Safe Speed Forums

Where Do You Fill Up Your Tank? Do You keep to the Big Boys BP, ESSO, TEXACO Etc Or Do You Go To The Supermarket at TESCO Or SAINSBURYS?
I have got a Clubcard with Tesco & Bp so I tend to keep to those two when I can or usually another Top Brand depending where I am at the time

What did people do before Supermarkets came on the scene?

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RoADA Member -GOLD 2008
If you don't know where you are going, any road will get you there.

I have a company car and do not pay for ANY fuel for my car. It does no matter how much it costs, I have a Texaco and BP (nector) reward cards but its hardly worth it for the amount you have to spend. Much cheaper to buy at a Supermarket overall.

Actualy I do pay for the fuel sort of because it is a taxable benefit. I make sure that I get the most out of the benefit to the tune of 20,000+ private miles per year...


Petrol was half the price back then

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Speed camera policy Kills

Supermarket.

Its a real pain getting it into the tank from those carrier bags though

I have read from various sources, particularly Honest John in the Daily Telegraph, that supermarket petrol is lacking in detergents and other additives and is therefore likely to clog up your engine.

Therefore I tend to avoid it, although not religiously, maybe using supermarkets for about one fill-up out of six.

In my area there is still a reasonable choice of petrol stations and some of the company-owned outlets are no more expensive than supermarkets.

I normally try to use Shell as their prices on average are markedly lower than BP - I filled up yesterday for 84.9p/litre, which is very good value in today's climate, and the same as the nearby ASDA.

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"Show me someone who says that they have never exceeded a speed limit, and I'll show you a liar, or a menace." (Austin Williams - Director, Transport Research Group)

Any views expressed in this post are personal opinions and may not represent the views of Safe Speed

I think this is an old wifes tale. If you are worried fill up one tank in ten with regular big name stuff. That will clear the pipes if the problem actualy exists, personaly I bon't think so.

All petrol has to meet the same European standards (EN228). It may come from the same place as the big names.

It is cleaver marketing to make you think one make of petrol is better than another. How else can you gain customers over from the competitors. You make it sound like it gives you higher performance, more fuel economy, lower emissions. Its mostly rubbish. I have tried optimax in my bike. No difference what so ever, Gone back to regular premium unleaded.

All of a sudden we have now got "designer" fuel. The world has gone mad.

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Speed camera policy Kills

I don't mean Optimax, just normal Unleaded. I have (as discussed before) a bog-standard car, so would only put bog-standard fuel in it.

But I have certainly heard from many sources that supermarket fuel is deficient in additives compared with its counterparts in branded petrol stations.

On a related subject, the Ford Ka belonging to the wife of a work colleague has just failed its first MoT because of excessive gunk in the engine (not sure how this works). It is only used for short local commuting trips, and never given the chance to have a good blast on the open road. This bears out another point often made by "Honest John".

Incidentally, congratulations for overtaking my post count, and becoming third after Paul himself and Basingberk

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"Show me someone who says that they have never exceeded a speed limit, and I'll show you a liar, or a menace." (Austin Williams - Director, Transport Research Group)

Any views expressed in this post are personal opinions and may not represent the views of Safe Speed

All food has to meet the relevant health regulations but that doesn't mean to say that Aldi own brand is identical to that of the leading food producers.

Personally I avoid supermarket stuff as much as I can, and will only refuel there if I have absolutly no choice, which is very rare. I've read to many things about supermarket fuel being of poorer quality without a good mix of additives - one source even claimed them to use lower octane(say 91 RON) petrol which gets jacked up with an octance booster. Not ideal since octane boosters degrade quickly. I'm a little sceptical about the last point myself, but since the BP/Shell are the same price then I don't see the point in taking a risk. Certainly if the last point is true(which in all fairness it probably isn't) then that would play havoc with my car. The vast majority of cars will run normally on 91 RON, but mine is supposed to run on 97 RON, but gets by on 95 RON. Any lower and it will be pinking, so on top of the additive thing for piece of mind and no additional cost I avoid the supermarkets.

Interesting points of view raised here. I may do a bit more digging with "mates" in the industry. Octain boosters ususal degrade by evaporation (methanol is one).

In any case I always consider petrol a solvent. Usualy pretty good at getting gunge off. Contamination was a problem in carb days because of fuel evaporating out of fuel bowls leaving residue but on high pressure injection systems this is not a problem.

Basicaly if it gives you peace of mind buy the top dollar stuff.

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Speed camera policy Kills

I used to deliver road fuels for several supermarkets. Most is bought from Shell/BP, the difference being that the branded tankers were filled with pre-added additives whereas the supermarket fuel relied on the driver to inject additives from tanks under the vehicle, which were supposed to be filled daily. Bearing in mind the fact these vehicles run round the clock (driver delivery during shop closed hours), you can imagine the dependency on a concientious driver to make sure it was added!

I'm with Peter E word for word - Texaco opposite work about 10 times in 12, wherever/whenever other times, typically a supermarket.

OMG.....do I realy spend that much time here.

m u s t . . . g e t . . . l i f e

sorry, meanwhile back on topic!

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Speed camera policy Kills

Supermarket, mainly for convenience.

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Make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler - Einstein

No. I agree, it's usually better.

I usually fill up at the local Esso, partly because Greenpeace tried to blockade it a few years ago, partly because I pass it regularly and partly because it price matches the ASDA across the road, which has cr@p access.

I don't use Shell despite having two cars in a row that "appreciate" the qualities of Optimax with its 98RON equivalent. I tried it for a while, but the car didn't like it at all, sometimes it was good and smooth, while other times it was very rough nearly stalling on tickover and just sounding bad. The story is that Optimax is just basic 95RON with all sorts of additives that take it to a 98RON equivalent. Unfortunately these additives only last about 5 days before they evaporate away, so if you find a station with a very high Optimax turnover, you might get the benefit for 4 or 5 days, but if your local Shell has a low Optimax turnover, then it is a lottery, sometimes you get what you pay for, other times you might as well have bought the 5p/litre cheaper 95. My local Shell was giving me a bad tank more often than not, so I now just buy SUL from Esso or Sainsbury's depending on which is most convenient.

I try and fill up at an Esso - partly because its on way to work, partly because it sits on its own yet is only 1p a litre dearer than Asda . It also lets me register my protest against the "cartel" locally who all seem to charge a higher price. Strangely enough - this Esso is always packed. Probably due to the excellent quality of the petrol.

I have found some supermarket fuels to give worse fuel economy - up to 10% - based on car computer mpg over a tank full (I usually drive full to nearly empty). However, sometimes, there is no difference at all! I prefer to go for a main supplier located close to a supermarket. They will often price match the supermarket if close enough, but I have more confidence in the quality of fuel I'm getting.

Shell do price match a supermarket within a 2 miles area( We use Shell fuelcards at work and have been advided to look for this). Have noticed that BP stations close to Asda locally do the same , buy not Texaco -

I use Shell Optimax - but at 99.9 pence a litre, I'm beginning to consider alternatives

Blastad Katrina!

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My friends call me RuFFy

What people did was fill up in little garages which were dotted about conveniently in every village, run by helpful staff who usually had a financial interest in the business themselves, and therefore tended to be genuinely helpful and friendly.

Where I was brought up there was one such petrol station in the village, and another like it in the next village, two miles away. Both also did minor repairs and always had a good stock of consumables, oil, bulbs etc.

Now you have to drive ten miles to get fuel, and the garages that are open are more interested in selling groceries than anything car related, so if you want something as esoteric as a headlamp bulb you need to go even further afield.

Progress huh?

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CSCP Latin for beginners...
Ticketo ergo sum : I scam therefore I am!

JT's just put a finger on something that really drives me bananas about the local Tesco petrol station. For some reason they don't sell windscreen wipers but the main store does. It's not like they don't sell any motoring related things - there are bulbs, tax disc holders, fuel cans, maps, dangly air fresheners shaped like trees, and other bits and bobs. But no bloody wipers. I'm not sure they've got oil and antifreeze either now I come to think of it. It's inexplicable. I need wipers more frequently than I need a tax disc holder, so why stock something that most people I know only ever have one of per car over items that are going to be needed regularly? I thought it was to encourage people who needed wipers into the main store, but then that doesn't explain why they've got bulbs in the garage.

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Make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler - Einstein