What Brand Of Fuel Do You Use?

[kaz3g]

No particular brand

 

Hi All

 

My local field uses Mobil but I have a BP carnet. On my last long trip around the Centre I used all major brands and found no perceivable difference between them. These days I'm more interested in price and availability!

 

My local is charging $1.89 but I was in Echuca on Tuesday and filled at $1.79 from the aero club there.

 

kaz

 

 

[Guest ozzie]

It's interesting...when the fuel contamination crisis struck early 2000's...most Tassie aircraft didn't have a problem!

 

Why??

 

We get our avgas delivered by ship from the mainland.....When they load the ship, any 'left over' capacity in the hull is filled with sea water (no joke)

 

On the voyage to Tassie the fuel was 'washed ' clean of the "water-soluble" contaminants by the seawater...

 

True tale...

It's called 'pressing up the tanks' It is done for two main reasons. It helps with stability by removing the 'free surface effect' and reduces the risk of explosion from fumes and air, and compressability (heat) when the fuel slams up against the hull.

 

 

[alf jessup]

Shell regular unleaded from my local servo.

 

 

[Guest davidh10]

United ULP - 91 RON.

 

It's a new servo (though older than my use for aviation) roughly between my home and the AD.

 

I've never had any crud caught in the Mr Funnel that it all gets filtered through, no water at all and no ethanol (I test each batch of jerry cans I fill).

 

I've mainly used Caltex and United diesel in my 4WD and its predecessor and frequently run the tanks close to dry (less than 3l left in them), so you would think that any crud would get washed into the fuel line and caught in the fuel filter. In recent years, I've even filled with diesel containing a percentage of biodiesel, which is reputed to clean the fuel system and thus clog the fuel filter. There's no evidence over the last 16 years that there has been any rubbish in the fuel. Maybe I've just been lucky in my choice of servo's. Sounds like the problem is not the brand, but the servo tanks and owner. I haven't heard any stories in recent years of servo owners being prosecuted for mixing a shandy.

 

 

[Ballpoint 246niner]

Our local bowser is Shell 100LL which is Jab recommended and good aviation grade quality, my a/c runs fine on it. I have heard some horror stories of even premium 95-98 unleaded having ethanol in it so I just won't use it.

 

I did have to put some BP100 at redcliffe the other day when the local bowser was U/S and my CHT's were 15-20 degrees F higher but still within range- perhaps even avagas has slight difference in burn flashpoint etc.

 

 

[hfrensch]

BP 98 ultimate ,keeps plugs kleener than avgas, starts better , no change to engine temps(EGT,CHT) and is cheaper.

 

Helmut.

 

 

[lightstorm]

Always BP Ultimate 98,

 

and much cheaper if you can claim the road tax back.( For business )

 

Road tax claimable was 19c per ltr and i believe its going to the full 38c per ltr.

 

makes mogas around half the price of avgas

 

 

[hfrensch]

Don,

 

if you use company fuel stations as your supply of fuel I have never had a problem with quality. In my past life managing the engine development area I quoted and won a contract to test12 evo race engines for Mitsubishi Japan. Their fuel requirement was 100 RON and BP Ultimate was the only fuel that met their specification. We always took sampes and had them annalysed at every fill and the quality was always good.There is also another advantage using mogas as it gets blended every few weeks to compensate for the seasonal changes in temperature, which will give better starting in the cold temperatures.

 

Cheers Helmut.

 

 

[Guest Walter Buschor]

Me , I get premium from Matilda near Gympie and use Mr Funnel. Never had any problems and it has no ethanol in it. Don't know if it's from Shell or BP or Caltex or whatever. It works - is good.

 

Walter

 

 

[Admin]

Thanks Helmut. For no demonstrable technical reason, I've always had a leaning towards BP fuels and have been my first preference. I've never experienced a problem with any fuel from BP. Sounds like it is worth continuing with that.Don

That's who I work for now...BP

 

 

[JabiruJoe]

they were great to work for and also provided brilliant payouts

 

Sounds just like the guy I work for!!!! Me.:thumb_up:

 

 

[Modest Pilot]

Walter the 95 octane fuel at Gympie Matilda is Shell.

 

B P used to have the specs for all Aust fuel on their website but it seems to have dissappeared. The thing that struck me was that there was a lot of different additives added by each company, large differences from state to state and changes of blends for each season of the year. The exemtions from the poisons list was interesting and I wonder if they are still current? You really don't have much of an idea of what you are getting, I stick to Avgas for this reason.

 

 

[Vev]

Modest Pilot,

 

Here's the technical specs and Material Safety Data Sheets off the BP web site for Mogas ULP 95

 

BP Australia - Technical Data Sheets

 

BP Australia - Material Safety Data Sheets

 

Just select Road Fuels in the drop down box.

 

Cheers

 

Jack

 

 

[Tomo]

That is interesting .....avgas Specific Gravity is 0.72(ERSA Gen-Con-2) compared to BP ULP95 at 0.75.....

Would make sense, Avgas is refined more than ULP

 

 

[Vev]

Dont read too much into the SG as avgas has a technical range between 0.690 and 0.760 ... Oil Co report the typical SG in their specs... the actual SG will vary from time to time and always does.

 

Cheers

 

Jack