BS: B7 Blues

Subject: BS: B7 Blues
From: HuwG
Date: 17 Nov 21 - 02:56 PM

No, nothing to do with the awkward guitar chord. It's diesel fuel with 7% biodiesel constituents.

In recent weeks, not only has the price of diesel at my local garage (Tesco) increased by just under 17 pence/litre, but only B7 diesel is now available from the pumps. Nothing will persuade me that B7 diesel is not so efficient as the old, full-fat stuff.

After many vicissitudes with UK cars (mainly Rovers) I bit the bullet six years ago and bought a second-hand Honda Civic (made in Swindon, but nevertheless the shouts of "Speedo" seems to have inspired the workforce to greater diligence, compared with the old BMC / British Leyland / Austin / Rover days). Under the bonnet is a 2.2 litre diesel (i-DTec). Over the years, I have been getting some remarkable economy from it. Partly because my daily commute is mainly over open roads and motorways (US = "freeways"), I usually get 65 miles per gallon (yes, you read that right; 65mpg). My work colleagues are astounded; even with similar-sized and types of engines they can rarely do better than 40 - 45 mpg.

I put this down partly to Honda using the equivalent of VW's emission-testing cheating bastard chip. If I can potter along at a steady 65 mph with as little acceleration or deceleration as possible, the needle on the dashboard which indicates the present economy will go as far as it can. It runs "off the clock" at 100 mpg. Also, my right foot developed Scrooge-like habits when driving e.g. my old Rover 420, which had a dipsomaniac affinity for fuel if driven aggressively or clumsily, with lots of heavy braking, and hard acceleration to catch up again.

Over the last three weeks, even when I have driven with all the verve and aplomb of a bollard, I have only just been able to do any better than 60 mpg. What problem? I hear you ask. Well, up to last month I could do a daily commute of 80 miles in total on a tenner. Now, with increased prices and dilution, I can only just manage £9.90 per commute. I begrudge any extra trip to the cash-point machine that this makes necessary, even if only once every several months.

I remain unconvinced that any reduction in greenhouse gas emission from a given quantity of B7 diesel is not cancelled out by the extra throttle pressure needed to extract the same amount of work from the less efficient fuel. Also, of course, I cannot but feel guilty that every rev is not destroying more rainforest and dispossessing third-world subsistence farmers of their land. See Wikipedia's rather sparse article on the subject.

OK, in a few years I will be forced to drive a government-mandated battery-powered box, which, lacking a garage and being forced to park on the pavement, I have no realistic change of charging. As an example, in the local municipal car park, there are 100 parking spaces with a mere three recharging posts. Running an extension lead through my letter box and across the pavement is not a realistic option, even if I could guarantee being able to park in front of my house.

</grumpyoldman>

Subject: RE: BS: B7 Blues
From: Donuel
Date: 19 Nov 21 - 09:09 AM

I propose all posts be as detailed and erudite as this one or risk being exsponged.
:^/

Subject: RE: BS: B7 Blues
From: keberoxu
Date: 20 Nov 21 - 11:54 PM

that's a scorched-earth approach ...

Subject: RE: BS: B7 Blues
From: HuwG
Date: 24 Nov 21 - 02:47 PM

To "expunge" means to erase or wipe out. "Exsponge" is both more apt and true development of language.

I still maintain that B7 diesel is, by my calculations above, 8.33% less efficient than "normal" diesel. So for the same amount of work, one is burning an extra 0.74% of fossil fuel (and an extra 0.058% of your environmentally conscious biofuel). By these calculations, B7 fuel is an extra three quarters of one percent worse than things were before. To save on fossil fuel usage, at least 9% of diesel fuel must be biofuel, and there is no guarantee that this would make diesel engines even less efficient.

And, by the way, my B7 chords all sound as if they were penned by Enio Morricone (either bad or ugly).

Subject: RE: BS: B7 Blues
From: Donuel
Date: 24 Nov 21 - 03:44 PM

You have developed language well. For me its an experiment.

Subject: RE: BS: B7 Blues
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 25 Nov 21 - 05:56 AM

Well I bought a new Ford Focus Sport with a 1.6 TDCi engine in 2011 when to buy a diesel was to save the world (I've turned into persona non grata because of it by now, of course). I still have it, I've done 130,000 miles in it and it's been a cracker. I tend to tear around in it (a few more months and my speeding points will be wiped at last...). What I've noticed is that I seem to get fewer mpg in winter than summer, a pattern repeated every year. In summer I get around 55-56 mpg, but in winter that is slashed by about 4-5 mpg (ballpark and unscientific, of course).

I wasn't aware of this B7 malarkey. I just grab the nozzle with the black handle and stick it the 'ole. Very interesting. I'll investigate!

Mrs Steve has a lovely little Fiesta Ecojobby, 100 bhp, petrol of course. We're lucky if we can get 42 out of it and it has nowhere near the guts of my Focus...

Subject: RE: BS: B7 Blues
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 25 Nov 21 - 06:10 AM

As for electric cars, did anyone else see that devastatingly awful exposition on the telly last night showing the ruthless and vicious exploitation of a community in DRC by Tesla, who need their cobalt for their car batteries?

Subject: RE: BS: B7 Blues
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 28 Nov 21 - 04:02 AM

Ford C-Max 1.5 Tdci for me. 55 MPG and I haven't seen any recent difference apart from when our local co-op ran out of ordinary diesel during the fuel shortage and I had to fill up with "super" diesel and got 60MPG. But I did go up to Scotland and back as well so that probably helped.

Best petrol car I had was a Honda Civic 1.5 V-tec back when they were in bed with Rover. Driven carefully I got close to 50MPG but if you hammered it, it went like shit off a shovel and MPG dropped to about 35.