[wildchild jules]

There is a similar thread on the S forum but it is targetted at the US and I have no idea what their fule is like - just know it;s a lot cheaper than over here in the UK!!! Anyway it made me thinkg.

Just wondering how many of you use "premium" fuel in your Mini's?? I have an MC and only ever fill it up with Shell Optimax (unless I am really low on petrol and have no choice). Strangely enough one of my friends who works for Mini, thinks my MC is the fastest he has been and says mine always feels more sporty. Wondering if this is down to the fact I always use "good" fuel. Was asking my dad about the other fuel company's premium fuel but apparently Optimax is higher octane than all of them (this is only what I was told so could be wrong) and he thinks I should continue using it.

How many of you use Optimax either all the time/regularly/sometimes. Do you think it makes a difference to your car's performance?

[boothy]

iv used opimax from day one in my s and today iv just filled up with esso super and it feels wired mite be my emajinaion but i want use it agin cus my obc mpg at full said 280 miles range on optimax it goes over 300
i only got esso cus my shell garage is under referbishment

[Hat]

up to recently i pretty much only used optimax or bp ultimate but they've become so expensive recently that i've stopped buying them. avg price round here is 89.9p per litre versus 83.9 for regular unleaded

not tried the esso version yet

[Cooper76]

Here in the U.S., recommended fuel is minimum 91 octane (premium) even for the Cooper.

[minicabrio]

I have always used Shell Optimax or BP Ultimate until,...............

The other day ahd the hood down, and thus couldn't see the low fuel light as the sun was on it.... panicked and had to fill up at sainsburys....used their pemium fuel....cant really notice much difference

[andyupnorth]

I've just noticed that Sainsbury's are doing a Super Unleaded at 97 Octane, compared with their Regular at 95. It's cheaper to start with than Shell and if you do your shopping there you get vouchers for money off. I bought some booze and got 5p off a litre (the petrol not the gin)which made their Super 79.9p per litre IIRC. Not too shabby I thought.

[El Gordo]

I've only ever used Shell Optimax in my MC and inconjuction with the K&N Typhoon induction kit, I think it improves the response of the car. The local station is being refurb'd so it's a pain and I am always on the look out for the next Shell station.

[minicabrio]

Thats pretty darn good....im going to try it for a couple of tanks and see how it performs..

[Hat]

Quote: Originally Posted by andyupnorth

I've just noticed that Sainsbury's are doing a Super Unleaded at 97 Octane, compared with their Regular at 95. It's cheaper to start with than Shell and if you do your shopping there you get vouchers for money off. I bought some booze and got 5p off a litre (the petrol not the gin)which made their Super 79.9p per litre IIRC. Not too shabby I thought.

good tip cheers andy

[wildchild jules]

concerning thing here is I don't even know how much petrol is per litre!!!! I never even look! My MC is 21 months old and has only done 8500 miles, hence the slightly low level of concern on petrol price!! I often only fill my mini up once a month!

[gezmedinger]

Super unleaded makes more of a difference whether you're driving an MC or MCS - you won't notice a huge amount of difference in a MC between the two grades, but due to timing issues and the way the supercharged engine works in the MCS you'll notice much more. I even noticed the difference between 98RON Optimax and 97RON BP Ultimate in my last tank. I think if I was driving an MC I might save the cash and go for the odd tank of regular, but I'm definitely sticking to super in the MCS...

[Rich_IX]

Im a cheap git I only use it when im going on a mini run

[cook1e]

Both the Shell Optimax and the Esso equivalent are 98 octane, most of the other super unleaded fuels including BP Ultimate are 97 octane.

I tend to use normal unleaded in my Cooper because of the cost and the fact that I use it for general traveling about but I always try and get Optimax for my other car, my 33 year old Triumph GT6 as it was designed to run on 5 star (100 Octane), therefore the lower the octane I use the more prone it is to pinking even with the iginition timing retarded. This is not a problem with modern cars with ECUs as they adjust the ignition timing to the optimum for the fuel as they include a knock sensor on the engine to monitor pinking and back of the ignition advance accordingly.

One of the other threads on MINI2 suggested that fuel economy was better with Optimax, if this is really the case then this would offset the extra cost.

[dietcokeplease]

Honest John from the Daily Telegraph advises that using supermarket fuel is a big No-No. He always recommends quality fuels with added detergents and posts letters regularly from people who have brand new cars but have had running problems from using supermarket fuels.

www.honestjohn.co.uk

[ScottieCoop]

The BP Ultimate Premium Fuels Brand Featured on Ford Focus RS WRC Driven by Duval at Acropolis Rally

Athens, Greece
Release date: 03 June 2004

BP announced today a new livery for the Ford Focus RS WRC driven by Francois Duval and piloted by Stephane Prevot for the Ford BP Rallye Sport team. The new design prominently features BP Ultimate, the company’s 100-octane premium performance fuel brand, which was introduced in Greece last June and is now available at over 1000 BP petrol stations across the country. BP Ultimate is also marketed by BP in the United Kingdom, Spain and Portugal.

[cook1e]

Quote: Originally Posted by Thornef

The BP Ultimate Premium Fuels Brand Featured on Ford Focus RS WRC Driven by Duval at Acropolis Rally

Athens, Greece
Release date: 03 June 2004

BP announced today a new livery for the Ford Focus RS WRC driven by Francois Duval and piloted by Stephane Prevot for the Ford BP Rallye Sport team. The new design prominently features BP Ultimate, the company’s 100-octane premium performance fuel brand, which was introduced in Greece last June and is now available at over 1000 BP petrol stations across the country. BP Ultimate is also marketed by BP in the United Kingdom, Spain and Portugal.

Thats interesting as BP ultimate is only 97 octane in the UK, wonder why they don't make it 100 octane like in Greece, is it just cost or possibly something to do with emissions or maybe it even affects the duty payable, anyone out there work for BP who can answer this?

[snuffy]

Optimax everytime :-)

Nobody likes Tesco's Vodka - Smirnoff is the way to go. Smirnoff = Optimax :-) That's what my MINI tells me anyway!

Optimax ShellPoints are the worst loyalty scheme though

[wildchild jules]

Quote: Originally Posted by snuffy

Optimax everytime :-)

Nobody likes Tesco's Vodka - Smirnoff is the way to go. Smirnoff = Optimax :-) That's what my MINI tells me anyway!

Optimax ShellPoints are the worst loyalty scheme though

Great analogy!!!!

[Cooper76]

Quote: Originally Posted by snuffy

Optimax everytime :-)

Nobody likes Tesco's Vodka - Smirnoff is the way to go. Smirnoff = Optimax :-) That's what my MINI tells me anyway!

Optimax ShellPoints are the worst loyalty scheme though

Eeeeeeew!!!! Smirnoff is tap water with rubbing alcohol added in for flavor!!!!

Hahaha...try some non-flavored Wyborowa (or direct Zubrowka) and you will never go back (to anything else).

BTW...how come most of the European fuels are so high in octane? Here in the U.S., 94 is the highest commonly found grade, and even that is sometimes a chore to find.

[twouptons]

Quote: Originally Posted by Cooper76

BTW...how come most of the European fuels are so high in octane? Here in the U.S., 94 is the highest commonly found grade, and even that is sometimes a chore to find.

They don't measure octane the same in Europe as in the US. IIRC, there are two ways to measure it - one gives higher values than what we get in the US, and the other gives lower values. In Europe they use the high value. In the US, we average the two (which is why you often see r+m/2 on gas pumps). This gives us a slightly lower octane rating for what is essentially the same gas (minus whatever odd local additives are put in for whatever reason). I think the 98 octane Optimax is similar to the 94 octane premium you mention (though we only get 93 in ATL).

There is, however, a difference between octane ratings here in the 'States. Some states have localized ingredients that are designed to help emissions, so in California of Colorado, you may be able to only find 91 octane fuel while you can get 93 all day long somewhere else. 91 premium is probably as low as you'll find, though, which is why the MINI was designed to run on it.

You can run it on lower-octane gas, but the computer will retard ignition timing and reduce power (we did this by hand on the wife's '68 Firebird, as it wants 96 octane leaded...). Running it on higher octane gas won't help, though, unless the car is designed to be able to deal with the extra knock-resistance (this completely discounts any other components in the gas that might make it work better). Higher-octane gas actually has less energy in it than the lower-octane stuff, but it burns more smoothly so you can bump up the compression ratio, supercharge the engine, and advance the ignition without having preignition (knocking).

My Mexican Beetle (which you heard about in another thread ) was designed to run on 83 octane gas. It has a 7.5:1 compression ratio and makes 44hp vs. the MINI's 10.5:1 and 115hp with the same size motor, but it would probably run on your Wyborowa...

-Eric