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Location:
Cabramatta, NSW
Registered:
May 2002
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 Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 04:11
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I got desperate this week and filled up with Optimax instead of BP Ultimate.
What I've noticed is that my engine gets warm a lot faster than when on Ultimate!
Has anyone else noticed this? Or is this an issue with my engine?!
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Location:
c'town, NSW
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 04:14
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was this driving or idleing?
if its shittier fuel would the ECU be putting in more to stop detonation?
more fuel being burninated = hotterer engine?
test it again.
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Location:
Sydney
Registered:
June 2004
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 04:15
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it could be so if your car is combusting the optimax better than the ultimate causeing a better bang
personally i wouldnt know cause i dont use a thermostat in my car
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Location:
Cabramatta, NSW
Registered:
May 2002
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I Supported Toymods
Location:
Sydney
Registered:
December 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 05:52
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Maybe your car was pinging on the Optimax which made it heat up faster.
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Location:
Canberra
Registered:
October 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 06:04
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Optimax and BP Ultimate are the same fuel.
They are both produced at The Clyde Oil refinery in Parramatta.
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I supported Toymods
Location:
sydney.au
Registered:
August 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 06:20
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| soaringmik wrote on Thu, 19 August 2004 16:04 |
Optimax and BP Ultimate are the same fuel.
They are both produced at The Clyde Oil refinery in Parramatta.
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wrong
they have additives added to the fuel after refining that separates them
this has been tested throughly
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Location:
Canberra
Registered:
October 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 06:30
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I am genuinely interested in the results of that test
where would I find this info?
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Location:
Kita-Ku, Sapporo, Japan
Registered:
January 2003
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 06:45
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i almost exclusively use mobil 8000, and after using optimax for the last two tanks, i can say that i am thoroughly unimpressed. getting to the end of the second tank, i had idle issues, and it would miss much more when cold... sure optimax feels 'smoother' but there's less power and the fuel seems to go 'off' very quickly.
one tank of mobil 8000 later, all is good again.
i just can't trust the quality of the optimax.
i did also notice that after hard fanging, the engine temsp soar much more with optimax than with the mobil. at first i put it down to day to day conditions etc, but it happened on hot and cold day, and doesn't happen with the mobil.. maybe it's not just me?
i haven't really tried Barely Petrols ultimate, it only recently came on at the nearest servo..
Cya, Stewart
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Location:
Gold Coast
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 07:35
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| soaringmik wrote on Thu, 19 August 2004 16:04 |
Optimax and BP Ultimate are the same fuel.
They are both produced at The Clyde Oil refinery in Parramatta.
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Not even close for other states as well.
QLD I know for a fact have seperate refineries for each. But then we don't get Synergy 8000 
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I supported Toymods
Banned User
Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 07:42
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I've tried and dyno tested both fuels in my coon and the optimax is the better fuel to get in Brisbane.
The cool idles much better on the optimax. The dyno didnt prove any gains in power between the 2 fuels but the optimax did burn a tad better probably for the reason above.
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I supported Toymods
Location:
sydney.au
Registered:
August 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 08:56
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my car likes ultimate
ive tried all the other high octane fuels, they just run like crap. noticably too!
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Registered:
August 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 09:37
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synergy 8000 for me
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Location:
Gold Coast
Registered:
August 2004
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 10:30
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OK there is a good reason for this.
Optimax is one of the evil premium type fuels that doesnt have a consistent ron (octane) level and ethanol content.
I ONLY use bp ultimate or mobil 8000, as these two fuels have a GUARANTEED ron content of 98ron and a stable ethanol level. Hence you can actually get your car tuned specifically for this kind of fuel if you have the right management system.
Optimax jumps around from anywhere around 94ron to 100ron... and teh ethanol in it is MUCH higher than the other premium unleaded fuel on the market.
The 3 too use are Mobil8000, BP Ultimate and Castrol Vortex as they all have a guaranteed ron level. There is a lot of documentation around on the internet about this kind of stuff if you are willing to look...
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I supported Toymods
Banned User
Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 10:49
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| Jimmeh wrote on Thu, 19 August 2004 20:30 |
OK there is a good reason for this.
Optimax is one of the evil premium type fuels that doesnt have a consistent ron (octane) level and ethanol content.
I ONLY use bp ultimate or mobil 8000, as these two fuels have a GUARANTEED ron content of 98ron and a stable ethanol level. Hence you can actually get your car tuned specifically for this kind of fuel if you have the right management system.
Optimax jumps around from anywhere around 94ron to 100ron... and teh ethanol in it is MUCH higher than the other premium unleaded fuel on the market.
The 3 too use are Mobil8000, BP Ultimate and Castrol Vortex as they all have a guaranteed ron level. There is a lot of documentation around on the internet about this kind of stuff if you are willing to look...
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I think you should do a little more research.
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Location:
sydney
Registered:
May 2003
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 12:43
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its caltex vortex u mean rite??
on the caltex site it sez its rated at 95 ron
rite??
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Location:
Sydney
Registered:
January 2003
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Location:
Adelaide, Australia
Registered:
February 2004
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 15:43
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... in adelaide, driveing ae92 rola.... tried everything, ultimate gives less top end poke. mobil 8000 sucks for price.
my money is on Vortex Gold. shit is da bomb. 
My best mate and i take a short journey to melbourne now and then, found the best efficiancy fuel was the 95ron gold. did 650kms on a 40 L tank in his 1.6l Civic.
Car has been thanking me since i changed to Vortex from ultimate. better overall.
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Location:
Cabramatta, NSW
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Thu, 19 August 2004 23:46
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From what I've heard Optimax loses its octane a lot faster than Synergy and Ultimate.
Vortex is only 95-96. It's premium with added cleaning agents. It's not a 98 octane fuel.
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Location:
Cabramatta, NSW
Registered:
May 2002
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Location:
NSW, East Coast
Registered:
July 2003
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 20 August 2004 12:36
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AE86 4ag bigport, I always use optimax, dont know why, vey responsive, can notice less performance towards empty thou, Have used Mobile 8000 (when i can afford it, and only if i really have too) motor runs smoother and quiter, not as responsive, never touch vortex gold, heard to many bad stories and its very much over priced, that goes for Mobile 8000, not worth the $ value.
Just my experiences.
Cheers
Steve
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Location:
tallahassee FL usOFa
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 20 August 2004 14:23
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i think you may notice that the fuel deliver trucks don't have names on them any more, at least in my part of the usOFa.
they deliver what's available from the local tank storage farm.
i've got a feeling that we probably don't get the brand that it's claimed to be, any more then 75% of the time.
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Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
August 2004
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Sat, 21 August 2004 09:23
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My father has a 2 year old Mazda6 which he has run Optimax in since new. At 27,000km he was getting pinging under load and Mazda told him to get a carbo clean, he was pretty shocked that he would need one at such low k's, but Mazda reckon Optimax is a very dirty fuel, clogs injectors quickly, they recommend BP Ultimate. Dad took their advice and the 6 is running better than ever.
I used Optimax in my last car (98 Starlet) since it was released, and the car definitely seemed to run smoother and use less fuel. The only reason I run BP 91 ulp in the Corolla is because standard ulp is expensive enough! 
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Location:
Colac, Victoria
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Sat, 21 August 2004 09:32
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optimax is produced at the gellong refinery here in victoria ( for our vic supplies )I find the GT4 goes ok on it but Mobil Synerrgy really seems to make the engine feel smooth as silk ..
Dunno why! dont care! - i get no pinging
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Registered:
May 2004
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Sat, 21 August 2004 12:50
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I met a guy at a rally test day up here in bris vegas recently, he claimed to be a chemist for BP here and funnily enough the talk got around to petrol and he reckons that the recipe changes with the season and the RON you get in December is not the RON you get in July. Interesting....................
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Location:
Newcastle
Registered:
September 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Sat, 21 August 2004 13:35
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according to some people Optimax contains toulne to get its octain rate up to 98ron, as it isnt refined to 98ron like other fuels such as BP ultimate and moblie synergy.
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Location:
NSW, East Coast
Registered:
July 2003
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I supported Toymods
Location:
Central Coast
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Sun, 22 August 2004 01:36
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From a motor bike point of view, I have been told that Optimax isn't too good. It is a denser fuel, high performance bikes don't run well on it. We speak to one of the guys at a BP where we usually fill the bikes up, he informed us that recently, they have been getting the fuel in their tanks from Shell!? Hence, we have been using Synergy. 
I think we need to make spell check compulsory before posting. Set it to check before the post actually goes through by default! 
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I supported Toymods
Location:
Ryde, NSW
Registered:
April 2004
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Location:
Tamworth
Registered:
August 2004
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Sun, 22 August 2004 08:08
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well as far as high performance Racing bikes go.
the optimax is said not to hold the mixing properties as the Bp ultimate, vortex gold and the mobil synergy do.
for premix fuels the optimax does not mix with the oil as well and will not hold the mixture for as long as the bp, mobil and caltex.
I did 2 big ends on my KX85 while using optimax, no problems since iv started using BP in my KX125.
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Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 15 October 2004 02:10
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| Buddha wrote on Sat, 21 August 2004 19:23 |
My father has a 2 year old Mazda6 which he has run Optimax in since new. At 27,000km he was getting pinging under load and Mazda told him to get a carbo clean, he was pretty shocked that he would need one at such low k's, but Mazda reckon Optimax is a very dirty fuel, clogs injectors quickly, they recommend BP Ultimate. Dad took their advice and the 6 is running better than ever.
I used Optimax in my last car (98 Starlet) since it was released, and the car definitely seemed to run smoother and use less fuel. The only reason I run BP 91 ulp in the Corolla is because standard ulp is expensive enough!
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I used Optimax exclusively when it was released for 40,000 km. The injectors had been cleaned beforehand. I founded that Optimax fouled the plugs with an unusually orange crap and the injectors needed cleaning again.
After that I have used Synergy 8000 fairly exclusively without the problems. But lately because I'm still looking for permanent work and the cost of fuel I've returned to using the plain old 91 ron stuff.
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Registered:
November 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 15 October 2004 07:21
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| Quote: |
and teh ethanol in it is MUCH higher than the other premium unleaded fuel
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If u think enthanol has octane you are wrong, ethanol has 0 octane, octane is a hydrocarbon and ethanol, I guess can be classified as containing a hydroxl group bound to a carbon atom. Pure ethanol would be an awsome fuel, because it would be so consistant and it burns hotter than petrol, trouble is how do u make it? Possiblu the best way is syntheticaly from guess what? petroleum .
2,2,4-trimethylpentane would be an awsome octain to use as petrol it will restist early ignition, heptane how ever is prone to early ignition.
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Location:
Castle Hill, Sydney
Registered:
February 2004
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Location:
sydney
Registered:
July 2003
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 Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 15 October 2004 08:26
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oh brown dawg Hektik talk.
shiet, i've been using optimax like ever since i started driving probably atleast a good 30 - 40,000kms never any other before. never them b.s unknown names, you never know what they stock.
so you guys recommend Bp ultimate or synergy 8000.
would the results differ from say a n/a car to a turbocharged car?
from carby to an efi?
from different makes?
very interesting findings,
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Registered:
November 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 15 October 2004 09:03
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lol I put super in my 4ac corolla, I put ultimate in once when the bp didnt have super and it did not make 1 bit of difference. I didnt expect it too
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Location:
NSW, East Coast
Registered:
July 2003
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 15 October 2004 10:00
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i Use to use optimax all the time, but now i only use BP Ultimate motor warms up heaps quicker
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Location:
sydney
Registered:
July 2004
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I supported Toymods
Location:
Perth
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 15 October 2004 11:11
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Actually, the morale of the story is probably that they ain't the same brew in each state
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Location:
Canberra, ACT
Registered:
September 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 15 October 2004 11:31
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bp ultimate for my 3K, or, worst case, gentle driving to avoid pings, and premium. no optimax!
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I Supported Toymods
Location:
Wollongong, NSW
Registered:
December 2003
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 15 October 2004 11:33
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Everyone seems to base their opinions on stories from someone else. I've been running Vortex Gold after a mechanic recommended it. I can't honestly say that the 7A-FE feels the difference, except for (slightly) better fuel economy on the 95 RON mix. Now that oil prices are really hitting their straps, I think I'll go back to unleaded....
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Location:
sydney
Registered:
March 2004
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 15 October 2004 11:41
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i use most of the time BP ultimate just because theres one close to home
but sometimes i use optimax and i cant tell difference either
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Location:
sydney
Registered:
July 2004
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 15 October 2004 11:57
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| justcallmefrank wrote on Fri, 15 October 2004 21:11 |
Actually, the morale of the story is probably that they ain't the same brew in each state
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oh i knew that already
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Registered:
May 2004
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 15 October 2004 12:52
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Toluene is indeed the active ingredient in Optimax.
It's a quick, dirty and cheap solution to enhance the octane in petrol, As a by-product of the refining process that was mainly burnt off until they found it was a way to turn waste into hi-octane fuel.
Good points of Toluene in petrol, ups the RON number, burns hot and therefore clean.
Bad points are that it boils off at atmospheric pressure at a fairly low temperature (110ºC).
This makes it best suited to fuel injected cars with sealed fuel systems.
Not so good in carburettors where the float chambers and tank are vented to the atmosphere. After a few days the Toluene boils off from the float bowl and tank vents, reducing the remaining petrol back to something like normal unleaded.
Even in fuel injected cars it tends to degrade after a few weeks. And being 20% coal-tar just guess what residue it leaves in carburettors and fuel injectors.
I prefer Mobil 8000 for both the carburettored and injected cars, but the BP Ultimate seems to be quite good too.
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Location:
Sydney, Hurstville, Pensh...
Registered:
August 2004
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I supported Toymods
Location:
Sydney, NSW
Registered:
February 2004
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 15 October 2004 18:29
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i used Synergy 8000 when i had my last 4AGE
i found it works the same as Ultimate
but, my engine ate my optimax like there was no tomorrow
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Location:
brisbane
Registered:
October 2004
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 15 October 2004 21:54
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every state/area has different quality of fuel, it depends on the refinery.. newer refinery has a cleaner fuel ( this is very important)
some petrol station sells more of their high octane fuel than others therefore the fuel is fresher & still hold high octane.i know some petrol station put in a percentage of tulloine/petrol benzine to increase the octane of their stale/old fuel.
always go to a very busy petrol station because they always get fresh fuel.
fresh optimax is much better than old bp ultimate or old synergy and vice versa.
optimax is not very good for go kart engines .. this is from experience.
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Location:
Sydney, Hurstville, Pensh...
Registered:
August 2004
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 15 October 2004 22:19
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| rx-3 ip wrote on Sat, 16 October 2004 07:54 |
optimax is not very good for go kart engines .. this is from experience.
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hmm, it works good in my ke70, and thats close enough to a kart for me lol
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Location:
Melbourne
Registered:
January 2003
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 15 October 2004 22:41
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Well from a Dealership point of view here are problems i have seen from the use of optimax .
1.Check engine lights on / Ecu fault codes logged , continues on after reseting due to inconsistent mixing of the fuel { yes have had fuel samples tested }
2.Damaged oxygen sensors / Lots of money with the new euro emission regulations , most cars running three for a four cylinder .
3.Pinging after a few days in the tank / or could be old fuel in station pumps . When you have all the cars filled at the same station , you get to see this doesn't occur filling up just after a tanker has been there . Could be related to the Toluene level .
4.Fuel system blockage / Fuel pumps in general most effected , Have to remove and flush fuel system due to blockage caused by the high levels of wax residue left over from fuel . Seems to build up more in pumps than fuel filters ? but most return-less fuel systems on modern cars have the filter in the pump , so is normally a $1000 job .
5.Black smoke if vehicle left idling for a say 5mins , then accelerated hard , also under hard acceleration . Even in new cars .
6.Poor cold starting
After so much time investigating these fuel problems , we stopped spending hundreds of thousands a year on Shell and moved to Bp without a problem . As for customers still using Shell there problems still remain .
And from my own experiences ,
Carby cars , eg 40mm webered 170hp 1.7 boxer engine / Low idle speed on hot days , think the engine is going to stall always . Consant blocked jets , or air correctors after driving slowly . never a problem driving hard . Poor fuel acconomy , about a 1/4 than other fuels .
Injected cars , eg early fuel injection systems , Pinging under light loads like overtaking slowly at 100ks , inconsistent
idle .
Injected cars , eg late , turbo .low ks per tank . Black fuel smoke even with air fuel meter connected , car perfectly tuned testing on dyno , Crappy cold starting , Pinging under hard acceleration .
Last track day used that fuel in : Filled up at the shell next to me in the morning on the way to Sandown , drove around Sandown allday . Car was performing ok till 1/4 tank of fuel then started to hear pinging under load at 5000 rpm in top gear ? Why is this , Went and refilled at the Bp next to Sandown , car was 3kph fastest up the back straight with a higher fuel load . Figure that hp loss  {looks at Stewart}
As for Mobil  Heres a joke for Bm dealership people .
What to you get when you add Mobil one with Mobil 8000 in a eight cylinder Bm engine ?
Answer , you get a one cylinder Bm V8 .
I remember visiting a friends dealership seeing rows and rows of engineless Bm's , why well i am sure you could find the correct cause due to i think Bm took Mobil to court over it . But what a remember it was something like the fuel turned the oil to jelly in the sump , and corroded the bores away because of some additive . Very expensive one that Well at least people can buy Bms with low ks on the engines
What about the plane avagas ? remember that .
As for Bp once again , no problems i have ever seen for myself .
Edit { note too self to never uses shell at the track again }
[Updated on: Fri, 15 October 2004 22:46]
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Location:
Sydney, Hurstville, Pensh...
Registered:
August 2004
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 15 October 2004 23:24
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so my ke70 stock rolla that suposed to use super, yet runs on opitmax fine will run off bp ultimate good to?
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Location:
Vic, AU
Registered:
September 2004
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Sun, 17 October 2004 00:59
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Yes, but you should always use valve protection additive to stop the seats from wearing away..
I used Optimax in my old Corolla and my VH V8 Commodore, both ended up with wore valve seats, wasn't happy. 
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Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
October 2002
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Re: Optimax warms engine faster than Ultimate?
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Fri, 22 October 2004 09:47
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| wastegate wrote on Thu, 19 August 2004 17:35 |
| soaringmik wrote on Thu, 19 August 2004 16:04 |
Optimax and BP Ultimate are the same fuel.
They are both produced at The Clyde Oil refinery in Parramatta.
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Not even close for other states as well.
QLD I know for a fact have seperate refineries for each. But then we don't get Synergy 8000
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I don't think that's true. We have BP and Caltex/Ampol refineries in Bris and I don't know if the Caltex/Ampol refinery produces 98 RON. They certainly don't need it for themselves as Vortex and Ampol Gold are only 95 RON.
BP have only two refineries in the whole country (QLD and WA) so their fuel in the other states is probably sourced locally. They would add their own additive packages of course.
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