New Post 05/2015 DSport - THP 165 or BlueHDi 120

[cyclone]

Basic fuel is basic fuel, what makes a difference is the additives that brands put in. When you by big brand "A" you are getting the same thing every time. Supermarket at best is plain basic fuel and worst a mix of different fuels and there different additives of whatever they could get hold of cheap. I know big brand "A" test the effect of their additives on your engine and I know big brand "B" test theirs. What I do not know is if a supermarket chain tests the the effects of a mix of "A" and "B" and whatever else but I doubt it.

[Bigfeet]

Thanks Biggie, I appreciate there don't appear to be any facts, just anecdotal tales like yours.....

And that's the problem in it's self, because the supermarkets don't 'use' any one type of fuel or source you would get different results all the time.

I'm not saying that you can't or shouldn't use supermarket fuel, it is always going to be based on personal judgement and experience, but for me it's knowing that I will get consistency from the branded fuels.

[Soran]

As I work in the industry, I can shed some light on the fuel subject.

Biggy correctly stated that supermarkets do buy their fuel from whoever is cheapest on the day, and yes all fuel has to meet the correct BS standard, but there are variable qualities within this.
There were quite a few problems with some cheap Russian fuel supplied by Petroplus(now gone bust) a few years ago, that Morrisons and Tesco bought.
The additives can make a difference, and the major brands do research and invest in this much more that the supermarkets do, but don't assume that if you are filling up at say Total, that you are getting Total fuel, as various fuel companies will all fill up their tankers at the same depot. For Instance, the BP depot in Southampton used to supply my Texaco forecourt, and this was with BP additives not Texaco ones.
One tip I would give you, is to always use the newest petrol station you can, as the fuel storage tanks can stay in the ground for 30+ years, and then you get a sludge build up like this:



Yes it all has to go through filters before entering your tank, but would you prefer fuel from the tank above, or fuel from a clean tank?

Have a Google of "Contaminated Fuel" and you will see virtually all results relate to supermarkets.

[keyap]

Firstly, thanks for all the input :Joni:

Why don`t you go for 1.2 puretech? sounds ideal for your mother.

This seems like a sensible suggestion....

Agree on face value but, I'm in quite a strange but good situation. The car's going to be purchased through work and I get different discounts depending on model. As the discount varies across the DS3 range I've priced up different models / options to find the cheapest.

My mum's quite specific on what she wants and the options she's after and, as the biggest discount is given on the DSport, it actually works out cheaper to go for this with a higher base spec and fewer options than another model with a lower base spec and more options. Unless I'm mistaken the DSport is restricted to just the two engines I quoted so I'd have to move to a lower base spec if I wanted the P/Tech 110?