Who uses a Valve Lubricant like Valve master or similar products in their Fuel ??
for their air cooled VW...

I was just looking at some of these products, and nearly bought one...
I still May use one in the future...

Is it cheap insurance -- just in case...??
or a waste of money.. ??

Lee

http://community.webshots.com/user/vw68autobug 

Never bothered. I use anything. If there are a lot of hills ahead of me I splurge and go the premium and mabey even the optimax. Gives me some more topend but I do run a lot hotter too.

I genearally use just regular for around town and have never considered valve lube. One thing I do do and that make sure I get my fuel from one of the big four. As much as I bat for the little guy, the little guy dosen't clean out their tanks as often as I've had crook fuel before. The big four re-refine their fuels once they arrive in Australia, the supermarket fuels and cornerstore budget station tend not to have their fuels rerefined and therefore have more water and impurities. Not a problem really unless you get the dregs from the bottom of the tank.

i use valve lubricant every time i fill up (i fill up ordinary unleaded)
i find it runs a lot better with it, and since it's pretty cheap i figure it's worth it

Hi
I've been running 95 Shell octane fuel in My beetle
and it seems to perform better with it...

I don't know if it runs any hotter...??

somedays it seems hotter than others...
but then some days are much hotter than others...

I run with My engine lid open at the top...
and recommend it highly...
everything in the engine bay is much cooler...

with a Baja bronze, the latter naturally doesn't apply... lol..

cheers

Lee

i recently moved near a servo i would normally never fill up at. its a little IGA shop and independant servo. i got some fuel there though 95 octane and my car ran better than it ever has....except for that time i put some 50/1 2 stroke in it (it ran really well then suprisingly).

then the other nite i got some shell premium as it was late id just finished work needle was on E and i had to drive home.

car ran like a bag of shite for the whole tank, filled up at the iga again and now it runs great again.

i run a lube about every 5 or so tanks if i remember, dunno if it helps or not.

Nick

Hi
My Son tried Optimax in His Beetle and it went terrible.....

I don't know if He has tried 95 octane....

I have been only using Shell fuel...

Lee

I've always been told that aircooled engines don't need the valve lube as the valve seats were already hardened to cope with the high operating temps as opposed to water-cooled engines. I aint a mechanic or engineer so as far as I know this could be complete BS. But it's what I have been told.....
I personally don't bother with any of the aftermarket products.
Usually I run premium grade fuels and fill up at the same servo where I have had no problems with fuel quality.
I am running a type 3 (single carb) so I am used to my car running like shite as this usually isn't the fuels fault that the engine is rebelling against my intentions.
Nothing beats a good tune up.
- Adam

premium fuels have upper cylindar lubricant anyway, also been told that valve saver is basically twostroke oil.

95 shell octane's good for me. Optimax also works fine. not sure if it runs any hotter either...is it best to use the higher octane for long trips? say 150km drive or more?

i used flashlube and valvemaster in my kombi with dead heads. If you are going to use anything, use the flashlube, its scientifically proven better in my back yard. While some ingredients might be the same, flashlube definitely isnt two stroke oil. 2 stroke oil viscosity is similar (but thinner) to engine oil. Flashlube/valvemaster is oily, but it has more of a diesel kinda feel to it.

If you arent suffereing from VSR all are a waste of money though.



[ Edited on 5-11-2006 by amazeer ]

i chuck it in just incase, if it keeps me away from a rebuild a little longer then its all worth it.

i run flashlube mixed in with regular unleaded in my kombi, i live in the bush so i do long distance runs most of the time anything from 200k's to 1500k's depends on where i'm headed kombi always runs sweet, the odd time i put in 95 or 98 octane it does seem to have a bit more grunt.

Its not needed..... All VW engines since 1970 have been built to run unleaded fuel as the US market has been using this type of fuel since that time..... So any head built since then should be fine.... Of course there is always the chance that a rebuilt head may have been built with incorrect parts, but it unlikely... The only time you would need it is if your engine is worn out or a pre-1970 engine with OG heads...

I used to use additive stuff and my mechanic said not to... since then I've had nowhere near the engine probs I used to have.
My PBB loves Otptimax or Optimax Extreme (not fond of BP fuels) but now they're known as V-Power it's still all good! :P

Hi Laura,

thats interesting...
My Son was telling Me yesterday that he uses 95 Octane from Bogas... no additives..
and his Beetle goes good... [1916cc twin webers]
but His car hates Shell....
I use Shell 95 Octane and My beetle seems to really go good...
but I haven't used any additives in the fuel as yet...

Maybe I won't now....

cheers

Lee --

I use unleaded with flashlube now.
I used to just add fuel but when I rebuilt the top end recently the exhaust inserts (valve seats) were receding at the valve contact point. One of the exhaust valves was really sunken. There was no burning or pitting evident however.
I believe that higher octane fuel such as optimax, vortex etc burns more slowly than regular unleaded so for optimum power you'd set the timing on the fuel that you know you will use.

In my old magna I used premium and advanced the timing several degrees and it ran better. Problem was if I ran regular unleaded it would ping. Was the extra performance worth it? Probably not.

The hotter running on 98 or similar (if you experience it) might be due to not running the best advance for that particular fuel.

Also, I would reckon that the upper cylinder lubricants wouldn't be bad for the fuel pump either! Especially electric ones.

Then again this could all be a load of crap...

Cheers, Toby

ppl everywhere go around saying that there cars go heaps harder on premium fuels but to get the full benefit of it u need to advance the timing
which is fine if ur running the same fuel all the time
but when ur always switching between thats not practical

i've always just run straight unleaded but all my motors are twin port which were built to run on unleaded
but most single ports by now have been rebuilt using the same style seats and guides

i'm abit iffy about some of those additives i think its comapnies trying to make money out of a bogus product

i ran my old celica on unleaded coz after 30 years it had enough lead embedded into the seats and guides to survive
it went fine for the 35,000kms i put on it and is still going

[ Edited on 6-11-2006 by DUB74L ]

My PBB is set up to run on premium fuels.

I guess as long as they are set for it, run it and no need to put additivies in.

:P

Factory original heads older than 1970 should also have NO problem on unleaded fuel. VWs always had the hardened seats - the only issue to consider now is the octane rating. Higher octane fuel will always make an engine perform better, burn cleaner and provide better economy - pretty simple. Inconsistenies between brands seems a bit of a nonsense to me, as the controls on fuel standards (98+ RON ratings) are much tighter than on lower octane fuels (95 RON and lower) - I know I have never encountered any problem between any brand of 98+ fuel. Optimax and the like (98+ RON) may cost a few cents extra, but you go that much further. As far as additives go, they seem to contain the same harmful chemicals as used in the LRP fuel, known for its harm to rubber products (i.e. fuel line). I have seen cases of fuel lines disintergrating in the same way after having used 'lead replacement' additives. Don't get me started on fuel catalysts...

Ok to run 95 octane with a 009 distributor...
what do you recommend for timing..??

My Dizzy is set at 32 degrees advance...

I know many people only advance theirs to 28-30 degrees

Is 32 degrees advance OK with the 009 mechanical dizzy?

Any answers welcomed....

Lee

http://community.webshots.com/user/vw68autobug 

I didn't think there'd be any difference with brands of petrol, but there does seem to be slightly.

My PBB runs like crap on Mobil premium, just seems to run rougher and not as good off the mark either.
On BP premium it runs alright but doesn't seem to get the same mileage from a tank.
For me, I use Shell premiums and PBB runs so much smoother, and quicker, and I get around 30 miles extra from a full tank compared to unleaded 95. Took me months to work it all out and compare, but I'm glad I did. I also only see my mechanic for servicing now since using Shell premium... whereas before, too many probs to mention. :P

I used to own a new Honda CR-V also... and again that car used premium. Shell won out in terms of smoothness and performance.

Seems weird though, going from a 2004 model car to a 1970 one and still using the same fuel!

[ Edited on 6/11/2006 by Pretty_Blue_Bug ]

It may be the additives the fuel companies add to their fuel....??
or the octane rating varies..??

I have never used Bogas or the other cheaper fuel companies fuel....

Woolworths is Now Caltex and Coles is Shell...

They will probably take over the Petrol business...

Lee

Lee to answer this Q

posted on 6-11-2006 at 08:32 PM
Ok to run 95 octane with a 009 distributor...
what do you recommend for timing..??

My Dizzy is set at 32 degrees advance...

I know many people only advance theirs to 28-30 degrees

Is 32 degrees advance OK with the 009 mechanical dizzy?

the only person that can answer is you ,you need to time it to suit the fuel you are using,ie,advance it till it starts to pink then retard it 2-3 deg ..with a 009 all bets are off they are constructed so badly anything could be going on inside the thing:beer

I have a shell just round the corner, so use that when desperate, but as I shop at Woolies I collect all the Caltex vouchers. My local Metro is supplied with the same fuel that is supplied to Caltex. So go figure!!
However there seems to be a load of fuel related breakdowns at the moment and they are not just VWs or older vehicles. My mech has given me the following advice: try and use a higher octane fuel whenever possible but drive on to another servo if you see the tanker parked up on forecourt. When they fill up underground tanks it stirs a load of crap that settles out of the fuel. Similarly try not to let vehicle fuel drop too low.
I dont add lubes or the like and my ol' gal (75 Kombi) goes well. Purrs like a kitten!! Honest

G'day,
I run .5 ml per litre of ATF fluid in straight unleaded in the Desert Splitty and it seems to run cooler and run well. We recently drove 4200 ks in 7 days in the DS and some days the temp was in the high 30s and it never missed a beat.
Cheers, Ian.

I use flashlube in all my VW's, including the race car.

I chuck some Nulon in the Kombi occasionally when I can be bothered doing so... seeems to run a bit smoother and quieter? when I run the additive... but I don't add it religiously at every fill up.

As far as the fuel itself goes, I generally use United ULP 91 (bog standard unleaded) and it runs good enuff for me... on occasion I will put in 1 part premium 98 (with ethanol) with 3 parts standard 91, and it gives a bit of extra kick to the car... but I only do that when I'm feeling frisky!

I've tried running straight ULP 95 with ethanol a few times, and every time it has run rough and hot, and economy is inferior to that of normal ULP.

Back on the subject of valves and additives, I was told by a VW specialist at one stage that without leaded fuel or an upper cylinder lube, the valve stems and guides wear out faster? Sounds like a reasonable claim I guess....

Cheers!