diesel, bio, chipfat, rapeseed??

bye_bye_alfa

bye_bye_alfa

Member
Hi Folks

Thought I'd get peoples' opinions about fuels.

My A2, has just finished it's warranty, I've made the decision to keep it, as apart from some niggles, it's been A1!

I've noticed a post on a website, where a guy was saying his fuel economy was 45mpg on Diesel.
In replies people claimed to see better mpg's once they ran BP diesel for a 2 weeks+... can this be true? I've been getting an average of 60mpg's.

So I started googling, and got swallowed into chip fat, bio diesel, blah blah, blah...

Is there anyone running on used oils, like vege or bio fuel, what's your comments?

I did read again on another website, that diesel engines were invented for Rapeseed oil, but run fine on DERV (diesel)... just as a sign off, all diesel sold in France is 95% DERV and 5% Vegetable Oil.

Call me a spotter, but I thought it might a topic better that bitchin' about our radio receptions

[7]

bba
 
Heating oil for me, although it has gone up recently and had to pay nearly 27p a litre for it, where as it was under 16p a litre only a year ago!
Seriously though, I don't but a mate has now done 65k miles in his 2001 320d auto touring on 28 second heating fuel, and in all that time it has only had about 10 tanks of regular diesel. He obviously pays the vat man the fuel duty on the heating oil he uses.

I just use Shell or BP for my fuel, don't bother with ultimate anymore as I found I got the same results (about +6mpg) by adding some Millers Diesel Plus, it contains ethylhexylnitrate, an octane isomer, so it gives you a bit of a boost and cleans out the crap.

costs about 10p a tankful rather than paying an extra 7p a litre for the BP stuff, and you are not restricted to finding a filling station that has Ultimate all the time.

2004 3.0 A4 Cabriolet Sport - RNS-E Nav+ - Moro Blue - S4 Alloys - S4 grille and mirrors - grey Leather - CVT - FOR SALE!
 
Tescos 3L veg oil, at 40ish pence/l works a treat, done about 20,000 on only problem is when my engine is really cold in morning and its like starting and old diesel. Adding a mis of about 15% diesel helps a lot on a cold morning.
I will get a pre heater added at some point then it will be brillient!!!
average mpg 54 on computer its had services and first MOT and my car has no problems except above.

you do have to pay vat on it every year though !!! maybe!!

A2 Sport, Dolphin Grey, Bose, Red leather, Climate, Open Sky.
 
I would personally be very wary of using these alternative fuels as they are unlikely to have the correct lubricity as specified in BS.EN 590 - the British Standard for pump fuel.
They may be acceptable in previous generation engines with relatively low injection pressures but the latest common rail and PD systems are more highly stressed and need correct lubrication as provided by properly blended fuels which meet the above spec.
I'm sure no one would use veg oil instead of engine oil so why risk damaging the fuel system hardware.

Regards Spike
 
AFAIK the A2 diesel is not common rail so should be OK, ours is petrol so we don't have the choice.

Cannot use it in the Honda - injection system would not last long.

Ian

1.4 Petrol Special Edition, Ebony Black, grey leather, heated seats, climate, opensky, five spoke alloys for SWMBO (Replaced a 2002 1.4 Petrol SE) Honda Accord Tourer 2.2 iCDTi for me.
 
Should be no problem with a pre-heater. See Flight International article about an Audi A2 1.2 TDI driver that uses veg oil in his car and still gets 71 MPG! Start had it on origianl A2 website or I can post it up onn my .mac one if interested.



Lukas

First A2 1.2 TDI in UK
Style pack + Chorus + Advance pack + winter wheels + iRiver MP3CD


http://www.greenconsumerguide.com/audi_a2_tdi.php
 
Munstar

Are we to believe you are just tipping veggie oil straight into your normal fuel
tank (or have you had a 2nd one fitted?) with a 15% diesel mix?

Are you living somewhere hot?
I thought it wouldn't work unless the oil was heated?

So many questions...


bba
 
I had a couple of tanks of biodiesel in my last A2. Ran fine at first, but then was very hard to start (just kept turning over but not catching) and sounded 'orrible!

Wouldn't use it again, unless fuel keeps on going up the way it has been doing recently.

It really makes me laugh/cry - within hours of there being a supply problem, such as the recent hurricane, prices go up, but the retailers are still selling stuff they bought beforehand, ie the knock on hasn't yet got to them. Whenever there are circumstances which would bring about a fall in prices, we have to wait a few days, at least!

WAS : A2 TDI SE 2001 Ebony Black Pearl (The Little Tank!)
NOW : A2 TDi 90 Sport, OpenSky, winter pack, ISOfix, all-round fogs, climate control, all-round electric windows, Blaupunkt Woodstock DAB54, genuine HID xenons and red leather! Not to mention CCC Tech chipping (118bhp), K&N air filter, all round tinting, all-black headlining and retro-fitted cruise control and GALA.(The NEW Tank). Retro-fit Bose coming soon!!! Now if only I could find a TT 3.2litre engine.........
A215.jpg
 
Being a tight ar5e...

I just like the thought of passing Netto, calling in and slapping in 5 litres of veggie oil!

Obvioulsy I will pay all tax due ;o)



bba
 
quote:Originally posted by MunkStar

Tescos 3L veg oil, at 40ish pence/l works a treat, done about 20,000 on only problem is when my engine is really cold in morning and its like starting and old diesel. Adding a mis of about 15% diesel helps a lot on a cold morning.
I will get a pre heater added at some point then it will be brillient!!!
average mpg 54 on computer its had services and first MOT and my car has no problems except above.

you do have to pay vat on it every year though !!! maybe!!

A2 Sport, Dolphin Grey, Bose, Red leather, Climate, Open Sky.
Click to expand...
 
can anyone sugest a good place to have a second tank and heater added? i got one quote for about £1300 but this sounds a tad expensive, but maybe its just me as i dont have a clue about the cost of theses things!

A2 Sport, Dolphin Grey, Bose, Red leather, Climate, Open Sky.
 
Munky

Why do you want a second tank & heater if you are already running (20,000k) with chip oil?

Just curious, Is it too difficult to start in cold weather?

bba
 
I Think i saw this on tv somewhere the is the heater
used to heat the oil before it is burnt in the engine
i think if it is not warmed up it is bad for the engine
maybe its because petrol is more inflamible and heats up quicker
but then im only guessing LOL !!!!!:)

A2avatar.jpg
 
There is obviously a big difference between running on Veg oil and properly washed BioDiesel.

Environmentally alot of BioDiesel is made from waste oil from chip shops and then washed and treated ready for use.

The potential problems are

1) Engine Warranty - VW Group have stated that use of BIO Diesel will not invalidate the warranty

2) Particles in Filters - Biodiesel can clean your tank of rust caused by mineral diesel and put the debris in your filters, but this is inexpensive to fix and only temporary.

3) Rotting of rubber seals - Allegedly because Boidiesel is organic and rubber is organic this can happen, howver a quick look round the interweb and you will be hard pushed to find anyone with this problem and if you had it, it would be reasonably cheap to fix.

4) Supply - This is the biggest problem, there is reduced Tax on BioDiesel but only beouggh to bring it down to the same price as mineral diesel, suppliers are alomst one supplier to one county. Have a look at www.est.co.uk to find a supplier near you.

Benifits.

1) The big one, the environment - using mainly waste oil, means you are almost carbon neutral.

2) Engine Life, the improved lubrication of Biodiesel means that engines should last longer.

I am buying an A2 (picking up on Saturday) with running it on 100% BioDiesel (proper) in mind, I will let you know how I get on.

Cheers

Chris
 
wooly A2 said:
I Think i saw this on tv somewhere the is the heater
used to heat the oil before it is burnt in the engine
i think if it is not warmed up it is bad for the engine
maybe its because petrol is more inflamible and heats up quicker
but then im only guessing LOL !!!!!:)

A2avatar.jpg
Click to expand...

I did have a quick look into converting my A2 to running on veggie oil when I first got it but I don't drive it enough to warrant the conversion.
The system I looked at used a second tank that veggie oil is put into. The car runs on diesel till the engine is warmed up before auto switching to the oil. The car then needs to be switched back over to diesel before switching off to clear out the oil for next time.
The heating up issue, if I remember right, was purely because of the extra viscocity of the oil. Heating it up makes it thinner and therefore more comparable with diesel.
 
The very best place to look is Elsbett - he invented the PD diesel injection system that VW/Audi now use way back in the fuel crisis 1970s and has conversion kits for the A2 TDI models.

Your A2 will run on RME provided it meets EC standard without conversion.

Always use the purest source - several garages in Liverpool have recently been fined for selling very dubious biodiesel!

See: http://www.elsbett.com/

Also my site has a link to biodiesel: www.lukafoto.com

Cheers
 
Ok this is now taking the P*** the fuel (diesel) is over £1.02 a litre. How are ppls thoughts about the Veg oil now?

I believe that if they want the revenue, tax people with a Mondeo or bigger £3000 a year car tax!! That should generate a bit of income for a while, but seriously has anyone converted to Veg oil?
 
Not you Emm - some of the earlier suggestions just seem unbelievable to me.

Having just lashed out loadsa dosh on buying and upgrading my 2003 tdi 75, would be looney to risk running it on owt but pukka diesel for the sake of few pence per litre.
 
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