Curious about diesel fuel - looking at a truck swap

[Calg_Rider]

Hey Guys,

I might be moving from a gaser to a diesel as my primary sled hauler and I just wanted to ask if the different grades of diesel at the pumps really make any difference - either in power or cleaning. I know the premium gas can make a big difference in my ecoboost so I am interested to know if a diesel will see any change.

 

[the_real_wild1]

I have never noticed a difference.

 

[Merc63]

Nothing except a decrease in your wallet weight.

 

[Caper11]

The shell vpower works better and gives better fuel milage. Is it worth the cost.......

 

[busted2x]

Coop sells premium diesel for same price as everyone else, only bonus really is you don't need conditioner in it.

 

[team dirt]

You will never be able to go back from the diesel to a gasser so be aware of that also. I never run conditioner in mine and usually trade out at 320-350000. Never had a fuel related issue. Never have tried the expensive diesel either.

 

[ducati]

I have ran premium diesel and regular diesel in a variety of trucks and can honestly say i have never noticed a difference other than maybe a slight increase in fuel economy but most definitely not enough to make it worth the extra cost. Like Merc said, the only difference is the weight of your wallet.

 

[sirkdev]

I will disagree about conditioner. I use 4 plus available at Ufa. I am happy with it less regenerations. In my old 6.0 it was rank out the tail pipe when cold. Way less stinky when using the 4 plus. I find about 1/2 the treatment ratio works pretty good for me as it is very concentrated. My 2c..

 

[TDR]

There is a difference in the different grades of diesel. The V-power has conditioner/additives already. They are added right at the pump. There are 2 reasons for the use of additives. In the winter it is for anti gel in our cold climate and cetane. In the summer it is for lubricity. This is because the diesel in summer is much heavier ie refineries can get rid of heavy junk that they can’t get rid of in winter. Arguably summer diesel is the hardest on an engine.

 

[ssjrmk]

I know a guy that works in Shell refinery, there’s no such thing as summer and winter diesel anymore.

 

[TDR]

Actually there still is summer and winter diesel. This is because the cold flow properties have different requirements. If they didn’t, everyone’s trucks would gel up solid and we would all be really cranky.

 

[the_real_wild1]

I know a guy that works in Shell refinery, there’s no such thing as summer and winter diesel anymore.

That would be news to me

 

[Caper11]

I know a guy that works in Shell refinery, there’s no such thing as summer and winter diesel anymore.

All diesel is the same, until it get to its final destination. The drivers add the additives for the station they are at, Like antigel.

 

[Couch]

Nuff said!

 

[tex78]

And this ultra low sulphur diesel sucks ball sack, u need to add conditioner every tank, the sulphur is for lubrication

 

[Jorgy]

And this ultra low sulphur diesel sucks ball sack, u need to add conditioner every tank, the sulphur is for lubrication

What do you guys add for conditioner? I've never put anything in my dmax. Always considered trying Vpower diesel but can never convince myself to when its .15 more at the pump.

 

[Complexd]

What do you guys add for conditioner?

I run Howes conditioner through every tank on my LBZ during the winter, but slacked off during this summer. From some of the comments in this thread I might just start doing it all year round.

Tried running two tanks of Vpower this summer, noticed a slight increase in highway mpgs but again, not worth 15c more a litre. If you want to be chincy using the minimum recommended addition of conditioner, 1 jug of Howes is good for over 3000 litres so its cheaper that way.

 

[Jorgy]

I run Howes conditioner through every tank on my LBZ during the winter, but slacked off during this summer. From some of the comments in this thread I might just start doing it all year round.

Tried running two tanks of Vpower this summer, noticed a slight increase in highway mpgs but again, not worth 15c more a litre. If you want to be chincy using the minimum recommended addition of conditioner, 1 jug of Howes is good for over 3000 litres so its cheaper that way.

How many ml do you add per tank? And where do you find the best pricing on cases? I have an 05 LLY so both our tanks should be the same, 95 litres.

 

[Complexd]

How many ml do you add per tank? And where do you find the best pricing on cases? I have an 05 LLY so both our tanks should be the same, 95 litres.

Buying a case at a time is probably cheapest but I usually just buy one jug at a time from Crappy Tire. I usually put 200-300 mils in to a tank. When it gets below -25 ill start dumping half a litre or more but that's probably over kill

 

[LBZ]

There is actually 3 grades of seasonal diesel, although they are not really called what we call them, but in layman's terms there is summer, winter, and arctic and They progress with being cut with more additives (like kerosene) in the winter and arctic fuels to reduce gelling from the wax.

Unfortunately this also results in a lower cetane rating which gives you lower power and mileage and less lubricity which is harder on fuel system components.

Most fuel companies like ufa, Centex, petro canada, etc. have their own requirements for what additives they request if any, and those get blended usually at the bulk station before delivered to the individual retail stations. For the most part as long as you are getting clean fuel from the station that hasn't been sitting in tanks for a long time you don't need to add anything.

If your fuel is suspect, or you get it out of a rig tank or steel storage tank, or even for piece of mind you may want to add a cetane booster, and or a conditioner. It won't hurt anything. I know with the emissions equipped 6.0 Ford's, cetane boost and conditioner was a must in the winter.