Fuel - diesel / petrol - RON - Aus / Euro???

[brackie]

Thats why Aussie fuel is cheaper, cos its ****e.

Maybe that's why the TDI that was tested on the Dyno Day did so poorly

We're having a go at the Oz petroleum industry here. Does anybody on the forum work in that area? Can we get some objective comparisons with European fuels? I believe that a lot of our fuel enters Oz in an already refined state. Where is it refined? Singapore? I know that our oil prices are pegged to the Tapis crude oil price out of Singapore and that independent fuel companies buy tankerfuls of refined product. Anybody add to this or dispute it?

Interesting stuff!

[DutchAussie]

Yup. We get third world standard fuel here and lots of european cars are downtuned to cope with it.

I only run 98 on all my cars. Even the T4 gets it.

Thats why Aussie fuel is cheaper, cos its ****e.

Australian Fuel is made to Australian Standards.

98 RON Petrol is blended to be as close as possible to 98 RON.

Oil companies have to make products to the standards.

98 RON has nothing to do with being cleaner than 95 RON. It is blended in different ratios of components. I use to be a Refinery Production Planner.

Regards,

Arie

[BlackVr6ix]

i also find different cars react better to different blends.

my alfa got an extra 100k's a tank on mobil synergy 8000, where as my golf gets 50 a tank more on bp 98.

[brackie]

I use to be a Refinery Production Planner.

Regards,

Arie

Thanks for the input. Are you saying that Oz fuels are as good as Euro fuels? Or are you saying that the Oz standard is the same as the Euro standard?

Good to have someone on the forum who is knowledgeable in this area.

[blur32]

Australian Fuel is made to Australian Standards.

98 RON Petrol is blended to be as close as possible to 98 RON.

Oil companies have to make products to the standards.

98 RON has nothing to do with being cleaner than 95 RON. It is blended in different ratios of components. I use to be a Refinery Production Planner.

Regards,

Arie

Glad to have someone on board who knows there stuff! We all (like me on this post) have all been to0ld different things and have our own understandings/beliefs. Your input on this will invaluable.

Have you done any testing yourself as to the merits of different brands/octane ratings in Oz? What would your recommendations be?

I have always used Optimax/V-Power as it was the first widely available and i understood it to be very good. Is there better out there?

Thanks in advance for your guidence/input on this

[DutchAussie]

I have been retired from the oil industry since 2001 but may be able to help people with questions about fuel, etc. I worked 45 years as a Refinery Technician, Training Co-ordinator and Shift Superintendent.
I worked as a Production Planner for Methanex (New Zealand Methanol Plant) and have done a number of other jobs in the industry.

I will set up a page for Fuels & Lubricants on my Home Site to help.

Fire away and I will try and answer your questions. It will keep the old brain ticking over.

Regards,

Arie

[DutchAussie]

i also find different cars react better to different blends.

my alfa got an extra 100k's a tank on mobil synergy 8000, where as my golf gets 50 a tank more on bp 98.

I will probably get shot for this.

Petrol is made from a number of blendstocks and the blends vary during the year and from what crude oil the blendstocks are made.

As far as performance is concerned there should be little difference between brands.

There are a number of refineries in Australia and it doesn't make a great deal of sense for a company in Victoria to ship their products to Queensland if there is a refinery there. So they exchange products. Sometimes they will add additives at there own refinery but often it is the same stuff.

Blending of fuels and oils is a complicated process because of the variables involved.

Each refinery uses its own process and will have their own blendstocks.

But remember the product has to meet the standards.

RON stands for Research Octane Number and is a measure as to how the engine will perform.

If your engine is designed for 91 RON, filling it with 95 or 98 RON is not going to make much difference in performance. There might be a slight improvement as your wallet will be lighter.

Regards,

Arie

[BlackVr6ix]

I was under the impression different companies added different additives to maintain a consistant octane rating.

i was also told different cars/engines react differently to different additives.

I'm probably wrong but calculations and real world performance/mileage doesnt lie

[DutchAussie]

I was under the impression different companies added different additives to maintain a consistant octane rating.

That is correct up to a point. The RON can be blended from a number of components. It usually depends on what is available as to what is put in the blend.

i was also told different cars/engines react differently to different additives.

I am not sure what you mean with this. Do you mean additives put in after you buy the fuel?

I'm probably wrong but calculations and real world performance/mileage doesnt lie

Regards,

Arie

[syncro]

The problem is, that 95 isn't always 95. Especially on the cheap fuels from overseas. I won't use non brand name fuels. Remember the Woolworths fuel about ten years ago? A lot of people regreted the 3c discount when they rebuilt their engine. And the cheap diesel in southern NSW.

If it pings, it's bad. Very very bad