What RON for A4 B8 1.8 T?

[DougC]

I know that Audi states that 95 RON is required for my (A4 B8 with 1.8 TFSI CVT) vehicle, but was wondering if there is anything to be gained by paying a few extra cents for 98 RON instead? Will it be better for the engine and will it do anything for the performance or would I be wasting my money?

[mkc]

Ive always used Shell Optimax and 99 RON that a local supermarket supplies. (Tescos).

If Ive been caught short Ill use whatever I can find at the time

I would say that it makes the car a little more responsive and probably worth the money. No idea if I get more mpg as I dont really keep an eye on that. I do mostly town driving and motorway traffic so Im lucky if I get low 30s, mostly mid to high 20s on my 160bhp 1.8T

[DougC]

Ive always used Shell Optimax and 99 RON that a local supermarket supplies. (Tescos).

If Ive been caught short Ill use whatever I can find at the time

I would say that it makes the car a little more responsive and probably worth the money. No idea if I get more mpg as I dont really keep an eye on that. I do mostly town driving and motorway traffic so Im lucky if I get low 30s, mostly mid to high 20s on my 160bhp 1.8T

Thanks for the quick response. Interesting to hear that it appears more responsive as that is a plus. I guess it all depends on whether it gets extra mileage as well as that may offset the additional cost. Cheers

[markp306]

Our cabriolet had a 1.8T engine (previous 163PS). My wife used to fill with super, 97-99 RON, claiming it was smoother, more responsive and more economical.

I can't say I really noticed that difference myself. However, upsizing (thanks to more kids) to a B8 Avant with a CR diesel has made a difference. Very smooth, very reponsive and (as expected) more economical. I can't seem to achieve the the suggested combined 52mpg, but mid 40's is no problem for my 15 mile non-motorway commute. (Would that be considered "urban")?

[ry19]

I try to use either Shell V-Power (used to be optimax) or BP Ultimate in our 2.0 Tfsi (manual). I reckon it gives a small but worthwhile benefit, with smoother power delivery and a slight increase in MPG. Not sure about impact on engine wear (although I note BP make claims that their stuff keeps things cleaner). I'd probably be switching cars before I started to notice any degradation anyway. Interestingly I've tried Esso 97 a couple of times and don't notice the same benefits.

[DougC]

Thanks everybody for your input. I'm leaning toward trying a higher octane unleaded in the hope that it will give some additional performance plus the added benefit of improved mpg, and who knows, it may even help keep the engine cleaner. I believe that if I can afford the extra pennies and benefit from improved pickup and decreased consumption then this could be a good move. Does anyone know, however, if there are any negatives or is it all good?

[Red 2]

At the end of the day, it it really is a personal choice down to a cost/value judgement. I used to run a Golf GT TSI on V-Power religiously, swapped to 95 when I had to and actually didn't notice the difference. So now I happily fill up with a 'branded ' (i.e Shell, BP etc) 95 octane and pocket the saving.

If I was needing to extract the max performace, 98/99 octane would be a must but in ordinary driving for my purposes, I've got quite enough power with my 1.8T 160.

More interesting and contentious IMPO is the difference between the formulation of some supermarket and 'branded' petrols....I avoid supermarket if I can.