Quote:
Originally Posted by Kev0607
Thoughts on supermarket fuel?
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I used to use Sainsburys as they had a barrelage agreement with BP for many years (like 30 to my certain knowledge) hence getting Nectar points on BP fuel as well as Sainsburys.
If i couldn't get Sainsburys then i would use BP. However, before i moved to where i am now, there was once only Tesco and a couple of small independent stations near me that sold petrol so i ended up using Tesco for a while. This was on my other beast and most of the time, i was lucky to see 22mpg. I switched to BP and lo and behold, 33mpg easily. This bore out previous experiences over decades starting with a company van in 1989 that ran best on Sainsburys or BP diesel (45mpg and went well) but ran sluggishly and only returned 30-32mpg on any other.
Also a previous car (again an Astra diesel estate, bought as a stop gap in a hurry) was only doing about 30mpg to and from work on Tesco fuel.
One day we were going out for the day and i happened to stop at Sainsburys for fuel. As i pulled away it spun the wheels all the way across the forecourt, went like the clappers throughout that day and returned 47mpg over the week to and from work as well as that day.
Various other similar examples but the most recent was my 760. Normally it did 25-26mpg on Sainsburys/BP but then the Nectar points disappeared from BP and went on to Esso. Meanwhile on Sainsburys fuel it dropped to 14mpg. This was coincidental with an MoT test during which, obviously the handbrake was tested but afterwards i had a permanent squeal from the left rear wheel.
At first i thought that was the cause of my lack of economy then it dawned on me - Nectar points no longer on BP? BP no longer supply Sainsburys!
Tried Esso, no improvement. Switched to BP - back up to 21mpg and yes, there is a problem with the N/S handbrake, it's been binding and still is but is getting easier. Now the mpg is up to 22-24mpg on BP Ultimate (i always use the high octane stuff unless unavailable) and last MoT the handbake just scraped through on the N/S (i have new disc/drums, handbrake shoes, pads, flexis etc all waiting to be fitted) more or less proving my theory about it binding slightly.
Switching back to Sainsburys briefly after getting 21mpg on BP, the mpg again dropped to 14-16, presumably some BP still in the tank keeping it a little higher but a permanent switch to BP has kept the improvement there.
With all that in mind, i now view supermarket fuel as an emergency "Splash'n'dash" to get me home and/or the nearest BP and despite that on the face of it, supermarket fuel is generally 10% cheaper, the fact it take 50% more fuel to go the same distance means it's not viable to use.