Recently the Government has hiked the price of diesel by Rs. 5 per litre. Beside the normal diesel type there is premium branded diesel as well which one can opt for. Branded diesel category includes Indian Oil ExtraMile, Bharat Petroleum Hi-Speed diesel, Hindustan Petroleum Turbo Jet. The respective prices of these premium diesel brands have gone up by Rs.19 per litre and now they are priced between Rs.59 and Rs.66.
Unlike the normal petrol, the premium diesel type does not enjoy any subsidy from the government and therefore it is a little pricier.
In reality the price of a litre of a diesel is more than what you pay. There is where the subsidy plays an important role. Earlier the oil companies were losing Rs.15 to Rs.19 on every litre of diesel and even after the price of hike Rs.5, oil companies are still losing about Rs.9 per litre. This extra money is being paid by the government through a subsidy.
Benefits Of Premium Diesel?
Essentially the branded diesel is normal diesel mixed with specific additives that reduce soot buildup and carbon deposits in important areas of the engine such as the combustion chamber, fuel pumps and they also lubricate valves. With reduced depositions the life of these crucial components increases and even the operation of the engine becomes much smoother and quieter. There is no increase in the power output but the engine remains clean.
Running Cost On Premium Diesel Vs Petrol
Well, considering an average price of Rs.62 to 63 for a litre of branded diesel and comparing it with a litre of petrol at Rs.71, there is still a significant difference of more than Rs.8 for a litre of fuel. Now if you take into account the mileage of the diesel and petrol models of a particular car, say Volkswagen Polo, you would easily notice that the diesel variant significantly more fuel efficient. This means that a diesel car would still prove to be more fuel efficient than its petrol counterpart.
Is Premium Diesel Worth Extra Money?
After the price hike, I would say it would not be a wise choice to buy premium diesel for your car. It is not worth the extra amount for sure. But if you are really concerned about the engine of your car and do want to keep it clean and smooth running, you definitely have a couple of additive choices present in the market for a reasonable price.
These additives would do the same job, in fact slightly better, as the premium diesel. Some of the additives available are System D, Bardahl fuel improver, STP Diesel fuel treatment, Wurth diesel additive and Valvoline diesel fuel treatment. Every time you get a tank full, you can add a bottle of any of these. See the instructions on the bottle of additive for more accurate mixing instructions.
If you are running a BS IV engine car, then these additives will prove to be helpful. If you add the cost of the bottle to the price of a tankful, it would still be significantly cheaper and moreover will save you more than Rs.500 on every tankful. If you can get the same benefits from a small bottle of additives as premium diesel that too with savings of over Rs.500, buying premium diesel is not worth the extra money.
Data source credits – CarToq
