Tesco momentum
Discussion
Gibbo205 said:
Did no one see the Fifth Gear test?
In short Vpower and Esso is best!
BP Ultimate was no better than Asda cheap rubbish!
Fifth Gear stupidly didn't include Momentum.In short Vpower and Esso is best!
BP Ultimate was no better than Asda cheap rubbish!
Conclusion was that the difference if very small, insignificant for road use IMO, I think it's mainly placebo.
As for cheap supermarket stuff, well they don't refine it, do they ? It comes from the same source as "branded" stuff.
But obviously, no one knows about additives (or their absence), so particularly with a DFI engine it might make sense to stick to branded stuff, just in case.
Edited by nickfrog on Tuesday 2nd October 15:32
Tesco have a significant share holding in http://www.greenergy.com/ Need I say more ????
From an earlier PH thread on the stuff, note how each is made
"If you use Tesco Momentum vs. Shell VPower, you should find slightly poorer MPG with the tesco fuel.
It's possible you may also find mild running problems with carb engines, however with fuel injected engines there is no reason as such that you should find problems - however it does depend on the way injection is calibrated and to some extent the way it is implemented for each particular engine. So it's entirely possible that some models of FI engine just don't like the tesco momentum product.
There's a couple of reasons for this but it boils down to a litre of tesco momentum has a lower calorific content than a litre of vpower.
The base petrol for VPower (and BP ultimate) product is made in an expensive refining process, it's relatively expensive petrol because for a litre of crude very little of the fractions distilled is usable petrol. Everyone seems to know about the additives packages, but in reality these account for only a very small portion of the fuel, and by volume these additives are mostly detergents.
The base petrol for Tesco Momentum, as produced by the Greenergy company in the UK, is made from a cheaper fraction of distilled crude. In fact it's not really petrol to begin with, at the distillation phase it's a fraction known as naphtha. This isn't worth as much as refined petrol, however via reforming (specifically cracking), naphtha can be upgraded to high octane petrol. When married to a larger additives package by volume, you can iron out most of the problems with this approach.
The net result is a mostly comparable product, which is much much cheaper to produce.
Just don't pay vpower prices for momentum and you are probably getting a fair enough deal".
From an earlier PH thread on the stuff, note how each is made
"If you use Tesco Momentum vs. Shell VPower, you should find slightly poorer MPG with the tesco fuel.
It's possible you may also find mild running problems with carb engines, however with fuel injected engines there is no reason as such that you should find problems - however it does depend on the way injection is calibrated and to some extent the way it is implemented for each particular engine. So it's entirely possible that some models of FI engine just don't like the tesco momentum product.
There's a couple of reasons for this but it boils down to a litre of tesco momentum has a lower calorific content than a litre of vpower.
The base petrol for VPower (and BP ultimate) product is made in an expensive refining process, it's relatively expensive petrol because for a litre of crude very little of the fractions distilled is usable petrol. Everyone seems to know about the additives packages, but in reality these account for only a very small portion of the fuel, and by volume these additives are mostly detergents.
The base petrol for Tesco Momentum, as produced by the Greenergy company in the UK, is made from a cheaper fraction of distilled crude. In fact it's not really petrol to begin with, at the distillation phase it's a fraction known as naphtha. This isn't worth as much as refined petrol, however via reforming (specifically cracking), naphtha can be upgraded to high octane petrol. When married to a larger additives package by volume, you can iron out most of the problems with this approach.
The net result is a mostly comparable product, which is much much cheaper to produce.
Just don't pay vpower prices for momentum and you are probably getting a fair enough deal".
Edited by Stuart J on Tuesday 2nd October 15:17
MadMark911 said:
V-Power or Tesco 99 work fine in the old GT3 - but after using a tank of "normal" fuel (emergencies only) the throttle response and low rev pickup does seem a little flatter ... 
Anyone ever tried any of these "Octane Boosters" and do they work?
I think which? Did a test recently and none of them boosted, by any great degree, the octane level and in fact some of them reduced it slightly. Some reviews say they work in varying degrees http://www.fueltechexperts.com/2008/08/08/octane-b... Putting in ethanol - 10litres per 90litres of fuel should boost the octane level by 5 points, which gives you an idea of how much you need to put in to get a reasonable 5% boost on 95 octane.Anyone ever tried any of these "Octane Boosters" and do they work?
Additionally the car's ecu needs to be able to handle any high octane fuel otherwise you are wasting your money.
Tesco 99 can be as high as 99.5 octane http://www.greenergy.com/Products_services/test_re... with 5.7% methanol/ethanol in the mix (sometimes 6.5%
)
) This topic seems to crop up every so often but it is pleasing to see that most people on here seem to know the facts about fuel.
The fuel test on 5th gear did have some things that were not stated that may have had an impact on the results however.
What was the actual RON of the tested fuel? Sometimes 95 RON fuel may be slightly higher than that due to blending at source.
At what point did the ECU change the ignition map to potentially alter the power output?
My own car changes the timing at 98 RON so I only use Tesco or V-Power as normal 97 may be too low.
Supermarket fuel always seems to take a bashing but i'd love to post a picture of an ASDA queuing behind an ESSO behind a BP.....
As for additive... there is that little in a litre of base fuel its almost laughable.
V-Power or Momentum if you want more power (due to ECU switch over)
The cheapest 95 RON if not. Its all out of the same tank.
The fuel test on 5th gear did have some things that were not stated that may have had an impact on the results however.
What was the actual RON of the tested fuel? Sometimes 95 RON fuel may be slightly higher than that due to blending at source.
At what point did the ECU change the ignition map to potentially alter the power output?
My own car changes the timing at 98 RON so I only use Tesco or V-Power as normal 97 may be too low.
Supermarket fuel always seems to take a bashing but i'd love to post a picture of an ASDA queuing behind an ESSO behind a BP.....
As for additive... there is that little in a litre of base fuel its almost laughable.
V-Power or Momentum if you want more power (due to ECU switch over)
The cheapest 95 RON if not. Its all out of the same tank.
tjlees said:
I think which? Did a test recently and none of them boosted, by any great degree, the octane level and in fact some of them reduced it slightly. Some reviews say they work in varying degrees http://www.fueltechexperts.com/2008/08/08/octane-b... Putting in ethanol - 10litres per 90litres of fuel should boost the octane level by 5 points, which gives you an idea of how much you need to put in to get a reasonable 5% boost on 95 octane.
Additionally the car's ecu needs to be able to handle any high octane fuel otherwise you are wasting your money.
My understanding of this is based on discussions with a professor of chemistry, most of which I didn't understand to any great degree as its never been my field, however the one bit I did get is that 5 points in octane rating is 0.5 of an octane so that would give you a 0.5% boost on 95 octane.Additionally the car's ecu needs to be able to handle any high octane fuel otherwise you are wasting your money.
Regards
Fred
tjlees said:
I think which? Did a test recently and none of them boosted, by any great degree, the octane level and in fact some of them reduced it slightly. Some reviews say they work in varying degrees http://www.fueltechexperts.com/2008/08/08/octane-b... Putting in ethanol - 10litres per 90litres of fuel should boost the octane level by 5 points, which gives you an idea of how much you need to put in to get a reasonable 5% boost on 95 octane.
Additionally the car's ecu needs to be able to handle any high octane fuel otherwise you are wasting your money.
Interesting - thanks! Additionally the car's ecu needs to be able to handle any high octane fuel otherwise you are wasting your money.
BertBert said:
I've never managed to tell the difference between the fuels in any car! They don't seem to pink and I certainly can't tell the difference in performance.
Bert
Bert
steve singh said:
I've used Tesco Unleaded (not Super or Momentum) in my 996 for years...I switched over to V Power for a couple of tanks, didn't feel any difference and went back to Tesco...
I understand that I need a particular ron rating but never had an issue or felt a difference...
I may be wrong, but I thought the ECU adapts to the octane rating to stop pinking. And, a bit like a golf handicap, goes down (in performance) quickly, but is hard to get back up again, unless you do a manual reset. i.e. the odd tank of higher octane fuel won't make a difference.I understand that I need a particular ron rating but never had an issue or felt a difference...
I think the way of resetting the ECU goes something like...
a) turn ignition on, but don't start or press the accelerator. Leave on for 1 minute.
b) turn ignition off. Leave off for 10s.
c) turn ignition on and start engine. Go for drive and car will reset to the current fuel setting. (Hence probably best to get engine up to running temperature before starting this process).
There may have been an extra step required at point (b) to pat your head three time
I have a fuel card for business and pleasure and used to live very close to a Tesco forecourt. Getting points on a Tesco card every time I filled up (usually every 3 days) was a nice bonus too.
My 135i ran exclusively on momentum for 45,000 miles until it started going into Limp mode. I took it to the dealer and the injectors were failing on Cylinders 5 and 6. BMW would not accept it was an injector issue as their diagnostics equipment was showing 6 green lights. After much back and forth they took the engine out of the car and stripped it bare to find out that spme of the injectors were faulty and cylinders 5 and 6 were filled with all manner of sludge and crap. It could be totally unrelated but people I spoke to at the time straight away asked what kind of fuel I ran the car on?
Since the rebuild I am now over 60K miles and the car is running like a dream exclusively on V Power. I am hoping that it was down to the fuel I used in the past and that the engine cleaning properties of V Power will mean that I don't need another rebuild in 30K miles.
I am in no way saying it was running the car on Momentum that caused this as it would be unsubstantiated and therefore unfair but it does make you think. Momentum offers bang for buck especially in a turbo charged car but it’s cheaper than its competitors which makes me consider the old adage that you get what you pay for in this world.
My 135i ran exclusively on momentum for 45,000 miles until it started going into Limp mode. I took it to the dealer and the injectors were failing on Cylinders 5 and 6. BMW would not accept it was an injector issue as their diagnostics equipment was showing 6 green lights. After much back and forth they took the engine out of the car and stripped it bare to find out that spme of the injectors were faulty and cylinders 5 and 6 were filled with all manner of sludge and crap. It could be totally unrelated but people I spoke to at the time straight away asked what kind of fuel I ran the car on?
Since the rebuild I am now over 60K miles and the car is running like a dream exclusively on V Power. I am hoping that it was down to the fuel I used in the past and that the engine cleaning properties of V Power will mean that I don't need another rebuild in 30K miles.
I am in no way saying it was running the car on Momentum that caused this as it would be unsubstantiated and therefore unfair but it does make you think. Momentum offers bang for buck especially in a turbo charged car but it’s cheaper than its competitors which makes me consider the old adage that you get what you pay for in this world.
FredBasset said:
My understanding of this is based on discussions with a professor of chemistry, most of which I didn't understand to any great degree as its never been my field, however the one bit I did get is that 5 points in octane rating is 0.5 of an octane so that would give you a 0.5% boost on 95 octane.
Regards
Fred
The internet mixes the meaning of points and RON wrt to octane. I meant +5 RON. But note that some petrol already contains upto 6.5% ethanol, so adding more than 3.5% will damage your engine. Additionally ethanol absorbs water (one of the reasons why it damages engines in larger quantities) when left to stand (100 days or more?) causing the RON to drop.Regards
Fred
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