[hornbill]

I'm about to fill the tank for the 1st time tonite. Been reading about premium unleaded a bit where ppl generally said it's better though more expensive??

So my questions:

1. Can my i30 cw take in RON95 & RON98 fuel?

2. If yes, what's the diff between RON 95 & RON 98, besides the price? Any performance, economy difference at all?

3. Am quite interested in the BP Premium Unleaded 95 (http://www.bp.com/sectiongenericarticle.do?categoryId=9012371&contentId=7024235) and Shell V-Power (http://www.shell.com.au/home/content/aus/products_services/on_the_road/fuels/shell_vpower/tech_spec/) but not sure which one is better for the engine, more fuel economy, and obviously cheaper than the other?

I like to keep the car for long this time, so if spending extra few $$ at the pump every 2 weeks (as I only drive mostly over weekends -  I wouldn't mind much if the benefits are there in the long run....

Hope to get some response from you experience folks before I hit the pump tonite...

Cheers.

[Dazzler]

See this thread m8 (I just did a quick search - there could be others)

https://www.i30ownersclub.com/forum/index.php?topic=4013.0

Premium unleaded is up to 20c a litre dearer at some stations down here so I haven't bothered (but reckon we do more Kms than you do) 

Looks like some of our members swear by it (That thread was a while back  )

[hornbill]

Thanks Dazz. I might try BP premium unleaded 95 tonite, near my place.

It's going for 145.9 vs 136.9a litre for unleaded. That's approx $4.77 diff for a full 53 L tank refuel.

We'll see how it goes. If I'm happy, with stick with it, else back to unleaded.

Is it fair to suspect that the dealer filled up the tank (full as part of my car deal) with a cheap unleaded + ethanol?

I can hear some engine rev when driving but not that bad. Or maybe because it's new and they should go away after 1st 1000K service is done, or when i use better fuel?

[Dazzler]

Hornbill ... Hope you realise you will need to use atleast a couple of tanks of Premium to judge the difference because the 1st one will be a bit diluted by what is still in the tank.. and it will take a while for any injector cleaners to do their stuff.. (although yours should be still nice and clean)   

[agentr31]

ive only ever used v-power/ BP ultimate/caltex 98... it does help keep things clean, somewhere on the maxima club i had photos of where it helped clean the light corrosion off the inside of the fuel tank on my motorbike (its like 22 years old)

if its any consolations i never had any injector problems!

[hornbill]

Thanks guys. Didn't refuel tonite as I feel a little tired. Also, it's 8 degrees outside. How I wish I'm in Queensland or Asia now..:-)

Still got some 70km worth of fuel in the tank. Hope the price will cool off a bit tomorrow after the sudden hike I heard earlier in the news.

[Dazzler]

Thanks guys. Didn't refuel tonite as I feel a little tired.

Oh, ok so you decided to use later-RON 

[hornbill]

Yeah dazz, i just did my later-RON at BP near my place. Decided to go for BP Ultimate. Here some numbers run down..

Previous total kms with dealers full tank of petrol : 505km
KMs to empty tank before refuelling                      : 70
BP Ultimate top-up                                                : 20 litres
New trip computer reading (kms to empty tank)   : 284kms
Nett kms with 20L of BP Ultimate?                        : 284 - 70 = 214?

Tried to run some maths...

214kms / 20L = 10.7kms / litre?
10.7 x 53 L full tank = 567kms?

so 567kms (if using BP Ultimate) - 505kms (if using whatever fuel the dealer gave me, assume unleaded or unleaded E10 etc) = approx 62 L extra kms??

BP Ultimate is at 163.9 / L and unleaded is 150.9 /L, difference of 13 cents?

My sum suggest that
163.9 x 53 L = 86.867
150.9 x 53 L = 79.977
I spent $6.89 more on BP Ultimate for full tank compared to unleaded?

But I will earn extra 62kms extra if using BP Ultimate, so 62 x 13 cents diff = $8.073?

So, earning - loss ($8.073 - $6.89) = $1.183 nett earning of using BP Ultimate???

Not sure if my numbers and assumptions above are correct or not, but it looks interesting - ASSUMING the trip computer is accurate???

Has anyone done this sort of comparisons before? If this is correct, I might just stick with BP Ultimate (or equivalent) as I earn extra kms at no extra spend, plus the fuel cleans the engine???

Sorry, I got a little carried away with my own fuel debate here... Oh yeah, i didn't do the full tank as it's expensive day today. Be back on Weds when it's cheaper - according to the petrol station attendant..

Got to go, test driving my BP Ultimate. Would be interesting to see what you guys think...

[Dazzler]

Hey, Hornbill what are you on? (I want some) 

You CAN'T rely on the kilometres remaining figure to calculate anything...

There is only one way to do it. Use this tank until as low as possible then fill to the brim with Premium(until you can't put any more in) RESET your trip meter...then use that up as low as possible then fill again to the brim and see how many litres you used verses kilometres travelled...

And you won't be able to compare results with regular unleaded until you do the same thing using that for a couple of tanks..

(WARNING: if you fill to the brim make sure you are going on a reasonable trip of say 50kms afterwards so the fuel doesn't expand if it is warm and start seeping out)

We will help you work out the conversion (might be easier!) 

or you can use this ...

http://www.hicloneqld.com/fuelcalculator.html

[2i30s]

recently, a currant affairs did a test with fuels in brand new ix35's using e91,91,95 and 98 fuels. they put equal amounts of fuel in the 4 cars and ran them around a track till they ran out of fuel. they ran out in order of lowest octane ratings,98 got you further per liter. 

[hornbill]

Dazz, I'm on this new drug, scientific name called "i30cw slx"
Yeah, I thought I play with the numbers in front of me. Obviously and as you said, I need to flush the tank and do the resetting in order to do a more accurate measurement.

So far, driven some 30kms with the new BP Ultimate mix with some leftover unleaded. Result? Suddenly, I feel the car doesn't rev as much and when on flat surface it just glides...so smoothly that I can hardly hear much engine noise compared to previously.

The accelerator pedal feels a lot smoother and softer too. Hope this is a good thing and not just my imagination?

Yeah 2i30s, I was attracted to the BP Ultimate after watching several of their road test video clips and as you said, 98 won all the time in mileage and i think performance too.

[agentr31]

The accelerator pedal feels a lot smoother and softer too. Hope this is a good thing and not just my imagination?

QFT!!!!

[jabber]

i've been using using normal unleaded from day 1 up until what i have in my tank right now which is PULP. i also run my fuel tank down to as empty as possible (with warning light on) & have been filling up with only one brand (caltex ... got no choice as i'm on a fuel card). when i fill up i always stop on the 2nd click. i think that's as consistent as anyone could get for statistics. i can give you guys the figures (will be on a separate thread) when this current tank is empty & i fill up again. what i did notice is the same as hornbill, car runs smoother & slightly up in power.

[agentr31]

2nd click is no where as consistent as filling to the brim where you can SEE the fuel...

[hornbill]

Glad to know I wasn't dreaming there...pheew.

Would be interesting to see how you go with your PULP experiment jabber. We can compare the results...

[hornbill]

2nd click is no where as consistent as filling to the brim where you can SEE the fuel...

Not sure about the hatchback version, but when I refueled my cw this morning I noticed there is another small cap in front of the tank opening (not the big plastic cap outside). Something that doesn't come in my old car.

The fuel hose fit right in and stopped at the right angle/depth. When pulled out, the cap swung back and closes the tank opening.

So I wonder, how can I see the fuel unless I "poke" my finger to push the cap down?

[agentr31]

ahh yer yours in petrol *face palms*

on my maxima i just keep going tho it does eventually show you just need the spout just opening that flap!

[jabber]

... filling to the brim where you can SEE the fuel...

i used to do this as well with my corolla but i reckon for comparison purposes, consistency in how the tank is filled, running on empty before filling up again, petrol station & brand of petrol would be a good starting point. figures for comparison will never be 100% accurate taking into account that even if i did fill-up to the brim i won't be able to literally "use up" all the fuel on each full tank of petrol.  if i did that there would be many times i'd be walking in the middle of the road carrying a jerry can 

[Dazzler]

i used to do this as well with my corolla but i reckon for comparison purposes, consistency in how the tank is filled, running on empty before filling up again, petrol station & brand of petrol would be a good starting point. figures for comparison will never be 100% accurate taking into account that even if i did fill-up to the brim i won't be able to literally "use up" all the fuel on each full tank of petrol.  if i did that there would be many times i'd be walking in the middle of the road carrying a jerry can 

Yes, but if you fill it up to where you filled it before you are getting a fairly accurate figure for fuel used 

[jabber]

i try to go to the same service station which is close to home all the time but i won't risk driving all the way home 20kms from work with the fuel gauge just below E & the empty fuel tank warning light well lit when there's a caltex station closeby at work 

[hornbill]

This is what I plan to do:-

1. When refilling, take note of kms to empty reading on the computer - then refill to full tank, up to 2nd or 3rd click on the bowser
2. RESET trip meter (as dazz suggested)
2. Come next refilling, replicate step 1 & 2 as close as possible.
3. Compute all figures, then compare that with the previous 1st full tank figures, filled up by the dealer.

In all honesty, if i missed out any of the numbers...i might just forgo the entire exercise. Bottom line is, I know for a fact that the car performs better, engine is cleaner when running PULP compared to ULP...and i felt good driving it.

I know I might seem to contradict myself here..but sometimes life's too short to spend too much effort worrying over $6 loss every 3-4 weeks. And if all the facts about you get more kms with PULP over ULP is correct, my loss would be less than $6!??

Sometimes we do something just to proof a point to ourself, not so much about saving the $$$, and that's what I'm quite excited to find out...

[jabber]

we can compare figures later on hornbill. my cw trophy doesn't have the luxury of a trip computer so really no way of telling how much more kms i can go with the fuel gauge light on. btw, has anyone actually tested to see if these trip computers give an accurate "kms to empty" reading ie. driving until tank is actually empty & car comes to a halt?   

[2i30s]

i do remember a post about one of our members driving until they litterally ran out of fuel.     but, they had a can of fuel with them. 

[hornbill]

Wow...I'm not that adventurous unfortunately...

I wonder where they were with that spare can of fuel. Hopefully not in the bush somewhere...:-)

[2i30s]

Wow...I'm not that adventurous unfortunately...

I wonder where they were with that spare can of fuel. Hopefully not in the bush somewhere...:-)

its possible someone will remember this and post a reply. 

[Dazzler]

has anyone actually tested to see if these trip computers give an accurate "kms to empty" reading ie. driving until tank is actually empty & car comes to a halt?   

I believe a few on here have proven in the past that they are conservative (but don't hold me accountable) in the diesel when it gets below 50kms remaining it goes to -- but several have gone 70 kms or more after this ...

[babis_xo]

I always use 100RON when travelling (we don't have 98). Just a small $ gain but gas-pedal is faaar better.
I use 95RON in the city because, strange enough, consumption is worse with the 100RON

[hornbill]

I always use 100RON when travelling (we don't have 98). Just a small $ gain but gas-pedal is faaar better.
I use 95RON in the city because, strange enough, consumption is worse with the 100RON

I see. Didn't know there's a higher RON other that 98. Guess different country have different fuel standards etc.
I haven't fully tested mine yet, so I can't tell if 98 is worse in the city or not. I'm confused too..maybe someone with more experience here can shed some light on this??

[rustynutz]

Here's a "motorcycle related" article on fuel.....still makes interesting reading though..... 

http://roadrider.com.au/_webapp_419120/The_Fuel_Truth

[SandRsSR]

I don't have my I30 yet (ordered 19th Jan due this week) but I keep an eye on the fuel consumption of my Kangoo van. The trip computer and refil to the second click both give a pretty accurate measurement of fuel used. I use whatever ULP is cheapest and have noticed no difference in usage, getting between 6.8 l/100km and 7.2 depending on how much freeway driving is involved. It will be a while before I can comment on I30 consumption as I believe it takes some milage (kilometerage doesn't sound right) to get to optimum, but I will try and keep a record from new and see how it goes.