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      05-11-2020, 10:57 PM   #1
RonnieRobotPants
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I have a question about fuel

So i've been hearing different things from different people (none from this forum) that BP Ultimate/Shell Vpower/Caltex Vortex is all the same fuel coming out of the same depots/refineries and others saying that they are actually different.

I only use these 3 (mainly VPower as its the closest to home) fuels as i consider them "better" pretty much because they're brand name. So my question really is, are these 98's the same or are they different and if they are different, which is better???
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      05-12-2020, 03:32 AM   #2
bobowar135
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I'm led to believe that every drop of petrol that is sold in Australia comes from the same refinery in Singapore. The only difference is the magic "octane boosters/detergents/voodoo potions" that each fuel company adds before sale. Personally, I filled up with nothing but BP Ultimate for the first 5-6 months because that was what the previous owner recomended upon sale in February last year. Since then I have used mainly 7-11/Mobil because it is the most common and almost always the cheapest. If there has been a difference in responsiveness or fuel economy, I haven't noticed it at all. In SEQ where I live, BP and Shell are always the most expensive, and an ever increasing number of Caltex servos aren't even selling 98ron any more.
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      05-12-2020, 04:52 PM   #3
RonnieRobotPants
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Thanks for your response. This is exactly what I've heard from others as well, so it looks like I can get 98 from many places now and my car wont be affected.
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      05-12-2020, 07:56 PM   #4
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There are four fuel refineries in Australia, of which BP (Kwinana, WA) is the largest, sourcing crude oil both locally and from overseas to refine fuel here (e.g. BP Ultimate) - other products are imported in a finished state. The other refineries are owned by Caltex (Lytton, Qld), Mobil (Altona, Vic) and Viva Energy (Geelong, Vic).

https://www.bp.com/en_au/australia/h.../refining.html

Petrol sold in Australia is either refined from crude oil in Australian refineries or imported as a finished product from overseas.

We refine crude oil at the Kwinana Refinery in Western Australia. Crude oil is shipped from locations such as the Middle East, West Africa, New Zealand, Indonesia and north-west Australia.
 
Products manufactured at our refinery include:
  • petrol: unleaded, premium unleaded, BP Ultimate and BP Opal
  • diesel fuels
  • aviation fuels, including jet fuel and aviation gasoline
  • fuel oil
  • hydrogen
  • kerosene
  • autogas, including propane and butane
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      05-12-2020, 10:29 PM   #5
RonnieRobotPants
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 135 View Post
There are four fuel refineries in Australia, of which BP (Kwinana, WA) is the largest, sourcing crude oil both locally and from overseas to refine fuel here (e.g. BP Ultimate) - other products are imported in a finished state. The other refineries are owned by Caltex (Lytton, Qld), Mobil (Altona, Vic) and Viva Energy (Geelong, Vic).

https://www.bp.com/en_au/australia/h.../refining.html

Petrol sold in Australia is either refined from crude oil in Australian refineries or imported as a finished product from overseas.

We refine crude oil at the Kwinana Refinery in Western Australia. Crude oil is shipped from locations such as the Middle East, West Africa, New Zealand, Indonesia and north-west Australia.

Products manufactured at our refinery include:
  • petrol: unleaded, premium unleaded, BP Ultimate and BP Opal
  • diesel fuels
  • aviation fuels, including jet fuel and aviation gasoline
  • fuel oil
  • hydrogen
  • kerosene
  • autogas, including propane and butane
OK, so I looked in to this further and came across this artice from last year https://www.caradvice.com.au/748124/...ed-until-2027/ which indicates that no matter where we buy our fuel from, its all kinda garbage compared to the rest of the world...AND we have to wait another 7 years before we can get cleaner fuel.

Is it still worth my time getting "type A" fuel over "type B" as i can't seem to find any info on whether BP additives are better than what Shell puts in their 98RON.
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      05-15-2020, 04:57 PM   #6
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I believe the high octane fuels such as BP ultimate 98 are made to better specs than the others. Specifically the impurities such as Sulphur are reduced compared to the standard E10 or 95 octane fuels. Although it may vary between companies, these high octane fuels are basically world class. If you contact the fuel companies they can send you data sheets that specify all the properties and impurity levels of their fuels.
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      05-18-2020, 09:00 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by John_01 View Post
I believe the high octane fuels such as BP ultimate 98 are made to better specs than the others. Specifically the impurities such as Sulphur are reduced compared to the standard E10 or 95 octane fuels. Although it may vary between companies, these high octane fuels are basically world class. If you contact the fuel companies they can send you data sheets that specify all the properties and impurity levels of their fuels.
Sulphur levels are definately lower in 98 compared to 91 in Australia albeit its a big stretch to say our 98 is world class as it isnt...
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      05-25-2020, 05:09 AM   #8
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Across the two BMWs I've owned (135i and 130i), both got the most bang for buck out of 7eleven/Mobil 98. Shell felt good but not so good on the back pocket. Caltex was a middle of the pack result. Both cars seemed to guzzle BP a lot quicker than any of the other fuels, even quicker than random independent servos or 95.
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      05-25-2020, 05:00 PM   #9
RonnieRobotPants
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I've recently found out that the Mobil/7eleven is about 8c per litre cheaper than the Shell i have been going to and its only an extra 3 minutes in the car. As for performance I don't thing there's any difference (plus i'm due for tyres soon so can't push it too hard) however i do feel my range has been shortened ever so slightly since moving over.

I'll put in a few more tanks and see how she goes.
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      06-03-2020, 07:29 AM   #10
bobowar135
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RonnieRobotPants View Post
I've recently found out that the Mobil/7eleven is about 8c per litre cheaper than the Shell i have been going to and its only an extra 3 minutes in the car. As for performance I don't thing there's any difference (plus i'm due for tyres soon so can't push it too hard) however i do feel my range has been shortened ever so slightly since moving over.

I'll put in a few more tanks and see how she goes.
Maybe replace your vacuum lines. My fuel consumption by the dash has decreased by .3litres/100km since doing so.
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      06-03-2020, 03:36 PM   #11
RonnieRobotPants
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I will definitely look in to that, shes due for rego in July so i will get the guys to have a look at them while they're under the hood. Now that its July i'm switching over to BP Ultimate to see if i can feel any difference from Mobil/7eleven. I did notice a little bit more hesitation/knock from using Mobil, hopefully it will stop now with the switch.

I plan on trying a different fuel each month (4 - 5 tanks) and see if theres any noticable difference from the drivers seat.

...stay tuned.
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      06-21-2020, 06:20 PM   #12
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I've owned several high powered turbo cars and found that as long as you're using 98 - it's fine.
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