Hi Everyone,

What is the difference between diesel fuel, and premium diesel fuel? Some of the stations I choose advertise Premium Diesel. I usually choose the Premium Diesel does it make any difference?
Thanks

 

There are several things that can be done to the fuel to make it "premium":

cetane improver to make the cetane a minimum of 47
extra detergents
extra lubes

There are no laws, just voluntary compliance.

The Shell by my house sells premium diesel. I called Shell and asked what made it premium. The Shell guy said that it has extra detergents and a minimum cetane of 47, although they shoot for 48. He said that the base fuel was the same, they just put extra additives in it.

You can add the additives (Standadyne, Power Service, etc.) yourself for $0.04-$0.06/gallon, so do not pay too much extra for premium (unless you do not want to mess with the bottles of additives).

The Shell premium diesel by my house is actually cheaper than the "normal" diesel at nearby stations, so I buy at Shell and leave the additive bottle on the shelf.

Amoco sells a premium diesel that they claim a minimum cetane of 50. More importantly, they claim that they specially select the base fuel so that it starts out to be better quality.

My advice is to ask the station what they put in it.

 

I can tell you this that the Shell premium. My truck idles better the truck also gets 3 miles to the gallon better. That is my choice of fuel for my Power Stroke.

 

When did oil companies start producing Premium Diesel?