High-octane petrol sales continue to fall

According to the Department of Statistics estimates, 98-octane petrols accounted for just 25 percent of pump sales last year (17) – down from 55 per cent in 2005.

Meanwhile consumption of 92 and 95-octane fuels climbed from 45 percent in 2005 to reach an estimated 75 percent last year.

The department indicated that total pump sales (petrol and diesel) have hovered around 8 million barrels per year in the last decade. One barrel is about 159 litres.

It added that the statistics were rounded to the nearest 5 percent.

Oil industry consultant Ong Eng Tong attributed the trend to wider publicity and a better educated motoring public.

“Newspapers like The Straits Times have over the years run reports on why high-octane petrol is not necessary for most vehicles,”Mr Ong said. “The message has finally gotten through.”

He added that the trend has a positive impact on human health, as the use of higher octane fuels produces more pollutants.

The rising acceptance of lower octane fuels notwithstanding, there are still motorists who lean towards 98-octane. Engineer Gay Eng Joo, 47, said his Honda Civic Type R would not operate optimally with lower octane fuels.

Businessman Leslie Chia, 52, uses 98 octane for his Audi A6 and BMW 1 Series but 95 for his Maserati GranCabrio. “I was told 95 will cause ‘knocking’ on turbo engines,” he said, referring to premature ignition which can cause power loss and lower efficiency.

Checks with BMW and Audi however, revealed that all current models from both brands can accept 95-octane fuels – even high-performance variants.