Interesting Fuel Price Article

[NotGumby]

Hi Crew,

I found this interesting article on the current fuel price situation. Have a read if ya fancy.

Tank & Rast: Wasserflasche drei Euro, Sprit 25 Cent teurer

Mittlerweile erreichen die Preisaufschläge alarmierende Höhen: Auf Raststätten wird ordentlich zugelangt, weil ein Unternehmen den Markt fast allein beherrscht.

www.zeit.de

 

[MazeVX]

Interesting, didn't know that the Tank&Rast is that dominant on the Autobahn. But the Rastätte was always way more expensive than others and they just kept the difference. And now the standard Tankstelle is as expensive as the Raststätte and they are expensive like flying to the moon...

 

[NotGumby]

Interesting, didn't know that the Tank&Rast is that dominant on the Autobahn. But the Rastätte was always way more expensive than others and they just kept the difference. And no the standard Tankstelle is as expensive as the Raststätte and they are expensive like flying to the moon...

Yeah, that surprised me about the Tank&Rast. And who pays €2.99 for a half liter water?

 

[MazeVX]

Yeah, that surprised me about the Tank&Rast. And who pays €2.99 for a half liter water?

Not sure though... Never paid that much, really.
Maybe the dominance isn't obvious because they have different contracts and different fuel suppliers and different designs but the company behind stays the same... Sneaky.
Oh btw a gas station near me has a new fuel in the lineup Shell R33, which is 33% regenerative fuel made from waste and byproducts, haven't tried it yet and don't even know the price, but will try it with the next refill.

 

[NotGumby]

Yeah, that surprised me about the Tank&Rast. And who pays €2.99 for a half liter water?

Not sure though... Never paid that much, really.
Maybe the dominance isn't obvious because they have different contracts and different fuel suppliers and different designs but the company behind stays the same... Sneaky.
Oh btw a gas station near me has a new fuel in the lineup Shell R33, which is 33% regenerative fuel made from waste and byproducts, haven't tried it yet and don't even know the price, but will try it with the next refill.

Yep sneaky! I can’t put R33 in Tabby. She only drinks the good stuff.

 

[El-Dracho]

Yeah, that surprised me about the Tank&Rast. And who pays €2.99 for a half liter water?

Not sure though... Never paid that much, really.
Maybe the dominance isn't obvious because they have different contracts and different fuel suppliers and different designs but the company behind stays the same... Sneaky.
Oh btw a gas station near me has a new fuel in the lineup Shell R33, which is 33% regenerative fuel made from waste and byproducts, haven't tried it yet and don't even know the price, but will try it with the next refill.

Interesting, that the R33 Diesel is also available at regular fuel stations now. Did not know that. Found an interesting summary about R33 with useful informartion. It is in german but also readable with online translators:

Blue Diesel: Premiumkraftstoff reduziert CO2-Emissionen | Shell Kraftstoffe für Geschäftskunden – zusammen mehr bewegen

www.shell.de

 

[XC70_OVERLANDER]

Thank’s for sharing. Since I got my driving license I try to avoid those stops. And sometimes it is quit me interesting to explore little villages next to the motorway.

 

[MazeVX]

Yep sneaky! I can’t put R33 in Tabby. She only drinks the good stuff.

Oh if she drinks diesel you can, it's actually closer to premium diesels than regular diesel

@El-Dracho yes didn't know that either and was quite surprised when my brother told me so (he's working for a distributor)

 

[NotGumby]

Yep sneaky! I can’t put R33 in Tabby. She only drinks the good stuff.

Oh if she drinks diesel you can, it's actually closer to premium diesels than regular diesel

@El-Dracho yes didn't know that either and was quite surprised when my brother told me so (he's working for a distributor)

I’ll definitely have to look into that. So it’s not ‘Bio Diesel”? According to the book, she’s not to have diesel with more that 5% bio Anteil.

 

[El-Dracho]

So, I think that kind of online articles are interesting for many overlanders and there are so many articles like that out there. What about having one thread in this forum and collect all these links to online articles which are interesting for members in MidEurope? What do you think?

 

[El-Dracho]

Yep sneaky! I can’t put R33 in Tabby. She only drinks the good stuff.

Oh if she drinks diesel you can, it's actually closer to premium diesels than regular diesel

@El-Dracho yes didn't know that either and was quite surprised when my brother told me so (he's working for a distributor)

I’ll definitely have to look into that. So it’s not ‘Bio Diesel”? According to the book, she’s not to have diesel with more that 5% bio Anteil.

As far as I understood it, it is different to usual bio diesel. However, the article I linked earlier says it complies with the DIN EN590, but it contains upmto 7% biodiesel.

 

[MazeVX]

Normal diesel contains 7% biodiesel anyway, that's defined in the EN standard, that's why you can read "B7" at the pump.
Same as super 95, it contains 5% bio ethanol.
These fuels are 100 % compatible, think about it as if the base wasn't crude oil but plant based fat. It's then refined and composed to a high quality fuel.
I keep an eye on these fuels since they started with "sunfuel" a biomass to liquid (BTL) fuel that was entirely synthetic without a single drop of crude oil...

With biodiesel there's a bit of a different story... So there are at least 2 different fuels that are named biodiesel with one being theoretically compatible to normal diesel if you would add the same additives than you have in our common pump diesel and the other one is something special that does not work with modern engines. The first one is the stuff they put into the pump diesel, the aggressive component is balanced by additional additives that provide the needed lubrication for the fuel pumps and such... It's a whole world and yes there are quite big differences between pump diesel because the EN sets only the minimum standards for it.

 

[NotGumby]

The “regular” diesel has up to 7% FAME added. In Germany, the ARAL ultimate diesel has no added FAME. Realizing the cost, I use primarily this fuel when I can in Germany. Outside of Germany it’s less of a concern.

 

[El-Dracho]

The “regular” diesel has up to 7% FAME added. In Germany, the ARAL ultimate diesel has no added FAME. Realizing the cost, I use primarily this fuel when I can in Germany. Outside of Germany it’s less of a concern.

Correct re the Ultimate. And next time please take a close look at the pump. You will see a sign that it contains up to 7% biodiesel and then an additional sticker stating that it is obligatory to have the sticker that it contains up to 7% biodiesel but the Ultimate Diesel actually contains no biodiesel. Funny, isn't it?

 

[NotGumby]

The “regular” diesel has up to 7% FAME added. In Germany, the ARAL ultimate diesel has no added FAME. Realizing the cost, I use primarily this fuel when I can in Germany. Outside of Germany it’s less of a concern.

Correct re the Ultimate. And next time please take a close look at the pump. You will see a sign that it contains up to 7% biodiesel and then an additional sticker stating that it is obligatory to have the sticker that it contains up to 7% biodiesel but the Ultimate Diesel actually contains no biodiesel.

Correct. That’s my girl’s favorite drink.

I hope the increased cost of the fuel mitigates the risk of a cracked piston because of a stuffed injector, which would be way more expensive. Just trying to protect my investment

 

[El-Dracho]

The “regular” diesel has up to 7% FAME added. In Germany, the ARAL ultimate diesel has no added FAME. Realizing the cost, I use primarily this fuel when I can in Germany. Outside of Germany it’s less of a concern.

Correct re the Ultimate. And next time please take a close look at the pump. You will see a sign that it contains up to 7% biodiesel and then an additional sticker stating that it is obligatory to have the sticker that it contains up to 7% biodiesel but the Ultimate Diesel actually contains no biodiesel.

Correct. That’s my girl’s favorite drink.

I hope the increased cost of the fuel mitigates the risk of a cracked piston because of a stuffed injector, which would be way more expensive. Just trying to protect my investment

That certainly can't hurt I think. I also fill up with premium fuel from time to time, especially when we were somewhere where the fuel quality was questionable. Or when it gets really cold in the winter to make sure I have winterproof diesel. By the way, I change the fuel filter every year at the latest before winter starts and fortunately have never had a problem with clogging of the filter.

 

[MazeVX]

I don't think it plays a role, honestly I believe they have a agricultural diesel in mind. It's mandatory since 2009 and even the newest engines don't care. I can say that agip diesel tech is also different to normal diesel but I barely noticed it in the jeep, it's just the closest gas station to me... We'll see how the R33 behaves ;-)

 

[NotGumby]

The “regular” diesel has up to 7% FAME added. In Germany, the ARAL ultimate diesel has no added FAME. Realizing the cost, I use primarily this fuel when I can in Germany. Outside of Germany it’s less of a concern.

Correct re the Ultimate. And next time please take a close look at the pump. You will see a sign that it contains up to 7% biodiesel and then an additional sticker stating that it is obligatory to have the sticker that it contains up to 7% biodiesel but the Ultimate Diesel actually contains no biodiesel.

Correct. That’s my girl’s favorite drink.

I hope the increased cost of the fuel mitigates the risk of a cracked piston because of a stuffed injector, which would be way more expensive. Just trying to protect my investment

That certainly can't hurt I think. I also fill up with premium fuel from time to time, especially when we were somewhere where the fuel quality was questionable. Or when it gets really cold in the winter to make sure I have winterproof diesel. By the way, I change the fuel filter every year at the latest before winter starts and fortunately have never had a problem with clogging of the filter.

Every year is a good idea Björn. The maintenance schedule for the LC states a change is required every 6 years or 60K! I do it once a year too.

 

[NotGumby]

I don't think it plays a role, honestly I believe they have a agricultural diesel in mind. It's mandatory since 2009 and even the newest engines don't care. I can say that agip diesel tech is also different to normal diesel but I barely noticed it in the jeep, it's just the closest gas station to me... We'll see how the R33 behaves ;-)

If you mean Ultimate vs regular diesel, you’re probably right. It does plays role in my psyche. :-).

Please let us know how that works out - R33!

 

[Desert Runner]

I’ll definitely have to look into that. So it’s not ‘Bio Diesel”? According to the book, she’s not to have diesel with more that 5% bio Anteil.

For awhile a few years ago, Sinclair stations were offering 5% bio diesel as their regular fair. I guess it was not a hit. I used it to help keep my fuel system cleaner, and periodically used a biocide? additive also when I filled the tank. Because I had the LB7 engine with early injector design, I also used small amounts of 2 stroke oil, and Power service lube for lubricity and longevity. 5% was also the recommended max OEM for bio fuel in a Duramax engine, but Ford at 1 point had theirs designed I believe for up to 20%.