Been using Tesco / Sainsburys unleaded in the Buell until I read on a thread here that supermarket fuels aren't very good. Can't say I've ever had a problem with them to be honest. When I put Shell V Power in my Buell, tickover was lumpy to say the least, missing beats it seemed. Went back to supermarket fuels again. Sunday I filled up with Jet regular unleaded and now my bike is worse. Often cutting out. Start the bike, a few fires and stop, start again a few fires and stop, start again tickover lumpy, engine seems to be compensating as the tickover increases and decreases, I also hear a random hi (ish) pitch squeek or two as it misfires likes it's air or something, also I seem to be getting more popping on overrun. Done a TPS reset, made no difference. Just waiting to use up the fuel now before switching back. I dread stopping at lights now as it can randomly stop! Either it's the fuel or somethings gone wrong with my bike!

Anyone else have similar issues?

Quite a few people claim that fuels are basically generic products from varying sources irrespective of where you get it from (almost like electricity), the main difference being some brand-specific additives. I am not sure if that is true but I do have some experiences with contaminated fuel that I got from smaller fuel-stations, ending up with clogged carb. Never had problems with super-market fuel though.

If your bike developed erratic idling and popping it could also be an air-leak making the thing run lean and warm. Then again, if it's fuel injected there may be a few million other causes: That's the price of technological "progress"

There has been hundreds of threads on fuel.
Most people will tell you to use the highest octane you can get i.e. super unleaded.
I find Diesel fuel works really well I get the red stuff from my work and you get pink smoke out the exhaust which I think is pretty cool and it also goes with my image of having a yellow XB.















































Oh and before you try it I was only joking.

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Norrie.

I've tried it and only got white smoke

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If your dreams don't scare you, they are not big enough.

Ask yourself this, if you fill up with Esso fuel in Ellesmere Port, has the fuel come from Esso's (Exxon) refinery 230 miles away in Southampton? Or has it come from Shell's refinery in Ellesmere Port (Stanlow)?

If you fill up at a Shell garage in Southampton, has the fuel come from Shell's refinery in Ellesmere Port 230 miles away? Or from Exxon's refinery round the corner in Fawley?

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Try doing this to yer fueller...........

Ah, the petrol thread. Is it Tuesday already?

Wot 03 said, except...

Probably the BP place at Hamble Le Rice.


Reads like a pretty big difference to me. I use, where possible, Esso 97 RON from a busy forecourt.


Doesn't that make you the pope?

Got any pics?

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Good in straight lines
2001 X1 "The Tart's Handbag"
2001 FZS1000 "The Fridge"

That's right Norm. And there's pipelines between depots/refineries too just to confuse things further. If you stand next to the tanker filling terminal at Stanlow you see every tanker brand under the sun in there filling up. Remember last year there was trouble with the wrong additive being used in Morrisons fuel in the south east? That was a problem at a specific depot and the base fuel could have come from anywhere. A lot of road fuel base stock comes into the UK from Rotterdam too.

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Try doing this to yer fueller...........

Seen all manner of branded tankers going in and out of there.

I find the higher octane feels smoother in my bikes, just this weekend I had to fill up with regular after running on HO and noticed the difference very soon, harsher.
The Mrs notices on her bike too and she is as engine savvy as I am with handbags!

The reason why your bike runs poor on the good stuff is cos the ECM is at the far end of the scale dealing with hot fuel and it just can not believe it's getting a drop o' the good stuff.
Give it a rite good thrashing on the good stuff to adjust.
Bibbling around town is crap for any motor what ever it runs on!

Nate.

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FUBAR pilot

You only need two bikes in life-an S1 and a Multistrada!

One of my mates had been driving a tanker a few years ago. These tankers are equipped with a sensor, that senses the kind of fuel which is in the tank. You can't refill with a different kind of fuel if there's too much left over (which makes some sense, IMO). But it happens now and then that there IS too much left over, which has to "disappear" before a new charge could be loaded.

Now guess - I'm open for suggestions (I won't tell you any details, because you would never trust ANY petrol station again )

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"It is often said that before you die your life passes before your eyes. It is in fact true. It's called living."
Terry Pratchett

Have never noticed any difference with the way the X1 runs whether i put ordinary unleaded or super in no difference in consumption either. And it runs just as well if I buy it from tescos or esso.
And before anybody says anything it runs well all the time.

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2001 X1 2009 1125CR 2006 Uly X3 2010 Uly a fully Maz'd S1 and a 1991 RS1200 Westwind.

Same here for my M2.

Problem though is that these things have a tendency for pinking and although my bike still has the "odd pink" when it's really hot and needs to work hard when using any type of fuel I guess "every little helps" by using higher octane. Avoiding lower revs helps better against pinking than uber-fuel though. Or at least you can't hear it pinking anymore

Maybe XB are more fuel sensitive? Or their owners more imaginative?

The reason why this fuel question pops up is because chiefly alot of folks mechanicle senses or receptors in their arses are turned off. This then causes them to go into denial (not the bloody river) as they just can not believe it is worth spending that bit more on allready expensive fuel.
The thing is though your engine loves you, loves you like never before, its crank bearings are getting less of a good rattling from a smoother explosion. The exhaust valve especially loves you as it does not get so hot a gasses whafting past it when it pops it's head in the chamber, "ahhr" it says "thats better" All this smoothness and harmony usually results in less fuel required and your engine blesses you with more MPG equaling things out.

My friends still shake their little heads at me when I pour the good stuff in but say nowt now. They use to say "why do that? Says use regular" untill I told them to read the sticker on their tank! It says use a fuel of 95 minimum with no mention what so ever of a cieling in fuel grade!
See these bike engines of today are not bimbling car engines with their lazy crank speeds pottering along where a hotter fuel like 95 is needed to keep'm awake, no our bikes whizz up alot keener and er lower octane fuels don't like being shoved about to quickly.

Try it, do a run of set milage on shite and then do it on good stuff.

N.

I wouldn't say any tuber or XB was much different to most modern cars now as far as rpm goes ..............we're hardly talking inline four revs with our old engines........wouldn't be suprised if my lawn mower didn't rev higher.

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2001 X1 2009 1125CR 2006 Uly X3 2010 Uly a fully Maz'd S1 and a 1991 RS1200 Westwind.