An article in a reputable fleet management publication revealed that engine manufacturers are increasingly endorsing additives to help close the compatibility gap between today’s ultra-low-sulfur fuels and advanced engine technology. While the article provided some valuable insight, it repeatedly seemed to suggest that diesel additives have little or no bearing on fuel economy.
The author quotes one industry professional as saying, “There are no magic formulas out there that are going to turn your world around and improve your fuel economy.”
While it is technically true that fuel additives won’t increase a brand new engine’s fuel economy beyond its MPG rating fresh off the factory line, a proper additive treatment will absolutely prevent the unnecessary loss of fuel economy that occurs when fuel breaks down due to the extreme engine pressures, temperatures, and tolerances of today’s High Pressure Fuel Injection systems—causing carbon deposits, irregular injector spray patterns, and plugged filters, among other issues.
As fuel quality professionals, our customers closely monitor the efficacy of our additive solutions. When they find that their fuel economy is better than it was before our treatment, they’ll often tell us, “it increased our fuel economy by X-percent.” When we hear this, we’ll usually correct them. We didn’t increase it. We restored it. It’s an important distinction to make.