Safe Diesel fuel
Submitted: Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 19:36
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Nick H2
I'll be doing a fair bit of outback travel on the blacktop.
Emerald to
Darwin then down to
Alice Springs including Uluru,
Adelaide etc. Are there any diesel fuel stops along the way I should avoid. I don't need any complications with my new VW transporter. What is the best way to to obtain good fuel. Most advice has been to look where th large trucks fill up and I'll try to watch for that but are there some
places to avoid. Nick H2
Reply By: racinrob - Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 19:54
Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 19:54
No guarantees on getting clean fuel where ever you go Nick. I fitted an after market filter set-up (CAV) with sediment bowl and carried spare filter elements, this removed the worry of getting a tank full of contaminated diesel in some remote servo although on your proposed trip you shouldn't have any worries.
rr
AnswerID:
512962
Reply By: Idler Chris - Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 19:57
Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 19:57
Use a Mr Funnel. Its the only way to be sure. In some countries it is illegal to pump diesel for some time after a tanker delivery. In Aust they allow you to pump while the tanker is unloading. I would want several hours to pass before I would like to pump from a just filled tank.
Tip 1; If you stop at a servo, do food and
toilet FIRST and fill up on they way out so that if they had a delivery just before you got there at least its had more time to settle.
Tip 2; When you are getting low look for fuel tankers that may have just been to the servo you are about to stop at.
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Follow Up By: Nick H2 - Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 20:13
Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 20:13
Thanks guys, all good tips I will follow. Any others welcome.
Tanks Nick.
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Follow Up By: Member - eighty matey - Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 20:34
Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 20:34
x2 for Mr Funnel Nick. Worth every cent,
check this out.
They trap the nasties and don't restrict the flow at all.
You can get bad fuel in the city and I haven't come across much nasty fuel and we've been to the most remote servos in the country.
Have fun.
Steve
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791568
Follow Up By: Allan B (Member, SunCoast) - Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 22:29
Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 22:29
I also have a Mr Funnel and use it if in doubt of the fuel quality.
However it does significantly slow the filling rate even though
mine is the high-flow tandem-element model.
Perhaps Steve above was referring to restriction of fuel flow with additional on-vehicle filters?
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Follow Up By: Member - eighty matey - Wednesday, Jun 12, 2013 at 01:06
Wednesday, Jun 12, 2013 at 01:06
G'day Alan,
when we've used the Mr funnel we've never had any trouble having to wait for the fuel to run through. It's always been quick and easy.
I remember the bloke at Kunnarwarritji wgroa when we pulled it out but he was impressed that the filters didn't slow up the funnel at all.
Good to have clean fuel out there but, having said that, I'm not doubting the quality of the fuel there. It's just to be sure.
Steve
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791584
Follow Up By: Allan B (Member, SunCoast) - Wednesday, Jun 12, 2013 at 09:22
Wednesday, Jun 12, 2013 at 09:22
I'm at a loss here Steve. Are you saying that your funnel will take the flow with the bowser nozzle pulled full-on?
Is my funnel faulty?
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Follow Up By: Member - eighty matey - Wednesday, Jun 12, 2013 at 09:39
Wednesday, Jun 12, 2013 at 09:39
We had no problems at all.
I'll have to
check it's the same brand but I'm sure it is. My mate and I share it and it's at his place at the moment.
We just put it in the vehicle filler, pulled the trigger on the nozzle and in it went.
I was surprised when we first used it but it is great.
Steve
FollowupID:
791600
Follow Up By: Patrol22 - Wednesday, Jun 12, 2013 at 16:14
Wednesday, Jun 12, 2013 at 16:14
I have the F15C model Mr Funnel and it has a flow rate of 45 litres per minute. While some of the newer 'slow flow' diesel pumps are too quick for the funnel, it is more than adequate for the older 'slow flow' pumps. The biggest issue you may have to deal with adapting it to fit into your fuel filler point on your car.
You can get the Funnel from
Proquip and a great carry bag from
Punkin Head Air Sports.
FollowupID:
791621
Reply By: Idler Chris - Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 20:35
Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 20:35
The chances of getting contaminated diesel is just the same in the city, the country, and the outback. Because of the volume they pump truck stops are safer, but if there are no trucks filling when your there maybe there has just been a delivery. I have a Toyota 100 series TD 2006. I cannot use a CAV filter because they restrict the fuel flow which can affect performance and fuel pump lubrication. Be very wary of anything you add to your fuel system in most late model diesels. Denco Diesel make a water separator which is OK and Terrain Tammer make a fuel filter/water separator which also is made for the late model vehicles. There maybe others. If in doubt talk to a qualified diesel mechanic.
Tip 3; If you go into an area that is flooded or has been flooded recently be very wary. Servos in elevated positions are safer than ones in low areas.
Am I paranoid about getting bad diesel - you betcha
AnswerID:
512968
Reply By: Member - Phil G (SA) - Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 20:38
Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 20:38
Your VW would most likely specify at least 50 cetane diesel for your transporter (they do with our Tig). So you'll find most VW enthusiasts have a preference for BP diesels - the BP Ultimate is 52 cetane while the normal truckstop diesel is 51 cetane.
Australian standard is anything from 46 up -
Shell guarantees 49, but as far as I can determine none of the others publish a number.
So my preferred
places are BP truckstops. But most likely any truckstop that has a bunch of trucks parked will be OK. Small
places who turnover little diesel are to be avoided.
Out of interest, my wife's Tiguan has a motor thats half the size and a diesel fuel filter that is twice the size of our Landcruiser. The Europeans do some things better than the Japanese sometimes.
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Reply By: Member - Wamuranman - Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 21:02
Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 21:02
I have never heard this before until about 2 weeks ago but I will share it just in case it has some merit.
I went to fill up and the tanker was there filling the tanks. The diesel pumps were partitioned off while this was going on. I parked and went to ask tanker driver how long he would be. Whilst talking to him I mentioned my concern about pumping diesel just after he has filled the tanks. He said its not the filling of the tanks that is the problem but using the high flow pumps - they are so powerful they suck up the sediment and rubbish from lower down in the tanks. His point was never use the high flow pumps for a smaller vehicle (regardless of whether the tanks have recently been filled or not). I know all the big trucks use the high flow pumps but maybe they have very good filtration systems.
Just sharing what this driver told me from his experience.
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Follow Up By: Member - Phil G (SA) - Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 22:12
Tuesday, Jun 11, 2013 at 22:12
Last month I had a similar experience - the local BP truckstop was getting filled by a tanker, so I stopped and asked the tanker driver whether it was OK to fill my tank. He said there were so many filters and water separators in the system, there was no chance any sediment would get through. Anyway, I went
home and filled up another day!
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Follow Up By: pop2jocem - Wednesday, Jun 12, 2013 at 10:48
Wednesday, Jun 12, 2013 at 10:48
It's not so much the sediment that will cause grief as any good quality filter should take out any particles large enough to damage pumps and injectors. The filter element will block and reduce the fuel flow to the point where performance will drop and the filter will need to be changed. Having said that continued driving without a filter change can also cause fuel starvation and damage.
The problem with water is that also being a fluid like diesel, albeit with a different specific gravity, is much harder to remove and most filter systems can only warn of it's presence by using the difference in specific gravity or electrical resistance.
Cheers
Pop
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791608
Reply By: Odog - Wednesday, Jun 12, 2013 at 15:42
Wednesday, Jun 12, 2013 at 15:42
Hey guys, I have a mate that delivered fuel for
shell, for 25 odd years, he recons the pick up for the pump in the tanks are floating, and don't suck fuel below a certain height from the tank... Just thought I'd put in my 2 bobs worth, I am also looking at the mr funnel, you here to many stories... Costly stories! You would think they could incorporate a pre fuel tank filtering system, in the manufacturing process on such sensitive new vehicles... One more thing, a friend brought a new vw passat? Told it was German... Wasn't happy when I told her, it was actualy made in Mexico! Food for thought. Cheers odog
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