BP Ultimate VS Shell V-power

[Silver-Aurion]

Last night, I was running low on fuel after having a night out with mates. So as I was driving I came across a brand new BP servo.

I had been filling up with Shell V-power ever since I got my Aurion(have never fed it anything else), but after filling up with BP Ultimate (I'm not sure if its a placebo effect or not) I the car feels so much better.

Acceleration feels very smooth and like its been increased, the engine noise when cruising sounds much much better, the engine feels relaxed like its not even running.

From a cold start on V-power I would get heaps of petrol smell from the exhaust, today I had no smell at all with BP Ultimate.

I'm not 100% sure but the car's performance and sound overall feels so much better on BP Ultimate.

[avstral]

BP Ultimate feels better.

[DJKOR]

From the descriptive words you have used, I would say that what you are experiencing is the good ol' placebo effect.

There is countless argument about which fuel is better and every car sometimes likes a particular fuel more than others (when comparing between different makes and models). For the Aurion, there is not noticeable difference in power or acceleration when comparing BP Ultimate to Shell V-Power.

All that said, BP Ultimate has been said to have additives that no other fuel has. But this is more for a higher quality of fuel and not in terms of improving engine power.

Also, I prefer BP Ultimate.

Edit: Feeling an 'improvement' instantly is also an indication of the placebo effect. You still have fuel from the last tank that is with the fuel lines which gets used up firstly. Therefore, it takes some distance for the new fuel to get run into the lines etc, and any changes are usually more gradual.

[Guest]

i allways run ultimate in the celi

[Silver-Aurion]

It does feel like placebo effect but I cannot argue when I said that there is no more petrol smell from the exhaust on cold starts when the engine is loud and warming up.

I think I will have to drive back there and fill up a couple more times and see.

But the car really does feel much smoother. On V-power the engine sounds loud, on Ultimate it sounded quiet & felt smooth. I guess I will have to wait and see.

Edited October 31, 2010 by Silver-Aurion

[CME-LFT]

Every second month i swap servos from bp to caltex and back, and each month im convinced my car seems faster...................placebo effect for sure.lol

[myztik]

ever since i've got my bby all she's been fed is BP Ultimate. would not even consider using anything else

[Tofuboi]

During my car life I've used many different fuels. My AE82 seemed to be the best on Caltex Vortex 98 out of all the fuels. Then I moved to the Falcon, that car I had a really bad event with BP when I filled the car with BP Ultimate and it pretty much did some real major damage to the engine. Turned out there was water that contaminated the fuels and yeah, since then I went to V-Power and never looked back.

That was about 5 years ago now, maybe I should consider trying BP Ultimate again to see what it's like.

[jaderd]

BP Ultimate FTW

better fuel economy every time with both stivo and twincam when i have done test tanks with V power

[Silver-Aurion]

I just did a google search "BP Ultimate" and my thread comes up on the second page. Wow, must of had a lot of hits.

[Ronnyboy]

Stick to BP Ultimate if it has improved the overall performance of the vehicle :)

[eviltwin]

Might also add for those playing at home that BP ultimate and the Mobil Synergy range of fuels are from the same refinery so if your after ultimate you have your two choices. My ex girlfriends dad carted fuel for a crust ;)

[Kenshin X]

fuel mileage. v-power is better. ultimate for the performance. it also depends on the servo and how many times they actually clean thier tanks, how old the fuel is in there, whether u fill up with it almost empty (the crap at the bottom of the servo sucking up and into ur fuel tank.... wonderful).

but i'd say over time. i'd get more mileage with v-power for my engine. i've heard someone else getting 7.5L/100km with BP ultimate. i'm a very jealous boy indead... my best pure city driving was 8.12L/100km with ultimate. and 7.9L/100km with v-power. this was calculated over a 1000km interval

[lulchul]

BP Ultimate 98 apparently has the lowest Sulfur content of any of the PULP's. This is a benefit to the cat convertor and the reason 'fuel smell' is not so evident.

[Jap]

I've had a fairly large focus on fuels lately and it seems to me that issues come about not because of brands, but because of the servos they come from.

I use V-Power when I'm at home as BP or Caltex don't have anything good here and up until now, it's been ok.

Now that the ambient temps are coming up, the actual quality of the fuel is starting to shine through.

Detonation has been hard to dodge, so I've had to resort to running a good octane booster in each tank to prevent this.

Now, when I hit Townsville, I usually use the Vortex 98 from the same busy servo and it has been good.

Last time however I went to a busy BP down the road a bit and started using Ultimate.

It does run a little better, can't tell much difference power-wise, but it allows me to sink the boot without rattling itself to death.

Talking to people in the know, the aromatics boil off premium fuels within 2 weeks, so find a busy servo and stick to it.

Also, don't leave it sitting in your tank.

[czaja74]

BP Ultimate here as well. Used few other ones but for some reason BPU feels more responsive and car runs better.

[Noodle Boy]

BP Ultimate has got my vote for its smoothness and performance.

[Gorry]

Last night, I was running low on fuel after having a night out with mates. So as I was driving I came across a brand new BP servo with glittering pumps and brand spanking new underground tanks.

I had been filling up with Shell V-power ever since I got my Aurion(have never fed it anything else), but after filling up with BP Ultimate (I'm not sure if its a placebo effect or not) I swear the car feels so much better.

Acceleration feels very smooth and like its been increased, the engine noise when cruising sounds much much better, the engine feels relaxed like its not even running.

From a cold start on V-power I would get heaps of petrol smell from the exhaust, today I had no smell at all with BP Ultimate.

I'm not 100% sure but damn the cars performance and sound overall feels so much better on BP Ultimate.

Only crap thing is that I have to keep using Shell V-power because I have NO BP's close by, and the only one that is close by is a dodgy old servo that I won't trust.

It is because Shell V - Power has 5% Ethanol while BP Ultimate is pure petrol, no ethanol. I hope that you understand now why Shell offers a 4c discount on their fuel through the Coles.

[Buff Hamster]

Last night, I was running low on fuel after having a night out with mates. So as I was driving I came across a brand new BP servo with glittering pumps and brand spanking new underground tanks.

I had been filling up with Shell V-power ever since I got my Aurion(have never fed it anything else), but after filling up with BP Ultimate (I'm not sure if its a placebo effect or not) I swear the car feels so much better.

Acceleration feels very smooth and like its been increased, the engine noise when cruising sounds much much better, the engine feels relaxed like its not even running.

From a cold start on V-power I would get heaps of petrol smell from the exhaust, today I had no smell at all with BP Ultimate.

I'm not 100% sure but damn the cars performance and sound overall feels so much better on BP Ultimate.

Only crap thing is that I have to keep using Shell V-power because I have NO BP's close by, and the only one that is close by is a dodgy old servo that I won't trust.

It is because Shell V - Power has 5% Ethanol while BP Ultimate is pure petrol, no ethanol. I hope that you understand now why Shell offers a 4c discount on their fuel through the Coles.

Do you have a link for this???

So you're telling me that Caltex and Shell give 4c discounts because their fuel has ethanol in it? So diesel and LPG have ethanol in it because of the 4c discount?

GET YOUR FACTS RIGHT.

V-Power in AUSTRALIA is 98 octane which contains no ethanol not 100 octane (V-power racing) which contain 5% ethanol.

Edited November 2, 2010 by A Buff Hamster

[czaja74]

The fact is that Shell buys some of its petrol from BP. BP is the sole manufacturer of retail grade low aromatic fuels in Australia. Not sure which one is that. Here is the link http://www.shell.com...s/low_aromatic/

Also there are only 2 refineries in Victoria: Mobil Altona Refinery and Geelong Shell Refining. I got a feeling that fuels are blended under licence to the company specification and then distributed to their outlets. I smell conspiracy.

Edited November 2, 2010 by czaja74

[TRD 269]

The fact is that Shell buys some of its petrol from BP. BP is the sole manufacturer of retail grade low aromatic fuels in Australia. Not sure which one is that. Here is the link http://www.shell.com...s/low_aromatic/

Also there are only 2 refineries in Victoria: Mobil Altona Refinery and Geelong Shell Refining. I got a feeling that fuels are blended under licence to the company specification and then distributed to their outlets. I smell conspiracy.

I think you are right there "74" similar story with the refineries here in the west.

I'm With picking the busy BP and sticking to it, That way you know you are getting fresh food for your child.

nothing like trying to start a lawn mower with old fuel it, always empty out or use all of the fuel in the mower and sniper when finished.

Ultimate 98 for me and always have. (until batteries can do 250km/h anyway)

[Wixy]

if australia has the ability to sell hydrogen powered honda civics (or whatever) they sell in Terminator land (California), then this issue would be more than obsolete to me, and everyone else.

i would trade in my car for a water running car anyday, even if the fuel (hydrogen) would cost the same as 98octane, and the car would cost about $5k more than a crappy battery powered hybrids.

anyway, didnt mean to hijack thread.

i find that bp is better with economy, and runs smoother. vpower runs with a "lighter" feel, whatever that means, as it tends to shoot to 6/7 rpms directly, where as bpu does it slower. not placebo, just what i noticed with the tacho needle and the response of it.

[DeafDave76]

Last month when I picked up my new purchase, the car already had a full tank so I had no way of knowing what it takes. I let it go to empty after roughly 15-16 days of driving then filled it up to the top with BP Ultimate which was over 2 and half weeks ago. Last thursday night, I was driving my deaf friend to his place and the fuel light showed up and it was in Joondalup area. I tried to find BP petrol station and had no luck so I ended up going to Caltex and picked Caltex Vortex 98. Till today it is now sitting half way thru so yeah BP Ultimate actually did last 15 days where the current fuel should go empty by next thursday by my reckoning.

I will check the receipts tonight and go from the date of purchase to the 1st fill up with BP Ultimate to determine how much per litre/100kms did I use on BP and from the date of caltex fill up to when the next fill up will be on the next edited post.

[BNO]

The fact is that Shell buys some of its petrol from BP. BP is the sole manufacturer of retail grade low aromatic fuels in Australia. Not sure which one is that. Here is the link http://www.shell.com...s/low_aromatic/

Also there are only 2 refineries in Victoria: Mobil Altona Refinery and Geelong Shell Refining. I got a feeling that fuels are blended under licence to the company specification and then distributed to their outlets. I smell conspiracy.

the low aromatic fuel is due to the crude oil. BP tend to use more sweet crude than anything else. I used to work for them a while back.

If its good enough to put in a ferrari its good enough to go in my car, i use both fuels and find no difference. Either way, Mobil servos in brisbane still have the old tanks and they do tend to sometime have water seap in.

[Synthetic05]

Im so lucky i have a BP fuel station 1 minute away on a really busy road :D. Im learning so much on this forum.