Topaz fuel - better efficiency?

veryangryman

Is this true?

Im no fuel buff, but am a self-obsessed cheapskate. Does anyone here know if their claim is believable

CountingCrows

Topaz supply Tesco and a number of other large distributors so chances are your getting the same product in most forecourts

devil-80

Its the same petrol for me like on Texaco etc.

vectra

Might be all in my mind but I feel i get better mileage when I use Texaco

Davy

It is approved by AA ireland it seems, so their must be something in it. Because the truck that deliver the fuel can be the same, i wouldn't automatically assume that the fuel is the same. Generally its just a logistics company that transport the fuel to most stations. I main one seems to be wincanton

Flyer1

To be honest, i've never seen any improvement on Topaz fuel. It's significantly more expensive than other petrol stations in my area ( a good 7 - 8c ).

Best way to save fuel is to back off the throttle

Davy

Flyer1 wrote: »

To be honest, i've never seen any improvement on Topaz fuel. It's significantly more expensive than other petrol stations in my area ( a good 7 - 8c ).

Best way to save fuel is to back off the throttle

They reckon its saves 3% on fuel. More Info

news story

The new product is suited to all car and engine types and has been approved by the AA. Field trials have shown that the new fuel increases engine efficiency by up to 3pc, or about 400 miles a year for an average Irish motorist.

darc

Flyer1 wrote: »

To be honest, i've never seen any improvement on Topaz fuel. It's significantly more expensive than other petrol stations in my area ( a good 7 - 8c ).

Best way to save fuel is to back off the throttle

I certainly find a difference - and I'm a heavy user @ over 1000km / week.

As for Topaz being more expensive, the majority of their stations are independently owned and will price accordingly to their costs and mode of operation. In Athy they are constantly the cheapest for both petrol & Diesel but they do a huge trade in their deli counter.

PaddyFagan

Hi

It came up on the motors boards a few months back - http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055390287

I'd be inclined to agree with Flyer1:

Flyer1 wrote: »

Best way to save fuel is to back off the throttle

You'll save far more than 5% by keeping your acceleration to a minimum rather than using some pimped fuel....

Paddy

phasers

Why do so many petrol stations have the octane number on the pumps? I like to know what I'm getting gor my money

thenobody

That just a marketting gimmick.

Higher the octane the more power and efficiency if the engine.

Go with maxol E5 - 99+ octane.
Have been using it for ages now and made a noticeable difference. Best with turbo engines as most require use of 98+ octane fuel. Using 95 octane can result in problems with the engine and knocking and will give less power output.

Cyrus

topaz fuel is the same as maxols e5, they just dont market it

Basq

Moved to 'Motors'.

Bandara

its complete utter bollox

e5 is the standard thats delivered to you regardless of you wanting it or not.

I often take part loads from trucks that are deliveing to applegreens, topaz etc etc, there is zero difference between the fuel your getting in pretty much all stations, it all comes out of the same gantry in docks/TOP.

its the emperors new clothes, total tripe.


(even when i'm ordering UNL I just say 28k unleaded and 14k derv, the guy takes the ordered and reads it back to me, "28 e5 and 14 derv")

L1011

My unscientific but multi-tank and fairly standardised driving "testing" has shown its no better than the other brand stations.

However, my car runs like a bag of hammers if its filled in Tesco...

North Cork

Tesco fuel is mixed with paraffin, thus the low performance, it is cheap to make, thus low price. Topaz have the contract to deliver but comes out of a different tank in Whitegate to the Topaz fuel. If you drive a diesel stay well away as this will kill your injectors, you have been warned

OutlawPete

North Cork wrote: »

Tesco fuel is mixed with paraffin, thus the low performance, it is cheap to make, thus low price. Topaz have the contract to deliver but comes out of a different tank in Whitegate to the Topaz fuel. If you drive a diesel stay well away as this will kill your injectors, you have been warned

Stay away from Topaz or Tesco if you have a Diesel?

Nico

old boy

my bowley goes through topaz like an alco. plus it is a lot dearer. esso gives me a better return.

EPM

esso is gone from this country,no?

L1011

EPM wrote: »

esso is gone from this country,no?

No, they've even picked up some of the privateers that dropped franchise from Shell/Statoil when the Topaz takeover happened.

Shell, Statoil, BP, Jet and Burmah are the only brands that have left in the past 20 years IIRC.

Delta Kilo

I think it is all a load of b*llocks. It all comes in on the same ship and is then distributed around. It is all from the same refinery. It is the exact same everywhere. People who think that they get more by buying it in x petrol station are only succumbing to the marketing. Its like the way nurses give patients tic-tacs and tell them they are tablets when the patient thinks that they need tablets. (Happens a lot in psychiatric hospitals). You cant judge fuel efficiency like that properly. There are too many variables. Tyre pressure could be different, driving into a headwind, motorway or back roads, revving, cold morning starting. It is just coincidence that you got more mpg from a certain petrol station at some stage.

tomister

Since I work for topaz I can honestly say that it does make a difference especially with carbon emissions, it also improves engine performance.

Yes it is true that Topaz supplies tesco but they do not supply them with the clean fuel that you get from a topaz station.

Also, with relation to the price of fuel, independent garages can set their own prices as they are not managed by Topaz

L1011

Delta Kilo wrote: »

I think it is all a load of b*llocks. It all comes in on the same ship and is then distributed around. It is all from the same refinery. It is the exact same everywhere. People who think that they get more by buying it in x petrol station are only succumbing to the marketing. Its like the way nurses give patients tic-tacs and tell them they are tablets when the patient thinks that they need tablets. (Happens a lot in psychiatric hospitals). You cant judge fuel efficiency like that properly. There are too many variables. Tyre pressure could be different, driving into a headwind, motorway or back roads, revving, cold morning starting. It is just coincidence that you got more mpg from a certain petrol station at some stage.

You're making a dangerous, and wrong, assumption that fuel gets thrown in to tanks at stations and nothing else is done to it between there and the pump. There are additives which can be added post-delivery. Or not added, depending on the station/chain.

"coincidence" doesn't cover 10 tanks averaging at a significantly lower efficiency from one station (Tesco Maynooth) vs. any other station on my way to/from work. The fact that said station is filthy and poorly maintained doesn't inspire much confidence in my either.

Additionally, its generally not cheaper unless you have the 5c off voucher from buying their overpriced food... was EIGHT cent dearer per litre for diesel than Maxol last weekend and the same price as Esso/Maxol for petrol.

Seth Brundle

There is a huge amount of bullshít in this thread.

Anyhow, I'll try and clear up a few items. Having recently spent time with some of the terminal guys I deliberately raised this topic with them.

CountingCrows wrote: »

Topaz supply Tesco and a number of other large distributors so chances are your getting the same product in most forecourts

No you aren't
The terminals are supplied with raw fuel. These are then mixed with additives requested by the company buying the fuel. Topaz get certain additives whereas Tesco like say Esso get basic fuel.
As another example, some Texacos use Techron whilst others don't bother and just get basic unleaded.

Cyrus wrote: »

topaz fuel is the same as maxols e5, they just dont market it

Correct!

Hammertime wrote: »

I often take part loads from trucks that are deliveing to applegreens, topaz etc etc, there is zero difference between the fuel your getting in pretty much all stations, it all comes out of the same gantry in docks/TOP.

As I said above, whatever goes into the tanker comes from one big ULG/ULSD/whatever tank. However, the additives added are added when filling the tanker. Two tankers passing through the same gantry and filling up with unleaded don't necessarily get the same additives - it depends on what was ordered.

Hammertime wrote: »

(even when i'm ordering UNL I just say 28k unleaded and 14k derv, the guy takes the ordered and reads it back to me, "28 e5 and 14 derv")

Do you request any additives?

North Cork wrote: »

Tesco fuel is mixed with paraffin, thus the low performance, it is cheap to make, thus low price. Topaz have the contract to deliver but comes out of a different tank in Whitegate to the Topaz fuel. If you drive a diesel stay well away as this will kill your injectors, you have been warned

Where is your source on this? You really are talking rubbish!

EPM wrote: »

esso is gone from this country,no?

Nope - they're still around. Apparently they sell basic unleaded (like Tesco and some Texacos).

MYOB wrote: »

You're making a dangerous, and wrong, assumption that fuel gets thrown in to tanks at stations and nothing else is done to it between there and the pump. There are additives which can be added post-delivery. Or not added, depending on the station/chain

Additives are added within the terminal. There shouldn't be any 'opening' of the tanker between the terminal and the retailer - sure anything could happen! To my knowledge, I have not heard of an incident where the tanker was tampered with like Delta Kilo is suggesting.

L1011

kbannon wrote: »

Additives are added within the terminal. There shouldn't be any 'opening' of the tanker between the terminal and the retailer - sure anything could happen! To my knowledge, I have not heard of an incident where the tanker was tampered with like Delta Kilo is suggesting.

There is or was a common enough detergent added to the storage tanks in the station (this is what I meant by tanks, not the tanker) post-filling; quantity had to be calculated off how much was filled. Will ask the relation with a station if there still is. Assumed this is how more of them were done...

Delta Kilo

kbannon wrote: »

! To my knowledge, I have not heard of an incident where the tanker was tampered with like Delta Kilo is suggesting.

Where did I suggest that?

Bandara

kbannon wrote: »

There is a huge amount of bullshít in this thread.

Anyhow, I'll try and clear up a few items. Having recently spent time with some of the terminal guys I deliberately raised this topic with them.
No you aren't
The terminals are supplied with raw fuel. These are then mixed with additives requested by the company buying the fuel. Topaz get certain additives whereas Tesco like say Esso get basic fuel.
As another example, some Texacos use Techron whilst others don't bother and just get basic unleaded.

Correct!

As I said above, whatever goes into the tanker comes from one big ULG/ULSD/whatever tank. However, the additives added are added when filling the tanker. Two tankers passing through the same gantry and filling up with unleaded don't necessarily get the same additives - it depends on what was ordered.
Do you request any additives?

Where is your source on this? You really are talking rubbish!

Nope - they're still around. Apparently they sell basic unleaded (like Tesco and some Texacos).
Additives are added within the terminal. There shouldn't be any 'opening' of the tanker between the terminal and the retailer - sure anything could happen! To my knowledge, I have not heard of an incident where the tanker was tampered with like Delta Kilo is suggesting.

kbannon,

your completely missing the point, NO ONE REQUESTS additives, that is a myth, do you really believe that someone puts a magic potion into a tanker going to some Topaz station?

I get phone calls CONSTANTLY asking me if I'll take 12k UNL as some topaz or applegreen or Esso station cannot take the full load, this fuel would have the "additive" that your claiming exists except I just sell it as normal as its all bollox. I would estimate that 30% of my fuel is from opther companies tankers and their "magic" potions.

As for 2 tankers not getting the same fuel, come on, do you really belive that?

I've been in the fuel business for close to 12 years, its all TOTALLY identical and the marketing people spin their little wheels to try to pretend they are different, its complete crap, they are all the same, and are all selling the same 100% identical product.