Fuel Lukoil Ekto. How is it different from Euro?
Brands of gasoline Lukoil Ecto
Among the original brands, Gazpromneft, for example, promotes G-Drive gasoline, and Rosneft promotes Pulsar gasoline. For the Lukoil trademark, branded gasoline is Ecto fuel.
Like its competitors, the main difference of the considered line of motor gasolines is in the composition of additives, the effectiveness of which was previously tested on the equipment of the reputable British company Tickford Power Train Test Ltd. The level of harmful emissions, detonation characteristics, current engine power and specific fuel consumption were evaluated. There is evidence that the additives used in the Ecto fuel make it possible to raise the level of operational properties of this gasoline to the Euro-5 level. This allows motorists who use the services of branded gas stations from Lukoil to visit EU countries without any problems.
The line of fuel in question includes 3 grades:
- ecto-92;
- ecto-95;
- ecto-100.
The actual octane rating of Ecto-92 gasoline is at least 95, and Ecto-95 is 97 units. The manufacturer himself prefers to call gasoline Ecto-100 Ecto Plus.
In addition to octane stability with Ecto fuels, no corrosion hazard to steel parts, a cleaner injector and increased engine life are guaranteed. For Ecto Plus, a reduction in fuel consumption by 5 ... 6% is also positioned. The manufacturer also notes that the proposed range of fuel is focused primarily on cars of European manufacturers - Porsche, BMW and some others.
What is the difference between Ecto and Euro?
The psychology of a status driver is understandable: having a “cool” car brand, you don’t want to use the services of ordinary gas stations from underdeveloped brands. I would like, even with an overpayment, but to drive branded gasoline. To evaluate the real advantages of Lukoil Ecto gasolines from conventional brands, comparative tests were carried out. They showed the following:
- The amount of resinous components in Ecto fuel is indeed reduced (relative to the parameters set for Euro-4 class gasolines).
- The presence of detergent additives (which is declared by the manufacturer) really increases engine power, moreover, it is more effective for fuel with an increased octane number. As a result, exhaust toxicity is reduced, but only for hydrocarbons: the volume of nitrogen oxides released increases, which is associated with an increase in temperature in the combustion chamber. There are no detergent additives in Euro fuel.
- Ecto fuel efficiency from Lukoil increases with the duration of its use. Thus, the presence of detergent additives cleans the engine of dirt accumulated in it over time. True, not all brands of imported cars are indifferent to this: in some cases, there are problems with starting. Over time, these problems disappear.
- The transition to Ecto should be done gradually, after replacing the fuel filters.
- For vehicles not equipped with a pre-fuel injection system, there are no differences between Ecto and Euro.
At the same time, the increase in the cost of Ecto fuels in comparison with Euro-4 class fuels is not so great.
Reviews
In most reviews of consumers using Lukoil Ekto gasoline, it is noted that the figures characterizing the increase in engine power (up to 14,5% or even more) cannot be taken as a serious guideline - it all depends on the condition of the engine and the brand of the car. In some cases, there is no power gain at all; there is only a slight recovery of the previous performance against those observed with conventional gasoline.
Consumers are also confident that the quality of Ecto fuel is increasing due to the fact that higher quality control standards are set for it. Which is unprovable, since few people can in practice trace the chain of operations of the technological process of gasoline production at any of the enterprises. Placebo effect?
There are quite a few warnings that real Ecto gasoline can only be found at branded gas stations, but not at franchised ones.
The cost of gasoline Lukoil Ekto is (lower price - for fuel with a lower octane rating):
- 43 ... 54 rubles / l - at branded gas stations;
- 41 ... 50 rubles / l - at ordinary gas stations located on the highways.
It should be noted that the dynamics of prices varies greatly across the regions of Russia: this is determined by the logistics of fuel transportation.
