Your opinion on BP Ultimate?

[Dee]

Hey guys I'm thinking about making the plunge from BP unleaded to BP Ultimate.....

Can you please share your experiences...good and bad.....

Thanks in advance

BTW: I drive an 03 SXi Corsa

[EAK33Y]

I dont use that i use Shell Optimax and compared to normal unleaded i get aboout 100-150 more K's depends on how i drive.I did use to use Synergy 8000 but mum shops at Coles and gets 4cents a Litre off Optimax

[RK]

I used to Shell Optimax for 3 years straight. Car had zero problems, ran sweetly. But then i switched to ultimate a few weeks ago, due to discussions on this board. Few days after i switched, i noticed that the car idle a little rough. Revs jumped up and down a bit. Though i DID notice a little more power than with the Optimax (Ultimate has higher RON). But yeah, i didnt like how the car idled. So i switched back to Optimax.

Now im not sure if the idling thing was due to the fuel or just my cars old age. It doesnt idle as erratically now with Optimax. And since i've been using Optimax for years and years i thought i might as well stick to it. :)

[NXA-16H]

In my neck of the woods, there are only two servos that I'm really prepared to patronise;

That's a 24hr Caltex @ Hazelbrook, and Ampol @ Faulkonbridge.

I actually prefer the Vortex-Gold PULP over anything else, the Barina performs really well when I get a full tank of it.

Secondly, BOTH Caltex and Ampol are up to 5 cents cheaper than if I were to get Optimax. I haven't tried BP-Ultimate often enough to have a decisive opinion, not that I noticed any difference in performance anyway. I'm one to fill-up on PULP more on price than on Brand-Loyalty.

Dave
NXA-16H

[Dee]

i only have brand loyalty cos i have a BP across the road from work and i can keep an eye on the price throughout the week ;)

[av8or]

I've run Ultimate 98 in all of my cars since it was first available in Perth.

I get around an extra 100k's to a tank and the extra 8cents per litre is offset by that extra milage.

However the proof is in the pudding, the car does perform noticably different (a mate has an identical, he didnt run his on 98) but more so, when I had the engine rebuilt and replace, Holden did comment on the lack of fouling and buildup that is usually found in a engine after use.

Cleaner for you car, cleaner for the environment and provides you better k's & performance. the big thumbs up from me ! :D

[Dee]

YAY someone that does actually use it.....

i might be converting today.. depending how much i have to drive... im under the 1/4 tank line

[VampyrE]

Optimax definitely seems the way to go for me too...

Ultimate 98 and Synergy both caused rough idling in my Barina. To it's credit tho, the ultimate did give me a slightly better kick in the performance.

But the performance kick versus smooth idling....and it wasn't that much better, i got waaaay better out of my air filter upgrade :)

[BUGEYE]

There has been HEAPS of talk about this topic on wrx.com.au. The general consensus is that BP Ultimate and Mobil Synergy are the better options.
The reason for this, both the BP and Mobil products are refined as high octane fuels (98 RON) whereas Optimax is simply 92 RON with additives. These additives make the fuel much more dense compared to the others and hence slower burning.
It is also thought that long term use of Optimax will foul plugs.
I personally use BP Ultimate in my WRX as first option - the car loves it. I do tend to agree with the rough idle though but that does not worry me too much.

[Dee]

what is the worst that a rough idle can do to my darling car?

[RK]

is the rough idling due to the engines inability to properly handle the extra octane?

[The Sentinel]

I now only ever put BP Ultimate in my SRi.

....Better mileage which more than makes up for the difference in price..
(Let's face it.. if you are paying 10c/l more, on a full tank you would oinly ever pay just over $5 more),

...Cleaner burning... Can't say I notice any difference with idling

I know which fuel I'm staying with....

[Bob]

I've used BP Ultimate in my car from new, haven't had any problems and my car purrs like a kitten :mrgreen:

[RK]

i guess i should try BP again, now that i just got my car services. hmmm

decisions decisions.

stay with something that has never caused my car ANY trouble whatsoever. or try something new that could potentially be better/worse :?

[vwt]

My wife works for BP but all things aside BP is refined in the newest refinery in Australia in WA...it is impoted by boat to Melbourne & Sydney

Optimax is brought by Shell from BP from time to time but is made in Geelong Refinaery which had a new cat cracker put in in the early 90's...I used to work for Shell.

So you are just kidding yourself saying one is better than the other if you dont know where it comes from in the first palce...what are the conditions of the storage etc....

But BP Ultimate from WA is slightly better than Optimaz from Geelong.....if you want some real oomph buy a drum of Elf fuel for $150 and see the improvement....I put a small kegs 20 lites in the Passat Turbo once from left over rally testing and the cars performance was incredible...but 102 Octane will do that

[Nem]

I get at least 70km more out of a tank of BP ultimate versus regular unleaded. When you calculate that its 15% more distance and then think that regular fuel is $1.10 here and Ultimate is $1.29 you're looking at gains both cost and performance wise. And its actually better for your engine.

[Dee]

oh my.... im glad petrol prices here are around 90c atm

[Rhino]

Don't have Optimax in Perth...

Gimme a U, Gimme an L argh too hard.

Ultimate

[Dee]

well after all that i just went to my trusty BP across the road to find out that they had run out of Ultimate fuel.... and have had none since last friday :( so i just put $10 unleaded in.. lets try again another day

[YuSuF]

Optimax have my thumbs up :!:

[Anonymous]

yea i would say so too i am thinking of making the switch and my dads merc uses optimax too does the car well

[Nem]

oh my.... im glad petrol prices here are around 90c atm
Queensland has the cheapest fuel in Australia due to the low state taxes on fuel.
However they also have some of the crappiest roads I've ever driven on.

[Dee]

i love brisbane roads... i thought sydney had worst roads than here... you harldy eve see a pot hole... cept after heavy rain for longs periods...

[dug74]

Well i used Optimax in my veccy..it helps when you work for Coles..

And used Optimax in my corsa from new.....was getting good mileage..and extra 100kms...but after the car being a month old and the car only having 2L left in the tank :screwy: switched to BP Ultimate and find the car runs even better and get even more mileage....nearly 700kms outta a tank...and i dont drive like a granny.

so for the extra 8 - 10 cents ....its well worth it.. 6L/100kms on average. :mrgreen:

[Dee]

:shock: :shock: 700km/tank..... im lucky to get 500... and thats when i take it easy ALL week..... 450 usually.... im definately changing now...

[FlySri]

I found with my 4 door city Astra, that I could go from Belconan (ACT) to home on 1 tank of Optimax ( 700 odd km) !!! :D
I found with Optimax in the Sri Turbo that it ran rough. :cry:
Ultimate was suggested here and haven't looked back !!!! :twisted:

[Chux]

I only use Synergy 8000 or Ultimate.

I used to run Optimax in my bike and my other car but i think it's kinda gone downhill from when it first came out. You can really notice the difference on the bike between optimax and synergy.

VWT mentioned ELF fuel before, i've run VP's Motorsport 103 fuel in my car before, it's 107 octane unleaded, and the difference is huge, but you need to be able to advance the timing to get good gains out of it.

lucky i have a stock, 98 and 104 octane program for my car hey ;-) ... not that it matters ... still ran the same time at WSID .. just with more wheelspin .. lol

[Anonymous]

I used to use Optimax religiously in my Old Car, Until it Burnt the valves and Burnt the Crown off a Piston(Wasn't running Lean either). Found out its full of Additives and Water, So Water + Heat= Evaporation= Cracked Internals. Never use Optimax again. So then I jumped to Ampol Gold/Caltex Vortex, Never a Problem. Good Fuel.
But I swear by BP Ultimate, Good Power Response, Great Economy(500 or so Km City/700 or so Km Country to a Tank)

[Degen-Astra]

I am a BP Ultimate fan as well. I have filled up with Optimax 1 time in the SRi...and it pulled like a mule! It was really lack lustre in performance compared to the Ultimate. So much so i ran out the tank as quick as I could just to fill with Ultimate again. ::Psycho::

But just like VWT...I was going to give the car a bash at a 100+ octane fuel just for kicks! :wink:

[Dregger]

i've tried ultimat enad optimax...i find that ultimate is best for my car, and i only use ultimate now!

[blackSRi]

It's Magic, well worth the cost, it's cleaner and ups the kW's a little and I go further on a tank.

[mr_astra_retired]

I only use ultimate in my car , i wont put anything else in , i think BP gives more power and gets more mileage than competitors , just my 2 cents though

[NUTTTR]

I must say if you get BETTER economy with ultimate, i must use a shitload of fuel!!!!! I use 12/100k's or so with ultimate in city driving (SRi 2.2).... so it'd be about 13/14 with regular!!!

I've ALWAYS used ultimate with the astra, however, my 740 volvo LOVED optimax and ran poor on ulimate.......

HOWEVER! I HAD to fill up at a dodgy ampol servo at Glenorie, i think it was, past catti ridge road... Used normal premium and the car ran like a kitten!!! It was amazing.... it took about 5mins or so to change.... but it was SOOOO smooth....
Aaron

[astra_city]

I'm another who uses BP Ultimate - I haven't used another fuel once since I picked it up :) I've never ran my car to needing more than 46L when filling it up and I get over 600km out of that. When I go country driving that drops down nicely as well. But the main reason I do it is for performance/quality.

[NUTTTR]

wow....... on long trips i get excellent economy.... but today i filled up, it was about 40L for 300k's........ !

[blackSRi]

Glad u took my advice astra_city, I've never run my car on anything but 98RON BP Ultimate. I get about 7.2-8.7L /100km in the country (over 8 due to aircon), and upto 11 if I boot it around town (9.5-10av 10 with aircon).
I take Holden/Opels advice and take it smoothly upto 5th as soon as I can and sit on 2-2.5kRPM even at 60. The 2.2 runs best in 5th for fuel economy. I use engine braking and try to drive in traffic without needing to brake hard or speed up, using gears to slow to keep stopping distance etc. Keeps the brake pad dust down too.
Seems to work.
I have booted the car for a bit from time to time to work out the cobwebs and it seems to use at least 11L/100km.

Best I have got is about 500km from a single tank (Perth to Augusta and then back to Australind (475km) BP with at least 25km worth in the tank, I filled up cause I didn't want to scrape the bottom of the tank so to speak).
Albany is a breeze with fuel to spare (410km), I can then go out to Oyster Harbour and back into town before filling up at the BP in town.

[Dee]

thats it im definately going for the ultimate ;) thanks guys for ur input ;)

[journo]

I avoid Shell Optimax since a bad experience with fouled injectors on a bike... although I realise it is not necessarilly the fault of the petrol.

In my Corsa I use only premium 95 RON from BP (or the generic servos that use the same) or Ultimate and my car loves it. Yes you still do get BPs using the old Premium 95 RON. There is one in Toowoomba and one here in Gatton that I know of and many no name servos using BP products still get it.

[Dee]

yeah but adam, thats way out at Toowoomba.......

[journo]

yep... so it's not help to you :D

Did I mention it is between 2 and 4 cents cheaper than Ultimate depending on the servo :twisted:

(note to self... watch Donna doing :bang: :bang: :bang: this in her next post hehehe)

[CAL.16V]

ultimate for me...if i cant get it, mobil synergy 8000 is good too....both 98 octane and cant get better....

caltex vortex gold is 95 octane and is smooth on the car as well but since i got a 98 octane fuel plug in my car i really notice the difference betwwen say 98 octane and 95 octane stuff....i used to use optimax sometime ages ago if i couldnt get ultimate but after hearing about them using additives and eventually clogging up injectors as well as noticing the complete difence in power delivery and smoothness... i ant believe i didnt start off with ultimate.....

i also tried ultimate and a bottle of wynnes octane booster and the car felt awesome :!: :twisted:

[Dee]

yep... so it's not help to you :D

Did I mention it is between 2 and 4 cents cheaper than Ultimate depending on the servo :twisted:

(note to self... watch Donna doing :bang: :bang: :bang: this in her next post hehehe)

its all good i got inside info from the guy that owns the servo across the road that friday is their cheapest day, and wednesday is the second cheapest... i will be checking this theory out this week.. today is 91.5 for normal unleaded.... will be checking it out on friday too....


just for adam :bang: :bang: :bang:

[Bob]

but today i filled up, it was about 40L for 300k's........ !
Damn! Welcome to my world :D :p

[sir-sri]

You won't get any extra performance unless the car at least has a knock sensor, and is tuned to run on the higher octane. Barina SRi is tuned as such, and they actually tell you you'll get the extra 2kW running higher Octane fuel.

With the 1.4 you won't get a performance advantage most likely, however these fuels do have more detergents in them to clean the engine, and I guess you'll get the better mileage.

I remember when Optimax first came out, was great for my bike, but a dick I knew whas telling us how he had put it in his (then new) VT and wasted a V8.....yeah right knob-head, perhaps a V8 Kinga or something.

If I pissed in someone's tank and told them they would get an extra 20kW guarenteed, I guarentee you they would feel it.....

[PerthSXi]

Ive only ever used bp ultimate in my sxi from new. i find the fuel economy is pretty close to wwhat holden claims, plus i get the 2 extra kw and 5nm of torque ( well i hope i do...holden says i should )

[sir-sri]

Cool, I didn't realise the 1.4 was also tuned for it.

[PerthSXi]

as far as i know its not. ive got an astra sxi.

[rjastra]

Ive only ever used bp ultimate in my sxi from new. i find the fuel economy is pretty close to wwhat holden claims, plus i get the 2 extra kw and 5nm of torque ( well i hope i do...holden says i should )


You would get that improvement using plain old Vortex (95RON). No reason (and no improvement) using 98RON on any of the current euro sourced Holdens.

[Dee]

well i filled up with a WHOLE tank (read: fuel light came on... :oops:) of ultimate... i have to say i have noticed the rough idling... but its not that bad really.... nothing i would be worried about... havnt noticed any performance increase or fuel saving.... then again i should wait til i have finished this tank til i check how much more/lees fuel i get...

so far so good... ill see how we go and come back next week and report some more

[RK]

i really noticed the idling on mine. so much so that it worried me to see my car like that. :cry:

[break]

I've used BP Ultimate for 99.9% of my ownership of the car. ('01 1.4L manual Barina).

I have momentarily tried Shell Optimax, Woolworths PULP, Caltex Vortex.... and all three haven't ran as smooth, given me as many kilometeres to the tank, and most of all... haven't produced any more power (however, its hard to tell by just driving the car).

I have plenty of friends who have shown that BP Ultimate produces more power on the dyno than Optimax (408hp to 421hp in a R33 Skyline).

Also note, that Optimax contains a high mix of cleaning agents... and can cause other problems to your engine with prolonged use (I have a friend in the industry).

[Dee]

i really noticed the idling on mine. so much so that it worried me to see my car like that. :cry:
rajy you drove my car for the whole of 5 mins... was it idling anything like yours was?

[RK]

didnt notice anything Donna.
BUt then again, i was too enthrilled with driving a manual :lol:


i think the power thing would depend on the car. how well it handles the higher octane. the damaging the engine thing.. hmm.. 3 years and i've had zero problems? switched to ultimate and my car sounded like its gonna stall. i think its all iffy.

[Dee]

hmmm well its definatly not running rough enough for it to stall.. but like i said we will see how it goes in a week

[BassyAstra]

Where can you get 100+ Octane fuel in sydney?

[The Sentinel]

As people have mentioned previously, most of the cars on the road here aren't tuned/engineered to take advantage of fuel rated this high RON-wise.

[RK]

i've decided to give Ultimate another go.
So im gonna try it for a month or two. hopefully my engine wont blow up :lol:

[Dee]

im sure it wont rajy... the only reason for that will be cos you are thrashing the crap out of it

[break]

Where can you get 100+ Octane fuel in sydney?Ask the attendant at your local Mobil service station. Most of the time they have to order it in, and it is VERY expensive... and the gains will be barely anything in any normal car.

Even an aggressively tuned car will get little benefit with 100 RON fuel... it would need AVGAS or C16 fuel to really push the big power from a fuel change alone.

[Pharkus]

Great thread guys. I've been using Optimax for as long as I remember and though I didn't really get much more mileage out of it than usual, just thought it might burn cleaner and therefore better for the car.

Being the accountant that I am :oops: I've also kept a spreadsheet of fuel consumption and I average about 9.5L/100km, which equates to about 450km by the time the light comes on. Don't know how accurate it is anymore.

I'll try and find a BP that sells ultimate nearby to test on a trial period. I'll keep an update of the spreadsheet and let you guys know. Experiment time :lol:

Now...where is that BP, all we have around my area are Shell and Mobil

[Dee]

pharkus.. most BP's these days actually sell Ultimate.. just make sure you pull up next to a bowser with Ultimate... not all of them have it ;)

if the petrol station has it they will have a bit ultimate sign out the front

[RK]

i was reading the flyer for Ultimate yesterday, and it has engine cleaning additives too :)

[Pharkus]

pharkus.. most BP's these days actually sell Ultimate.. just make sure you pull up next to a bowser with Ultimate... not all of them have it


Cool, I usually fill up on Wednesdays. But haven't driven in a while so it may be next week before I fill up, then a couple to flush out the Optimax.

I'll start the experiment though and keep you all posted. Just found a BP like 2mins away from home :oops:

[Dee]

i got told by the guy at the BP across the road that friday's are the cheapest days for fuel..... and i have been checking it out... he is telling the truth too ;)

[Pharkus]

Thanks for the info again.

Friday could be time for a fill up. Got like 3/4 to go. I usually fill when down to last quarter.

[extralarge]

from this thread i decided to try out ultimate. i used it once about a year ago and didn't have any memorable experience so i dropped it. since then been using synergy 8000.

optimax is smooth but the quality isn't as good. used it and found that united premium seems very much the same, likely so as united fuel is sourced from shell. several shell stations have been since rebadged to united- the one at crown on kingsway for example.

ultimate i have been using for 4 weeks now. i find it roughly the same as synergy 8000. good low end power but put the foot down and there is nothing high end.

milage for both is about the same. but i only get 380km/full tank. engine runs ok.

i do like both over normal ULP and find both are beneficial in driving and power. effciency slightly and cleanliness dont have a clue. but i find it hard to distinguish among the 2.

i do know for sure that safeway discounted fuel is a pretty average fuel.

anyways, today filled up a full tank of ultimate @ 104c/L so im happy.

[woody]

Have used Shell Optimax since i bought my 2.2 SRi from new. I read the research they did on petrol stations in 2002 (curent affair i think) and how many "additives" were in which fules etc - Optimax came out as one of the better fuels and this is what i based my decision on. from time to time i don't mind adding the odd container of octane boost to get a bit of extra kick but i wouldn't reccomend doing it on every filling.

Oh yeah and Optimax was designed in conjunction with Ferrari to be a fuel that actually cleans your engine as it is used. that was another interesting fact that helped with my decision.

[BoostedAstra]

correct me if I'm wrong guys, but I was under the impression that the effects from switching to a higher octane fuel are seen immediately, you need to have gone thru a few tanks of the stuff before you have nothing but the higher octane.....

My turbo has never had anything but ultimate(cept maybe the fuel from o/s, holden put it in to fill up at my request...

as for fuel consumption, I get bout 550-600 km off a tank thru city driving and highway using cruise can get 750km+ (dependent on driving style) On the M1 i find using cruise, that the car is never 'on boost' which I'm sure helps my cause....

Julian

[dazza015]

I am a Long Term Optimax user and have never had any problems, however in light of the comments from this thread I thought I would give ultimate a try.

Filled up with Ultimate 2 weeks ago, Havent noticed much differance yet (Car has only done 50k's in the last fortnight :oops: )

The one thing I have noticed is that it is definitely idling rougher, the fact I have a bigger exhaust means you hear easily through the note when idling.

We have a cruise tommorrow, so will see if I notice any differance, although may have to wait till a couple of tanks have gone through it before I notice any major differance.

[Pharkus]

Hey Julian,

That's awesome. I'm pretty sure that I've only ever just gotten over 500km a few times and that was pushing it with fuel light blinking at me and everything.

I'll be trying ultimate this weekend.

Maybe I should do a Kramer and see how far it'll go all the way to empty... :lol:

[Dee]

well so far with the ultimate in... this is my first full tank after 2 or 3 1/2 or 1/4 fills.... i have done just under 500km of city driving and still have fuel left :) i have never done a week of ciy driving and got more than 450km out of a tank... so im quite happy with that :D:D:D

[Pharkus]

11-SXI well that's a good sign then. I too do a lot of city driving. But trying to get back into the habit of getting into work at 7:30 -8:00 to avoid traffic.

What a difference does school holidays make to early morning traffic. Can leave at 8 and still get in by half past.

Is yours a 1.8, 2.0 or 2.2L?

[Dee]

1.4L corsa........

[~Kupu~]

;) go our corsa's

yeah i made the switch from optimax to ultimate and i am happy :)

[RK]

my car is definately idling higher than with optimax.

no idea about fuel consumption. according to the trip computer i used to average 10.8 l/100km with Optimax. so i'll give BP a few more weeks to see what it gets.

[Pharkus]

Sorry guys and girls.

Or 1.4L? Have I missed any engine sizes now?

Petrol was $1.07 last time I checked last night. Might be filling half a tank tonight. Don't really expect to see or feel much difference.

[Dee]

you probably wont on ur first tank.. give it 2 or 3 and you might notice it running differently (when you get all the unleaded fuel out of ur system)

[Pharkus]

Yeah I'll see if I can "use" up the rest of my tank tonight before filling up. Been just pounding the car the last few days. Love the sound of my exhaust.

[VampyrE]

i've heard around the traps that optimax gets up to a MAX of 98RON, whereas BP and the others use 98RON as a base, and it apparently is frequently higher than 98....

If this is true, then that would explain why the Ultimate is the better fuel.....I'm gonna make the switch this week, besides, Shell treat their employees like CRAP!

[Pharkus]

Cool, over 98RON mmmmmmmm :mrgreen:

Maybe I can finally break that 8sec barrier for 0-100 :lol:

[NUTTTR]

I'm soooooooo tempted to get some avgas (i know some people who may be able to help me out, lol)..........
Problem is, avgas isn't taxed like regular fuel, hence it's illegal on the road...... that said, it's cheaper too i believe! (actually, i just read the government also increased the excise... so more than regular fuel and also, it's leaded :( )
I've NEVER had rough idling with ultimate, in fact, i rarely even feel my car idle!!

[woody]

i'm sorry did i hear someone say they were getting 500- 600k city driving out of an astra.. please tell me how!!!!! I get between 300-380 out of a tank in my 2.2 sri doing city driving.

[Dee]

city driving i got 468 with some still in the tank
cruise today i have done over 400km and still have just over 1/4 of a tank to go

im stoked considering i was only getting 400 out of the unleaded tank

[blackSRi]

i'm sorry did i hear someone say they were getting 500- 600k city driving out of an astra.. please tell me how!!!!!


Probably that person was referring to a 1.8L Astra.

Anyway,
BlackSRi's tips for doing more k's on a tank:
1. Use 98ROn (BP Ultimate is what I use),
2. Take the car upto 5th gear for fuel efficiency as soon as you can (Opel recommendation). Take off as smoothly as you can, mindful of correct rev ranges (don't over-rev).
3. Use Engine braking (changing down gears) or minimal foot braking when slowing down (don't use standard braking - take your foot off the accelerator more to slow down in traffic - air resistance assists here). Anticipate traffic and learn not to hammer the accelerator and then the brakes to slow down, all the time. Smooth, constant driving is the key.
4. Let the car idle in neutral when stopped at lights (use handbrake to hold car).
5. Wind up your windows - wind resistance adds to fuel use. This also goes for weather protector/shields too (remove them perhaps if you can). Take off the roof rack if unused.
6. Don't use aircon if you can help it (only use when really hot or for demisting).
7. Keep your tires at the right pressure - underinflating uses more fuel - over creates wear and braking issues.
8. Don't drive at high k's - most cars run best at 80km/hr.
9. Don't carry lots of extra weight in the car - eg crap - it all takes fuel to 'pull' it around every day.
10. Keep your engine tuned (incl. ECU - fuel richness etc should be adjusted by updates etc).
11. Turn off engine when stopped for long periods - even at 'lights. The guy I read about this does this. Starting a warm modern engine uses less fuel than 1-2 minutes idling.
12. I fold in my left mirror to reduce air resistance, and check over my left shoulder instead.

I can't take credit for all of these - there is a champ I read about in 'the West' in a 1.4L who received an award for best accredited fuel efficient use driving around Oz who listed his tips.

Also RAC(WA):


Better understanding
David Moir says RAC Fuel Champions also aims to help consumers better understand the fuel market and how to minimise their everyday fuel.

"There are many simple things that members can do to reduce their fuel costs," says David.

"Just reducing your travelling speed can reduce your fuel consumption by up to 10 per cent.

"Carrying sporting equipment like golf clubs and work gear around in the car only adds to fuel consumption, as do poorly maintained tyres, which increase rolling resistance and fuel consumption by up to two per cent."

Five RAC Fuel Champions tips for reducing your fuel costs:

Drive smoothly;
Reduce speed;
Reduce the weight in your car;
Service your car regularly;
Use alternative transport – walk, cycle or use public transport.
Visit rac.com.au for more tips on keeping your fuel costs down.

[woody]

Yuhuh... and thats why i bought an 2.2 SRi, cos i wanted to start from the lights slow - put it into 5th as soon as possible and be minful of rev ranges...

:D

Anyway just so i could gain a decent perspective i bit the bullet and filled up with Ultimate instead of Optimax (which is a big deal cos i've got two vouchers for 4c a litre off on optimax!! Only problem was none of the shell stations in my area have got any at the moment.. but i digress...)

so anyway there was i reading about the improved performance of ultimate over optimax and then the arguments back the other way in the past posts and well i have to say i'm feeling the surge of power a bit lower in the rev range with Ultimate than i did with optimax... i've only just filled up today but it's definately there - i'll have to run the tank down to see the difference in mileage but i might be inclined to go Ultimate if the figures are good.

[blackSRi]

BP Ulimate is great for takeoff improvement - I take the middle ground - fast takeoff upto 5th and stay there... resulting fuel economy 8-9L/100km.

Have a look at Fuel for thought -
http://carsguide.news.com.au/news/story_page/0,8269,11213353%255E21822,00.html

Sydney to Brisbane Holden Fuel Efficiency Drive


So, what’s the secret? Well, the idea is to get into top gear as soon as possible and stay there as much as possible, and try to maintain a steady speed.

Consistency is the name of the game and for the most part we averaged a little over 80km/h.

It is also desirable to minimise braking; if forced to brake, then it's wise to use gears to reduce speed as much as possible.

Just like I mentioned - I do this and it helps even out the take-offs from the lights :)

Safe driving.