Gasoline/gasohol

[HDRIDER]

HI

What do you use, and maybe what car do you drive

I use gasoline 95 from Shell, a bit expensive 37B, but i don’t “trust” gasohol do you?

[Grant]

V-Power from Shell

[hansnl]

HI

What do you use, and maybe what car do you drive

I use gasoline 95 from Shell, a bit expensive 37B, but i don’t “trust” gasohol do you?

Hi,

I drive a Honda CRV 2003, quite happily on petrol 91.

If your car is suitable to drive on gasohol, well, do so.

If you do not know if that is the case, ask the dealer, preferably 2 or 3.

Knowledge about this point seems to be a bit fragmented and not entirely on par with the official factory guidelines.

So tread gently

Most petrol cars in Thailand are (de)tuned for 91, anyway if there is a chip in the car, it will drive on 91.

Shell is a good bet, most products are euro 3/4 or 4, like in Europe.

Diesel cars or trucks will drive happily on all diesel supplied in Thailand.

Most have a chip, so will tune the engine on the run for any quality of diesel.

Again, Shell is Euro 3/4 or 4, best bet again.

More miles or kilometers per litre or gallon for diesel, generally.

Most diesel engines in Thai trucks or cars are the same as the ones supplied to European trucks/cars.

Some are made in Europe (Ford, Mazda), some are made in Thailand, some in Japan, Korea, anywhere!

Good luck

[katabeachbum]

HI

What do you use, and maybe what car do you drive

I use gasoline 95 from Shell, a bit expensive 37B, but i don't "trust" gasohol do you?

No gasohol for 3 year old beemer. But probably runs ok on 91 gasoline, 20% cheaper.

No B5 diesel for any diesel older than 1 year. Toyota can run on B5 diesel only after the facelift late 2008. Shell V-Power diesel is more expensive, but returns more power and 10 % better milage. I have measured. Again and again.

[initiala4]

I try to run my car with mix benzene and gasohol depending if the pumps have benzene. Supposely there is an article that ethanol ruins fuel pumps.

[Spaniel]

I have 2007 Honda CRV and have been using Gasahol 91 with no problems.

[thaicbr]

Kata.'No B5 diesel for any diesel older than 1 year.' What horse <deleted>. Where did you get this gem of information?

[katabeachbum]

Kata.'No B5 diesel for any diesel older than 1 year.' What horse <deleted>. Where did you get this gem of information?

This horse shit came from Toyota and other diesel engine manufactorers. Fortuner/Vigo was facelifted late 2008, and one of the improvements was the ability to now use diesel blended with max 5% plantoil, called B5 in LOS. Shure you can use it on older engines, but expect redused lifetime.

[basjke]

Kata.'No B5 diesel for any diesel older than 1 year.' What horse <deleted>. Where did you get this gem of information?

This horse shit came from Toyota and other diesel engine manufactorers. Fortuner/Vigo was facelifted late 2008, and one of the improvements was the ability to now use diesel blended with max 5% plantoil, called B5 in LOS. Shure you can use it on older engines, but expect redused lifetime.

Link please.

[mark5335]

I drive an E20 car and use Gasohol 95 from Shell (which is only 10% ethanol content I think). Given that my car was designed to run on gasohol of up to 20% ethanol mix, there should be no problems with me using this. I have a friend who also uses Gasohol 95 on an older non-E20 car and he hasn't had any problems with using gasohol fuel.

[katabeachbum]

Kata.'No B5 diesel for any diesel older than 1 year.' What horse <deleted>. Where did you get this gem of information?

This horse shit came from Toyota and other diesel engine manufactorers. Fortuner/Vigo was facelifted late 2008, and one of the improvements was the ability to now use diesel blended with max 5% plantoil, called B5 in LOS. Shure you can use it on older engines, but expect redused lifetime.

Link please.

Sorry, I dont have a link since I havent read this in internett. A list of improvements/facelift was given to me by Toytoa sales staff late 2008.

I know the other thai diesel trucks also have modified their engines (mostly the quality of the valves) to not be damaged by plantoil.

If you really want to check on this, contact Toyota Thailand. Or check sparepart number for the valves for a 2007 and 2009.

I also think its also mentiond in the users manual, spec sheet for lubricants and fuel.

My Benz 123/300 D early 1980 used to run on 50% plantoil. Cheap. For 400.000 km. Exhaust smelled like french fries. But again that was 3000cc and 88 hp. Now 3000cc commonrail diesel is 160-280 hp without tuning.

[soundman]

I bought a 2002 Camry brand new. First 5k km's 95 Premium & then switched to Gasohol 95. G95 showed improved mileage by about 3 - 5%.

The car has now covered around 270k km's, all on Gasohol 95 except the first 5k km's. The engine is still running as new. No signs of any deteriation in the fule system or anywhere else.

IMO - if your vehicle is tuned to run on it (most modern car's computer systems do this automatically), there is absolutley nothing wrong with Ethanol additives & many things that are right, especially for country like Thailand who has to import most of it's energy requirements.

......................

Quick sum: On today's price differential of roughly 12B per litre between Premium 95 & Gasohol 95, switching to Gasohol has saved me around 300,000 Baht over 250,000 km's.

[katabeachbum]

I bought a 2002 Camry brand new. First 5k km's 95 Premium & then switched to Gasohol 95. G95 showed improved mileage by about 3 - 5%.

The car has now covered around 270k km's, all on Gasohol 95 except the first 5k km's. The engine is still running as new. No signs of any deteriation in the fule system or anywhere else.

IMO - if your vehicle is tuned to run on it (most modern car's computer systems do this automatically), there is absolutley nothing wrong with Ethanol additives & many things that are right, especially for country like Thailand who has to import most of it's energy requirements.

......................

Quick sum: On today's price differential of roughly 12B per litre between Premium 95 & Gasohol 95, switching to Gasohol has saved me around 300,000 Baht over 250,000 km's.

I run both my newish japs/LOS cars on E10 95 too, since they are designed for E20. Seems to be more power than 91 petrol and less expensive. But there must be a reason for Benz to not accept E20 until this month. After all the retailprise (tax) is reduced by 150.000 baht on each car if the manufactorer/importer claim they can run E20. If their cars could run on E20 previously, I am sure they would have said so and saved the 150.000 baht excicetax to reduce the retailprice.

[momosan]

The information given on B5 seems to be grossly misinformed. A quick google of petrodiesel/biodiesel blends especially B5 and upwards will reveal a wealth of information about it. Even the Wikipedia entry for it has some nice information. Here's a few choice QAs from other websites that were also found using google:

Can any diesel engine use B5?

Yes. B5 can be used in any diesel engine without modification. In fact, biodiesel improves the lubricity of diesel fuel (especially ultra low sulfur diesel) which enhances engine performance and can prolong engine life. All engine manufacturers accept B5 as a standard fuel.

Another:

Which vehicles can use B5?

B5, which contains up to 5% renewable biomass, can be used by drivers of standard diesel powered vehicles without modifications being required to engines while also protecting the manufacturer’s warranty.

[thunder30101]

10% alcohol will not do any harm to any car no matter what anyone says, it is sold the world over. used in all years of cars and trucks on the road, I just dont like it because of the resources used to produce it. The only bad thing about biodiesel blends is it acts as a solvent and cleans the fuel system so well it will quickly clog your filters, the reason auto manufactures dont like it is because so many home brewers do not process it right and they dont like the warranty cliams they have to deal with.

[katabeachbum]

The information given on B5 seems to be grossly misinformed. A quick google of petrodiesel/biodiesel blends especially B5 and upwards will reveal a wealth of information about it. Even the Wikipedia entry for it has some nice information. Here's a few choice QAs from other websites that were also found using google:

Can any diesel engine use B5?

Yes. B5 can be used in any diesel engine without modification. In fact, biodiesel improves the lubricity of diesel fuel (especially ultra low sulfur diesel) which enhances engine performance and can prolong engine life. All engine manufacturers accept B5 as a standard fuel.

Another:

Which vehicles can use B5?

B5, which contains up to 5% renewable biomass, can be used by drivers of standard diesel powered vehicles without modifications being required to engines while also protecting the manufacturer's warranty.

Thats not what BMW, Audi and other high performance diesel manufactorer in Germany say. Actually Audi still doesnt want to sell diesel engines in LOS because of the fuel quality. BMW, Range Rover and Volvo waited until Shell V-power Euro 4 was available.

But hey, its a free country. Everyone can use the fuel they want

[Thanh-BKK]

Hi.

I ran my '94 Volvo 460 on Gasohol 95 without the slightest problem.

My new Isuzu gets ordinary Diesel. Tried Shell V-Power Diesel once, no improvement in either power or mileage so not worth the higher cost. Isuzu advised not to use B5 except for that from PTT (apparently PTT uses different stuff than others).

Best regards.....

THanh

[katabeachbum]

10% alcohol will not do any harm to any car no matter what anyone says, it is sold the world over. used in all years of cars and trucks on the road, I just dont like it because of the resources used to produce it. The only bad thing about biodiesel blends is it acts as a solvent and cleans the fuel system so well it will quickly clog your filters, the reason auto manufactures dont like it is because so many home brewers do not process it right and they dont like the warranty cliams they have to deal with.

Should have seen the fuel tank gaskets and fuel hoses in my friends 2003 Subaru then. After running 5-6 tanks of E10, thats 10% Ethanol blended with 90% 95 octane petrol, called gasohol in LOS.

Ethanol can damage gaskets, fuel cap, fuel lines, carburator, injection and sometimes valves. In some cars.

20-25 years ago the same problems occured in Brasil. They have been running Ethanol mix since the 70s. Ford Escort came with 2 different engines in the 80s to solve the Brasilproblems, 1,6LX and 1,6 LS. LX accepted Ethanol.

I dont know any country blending alcohol in the fuel. And it seems you are mixing alcohol, ethanol and biodiesel (made in LOS from palmoil)

Edit Forgot to mention my neighbors 2003 Phantom 200cc. Full tank of E10 Gasohol. Drove it 5 km. Parked it 6 months. Started and stopped. Carb full of dissolved rubber from tank gaskets and fuelhose. Sparkplug black and smelled rubber. Only 400 baht to fix in Honda, but still. Honda said Gasohol no good.

I do agree in the solvent description. Ethanol can in some cars (and many bikes) dissolve gaskets, o-rings and fuel line.

I am a great fan of Ethanol mix and biodieselmix to solve Thailands huge import of petroleumproducts(LPG, Petrol and diesel) in us$. Just dont believe every vehicle is designed for it

Edited May 22, 2009 by katabeachbum

[frenchFARANGbkk]

Hi,

I was wondering why there are 2 kinds of 95, one being sold near 30 thb and one 40 thb, so the reason is that one is mixed with ethanol ?

Did you find any information saying that it's not so good to use the cheap gasohol ?

Thanks.

[keemapoot]

Shell has been the only place to buy 95 benzene gasoline for some time now under the brand name VPower. However, someone informed me that he went today to Shell and they told him they were now mixing 6% gasahol into VPower too, so that it is not pure as before.

If true, it means that 95 pure benzene has been phased out of Thailand completely, and the only option left is 91 benzene.

This creates problems for those of us who have original vintage and collector cars.

Anyone know anything about this latest news?

[guzzi850m2]

Check this link:http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/may2009/bw20090514_058678.htm

I think if you use your car every day no problem, but if you leave it for say 2 month as I do, make sure you got mostly gasoline in the tank before leaving it.

In my City 06 I only use gasohol when going to the wife's village some 500 km each way, otherwise 91 gasoline as per recommended by the second hand sales man that sold me the car, so far no problems .

In Pattaya I hardly drive 100 km pr week, only use the tin box for shopping thus sticking to gasoline.

[Oldvisitor]

It depends on the year of make of your vehicle, newer engines have an automatic knock sensor to adjust the timing, so you can drive 91, 95 or higher, also mixes like gasohol are ok. But it is a fact that ethanol is bad for gaskets and rubber parts.

I'm not a fan of these mixes, if there is normal gasoline, I would use that.

Modern diesel engines I would also stick to normal diesel fuel. The older diesel engines can run on mostly anything, without any danger.

[jcon]

Shell has been the only place to buy 95 benzene gasoline for some time now under the brand name VPower. However, someone informed me that he went today to Shell and they told him they were now mixing 6% gasahol into VPower too, so that it is not pure as before.

If true, it means that 95 pure benzene has been phased out of Thailand completely, and the only option left is 91 benzene.

This creates problems for those of us who have original vintage and collector cars.

Anyone know anything about this latest news?

I use Benzene 95 - Caltex on Ratchada (near the expressway) and that one petrol station (Bang Jaak?) right before the corner of Thonglor for New Petchburi Road - both sell benzene 95 (as well as many other stations in BKK). As for other parts of Thailand - not much benzene 95 around (from what I've experienced).

I tend to always go to Caltex because in my experience, they have many stations that sell benzene 95 (Ratchada/Ngamwongwan/Chaenwattana). PTT doesn't seem to sell it anymore, but they do have benzene 91 which I will use sometimes if there is no 95 available (If I need to go to PTT, I go to the huge one on Vipawadee Rangsit road near the Army Club).

[keemapoot]

Thanks for the update in BKK Jcon. It is getting almost impossible to get 95 benzene in most parts of Thailand, with the heretofore prior exception of Shell stations (which are not in every city).

My question is does anyone know if Shell has discontinued making their 95 Benzene VPower in pure blend only, or are they now adding 6% gasahol to it now? Yes, Shell also sells a different 95 gasahol blend advertised as gasahol.

* I noticed there is a parallel thread running in the bikes section about this topic. One poster has posted the following link, that shows Susco, Petronas, Caltex, and PT (NOT PTT) might be selling 95 benzene (unleaded premium). I'll check around.

price lists and gas stations

Edited March 22, 2010 by keemapoot

[jcon]

^^No problem keemapoot. And I remember now that the gas station on the corner of Thonglor and Petchburi is Petronas, not Baang Jaak as I previously posted.

I'd stick with Caltex... most high dollar cars around here are always at the Caltex filling up their benzene 95 (I posted a Gallardo filling up awhile back in a thread - oh and there was a Murcielago at the Petronas mentioned above also I suppose). If you have a classic or vintage car, use benzene 95 whenever you can and just make up the cost (if it matters) by having a lighter foot.....