diesel is fine!

I can't say it makes any difference to the performance that's noticeable. I just use it out of piece of mind.

Sorry that probably didn't really help you!

I've never noticed any difference in economy or performance and have had no issue using normal supermarket diesel or petrol.

If people can justify it to themselves then fair enough. People should just buy what makes them happy irrespective of whether the Internet approves or not...

I personally use it, I believe the cleaning agents do help.
No real gain in economy.

Yes, there is a lot of opinion out there on the Supermarket v Branded fuels. A couple of the websites I glanced through contain a common theme about additives (or not) and the amount of biodiesel in their respective products, versus the amount your car recommends that it can handle, hence Rabidweasel's comment about gunge no doubt!

I have a friend who recently retired from his petrol filling station business and his anecdotes reinforce the comments online about "base standards" for fuel grades and the amount of additives being included in the tanker lorry when it collects the base fuel from the refinery. Supermarket fuel is cheaper than branded for a number of possible reasons:
1) They can handle the negligible profit margin on the back of the grocery shopping we do at the same time
2) Branded fuel costs more because we're paying for additives which are not in the supermarket stuff


Everyone will put their money where their mouth is, with reasons across the range from "fuel economy" issues right up to "clogging up your engine parts" and beyond.

Whilst I don't put "enhanced" Vpower type diesel in my 170 TDi, I think I have only put two or three loads of supermarket fuel in the car across the seven years I have owned it (both occasions I was desperately low and had to refill or run out...) I'm happy with the general running of the car and the mechanics have not commented adversely either.

Our Touran diesel (150,000 on the clock and counting) is frequently filled with supermarket fuel by my wife because of pay-at-the-pump convenience when the kids are in tow. I can convince myself that the fuel economy on that car is lower than it could be. But then again, when it is fully occupied/ loaded, older and also doing a lot more urban driving than combined cycle trips, what should I expect?

I'm reluctant to think that there is a separate "Vpower" tank at the refinery and haven't looked yet for the extra chemicals which go into enhanced fuels to give it the extra power / economy. I gave up chemistry at O Level and that was a lot of years ago ! But if the manufacturer specs tell you to buy a fuel with a minimum RON rating ,you have to go with that, or take the consequences. Going in excess of the recommended minimum is, I suppose down to your pocket and your perception.

I can only give you my suggestions, Gaz. If I were you, I'd use regular branded fuel for your car unless the handbook demands enhanced fuels. My thinking is that if you plan to own your car for many years, running with branded fuel could be the better long-term bet than saving £1 per tankful on supermarket stuff.

How many tankfuls per year would you buy and how much will that save in £? Could you recoup the "extra fuel spend" by improving your fuel economy by
(a) reducing the surplus weight in the car by cleaning out the boot
(b) driving in a more relaxed / boring manner once in a while to bag a 55mpg trip rather than a 45mpg journey
(c) Polishing the entire car every weekend to reduce drag (yes, that one is tongue in cheek!)

I've re-read this and now decided that I'm getting old and farty - where's my bag of Werther Originals.......

D

I definitely noticed a difference between supermarket and Vpower on my old petrol Alfa....to the point where cheap fuel would cause a bit of pinking. But I haven't noticed anything with diesel in the Scirocco, but then again I haven't taken apart the intake manifold to look for gunge.

Timbo69 wrote:I definitely noticed a difference between supermarket and Vpower on my old petrol Alfa....to the point where cheap fuel would cause a bit of pinking. But I haven't noticed anything with diesel in the Scirocco, but then again I haven't taken apart the intake manifold to look for gunge.

Petrols a different kettle of fish entirely, as far as I'm aware with diesel the cheaper stuff has a higher percentage of biodiesel and less cleaners/additives.

The difference between Tesco Regular Unleaded VS Tesco Momentum is the addition of ethanol and a few other agents, which will make a noticeable difference.

Diesels don't tend to be as fuel grade sensitive

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