Hoss 350
My GSP, Dutch
I am taking it upon myself to post this as a way to dispel myths and rumors about the impending change to ultra low sulphur fuel. I’ve seen a bunch of posts on here about guys reading the new stickers that came out, and hearing stuff about ultra low sulphur diesel (ULSD), that I think we ought to put this up as a sticky to catch the poster’s attention before they post. There is a lot of speculation, and a lot of guys are convinced that they will need to buy expensive lubricity additives when it just isn’t so… Here is my attempt to clear some stuff up, as best I can…
A. The Stickers
The stickers need to be read carefully. Incautious reading and subsequent dictation of the sticker’s misunderstood contents on this board has led to a lot of the frenzy. The stickers say, in layman’s terms, that the pump dispenses LOW SULPHUR diesel fuel, which can be damaging to 2007 and NEWER vehicles, and should not be used in such.
Most confusion results in the reader’s mistaking LOW sulphur fuel for ULTRA low sulphur fuel, and then reading “AND OLDER” instead of “AND NEWER”.
The pump, in this case, is dispensing the same fuel you have been running in your truck since 1992. It is LOW sulphur diesel, (550 ppm) which we’ve been running for 15 years now without any trouble. The warning is for guys with 2007 and NEWER trucks that ABSOLUTELY MUST use ULTRA low sulphur fuel. LOW sulphur fuel will damage a 2007 and newer vehicle. That is all the sticker says. If your truck is 2006 or older, then ignore the sticker.
B. Lubricity
This particular item is usually tops in concern when it comes to ULSD, because the cheapest process to remove the sulphur also removes lubricity from the fuel. Therefore, many guys are getting on this board posting that you will have to buy expensive lubricity additives once September rolls around, or your injectors will be scored and ruined.
This is false. The important thing to keep in mind here is that the fuel companies are required by law to meet the same ASTM standard for fuel lubricity that they have been required to meet since 1992, or even before. By all accounts, there will be no change in lubricity in the finished product.
This means that your 2006 and older diesel pickup can run LSD and ULSD interchangeably and without damage to the engine/injectors/etc!
Fuel Economy[/b}
The act of removing the suphur also removes some of the “weight” of the fuel, making it a little “lighter” or “dryer”. This means that ULSD will have a reduced BTU per gallon when compared to LSD. What I have read is that ULSD will have a BTU per gallon content similar to that of biodiesel, which also has a slightly lower BTU per gallon when compared to LSD. I know guys who get BETTER fuel economy on bio than they do on LSD. Actual application of ULSD in test vehicles has produced a 1% reduction in fuel economy, on average.
Before you panic, do the math. Say you get 20 MPG right now. On ULSD, you’ll get 1% less MPG. 1% of 20 is 0.2 MPG, so you will “only” be getting 19.8 MPG on ULSD. I don’t know about you, but my truck varies in fuel economy more than that from tank to tank just because it FEELS like it. Your right foot could EASILY make up 0.2 MPG… SO, this one is just silly to worry about.
Price
This one has also been overblown. The current refining costs or a gallon of diesel are like 6 to 8 cents a gallon, including transportation, etc. from what I’ve been told. The ULSD refining costs, even if they double the refining cost (which it will not) won’t make a big difference at the pump. 6 to 8 cents a gallon is daily variablility around my home, and even at 8 cents a gallon, that only adds $3.20 to a 40 gallon fillup. BFD…
Also, from what I’ve heard, ULSD will not double refining costs, but I don’t know if they have produced a decent estimate yet, so I went with worst case scenario…
Feel free to add to this or correct any mistakes I’ve made, but I figured this would be a good way to keep guys from nail-biting and hand-wringing about this too much, as the rumors fly around like bullets in a war zone… I hope we can sticky this, too, so it stays on top for at least a little while…
A. The Stickers
The stickers need to be read carefully. Incautious reading and subsequent dictation of the sticker’s misunderstood contents on this board has led to a lot of the frenzy. The stickers say, in layman’s terms, that the pump dispenses LOW SULPHUR diesel fuel, which can be damaging to 2007 and NEWER vehicles, and should not be used in such.
Most confusion results in the reader’s mistaking LOW sulphur fuel for ULTRA low sulphur fuel, and then reading “AND OLDER” instead of “AND NEWER”.
The pump, in this case, is dispensing the same fuel you have been running in your truck since 1992. It is LOW sulphur diesel, (550 ppm) which we’ve been running for 15 years now without any trouble. The warning is for guys with 2007 and NEWER trucks that ABSOLUTELY MUST use ULTRA low sulphur fuel. LOW sulphur fuel will damage a 2007 and newer vehicle. That is all the sticker says. If your truck is 2006 or older, then ignore the sticker.
B. Lubricity
This particular item is usually tops in concern when it comes to ULSD, because the cheapest process to remove the sulphur also removes lubricity from the fuel. Therefore, many guys are getting on this board posting that you will have to buy expensive lubricity additives once September rolls around, or your injectors will be scored and ruined.
This is false. The important thing to keep in mind here is that the fuel companies are required by law to meet the same ASTM standard for fuel lubricity that they have been required to meet since 1992, or even before. By all accounts, there will be no change in lubricity in the finished product.
This means that your 2006 and older diesel pickup can run LSD and ULSD interchangeably and without damage to the engine/injectors/etc!
Fuel Economy[/b}
The act of removing the suphur also removes some of the “weight” of the fuel, making it a little “lighter” or “dryer”. This means that ULSD will have a reduced BTU per gallon when compared to LSD. What I have read is that ULSD will have a BTU per gallon content similar to that of biodiesel, which also has a slightly lower BTU per gallon when compared to LSD. I know guys who get BETTER fuel economy on bio than they do on LSD. Actual application of ULSD in test vehicles has produced a 1% reduction in fuel economy, on average.
Before you panic, do the math. Say you get 20 MPG right now. On ULSD, you’ll get 1% less MPG. 1% of 20 is 0.2 MPG, so you will “only” be getting 19.8 MPG on ULSD. I don’t know about you, but my truck varies in fuel economy more than that from tank to tank just because it FEELS like it. Your right foot could EASILY make up 0.2 MPG… SO, this one is just silly to worry about.
Price
This one has also been overblown. The current refining costs or a gallon of diesel are like 6 to 8 cents a gallon, including transportation, etc. from what I’ve been told. The ULSD refining costs, even if they double the refining cost (which it will not) won’t make a big difference at the pump. 6 to 8 cents a gallon is daily variablility around my home, and even at 8 cents a gallon, that only adds $3.20 to a 40 gallon fillup. BFD…
Also, from what I’ve heard, ULSD will not double refining costs, but I don’t know if they have produced a decent estimate yet, so I went with worst case scenario…
Feel free to add to this or correct any mistakes I’ve made, but I figured this would be a good way to keep guys from nail-biting and hand-wringing about this too much, as the rumors fly around like bullets in a war zone… I hope we can sticky this, too, so it stays on top for at least a little while…
