"mergi" Fuel Economy Booster

[Guest Colin Hunter]

Hi Folks.

 

With the recent rise in Fuel prices, £1.18 a litre here in Shetland! (and more to come we hear!) it is more important than ever to squeeze as many mpgs as we can out of a tankfull. I was recently made aware of a product called Mergi and was persuaded to try it out. It's not cheap. A 500 ml bottle is about £25. However the benefits are many. Before I started using it in my 110 Hdi Xantia I was averaging about 43 to 45 mpg in general running here in Shetland. Since using it my average has risen to 47 with some fills being above 50. When I had the car on the Mainland in September my best was 53.5. Previously I had never been above 50, 49.7 being the best.

 

It was originally developed for Marine engines burning Heavy Fuels but works just as well in Automotive Diesel and Petrol engines. As well as giving better economy through improved combustion it is claimed to "Clean" the engine internals at the same time. I reckon my car is smoother and more tractable since using it. You start off at twice the dosage 20 ml / 40 ltrs and after 2 or 3 fills you should see a difference. You can then reduce to 10ml/40 ltrs but a little more won't hurt. I reckon that for a 50p "Shot" I'm saving up to £6 or so on a tankfull due to improved milage. Anybody got any other "Magic" potions.

 

Cheers Colin

[wozza]

No magic portions but just be careful with some of these fuel additives. While they work some of them have a nasty habit of damaging car injectors. However since the xantia isn't as fussy as the newer cars. You could probably get away running veg oil in those at least a partial mix might help bring costs down even more.

 

Know a couple people who have run 106's and 306's on nothing else but veg oil and have done for more than a year. 50 / 50 mix might be worth a try anyway. Least then you get half the tank filled for 50p a litre.

 

Not recommended so much for newer vehicles though.

[Guest Colin Hunter]

If you have any doubts about the compatibility of Mergi with modern Automotive engines then please check out their website at http://www.mergi.com/ there is even an insurance policy which covers users for damage caused by the product. They have not had a single claim for five years! I don't think you'll find any such assurances at this site http://www.florahearts.co.uk You could ask Gary Rhodes to fix your engine I suppose!

 

You can put veg oil in YOUR car if you like, sure, it will run on it, but it will eventually become gummed up unless you use one of the processes that are now available to convert veg oil to "Bio Diesel" Even then you should be carefull not to exceed the manufacturers reccomended limit.

 

I have been an Engineer for many years. I hold a Class 1 Certificate of competency for both Motor and Steamships. Therefore I think I know what I'm talking about when it comes to engines! Large or small. I do not make statements unless I can back them up with scientific proof! That's what engineers do !

[wozza]

It is only going back to something more akin to what diesel engines started out as. An engine designed to run on peanut oil.

 

Few modifications can have them running on veg oil etc without problems. Just more modern engines tend to throw up error codes etc. Not quite as simple with more modern engines as the computer reports anything out of the norm as an issue and tends to do something about it.

 

Still to me makes no difference....mines a petrol and even if I had a diesel I still wouldn't put anything but diesel in it. To me if you cant afford a simple thing like fuel you cant afford the car. If it gets to the point I can not afford to run my car properly I will buy something smaller and cheaper to run.

 

Until that point though I am going to sit and happily not care about fuel prices right now. Although can imagine its a bit of a bugger up there at £1.18 a litre. Utter rip off. Still only 99p here.

[Guest Colin Hunter]

HI Wozza! (And others) Been reading your replies again and trying to figure out how anybody can possibly save money using veg oil. You say it can be bought for 50p a litre. In Our local Somerfields today the cheapest is 94p (Their own brand) and the dearest about £1.50. Unless you mean buying it in bulk drums from wholesale suppliers which sell to the catering trade. Unfortunately you have to have a trade card to access them here so I guess that one is out the window! Doing my "Sums" at the price I can by veg oil for at a 60/40 mix I'm still ahead with the Mergi and gauranteed no problems. You pays your money! Cheers. :rolleyes:

[Guest Colin Hunter]

Further update on the fuel consumption. `I have just had my "Worst" fill since using Mergi at just under 46 mpg. This was on (mainly) short runs where the engine was hardly up to running temperature by the time the destination was reached. To put this in perspective, in the same type of usage and similar ambient temperatures this time last year,( Pre Mergi ) I was getting 40/41 mpg. Certainly seems to work.

[richbaker]

Fuel is any material that is burnt or altered in order to obtain energy Fuel releases its energy either through chemical means, such as combustion, or nuclear means, such as nuclear fission or nuclear fusion. An important property of a useful fuel is that its energy can be stored to be released only when needed, and that the release is controlled in such a way that the energy can be harnessed to produce work.

 

All carbon-based life forms—from microorganisms to animals and humans—depend on and use fuels as their source of energy. Their cells engage in an enzyme-mediated chemical process called metabolism that converts energy from food or solar power into a form that can be used to sustain life. Additionally, humans employ a variety of techniques to convert one form of energy into another, producing usable energy for purposes that go far beyond the energy needs of a human body. The application of energy released from fuels ranges from heat to cooking and from powering weapons to combustion and generation of electricity.

 

 

 

 

_______________________

Mercedes parts blog | Performance parts blog

[Guest Colin Hunter]

OK! Fine! but we're talking about saving fuel, and, more to the point, money here. Not the Planet. But then I suppose one would go in hand with the other. Ultimately! Hmmmmmmmm!

[Stevie]

This is gonna sound strange-even to me while i type it! :P

 

Few weeks back,i accidently filled my ZX diesel up with Shells 'V-Max' (go faster) diesel fuel cos i wasnt paying attention and only realised was when the nozzle clicked off at £53 which is around £8 more than it would require with normal stuff.Admittingly,it did make my car more responsive and accelerated quicker,but the peculiar thing is-it did more miles to that tank full that it would with conventional diesel. :D

 

I normally average around 400 miles per tank (i dont run it down too low) cos my journeys tend to be on twisty roads here in east anglia going to and from work.That particular tank of V-Max diesel however was odd cos i did 440 miles effortlessly and i was driving it harder-taking advantage of the extra oooomf! :P

[Guest Colin Hunter]

Doesn't really surprise me. I don't know anything about V-max Diesel, Other than the fact it exists as it isn't available here to the best of my knowledge.

 

If (One can Safely assume) it has a higher calorific value than standard diesel then a given mass or volume will provide more energy, so you will have higher combustion pressures which, in turn, will lead to a higher mean effective pressure over the combustion stroke and to more torque and power. If you then drive "normally" the engine will inject less fuel for a given output, so giving more MPG.

 

Mergi works in a similar manner. By lowering the "ignition delay" of the fuel it encourages a faster and more complete burn, thereby releasing more energy and reducing the amount of unburnt fuel, leading to clreaner emissions and less carbon build-up in the combustion chambers, rings and turbo nozzles etc.

 

If I could get a tankfull of V-Max I would be most interested in the results!

 

Thanks for your input. Cheers :D

[Stevie]

Hi there Colin.

 

Im quite intrested in the Mergi stuff you use,but i cant seem to find out anything about it or distributors using Google.Does it make a difference in improving performance too???

 

I normally fill up with supermarket diesel (Tescos) if im near one cos its cheaper than the main oil compaines,but the downside is its crap fuel.I know im driving a boggo standard diesel and not a sporty hatchback,but my accidental experiment with Shells V-Max diesel proves that diesel quality does make a difference and you get what you pay for.The only bad point was the price of V-Max per litre...it makes your eyes water....a lot... :D

 

I used to toy with different petrols and octance boosters/fuel additives when i had a modified Calibra Turbo.I always ran it on superplus unleaded which made it quicker,but always put a bottle or two of octane stuff in the tank for our trips on Santa Pod's drag strip.Sadly,it died a painful death due to my lead foot and then i decided to be normal & get a ZX diesel...made me feel like i was cycling again! :P

[Guest Colin Hunter]

Have you had a look at the website? http://www.mergi.com/ Have a look through there and you'll find contact details. The place I get the wee bottles up here in Shetland also supplies it in bulk drums to the Fishing Industry and Road Hauliers etc for use in Bulk tanks. There a may even be an opportunity for someone in your area to become involved in the supply side. If you contact the company they will be able to tell you where you'll get some. It's quite expensive, £25 for a 500 ml bottle but I've been using it since March and I'm still on the same bottle. As I've said before, I reckon a 50p "Shot" is saving £6 to £8 on a tankfull due to improved milage.

 

Perhaps the reason I didn't get as good MPG while I was on the Mainland in September was due to Supermarket Diesel. I did notice a drop -off in performance but put that down to the car being more heavily loaded than normal.

 

Cheers. Sorry I can't be of more help as to where to get it.

[wozza]

Hi there Colin.

 

Im quite intrested in the Mergi stuff you use,but i cant seem to find out anything about it or distributors using Google.Does it make a difference in improving performance too???

 

I normally fill up with supermarket diesel (Tescos) if im near one cos its cheaper than the main oil compaines,but the downside is its crap fuel.I know im driving a boggo standard diesel and not a sporty hatchback,but my accidental experiment with Shells V-Max diesel proves that diesel quality does make a difference and you get what you pay for.The only bad point was the price of V-Max per litre...it makes your eyes water....a lot... :lol:

 

I used to toy with different petrols and octance boosters/fuel additives when i had a modified Calibra Turbo.I always ran it on superplus unleaded which made it quicker,but always put a bottle or two of octane stuff in the tank for our trips on Santa Pod's drag strip.Sadly,it died a painful death due to my lead foot and then i decided to be normal & get a ZX diesel...made me feel like i was cycling again! ;)

 

 

Did you ever see those tests on the 5th gear website they went to some company Ford or someone else and tested all those octane boosters on some turbo'd engines. They actual results were that most of them lost power and not 1 of the test showed them gaining anything at all.

 

You are definitely right on supermarket petrol though. Now we all know it really comes from the same company as there are only a couple refineries. But it is what else that is added that gives the lower MPG etc.

 

On V-power petrol it's easy for me to get above 30mpg. On normal shell stuff I get around 38mpg on Tesco stuff...24mpg. Did this a few times thinking it was me after the 4th tank full of Tesco fuel I decided not to go back there again. Especially as it is the same price as the local shell garage. Infact the local Tesco is now more expensive.

 

Tried the same test on the other car. With Tesco fuel it struggles to get 20mpg usually 17 - 18mpg at shell it managed a rather good 22mpg. Tesco fuel is generally shite though I find. And on the Clio forum ( I used to own a Clio) The same thing has been said hundreds of times that Tesco fuel gives lower MPG.

[Guest Colin Hunter]

Generally speaking, supermarket fuels do not contain the same level of additives that fuels from Oil Companies do. True, the supermarkets ultimately get their supplies from the oil companies but it won't be the same stuff you'll buy from BP or Shell for instance. They spend a lot of time and money ensuring that their fuels perform well and the results are evident. The use of an aftermarket additive like Mergi only seems to improve things further. I haven't heard of anybody trying it in a Petrol engine yet but it's supposed to work in them too. Cheers lads.

[Randombloke]

If you have any doubts about the compatibility of Mergi with modern Automotive engines then please check out their website at http://www.mergi.com/ there is even an insurance policy which covers users for damage caused by the product. They have not had a single claim for five years!

 

 

There were no signs of this on their web site. Has it been redesigned?

[Randombloke]

The report is here:

 

Mergi insurance report

 

Thanks to Colin for the info.

[Guest Colin Hunter]

Last tankfull probably worked out at about 45 mpg. Difficult to tell properly because I had a binding front brake which caused a wheel bearing to fail. The car was so stiff it couldn't be pushed easily but still managed 43.6 on the figures. as I say. Difficult to judge properly. Will keep updated on further fills now the bearing's been replaced. :ph34r:

 

Cheers Colin

[wozza]

43mpg how rubbish are you. I managed to get 42mpg out of a Petrol engine just before it had to go in to have its gearbox stripped down.

 

I award you a grade of C-...must try harder.

 

On a serious note and no pee taking glad you can post again mate.

[Guest Colin Hunter]

43mpg how rubbish are you. I managed to get 42mpg out of a Petrol engine just before it had to go in to have its gearbox stripped down.

 

I award you a grade of C-...must try harder.

 

On a serious note and no pee taking glad you can post again mate.

 

What kind of a roller skate was that on then????????

 

Seriously though, what must be taken into account here is that the car is being used in the Shetland Isles and the longest run it gets is 25 miles to Lerwick and back 2 or 3 times a month. Mostly used on short runs of a couple of miles to the shops at this time of year,and 6 or 7 miles to work. Most of the time the car is barely getting hot! I doubt very much if you'd get even 25 mpg in similar usage from a 2.0 petrol Xantia so 43 with a knacked wheel bearing is OK by me!

 

I had an Astra MK1 GTE many moons ago which also returned very good milage, 45 plus on a run and 35 or so knocking about. But that was pre Unleaded and CAT which did nothing at all for economy and performance. Absolutely ATE front tyres though! 6000 miles out of a pair of P6's They were expensive back then too!

 

Cheers Wozza!

[wozza]

Was in the C4 that I got that. Was due to doing a few runs to Bolton and back around a 30 mile round trip. Once I get back into Manchester city centre it drops big time but then I am lucky to get out of 1st gear. So can drop as low as 19mpg. Depending on state of traffic and how much time spent in city centre.

 

hopefully I will get my C4 back this week. As I am missing it. Been complaining for months the gearbox wasn't quite right change felt sloppy etc. But was always told it was normal. Drove another C4 which had a much better change and didnt grind going into 3rd if you changed quickly. But again fobbed off. Took it in for a new CV boot was told later the driveshaft had gone a couple days later when it was changed.

 

They then tell me I need to pay for it and warranty wont cover it. Then warranty decides to cover it they change the shaft and then discover the gearbox is knackered as well.

 

Fun times! Glad it happened now coming up for 3 years old.

[Guest Colin Hunter]

Sorry to hear your pride & joy is poorly! Don't suppose the gearbox is one of Jeremy Clarksons much detested "Flappy Paddle" jobs? Don't know where Citroen think they're going with those. Don't appeal to me anyway. Was thinking of buying a C4 picasso as my arthritic hip is playing hell with getting into and out of the Xantia! Discovered I can't have the 136 2.0 hdi without the aforementioned monstrosity! BUGGER! Oh well I suppose the 1.6 will have to do! (SIGH)

 

Cheers. Hope your P&J gets better soon! (Won't EVER do 54 mpg though!)

 

Cheers! :)

[Guest CE05LDB]

I am one of those Flappy paddle Gearbox owners. My C3 Exclusive Sensodrive has been brilliant. it is great on Fuel I get up to 55mpg and due to not being able to use the peddes and can only drive with Handcontrols its the nearest thing to a manual I can owe and to be honest I couldn't see myself going back to a fully Automatic car. Sensodrive all the way for me.

[Guest Colin Hunter]

I am one of those Flappy paddle Gearbox owners. My C3 Exclusive Sensodrive has been brilliant. it is great on Fuel I get up to 55mpg and due to not being able to use the peddes and can only drive with Handcontrols its the nearest thing to a manual I can owe and to be honest I couldn't see myself going back to a fully Automatic car. Sensodrive all the way for me.

 

Yes. To be fair about the sensodrive box, the guy at our local dealership did tell me that C4s (HDis) fitted with the sensodrive box actually fell into a lower tax bracket for emissions (And thereby better economy) than did the manual versions. What I am bemoaning is not the technology, but the lack of choice. I have driven a Pug 407 with the 136 engine coupled to a 6 speed manual box and it's AWESOME! I would just have liked to be able to have the same in a C4 Picasso. Not Possible.

 

The Sensodrive box is basically an automated manual box, so does not suffer the same economy penalty that a conventional Auto box and torque converter set up does. I have to say that if I was in the position of being unable to operate foot controls then the sensodrive would be my choice too. Either that or VW audi's DSG setup with twin clutches, but probably a lot more cost as well.

 

I note that yours is a petrol. Does that mean you can't have a diesel with the Flappy Paddles?

 

Cheers. Thanks for the comments. Colin

[wozza]

The EGS is supposed to be quite good though. Better than the sensodrive it replaces. Got an extra gear for a start.

 

Although would still prefer a manual but in a big car like the Picasso..does it really matter? Whole idea is the car is big and comfy and a bit of a cruiser so the auto boxes would suit it better.

 

You could go for a regular auto which is also a 6 speed box and is not lmited as much as the EGS on torque. The Auto 2.0 HDI actually gets the full amount. The EGS is detuned slightly. The Auto also has a flappy paddle override for when you know best.

[kerpal]

The EGS is supposed to be quite good though. Better than the sensodrive it replaces. Got an extra gear for a start.

 

Although would still prefer a manual but in a big car like the Picasso..does it really matter? Whole idea is the car is big and comfy and a bit of a cruiser so the auto boxes would suit it better.

 

You could go for a regular auto which is also a 6 speed box auto body part and is not lmited as much as the EGS on torque. The Auto 2.0 HDI actually gets the full amount. The EGS is detuned slightly. The Auto also has a flappy paddle override for when you know best.

 

Hmmm, in my opinion, I'd go for the 6 speed box.