Morris Minor Owners Club

Hello

I have decided I would like to start using fuel stabiliser to protect from ethenol and protect the valves.

I have the option of duckhams classic fuel treatment or Castrol classic valvemaster and I am not sure which to go for.

I do currently use duckhams oil and am very pleased with it but does anyone have any experience of these fuel treatments and which one would you recommend be best.

Thanks
Donald

I don't think an additive will protect your rubber from ethanol but for whats its worth I used to run my Hillman Imp on Valvemaster but that was a freshly rebuilt engine with standard valves and after running it for a couple of years on road rallies etc it was running sweet as a nut.

I’m not sure that anecdotal recommendations for these products count for very much. If you use an additive and your engine doesn’t break has the magic product saved it or maybe it wasn’t going to break anyway.

ianmack wrote: ↑Mon Dec 14, 2020 2:32 pm I’m not sure that anecdotal recommendations for these products count for very much. If you use an additive and your engine doesn’t break has the magic product saved it or maybe it wasn’t going to break anyway.

Probably not, but in my case I found the Imp engine ran somewhat quieter and never caused me an ounce of trouble hence my comment.

Thanks for your replies.

Much appreciated.

A company i deal with had the duckhams in stock so i am going to give it a try.

I will update you on any results i get.

Thanks again
Donald

Murrayminor wrote: ↑Mon Dec 14, 2020 8:45 am I don't think an additive will protect your rubber from ethanol but for whats its worth I used to run my Hillman Imp on Valvemaster but that was a freshly rebuilt engine with standard valves and after running it for a couple of years on road rallies etc it was running sweet as a nut.

Being an aluminium head, it would have had hardened valve seats, suitable for unleaded anyway, no?

Not necessarily - have a read of the information in the link below. Quite a mixed bag of opinions/answers but in the main the consensus appears to be that the valve seats are of good material but not necessarily suitable for unleaded fuel and much is dependent upon how the Imp is driven and what head is fitted.
https://www.imps4ever.info/coollist/98nov/fuel.html

I've always used Valvemaster Plus in mine (since ~2002), which I thought from memory was the only FBHVC approved additive.

I haven't used it on the last few top-ups admittedly and just been running on regular unleaded (original leaded engine still) since the car isn't getting moved much (some of the time we just push it).

Needless to say after buying a couple of bottles they then went and brought out a new version with anti-ethanol additives which is typical

Bowie69 wrote: ↑Tue Dec 15, 2020 3:47 pm

Murrayminor wrote: ↑Mon Dec 14, 2020 8:45 am I don't think an additive will protect your rubber from ethanol but for whats its worth I used to run my Hillman Imp on Valvemaster but that was a freshly rebuilt engine with standard valves and after running it for a couple of years on road rallies etc it was running sweet as a nut.

Being an aluminium head, it would have had hardened valve seats, suitable for unleaded anyway, no?

Yes the Imp does have an aluminium head and steel valve seats but there were issues with the seats being recessed into the head, hence the use of valvemaster.

Hello Again

I have now started using the Duckhams Fuel Additive. Only difference so far is it seems to run a little smother when cold than before but time will the as to how good the protection is.

Donald

Since starting this post (Ethanol Changes) in October I am now giving Esso petrol a go. Maybe a few pence dearer but it saves messing around with additives. See extract below :
Quote:
Our Synergy Supreme+ 99 petrol has more cleaning power than our regular petrol – and includes molecules whose job it is to reduce the friction in your engine helping the moving parts work more efficiently.
Although our pumps have E5 labels on them, our Synergy Supreme+ 99 is actually ethanol free (except, due to technical supply reasons, in Devon, Cornwall, the Teesside area, Scotland and NW England). Legislation requires us to place these E5 labels on pumps that dispense unleaded petrol with ‘up to 5% ethanol’, including those that contain no ethanol, which is why we display them on our Synergy Supreme+ 99 pumps.
There’s currently no requirement for renewable fuel, like ethanol, to be present in super unleaded petrol although this could change in the future, in which case we would comply with any new legislation.
Unquote

David

What are you all going to do when ethanol is blended with petrol in greater quantity.

JOWETTJAVELIN wrote: ↑Sun Jan 03, 2021 8:26 pm What are you all going to do when ethanol is blended with petrol in greater quantity.

Surely you mean "we"
I wonder whether it would be worth our powder and shot to soak typical seals in the various fuels, to examine over time the damage done ?

I once immersed a short length of neoprene fuel tubing in a cupful of 'modern' petrol by way of experiment; within a couple of days it had swelled alarmingly and was reduced to a soft, squidgy texture.