5-20% Percent Biodiesel

WM75Guy · Oct 27, 2012

I filled up at Murphy USA tonight and noticed a new sticker on the pump. It stated the amount of biomass biodiesel may be between 5-20%. The old stickers stated contained up to 5% biodiesel. I wonder how MPG will be affected. It is still ULSD.

dodge man · Oct 27, 2012

That's the way the pumps are marked in my area. I suspect it's B5, but you don't really know.

Soundguy · Oct 30, 2012

same here.

MIKE R · Oct 30, 2012

The only marking on the pumps here is its Low Sulfur. Other than that I don't think it has any crap...I meen bio diesel in it.

newbury · Oct 31, 2012

repowell said:
I filled up at Murphy USA tonight and noticed a new sticker on the pump. It stated the amount of biomass biodiesel may be between 5-20%. The old stickers stated contained up to 5% biodiesel. I wonder how MPG will be affected. It is still ULSD.

Don't worry so much about MPG.
I worry about warrantee, on my '09 TDI.
The max VW approves is 5%. I would be just my luck to fill with "5-20%", have a fuel caused failure and the fuel get tested with it showing 6%, and VW denies the claim. I've pulled up to a Pilot station, saw that and rolled on.

MHarryE · Oct 31, 2012

Heat content is 129,500 BTU/gal for straight diesel (average) and 127,260 BTU/gal for B20. That is about a 1.7% loss in fuel economy. However straight diesel varies as much as 15% and in general the bio diesel is more closely controlled. #1 diesel has significantly less heat content per gallon than #2.

BrianDT · Nov 13, 2012

newbury said:
Don't worry so much about MPG.
I worry about warrantee, on my '09 TDI.
The max VW approves is 5%. I would be just my luck to fill with "5-20%", have a fuel caused failure and the fuel get tested with it showing 6%, and VW denies the claim. I've pulled up to a Pilot station, saw that and rolled on.

Exactly, all vehicles with DPF's will state no more than B5, so if it is higher, you could be plugging up a $1,550+ DPF. All I can suggest there is to double treat with a good additive like optilube to try to get as much of it as posible to burn.

cqaigy2 · Nov 13, 2012

My Brother in Law doesn't know how to spell maintenance and i won't loan anything to him, not even my least favorite axe, since he already broke it. Has run high bio content biodiesel in his orange tractor for years, until his tractor wouldn't start. That is until i showed him how to empty the water out of the separator and away he goes. So in my opinion, for his situation, the biodiesel hasn't been a problem and he's been running it for years. Just think, if he took care of his tractor, he'd probably have all kinds of problems.

bandit67 · Nov 13, 2012

BrianDT said:
Exactly, all vehicles with DPF's will state no more than B5, so if it is higher, you could be plugging up a $1,550+ DPF. All I can suggest there is to double treat with a good additive like optilube to try to get as much of it as posible to burn.

No, some of the newer DPF equipped vehicles are good for up to B20. I own one of them.

I recommend that owners of ALL diesel equipped vehicles put an additive into the fuel tank nowadays. The ULSD has very poor lubricity characteristics. That is the most important issue now. Use a summer additive to add lubricity, and a winter additive to add lubricity and anti-gel properties. Sometimes, cold spells come before the full package of winter anti-gel is added to the fuel by the suppliers, and there have been instances of new vehicle fuel pumps being destroyed by the ULSD due to the lack of lubricity.

Owner added diesel fuel treatment is inexpensive insurance against fuel-related issues.