Dodgy diesel on TV tonight

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Wed 30 Oct 2002 22:38
Dodgy diesel on TV tonight - Tony Bee
Anyone see the report on dodgy diesel ?
One shot showed a fuel pump selling diesel suspiciously cheaply,i.e. 72.9 p per litre.
I`ve just filled up on the A414 with diesel 4 or 5 or 6 pence per litre cheaper than "normal". It was wearing Shell logos everywhere so I should be safe.Shouldn`t I ???????
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Wed 30 Oct 2002 22:51
Dodgy diesel on TV tonight - Honestjohn
Try frying your chips in it.

HJ
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Wed 30 Oct 2002 23:24
Dodgy diesel on TV tonight - SjB {P}
In this case it is not cooking oil, but kerosene.

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/2376337.stm

/Steve
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Thu 31 Oct 2002 01:42
Dodgy diesel on TV tonight - Onetap
Kerosene is an incorrect term. It would be either agricultural diesel, or gas-oil heating fuel; both have red dye and chemical tracers in them. Neither have had the customs duty, for use on the public roads, paid on them.
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Thu 31 Oct 2002 09:44
Dodgy diesel on TV tonight - Honestjohn
Chips was a joke, of course. They're allowed here. I didn't imagine that any Backroomer would be bananas enough to fry his chips in diesel. The point of the programme was surely that high taxation in one country and low taxation in the country next door is bound to lead to cross-border trade. Cars themselves are very heavily taxed when new in Ireland, but less heavily when imported used, which is why the auctions used to be full of Irish lads buying diesels of a certain age to sell on in Eire. Irish diesel go one way. British cars go the other.

HJ

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Thu 31 Oct 2002 02:46
Dodgy diesel on TV tonight - Paul Mykatz-Tinks
Didn't see the report. What was dodgy about it?
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Thu 31 Oct 2002 07:51
Dodgy diesel on TV tonight - Andy P
There were severtal threads to this story -

garages selling diesel smuggled from southern Ireland, where fuel duty is lower

garges selling diesel which had been mixed with kerosene

plants removing the dye from red diesel


In the second case, it was easy to tell the difference. Normal diesel should be almost colourless. The mixed stuff looked almost the same as cooking oil.



MC
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Thu 31 Oct 2002 15:42
Dodgy diesel on TV tonight - Onetap
I missed the programme. The red dye can be taken out with absorbents, so that the fuel looks kosher, but this won't touch the chemical tracers. The abrasive absorbents will also have unpleasant effects on fuel pumps & injectors.

I didn't know kerosene/paraffin mixed with diesel would work.

It might be wise to start keeping receipts for diesel fuel. Customs and Excise may start more widespread testing in response to the cooking oil scam. Motorists will get penalized, even if they've unwittingly bought dodgy diesel from a forecourt, unless they can provide receipts corresponding to their mileage.
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Fri 1 Nov 2002 16:32
Dodgy diesel on TV tonight - andymc {P}
This subject was discussed at some length in this thread: www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?f=4&t=81...8

I've tried to put as much factual information as I could in there.
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