Fuel grade for 470hp
Discussion
When I bought the car a couple of months ago Lancaster said it was ok to put ordinary unleaded in, which was not the case with my 07 DB9.I still have only used the better stuff up to now
Having just done a 500 mile trip to Derbyshire and back and only been able to get the ordinary 4 star, I was not able to tell any difference.
Has anyone got any views technical or otherwise on this?
Having just done a 500 mile trip to Derbyshire and back and only been able to get the ordinary 4 star, I was not able to tell any difference.
Has anyone got any views technical or otherwise on this?
What car? Err 4 Star??? I thought that was long gone following various EU rulings etc?
The 'burn' qualities between Regular 95 and Super 98 octane, should, according to the boffins, give you the extra power & effeciencies.
My brother-in-law always uses Super in his V6 Rover 75 as he gets increased mpg better than the cost increment.
I use 98 octane as it's meant to get the peak performance from the engine - however if I'm doing a long M-Way trip - I'll fill with reg 95 to save a few pennies!
Graham
The 'burn' qualities between Regular 95 and Super 98 octane, should, according to the boffins, give you the extra power & effeciencies.
My brother-in-law always uses Super in his V6 Rover 75 as he gets increased mpg better than the cost increment.
I use 98 octane as it's meant to get the peak performance from the engine - however if I'm doing a long M-Way trip - I'll fill with reg 95 to save a few pennies!
Graham
errr - shudder! I really hope you havnt put 4star (leaded) in it but Id surprised if you could find anywhere that still sold it these days!
I suspect you mean regular 95 octane unleaded. This is fine and the car should run without any problems. As with any high performance engine however you will get more power and greater mpg out of higher octane super unleaded fuels. The commonly found super 97 octane is good but Shell V-Power 99 octane is the best fairly easily available fuel.
I only ever put V-Power in mine unless im really really caught out - your sat nav will tell you where the nearest shell garage is and how far away so its always easy to tell if you can make it or not!
At about 8% premium in price for super it just about justifies the cost in improved consumption alone.
I suspect you mean regular 95 octane unleaded. This is fine and the car should run without any problems. As with any high performance engine however you will get more power and greater mpg out of higher octane super unleaded fuels. The commonly found super 97 octane is good but Shell V-Power 99 octane is the best fairly easily available fuel.
I only ever put V-Power in mine unless im really really caught out - your sat nav will tell you where the nearest shell garage is and how far away so its always easy to tell if you can make it or not!
At about 8% premium in price for super it just about justifies the cost in improved consumption alone.
Edited by Adam2S on Wednesday 2nd June 11:39
Urban myth. Much supermarket fuel is supplied from the big fuel companies such as Shell, Texaco, etc under huge supply contracts. It comes from the same UK refineries, although it might not include all the additives that the oil companies believe differentiate their products. Some refined fuel is purchased by supermarkets in bulk from overseas refineries, but so is fuel supplied under brand names. The base product all has to conform to international standards.
I've consulted my bro' on this question - he's a mechanical engineer specialising in power trains. You only get increased efficiency / more power with higher grade fuel at wide open throttle. So unless you drive around with your right foot permanently planted to the floor, you're unlikely to see any difference. And if you're at all bothered about fuel efficiency, you wouldn't drive like that anyway. So most of the time, it's a complete waste of money. However, I do so I do.
Well I think the actual facts stand for themselves. I have tested super -v- regular in the past over several weeks of normal driving and super did indeed give me increased mpg. Just do a quick google yourself and you will find hundreds of postings of people on various forums all of whom have got improved consumption out of higher octane fuel.
As for if you can get an improvement that is relative to the cost increase does very much depend on your vehichle (as a general rule of thumb higher performance engines gain a greater % increase than low peformance engines do), your driving style and conditions.
So on mpg alone it may or may not be worth it but it is very likely to at least offset some of the cost increase...
However - what is for sure is that you will get more BHP out of an engine running on a higher octane fuel! How else can you increase the performance of your car without modifying it or telling your insurance company about the changes you have made! On this basis High octane fuel is a no-brainer as it is the most cost effective power upgrade you can do in your Aston. Lets face it we have all spent a huge amount of money on a high performance car here and we are haggling about the pro/cons of if an extra 10p per ltr about for high performance fuel is worth it or not! If this was the ford fiesta 1.0 forum then I could see the logic in debating this, but it isnt!
Super is the only fuel you should be putting in your Aston unless you cannot find it at the time! (or you're bonkers!)
As for if you can get an improvement that is relative to the cost increase does very much depend on your vehichle (as a general rule of thumb higher performance engines gain a greater % increase than low peformance engines do), your driving style and conditions.
So on mpg alone it may or may not be worth it but it is very likely to at least offset some of the cost increase...
However - what is for sure is that you will get more BHP out of an engine running on a higher octane fuel! How else can you increase the performance of your car without modifying it or telling your insurance company about the changes you have made! On this basis High octane fuel is a no-brainer as it is the most cost effective power upgrade you can do in your Aston. Lets face it we have all spent a huge amount of money on a high performance car here and we are haggling about the pro/cons of if an extra 10p per ltr about for high performance fuel is worth it or not! If this was the ford fiesta 1.0 forum then I could see the logic in debating this, but it isnt!
Super is the only fuel you should be putting in your Aston unless you cannot find it at the time! (or you're bonkers!)
Edited by Adam2S on Friday 4th June 11:09
Re: the supermarket fuel. No problems with the standard of the fuel AFAIK however I would be concerned and have heard about water getting into their tanks.
I am not too fussy on brand myself (aside from the above).
I was told (and Im sure that the book says it as well) to run on standard 95 RON which will be fine. I occasionally stick some super in as a treat (the BP stuff claims to keep engines clean plus they were good supporters of the TVR Griff Growl when I helped organise it )
I am not too fussy on brand myself (aside from the above).
I was told (and Im sure that the book says it as well) to run on standard 95 RON which will be fine. I occasionally stick some super in as a treat (the BP stuff claims to keep engines clean plus they were good supporters of the TVR Griff Growl when I helped organise it
)Adam2S said:
However - what is for sure is that you will get more BHP out of an engine running on a higher octane fuel!
I don't think that's true, you're getting the same power as the ECU adjusts itself but as you highlighted you may get slightly better economy, how could a higher octane fuel provide both more power and better economy? That doesn't make sense, surely it has to be one or the other?John.
The V8 in my BMW runs much better from cold on the higher octanes. It's not just a perception thing, it is very noticeable and the idle sounds a lot better too. I'd also say it feels faster when driven hard. Although, when I put Super in the tank I'm normally going for a bit of a drive, as opposed to sitting on the motorway doing 70. So that could just be perception.
In my Cayenne (with a similar sized engine) it doesn't seem to make any difference at all.
In my Cayenne (with a similar sized engine) it doesn't seem to make any difference at all.
I use Tesco 99 and have had no problems, on the odd occasion i have put 95 in but that is due to no super being avalible.
The wife used to work for Exxon and she says the Supermarket fuel is just as good as the branded fuel and like has been said its just different additives they use but in a nut shell here mostly the same, and also has been said the they are all produced to the same standards and you have just as much chance as a branded petrol station having water in the tanks as the supermarket.
I do remember Fith Gear doig a test and on turbo cars the gain was i think 15-25bhp and a N/A was around the 5-10bhp gain.
The wife used to work for Exxon and she says the Supermarket fuel is just as good as the branded fuel and like has been said its just different additives they use but in a nut shell here mostly the same, and also has been said the they are all produced to the same standards and you have just as much chance as a branded petrol station having water in the tanks as the supermarket.
I do remember Fith Gear doig a test and on turbo cars the gain was i think 15-25bhp and a N/A was around the 5-10bhp gain.
MB 1 said:
Very simple John, the ECU can advance ignition timing when a fuel has a higher ocatane rating. Basically the higher the number the more resistance to detonation it is. So you can run a little leaner, which gives more power, but safely so. Hence ou get better MPG.
You learn something new everyday John.
MB 1 said:
Very simple John, the ECU can advance ignition timing when a fuel has a higher ocatane rating. Basically the higher the number the more resistance to detonation it is. So you can run a little leaner, which gives more power, but safely so. Hence ou get better MPG.
Only if the engine is equipped with a knock sensor otherwise it's a waste of time.I don't know of any modern (90's onwards) car which hasn't got one!
But you are correct, the ECU uses feeback from the knock sensor to let if know how far it can adjust fuelling before it starts seeing detonation. Most ECU's are constantly pushing the ignition timing to the brink of mild detonation, then adjusting back a bit for safety. This is how a car can adjust for good / bad fuel
But you are correct, the ECU uses feeback from the knock sensor to let if know how far it can adjust fuelling before it starts seeing detonation. Most ECU's are constantly pushing the ignition timing to the brink of mild detonation, then adjusting back a bit for safety. This is how a car can adjust for good / bad fuel
Edited by MB 1 on Wednesday 9th June 10:29
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