GIVE ME A BREAK, Shell V-power, Now it's Nitrogen enriched, Come on!

98% of all people will believe half the statistics you tell them

 

Ogen is chemically modified oxygen with the X and Y genes removed, it acts as a pre-cataliser for the pre-combustion process.

 

Yes.

 

Thanks. Did I win anything?

 

A cup of hot fat, and the head of Diego Garcia.

 

Back in the 1960's, Shell marketed their Premium Gasoline, Shell with "Platformate!"

Just wonder if it's the same stuff, marketed to a new generatrion of drivers?

Ciao...Paolo

 

COOL! Thanks. The things you learn on this board...

 

I understand that these "proprietary additives" actually displace the energy producing component of the fuel thereby requiring more fuel burned in our engines to produce the same power as say a fuel without additives? If so, that's essentially more (do some degree) fuel consumption for the sake of cleaner valves and a new smell out the exhaust pipe?? That sort of added consumption, means more profits for oil companies because we now pay them for their cheap, questionable "additives" vs the real energy producing hydrocarbons.. that's my sense of how the business works.

Could this nitrogen enrichment be a form of nitro-propane.. apparently that works!

Chevron 94 rules BTW.

 

Wait.... If it's got the X and Y removed, does that make it an ANDROGYNOUS compound? Or is it HERMAPHRODITIC??????

 

I guess you talking about the reduced use of such additives as methanol, MTBE, benzene, toluene etc as the "make-up" fuels in favor of ethanol??

You may be right with the concept of cleaner(meaning less toxic), but the improved mileage I think is mostly because of improvements in vehicle technology vs fuel technology.

I have to stick with my original thinking to a point, because some the additives don't have the energy content of the paraffins they replace (like mtbe) which are catalysts added to fuel volume that dont contribute much to energy content. Oil companies have used dangerous additives over the years because IMO they could do so, making acceptable performing fuels, while utilizing cheaper, less pure parrafin components.

I could be wrong, but my guess is that perhaps the nitrogen enriched v-power is some petrol-compatible type "nitro-methane" derivative.

 

I buy only from top tier gas stations;

http://www.toptiergas.com/retailers.html

If Shell has "found" a new detergent then fine. I'll buy it if I cant find a Chevron across the street.
Techron was to be the king of detergents available in pump gas and a known quantity.

My new favorite station is QuickTrip which claims to have double the detergents of normal gasoline and is also top tier.
They also guarantee if their gas causes an engine problem they will pay for the fix.
I know of a Ferrari 360 that had bad gas put in it which caused $4k worth of injection work.

 

I don't subscribe to this "Top Tier" gasoline nonsense. And IMO, I feel that's exactly what it is.

The best tip is to use gas stations that constantly see a flow of traffic through them. I've used Shell a few times throughout the years. The most recent was filling up about 5-6 weeks straight. Noticed absolutely no difference in my mpg, performance or any other things mentioned in the use of Top Tier gas.

Is it just me or is there possibly a correlation between fuel pump failures and ethanol in gas? Reading a few various car boards recently it seems there is one common denominator between them and that is fuel pump issues.

 

I'm running WalMart gas which now has a helium additive. My bb is much quicker now, as the fuel load is lighter, hence an improvement in lbs/hp....

I'm a believer now, as the butt dyno never lies! And...I read about this stuff on the Internet, so it must be true!

David

 

Its pretty funny to think that all of the detergents (V-Power, Techron) simply get poured into the tanker truck literally when they fill up at the refinery. The gas comes out of the refinery THE SAME no matter who is buying it. Once bought, the detergents are just put in the truck. Some people believe that the refineries typically mix it for the customer which is not the case. It's basically all the same!

 

I agree completely. Gas is gas no matter what detergents or what type of special blends other companies put in their reformulated gas. Due to the strict rules of the EPA and CARB, with or without detergents, your going to get a clean and safe burning gas for your car. All the other BS additives different companies add to their blend is just marketing. But considering there are a lot of consumers that are loyal to one type of brand and believe in sites like toptiergas, I guess the marketing is working.

 

Unless you get a load of dirt or water that was moistened with gasoline, you aren't going to notice the effects of a buildup of deposits unless you are using crappy fuel for a long time. That said, a fuel with a good cleaner can and often does make your car run better after just a tank full or two.

The problem is, typically there is only one oxygen sensor per bank, so the mixture for the entire bank is being set by the worst flowing injector. That is, when the worst flowing injector goes to lean misfire, the computer richens up the entire bank. So the rest of the cylinders are running a lot richer, and your mileage sucks and you are down on power. My wifes' car really wakes up after a shot of techron in the tank after she has been running the cheapest gas she can find at "off brand" gas stations for a couple of months. Some cars are a lot more touchy when it comes to fuel quality, BMW's and some GM products are terrible. That is where the "top tier" gas initiative came from, and a better detergent additive is a good thing for a lot of cars. The auto companies didn't want people coming back under the longer warranty provisions to have the fuel injectors cleaned, and the oil companies saw a way to differentiate their products and sell some gas. Nothing wrong with either parties motives.

Run junk gas in a modern car for a year and then, if you haven't gotten a check engine light, give it a shot of cleaner and you will likely feel a difference.

 

Back in the 1960's, Shell marketed their Premium Gasoline, Shell with "Platformate!"

Just wonder if it's the same stuff, marketed to a new generation of drivers?

Ciao...Paolo


Paolo,

UOP (used to sponsor Shadow F1 I believe) has a process called Platforming and the end product of this process is called Platformate.
The generic process is called naphtha reforming. Low octane naphtha is processed over a catalyst containing platinum to significantly increase the octane.
Almost all refineries operate one or more of these units. Besides UOP, there are quite a few other licensors of similar processes.

Everyone did and does it, Shell just marketed well

John

 

I've heard that correlation before...I was actually referring to newer cars though. Thanks for the info though.

 

I have always found it amusing how when an oil company differentiates and markets it products it nearly borders on criminal behavior. Marketing is marketing, be it ereal companies, hospitals, fast food restaurants, beer, or oil companies.

I spent nearly 20 years in the oil business and here are some facts. Untreated gasoline is the same. It travels in pipelines to terminals across the country and is often traded between oil companies to optimize logistics. Certain parts of the country have different EPA specs for the base gasoline. This different EPS spec is a huge logistically and storage issue.

The additives that oil companies put into the base grade of gasoline differ on composition and treat rate. Additives are injected into the gasoline at terminal loading racks. The majors use proprietary additive systems. So, retail gasoline is not all the same.

However, the products from the majors are very similar. You cannot go wrong with Exxon/Mobil, Shell, BP, Chevron/Texaco, and Conoco to name a few. Private label or non major retail gasoline additives may be very different formulations and have much lower treat rates.

Also different octane grades have different treat rates. With the majors, the higher octane gasoline has higher additive treat rates. So while there may be no benefit to the octane increase, there is a benefit to the higher additive treat rate.

These differences manifest themselves as carbon build-up on valves and fouled infectors. We often conducted chemical and operating test on competitive brand gasoline. We had fleets of cars that would only be filled at certain locations. Once the test was completed the engines were disassembled for inspection. The differences between the majors and some of the non-major brands were amazing.

Everyone makes more money selling premium products. Why not the oil companies? No consumer is being forced to buy anything (at least not yet).