The dangers of winter diesel

Spot on, I have to agree with you Garry. If you are visiting & staying overnight in Alpine areas make sure you top up with local diesel. Try to arrive with a relatively low tank level so as to top up with the maximum amount of alpine fuel. Remember, the locals drive diesel powered vehicles & don't have problems. I have been staying in the Adaminaby, Jindabyne, Thredbo area during mid winter for many years & as yet not experienced any problem. I have known of many that have had trouble & most have arrived from lower altitudes & generally further north west & not topped up locally.

In May earlier this year we overnighted at Wallabadah south of Tamworth NSW, it got so cold during the night it froze the water in our caravan's water pipes. Around 8 o'clock the next morning I fired up my old 75 series LandCruiser with a fair bit of white smoke but it did start whereas a couple of late model diesel Pajero's would not. The Pajero drivers rang the NRMA in Tamworth who advised them to wait until mid morning when the temp had risen a bit and try again, evidently common rail diesels don't like the cold with normal diesel fuel.

rr

peter thankyou for your thoughtful reply

Heating oil is diesel mixed with a small percentage of kerosine.

do you need to put 270 litres of Alpine in? Given it is likely dearer than summer fuel anyhow?

Thanks for that - it is more of a comment than answering my question but there you go...

No I don't to fill all the way up, but then I try to support the locals where I can, I also don't know how much fuel I will use whilst in the area

I still want to know if the Alpine / Winter Diesel will present any issues in the warmer areas - appreciate an answer instead of comments please

cheers

Sorry for commenting. Short term no problem. Long term the fuels lubricity/thickness will be lower than summer fuel when used at higher ambient temps and is similar to using the cold weather engine oils in desert heat

Thanks for that, so in essence if I ran it on one tank it shouldn't be an issue but long term wouldn't be good as I would think that it may have insufficient lubricity during hotter weather- this of course is a mute point if they have changed the fuel by November.

Sorry Cookie - this is a forum you have to take the relevant with the not so relevant.

But - no there is no issue using alpine diesel in warmer areas. The alpine additive is really just a variation of diesel (kero, heating oil or some other similar substance) anyway and just stops it waxing and burns along with normal diesel. I don't know where fisho got his information on lubricity from but I doubt there is an issue - afterall vehicles permanently using alpine for 6 months of the year in the mountains do not seem to have an issue.

Alpine would have probably stopped by November anyway.

Thanks garrycol,

yep understand that it's a forum but I have a tendency these days to not put up with irrelevant almost smart ass comments. The way I see it is - would I say that in the front bar of a pub with the guy stood in front of me :-)

I stopped coming to this forum some time ago due to some people just being pretty non-constructive, rude & offensive but have come back and think that it seems to have changed for the better

If I can't comment on someones thread in a positive manner then I just leave it alone

Having said that I do appreciate the later comment / answer and undertsand that the original comment probably wasn't meant to be clever, just didn't answer my question

I appreciate the majority of people on this forum and find it worthwhile coming on and having a look around

no offence intended to anyone

cheers

mmm-dont know how you'd interpret my first comment as being "clever" but anyhow.
Garrycol-is diesel fuel the only mineral oil whose viscosity doesnt change with large temperature variations?
Note I didnt say it was "insufficient", just lower.
Why dont they just supply "alpine" fuel everywhere, rather than just in certain areas?

Saw kero at $2.50 per litre at a BP Pump is probably why it is not added all year around.
Also talking to my Father in Law who used to work on Commercial ships and Kero was the mast dangerous fuel to pump onto a boat as it would heat up. It is also abrasive.

Honky