Diesel Addatives?

[amstel78]

Stopped off at Walmart on the way home from work and picked up two large bottle of the Power Service additive for under 17 dollars a bottle. I put about 4 ounces into my 85 300D but haven't put any into the Golf yet. I suppose I'll put some in the tank before my next fill up.

FWIW, I've also used Seafoam in the Benz, and that has kept the fuel fresh without problems.

[raelx]

I have to say that gelling is not something that you should ever have to worry about if you are buying proper winterized diesel. I have never run additives in my TDI's and made it through a very hard winter last year with many 0F and lower nights and no problems. Car was parked out side all winter.

The only times i have heard of gelling is when people buy diesel in a warm climate that doesn't sell winterized fuel and then drive north of to high elevations and endd up below freezing with the fuel.

[old bear]

Originally Posted by raelx

I have to say that gelling is not something that you should ever have to worry about if you are buying proper winterized diesel. I have never run additives in my TDI's and made it through a very hard winter last year with many 0F and lower nights and no problems. Car was parked out side all winter.

The only times i have heard of gelling is when people buy diesel in a warm climate that doesn't sell winterized fuel and then drive north of to high elevations and endd up below freezing with the fuel.

That's what happened to me back in '01....Note however that while "most" stations in the northland will run blended fuel, some places, especially in the central part of the country (north to south) MAY not have it. I run PS just to be "sure"...Also, it's a good lubricant for the injection system, so no harm if it's not needed and no problem if it is....

[hjwii]

Are additives necessary in warm weather climates? This is all new to me. We currently have a 2000 Golf TDI with 325,000 miles on it, and I never added anything to the fuel. And the engine has never given us trouble (everything else around the engine has). Now, we also have a brand new 2012 JSW TDI, 2,600 miles, and I have added nothing to it.

FYI - we live in SE Louisiana, and I have a daily commute of 130 miles a day, 80% on open interstate, 15% in traffic on the interstate, 5% city driving... give or take...

[old bear]

Originally Posted by hjwii

Are additives necessary in warm weather climates? This is all new to me. We currently have a 2000 Golf TDI with 325,000 miles on it, and I never added anything to the fuel. And the engine has never given us trouble (everything else around the engine has). Now, we also have a brand new 2012 JSW TDI, 2,600 miles, and I have added nothing to it.

FYI - we live in SE Louisiana, and I have a daily commute of 130 miles a day, 80% on open interstate, 15% in traffic on the interstate, 5% city driving... give or take...

You shouldn't need additives for gelling where you live, UNLESS you fill up locally and then head north into seriously cold country during the winter...THEN you might encounter gelling as your local fuel most likely is not winter blend. For other purposes, you may wish to use an additive for increased lubricity and/or increased cetane (to diesel what octane is to gas). Higher cetane will typically improve combustion some and "may" increase your fuel economy a tad....

[Zofmui]

Do the additives, over long term use, cause any damage or malfunction to the emission sensors or muffler?

[Aaron Butler]

This thread is a worthwhile read for anyone using biodiesel and/or PowerService as an additive: http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=343251

BTW, I'm ChimpanZed on TDIclub.

With 85 miles on my 2012 JSW I added 4oz of PowerService Diesel Fuel Supplement, and at 200 miles I added .3 gallons of B100. In both instances I topped off the tank with petrodiesel to make sure it mixed. Based on my conversation with PowerService, I plan to switch to 4oz of Diesel Kleen per ~12 gallon fill-up. I also intend to add a quart of B100 as well to make a B2 blend.

FWIW, all diesel sold in Texas is required to have a Cetane rating of 48 or higher. I just wish we got B5 out of the pump like Pennsylvania does.

[daveinpa]

Originally Posted by Aaron Butler

I just wish we got B5 out of the pump like Pennsylvania does.

Hey Aaron- I am also new to diesel. You mentioned that PA has B5... I did see that when I fill up too. Thought that seemed ok... should have researched diesel up front.

Can you tell me why you use all these additives? Is that because of the bio-diesel mix or should I look at an additive for ANY diesel I use?

BTW - I really wish that there was a website for which stations offer what type of diesel... not available anywhere from what I can find. I've been using Sunoco locally because it's the main refinery locally that most stations get their fuel from (like the popular WAWA up here).

Anyways, thanks for any pointers.

Dave
2011 Jetta TDI

[Aaron Butler]

Hey Dave,

I'm new around here and to diesels in general. I'm obsessed with car forums, however, so I like to read up on the quirks of our engines. All that reading has driven me to my current strategy. I am by no means an expert.

I use additives due to the conventional wisdom that ULSD (Ultra-Low Sulphur Diesel) mandated in the US isn't the best for our engines. Unlike with gasoline engines, many parts of a diesel engine's fuel system are lubricated by the fuel itself. ULSD doesn't lubricate as well as some would like, so using lubricity additives like biodiesel, PowerService, etc. is meant to compensate for that.

B2 (2% biodiesel) seems to be the lowest concentration of biodiesel that has the most dramatic impact in increased lubrication. More that B2 seems to have diminishing returns, that is, B5 is only fractionally better than B2. For those of us who have to manually add biodiesel, B2 is a practical concentration to use: one quart biodiesel per tank - B5 would require 1.25 gallons per tank - a bit much to carry in your trunk.

Additional additives are probably overkill for those of us using B2 in high cetane states like TX, but they won't hurt.

[VWDoggy]

Hello,

Okay I am new to diesels also. If adding lubricity to ULSD was a good thing, would it not seem reasonable that VAG would suggest or at least state that additives are okay? If HPFP or injectors benefited through increase service life I would think the OEM would want that or am I missing something?