RON95 vs RON97, My Experience

 We have seen numbers like RON95 and RON97 in petrol stations. At the time of writing, fuel with a RON97 rating is priced more expensive at RM2.05 per liter while RON95 is going for RM1.80. I do not blame the govt for higher fuel prices in future. If we want to grow into a developed country things have to get more expensive, common economic sense. Ubahla gaya hidup a.k.a Change your lifestyle. The question is which is better? Why is RON97 more expensive than RON95? What is the difference? Should I opt for the cheaper fuel? Let's tackle these questions one by one.


What is this RON rating?
It stands for Research Octane Number, a rating or measure of the knocking resistance of petrol in spark-ignition internal combustion engines. Mumbo-jumbo explanation? Well, knocking refers to parts or all of the air-fuel mixture prematurely ignites before the flame from the spark plug can reach it. Thus causes a decrease in performance and could to a certain extent damage the pistons of the engine.

Lower octane can handle less amount of compression before igniting. Imagine being compressed halfway and the fuel kabooms which implies that knocking can happen easier when using lower octane fuel such as RON95.


Why is RON97 more expensive than RON95?
With a fuel that is able to handle higher compression before ignition certainly means a better fuel quality. Therefore it is fair to say that quality commands a better price. As simple as that.


So which is better?
Basically the compression ratio of your engine determines the octane rating of the gas you must use in the car. It is a big misunderstanding to think that RON97 fuel produces more power than RON95 but in reality higher rating means less fuel burns less easily (reduction in premature ignition). Engines are designed to have a minimum RON rating for its fuel. There are three official ways to check:

1. Check your service manual or booklet for the minimum RON rating that it requires. 
2. Check if there is a min octane number rating at the back of the fuel lid cover.
3. Ask the car manufacturer or the salesman. If he/she can't answer better not buy the car from that sohai person.
4. Or, refer to the reference table below (not a complete list though). The effects of using lower RON then the min requirement means knocking will happen!

 

Note: The reference table is just for guide purposes only, for confirmation please contact your nearest car manufacture service center. 

BUT...hear aboi out first :)
I have tested both RON95 (Shell Fuel-Save) and RON97 (Shell V-Power) on my Myvi (AT) 1300 cc. Before showing the results, it is good to know what are the variables I am trying to fixed during my trial run.

• No additional weight in my car (no extra things/burdens in my boot)
• Average driving speeds of 60kmph-80kmph. I follow speed limits after some hard learnt lessons.
• I do not rev or "lap" above 2500 revolutions per minute. No more ah beng style.
• I always inflate my tires to optimum pressure each time I refill my tank.
• 90% of my driving mileage is from home to office and vice versa.

With RM50 I will get 27.78liters of RON95 and 24.39liters of RON97. The results are 350km for RON95 and 310km for RON97. It was higher last time because my tires are quite worn out after 3 years (I will change soon). This translates into:

• RON95: 12.60km/liter
• RON97: 12.70km/liter (RON97 fuel is marginally better!, I guess also more green as I use less fuel)

The performance of RON97 is the thing that made me go WOW! in comparison to RON95 where I feel there is not much pick up & makes my car feel underpowered. RON97 indirectly delivered more power from less knocking. I can testify that using RON97 will make your driving more pleasurable & enjoyable.


Should I opt for cheaper fuel?
My answer is NO, I will be using RON97 now onwards. Results have shown that using RON97 has comparable mileage to RON95 while using less fuel at the same time, this only means I have avoided a chunk of knocking happening inside the engine. I am a believer of quality and I am planning to keep my car until it is at least 10 years old so I have to preserve the engine for as long as possible. This is unless I can justify my earnings vs spending (because car is a liability not an asset).

My monthly fuel spending equates to RM200, I drive almost 1400km each month. A 160km setback while on RON97 means an additional RM26 on top of RM200. I could offset by changing my driving style as I start to get familiar with RON97 or I just pump it. If the latter, RM26*7years*12months = ~RM2200. That is still hell a lot cheaper than buying a damn new car!

I would conclude that RON95 is applicable in highways or cruising mode but RON97 is more suited for city driving where performance matters at low gears because we tend to stop a lot more often. Try it, experiment with it, I highly recommend RON97.

Day 3: Off to Wuxi

Our aggressive bus driver slapped himself with a nice "bak kua" ticket for illegally parking in front of the hotel in a no parking zone LOL. That is how we started our day. We are off on a journey to Wuxi city, population of about 4.5 million residents. This is also the place where Sunzi or more famously known as Suntzu wrote "the Art of War" when he helped the king in military affairs.

The entire complex is enormous forcing us to take the cabbie surprisingly in yellow colour too instead of walking. We arrived at Lingshan Brahma Palace as our first pit stop for the day. The grandeur structure is made partly from gold and is very majestic with intricate & mesmerizing craftsmanship. See for yourself, if you think Penang Keloksi is grand what till you see this :)

Sprawling colourful neon illuminating and bringing life to the dome.

I certainly won't miss this out. The hottest photographed chick we have seen to-date since arriving in China. (of course got better ones but no photos, no evidence)

This has got to be the biggest hand I have seen in my life. The bright surface is where people have been circling the hand for good fortunes, some form of blessing apparently. Beat that Hand of God Mr. Maradona! Yours too small la.

We made this discovery "Chinaman English". Can the bus run? Stable? If only I could sit using part of my butt only. Don't worry there is no way to go up, go where up ah? how to do that when bus is running le.

We then head over to Lake Taihu (2,250km²), the third largest freshwater lake in China and is about averagely 2 metres in depth. The lake was formed as a result of a meteor impact 70 million years ago. Here we are the shooting site of "Red Cliff".

Wuxi/TV Base is the first large scaled base for movie and TV shooting and for tourism built in China constructed back in 1987. It is given the title of "Oriental Hollywood". There was even an eye-catching performance of cavalry combat, a set from the 3 kingdom movie. Pure delight for action photography.

Had dinner somewhere in town but it wasn't really nice, no pics. Signing off at night in a shopping mall in Wuxi city before heading to a new hotel. You gotta love the Haiboa(s), they are everywhere!

Genting Malaysia UK Acquisition Move [Updated]

Genting Malaysia was one of the top losers during last trading week, slumping as much as 10% in value during intra-day trading. What happened? GENM has proposed to acquire Genting Singapore PLC's operations in Britian (Genting UK) and many viewed the investment as pricey in a risky market. Is it really that bad? Read thestar.biz for analysts comments & come to your own conclusions.

Well for me I think it is too soon to tell, it will most probably take two-three years at least to find out if that investment pays off. Given the tough regulatory environment in the UK; higher gaming duties, smoking ban & removal of some category of games & 2008 financial meltdown, it will take years & many efforts by GENM to improve Genting UK. It is therefore important to keep track of Genting Malaysia's financial performance each year by scrutinizing their annual reports. 

Second, GENM is still in surplus cash even if the acquisition goes through. They would still be in a healthy ~RM3 billion and would still be looking out for other investing opportunities. This is another assurance that I can say which makes GENM still a stable company. 

BUT I do agree that they could have utilize that cash in a better way than to buy a "old man" casino in the UK where competition is strive, it's pretty much a red ocean there. Expansion I believed has to come from Asia where the world's economic growth can be clearly seen shifting from western countries to more modern Asia countries like China, Indonesia & Vietnam.

[Updates] Malaysia Finance comment on GENM's move


GENM share slump is a classic example of people reacting negatively & unnecessarily on bad news which is further amplified by most analysts who says that it is a wrong move. It is not a wrong move, just a bad one. GENM has the cash and is utilizing it for the good of the group and to help their sister company Genting Singapore. Fundamentally Genting Malaysia is still fine, this is why if you are a fundamental investor you need to hold your breath and ride through such volatility which is all very common in the stock market playing field.

There is another type of investor who profits using incremental trading strategy. The caveat? You need time, much more time than being a pure fundamental investor. This means selecting the optimum point in time to make a transcation: either to buy or to sell. The "buy-and-hold" strategy is similar with the exception that you buy when time is bad AND usually this strategy has a longer timeframe (buy at bear market or when it is undervalued).


The incremental trading strategy uses fundamental + technical analysis and uses both together as complement one another. Fundamental tells you which companies are sound and worth to invest where else technical would tell you when to invest or divest by looking at volume and price. In other words this form of technical analysis is called volume spread analysis (VSA). VSA is something I look forward to invest my time in the near future. Once you have the basics of fundamental knowledge I reckon that VSA will be the next step in becoming a more successful & adept investor. I will certainly share my thoughts once I feel than I am capable in that area. A very good book to start would be "Master the Markets" By Tom Williams. You can download it here.