BP Ultimate Diesel

[Duroo72]

One tank of BP Ultimate done - cant say I noticed any difference in power and the overall mpg since fill up was 44mpg so 1mpg down on the standard juice.
I've filled up again with Ultimate and will report back what this tank gives me.............

[Pinky 1959]

we use shell nitro in my Tiguan and the wifes mk6  GTD and the fuel usage is less  but we both think the cars run smoother and seem slightly quicker when we put the food town and although its about 6 ppl dearer we find its worth it ...

[corgi]

we use shell nitro in my Tiguan and the wifes mk6  GTD and the fuel usage is less  but we both think the cars run smoother and seem slightly quicker when we put the food town and although its about 6 ppl dearer we find its worth it ...

It'll be interesting to see the result of a discussion between you and Monkeyhanger... he was less than complementary about Shell Nitro Diesel....

[monkeyhanger]

we use shell nitro in my Tiguan and the wifes mk6  GTD and the fuel usage is less  but we both think the cars run smoother and seem slightly quicker when we put the food town and although its about 6 ppl dearer we find its worth it ...

It'll be interesting to see the result of a discussion between you and Monkeyhanger... he was less than complementary about Shell Nitro Diesel....

Not impressed with the Shell V-power Nitro diesel at all – as Corgi (and many other forum members )knows.

In summary, I decided to start my GTD on V-power, and for the first 3 tanks it was all I used. Never used the stuff before, save for a ½ tank fill-up on my Scirocco 170TDI.

It’s about 10% less calorific than regular diesel and was, as expected, giving me 10% fewer mpg and less power as a result. The power difference (low) was so pronounced that I was convinced there was something wrong with my GTD – it felt like it had about 160PS, as it was slower than my 170TDI Scirocco, but a smidge faster than my 140TDI Scirocco I had before that.

I had a look into tuning boxes because I was so disappointed with performance, had a tinker with them on a trial basis and decided that they weren’t for me while I have Bridgestone tyres (lack of grip in many situations was unreal with a bit extra power). I was getting a consistent 41/42mpg with the V-power in Sept, when the weather was considerably warmer, and as soon as I switched to regular diesel (Esso/Sainsburys), I got an immediate bump on my power and fuel economy which was then averaging 47mpg when not regenning, giving an overall average of 45mpg.

The car did seem to idle a little quieter on V-power and it regenned less frequently, but when it adds 20% to your fuelling costs per mile travelled (as a combination of higher price per litre and lower mpg), as well as knocking at least 10% off my power output, I decided it really wasn’t worth it. It seems a little cleaner (as you’d expect from the synthesised GTL portion of the blend) and more efficient in the combustion, given that it halved my regens. Considering its shorter average carbon chain, it’ll be less lubricative than regular diesel unless additives redress the balance and less potent.

Have a dabble in the regular stuff and see if your mpg changes vs Esso/BP/Shell fuelsave , you may be experiencing a bit of placebo blindness right now – “it costs more, so it must be better”.

[MereKat]

If you're using a fuel card, check whether Ultimate is discounted! My old BP card only discounted standard and got a bo!!ocking for using 2 tanks of ultimate! It *was* a Merc sprinter which took over £110 to fill up, but we got (i think) 3p per litre off of the standards forecourt prices..

[Duroo72]

Lol thanks for the fuel card tip!! I guess I'll know when the boss pays the account this month......

I'm not that impressed with BP Ultimate I haven't seen enough gains with economy or performance to say its worth the extra not that im paying for it apart from the normal employee fuel contribution.

[NumberedJester]

BP DMATE (Ultimate Diesel) is not designed to give any major increase in performance at all.

The additives used are for engine protection/longevity as opposed to brute power, better MPG comes with a cleaner more efficient engine. A small increase in power can possibly result from the fact the additive is Exothermic, which basically means it can go boom easily.  Probably why the raw additive is kept in buried tanks. 

Been using it in my MK5 GT TDi for about 3 years and plan to use it in my MK7 GTD when it arrives.

[monkeyhanger]

BP DMATE (Ultimate Diesel) is not designed to give any major increase in performance at all.

The additives used are for engine protection/longevity as opposed to brute power, better MPG comes with a cleaner more efficient engine. A small increase in power can possibly result from the fact the additive is Exothermic, which basically means it can go boom easily.  Probably why the raw additive is kept in buried tanks. 

Been using it in my MK5 GT TDi for about 3 years and plan to use it in my MK7 GTD when it arrives.

How much extra per litre is it? Might be better off using Millers Ecomax which does the same as premium fuel additives - Cetane boosting/detergents/lubricity enhancers, for a 60p cost per tank if you buy a 5L can of it - adds 1.2p/L to the cost of fuel.

[andyk11]

BP DMATE (Ultimate Diesel) is not designed to give any major increase in performance at all.

The additives used are for engine protection/longevity as opposed to brute power, better MPG comes with a cleaner more efficient engine. A small increase in power can possibly result from the fact the additive is Exothermic, which basically means it can go boom easily.  Probably why the raw additive is kept in buried tanks. 

Been using it in my MK5 GT TDi for about 3 years and plan to use it in my MK7 GTD when it arrives.

How much extra per litre is it? Might be better off using Millers Ecomax which does the same as premium fuel additives - Cetane boosting/detergents/lubricity enhancers, for a 60p cost per tank if you buy a 5L can of it - adds 1.2p/L to the cost of fuel.

Since getting my GTD I'd being using BP Ultimate most of the time.  However, I really can't notice any difference over standard fuels.  This is unlike my Octavia vRS TDI and remapped Mondeo Mk4 2.2 TDI that loved BP Ultimate.

I've been meaning to report on this but I've been double-dosing Millers Ecomax for the last 4 tanks or so and there is a definite difference!  I can't say economy is better but smoothness, responsive and grunt is noticeably improved

Once I've finished my last bottle of it I'll look into getting the 5L can.  As you say MH, financially it makes much more sense than premium fuels, and there's a noticeable difference.  The only hassle is remembering to add it at each fill up and it does stink if you get it on your hands!

I'd be interested if anyone else has tried Ecomax and are seeing the same sort of benefits?

[monkeyhanger]

Since getting my GTD I'd being using BP Ultimate most of the time.  However, I really can't notice any difference over standard fuels.  This is unlike my Octavia vRS TDI and remapped Mondeo Mk4 2.2 TDI that loved BP Ultimate.

I've been meaning to report on this but I've been double-dosing Millers Ecomax for the last 4 tanks or so and there is a definite difference!  I can't say economy is better but smoothness, responsive and grunt is noticeably improved

Once I've finished my last bottle of it I'll look into getting the 5L can.  As you say MH, financially it makes much more sense than premium fuels, and there's a noticeable difference.  The only hassle is remembering to add it at each fill up and it does stink if you get it on your hands!

I'd be interested if anyone else has tried Ecomax and are seeing the same sort of benefits?

Cheapest place I saw Millers (and bought it) was Wilco direct. It was £60 a can (5L) + postage, but I found a discount code that wiped out the postage costs. It is £69.99 right now. Worth shopping around.

I bought a 5L can of Millers in Nov and i’ve been double dosing after a single dose didn’t seem to do much (as you are advised to do in the winter, in the summer double dosing is a waste), and I have noticed the same improvements (smoothness, response, grunt) as you. Perhaps the Millers addition has been the main reason I haven’t seen much spread in mpg over the various fuels being used – perhaps it levels the playing field. When you double dose on a £60 can in the winter, it ends up adding 2.4p/L, but when a premium fuel ends up costing 8p a litre more to do the same job then it’s cost effective.

In any case, you can certainly tell the difference without it. When I filled up with Jet yesterday (because I knew I didn’t have enough diesel  to get me home after work), I didn’t have any Millers with me (I usually have 2 polypropylene 50mL graduated centrifuge tubes with the stuff in the boot, kept in a small black bag because the stuff is light-sensitive), and the car felt (comparatively) like a sluggish bag of spanners (it’s not that bad, but you can tell the difference) and I only got 43mpg with no regenning. Put my 100mL in when I got home last night, the stuff has mixed overnight, and this morning the car felt far better and did 45mpg on the way to work.

I hope you weren’t doing BP ultimate and Millers - now that would have been a complete waste of money. It is the newest Millers Power ecomax that I have been using.

It does make quite a stink if you spill any (very difficult not to when you’re at the start of a 5L can). It’s like a less intense Pyridine type smell (if anyone has ever work in a lab with Pyridine they will know how evil it smells).