What is ECTO gasoline and what are its advantages?

Advantages and disadvantages of EKTO gasoline

Increased natural disasters are the result of human interference in the ecological balance. The main role in this is played by greenhouse gases, which have led to a sharp change in the climate. Not surprisingly, scientists have sounded the alarm and forced the governments of leading countries to pay increased attention to environmental issues, one aspect of which is the reduction of fugitive gas emissions. Beginning in the 1990s, norms were introduced in Europe with regard to stricter requirements for the composition of automobile emissions. This was achieved by introducing a whole range of additives into the fuel composition. But since the real impact of the measures taken has been negligible, the Euro standards are constantly being revised. The producers of internal combustion fuels have to keep up with these requirements, improving the quality of gasoline, primarily in terms of ecology. But other performance characteristics of motor fuel are not neglected either. Modern additives reduce fuel consumption and maximize the resource of power units. Until recently, domestic gasoline producers were “trailing behind” the process, but thanks to the efforts of the Lukoil concern the matter has moved on from the dead point.

EKTO 92 gasoline: what is it?

The appearance of the product under the brand EKTO in 2009 in the petrol line of one of the leaders of the domestic producers of motor fuel is a truly evolutionary step, since the firstborn petrol, EKTO 92, has appeared to comply with EURO-5 ecological standards. Many car owners wonder what EKTO means in the gasoline name. It turned out to be quite simple. The deciphering of the brand name: EK is eco-friendly, and TO, respectively, is fuel. Initially the quality of this product significantly exceeded the technical requirements set by Gosstandart, meeting modern European environmental standards by most parameters. This was achieved through the use of a special additive package designed to have a protective effect on all the fuel system components, prolonging the engine life and reducing the concentration of hazardous substances in the exhaust gas.

Of course, all this time LUKOIL was not going to rest on its laurels. The production technology of EKTO 92 gasoline was improving, and soon filling stations were offering fuel with PM 95, and then the high-octane product – EKTO 100 gasoline, analogous to Euro 98. Each of the above-mentioned products is oriented to its own consumer. With their unique performance characteristics, EKTO gasolines are designed for use in any modern vehicles equipped with ICE. All three types of fuel contain additives with a whole bouquet of positive qualities, from cleaning and detergent to anticorrosion ones. The composition of EKTO gasoline contains five times less benzene and three times less sulfur than conventional fuel. That significantly reduces the concentration of carcinogens and sulfur compounds in the exhaust gas. Adding environmentally friendly additives only strengthens the position of gasoline with the prefix EKTO from the standpoint of the fight for preserving the purity of the environment.

Differences between EKTO and EURO standards

The domestic oil refining industry has never been distinguished by its desire to comply with global trends in terms of the quality of end products. Most refineries have long produced fuel that was far below European standards. And when it was supplied to the retail network, it was subjected to manipulations that did not contribute to improvement of consumer properties, be it diesel fuel or gasoline. But times are changing, and the market forces compliance with global criteria even in such a conservative field as oil refining. The emergence of ECTO gasoline is convincing evidence of this trend. But what is the difference between EKTO gasoline (Lukoil) and EURO, which was the monopolist at Russian gas stations for a long time, and how significant are these differences? Let’s try to understand this question.

First of all, let’s look at what the EURO ecological standard is, when it appeared and why it was introduced. As already noted, the environmental trend significantly increased at the end of the last century, when it became apparent that human activity is one of the main causes of global climate change on the planet. But while it was not possible to reach a global consensus on emissions from industrial enterprises, in the sphere of the automotive industry successes were more significant, especially after the development of the EURO environmental standard, whose requirements are now adhered to by most car manufacturers. However, initially, the standard was only valid in the territory of the European Union. Most of the provisions of this document concern restrictions on the concentration of harmful and especially harmful components in the automobile exhaust. Here is a chronology of the appearance of new, more stringent standards in relation to their predecessors:

• 1992 – formation of the basic EURO standard which was prefixed by 1;
• 1996 – birth of the EURO-2;
• 2000 – further toughening of the requirements within the framework of EURO-3;
• 2005 – appearance of EURO-4;
• 2008 – the transition of automakers to the EURO-5 standard.

If according to EURO-3 the admissible concentration of sulfur in fuel was 150 mg/kilogram, in the previous edition of the standard it was much higher – 500 mg/kilogram. Unfortunately, Russian gasoline producers lagged hopelessly behind their European counterparts. Thus, the transition to the EURO-3 standard took place 13 years after its adoption in the EU. The document itself regulates the content of a number of environmentally hazardous substances in gasoline, as well as technical characteristics of fuel: cetane number/index, flash point, concentration of sulfur, water, benzene, aromatic hydrocarbons.

Since the average motorist does not know much about all of the above, it is worth dwelling on it in more detail:

• The amount of benzene directly affects not only the toxicity of gasoline itself – a significant part of it is also present in the vapors of burned fuel. Another negative effect of high benzene concentration is carbon deposits in the cylinders, which lowers the efficiency of the engine and reduces its service life. According to the current environmental standards, no more than 1% of benzene is allowed in EURO-class gasoline (previously, this figure was much higher – 5%);
• Sulfur is oxidized during combustion to form sulfuric acid/sulfuric acid. Their impact on the powertrain components can by no means be called positive, especially for modern engines, whose BCs are made of aluminum alloys. The adverse effect of acids significantly reduces the service life of the exhaust system, including the catalytic converter. The EURO-3 standard allowed sulfur concentration of not more than 150 mg/kilogram, the EURO-4 requirements were tightened to 50 mg/kilogram, and according to the latest revision, this amount was reduced to 10 mg/kilogram;
• Aromatic hydrocarbons – substances that increase the VF, but at the same time lead to an increase in soot formation. Both rubber and plastic parts suffer from contact with such substances, because, by their nature, AA are solvents capable of corroding glands, hoses, gaskets, filter elements, etc;
• octane/cetane rating. The lower the octane/cetane rating, the faster the fuel burns. For this reason, the use of low-octane fuel causes detonation processes, which have a negative impact on the engine life, increasing combustion, resulting in burnt valves and damage to pistons.

It should be noted that the introduction of all new eco-standards mainly concerns new cars. It makes no sense to pour Euro-5 gasoline into an old Zhigul – their engine is designed to use “older” standards for most indicators. The same applies to foreign cars. Say, it is not worth pouring fuel corresponding to the latest generations of the standard into the car, the power unit of which is oriented to use gasoline Euro-3. Otherwise you risk to disable lambda probe or CK sensor prematurely, which replacement cost is high enough. If you see Euro-4/5 gasoline at the gas stations, in most cases it is imported product, since most of domestic refineries are still capable of producing products with characteristics no higher than Euro-3. The situation has changed with the appearance of Lukoil’s EKTO line.

What are the differences between gasoline EKTO-95 and EURO-95? According to the producer itself, the main task set for the engineers of the company was to produce the fuel that would initially comply with the standards of the European ecological standard. That is what gasoline EKTO-95 has become (EKTO-92 corresponded to Euro-3 standards in force at that time). The main difference between the EKTO gasoline and ordinary gasoline is the presence of a wide range of additives, the use of which enabled the following improvements of technical characteristics:

• engine life increase with regular use of gasoline with the prefix EKTO;
• Increased power of the power unit without any side effects;
• reliable protection of metal components of the fuel system against corrosion;
• reduction of the detonation level, which allows the engine vibration and noise level to be reduced;
• increase of the inter-interval period for changing the engine oil (reduction of the maintenance costs);
• improvement of fuel injection process, which allowed reducing the wear of injection system components;
• reducing the amount of hydrocarbon deposits in the nodes and elements of the injector, thereby improving the stability of the power unit and reducing fuel consumption;
• increasing the service life of the CU and lambda probe.

The specialists of Lukoil conducted a series of tests aimed at comprehensive testing of their innovative product. As a result, it turned out that the distinctive feature of EKTO-95 gasoline in relation to fuel complying with EURO-5 standard is the reduction of consumption by about 5%, but on the condition of driving it for at least 2 thousand kilometers. After 500 kilometers of using EKTO-95, the economy was about 3.5%. The injector was cleaner and the level of deposits on the intake valves was noticeably lower. A noticeable difference between EKTO-95 and EURO gasoline was in the improved dynamic performance of the engine. The tested car (KIA RIO) accelerated smoother and faster on Lukoil fuel. Particularly noticeable agility manifested itself when overtaking and pushing the accelerator pedal to the floor. Shifting of gears (automatic transmission was installed on the car) was much softer.

After the car had been driven for a long time on ECTO gasoline, I switched to Euro, which was marked by the appearance of unfamiliar sounds from the engine. The change of gears was accompanied by vibrations, felt throughout the body. Another conclusion – driving on ECTO makes the interior more quiet, the noise of the engine on the KIA RIO having not the best sound insulation became comparable to the tire sounds, produced by a high-speed driving on the highway. Finally, one fill up of gas tank with ECTO fuel managed to go 40-80 kilometers longer than driving with Euro standard gasoline. At the end of the experiment, the plugs were taken out, which turned out to be noticeably cleaner after EKTO.

Advantages and disadvantages of the line of EKTO gasoline

We have already mentioned most of the advantages of Lukoil motor fuel, but it would be worthwhile to list them all:

• ensuring more stable and reliable operation of the power unit;
• increasing the total life of the engine and all its components;
• increasing engine power and efficiency;
• effective corrosion control;
• reduction of vibration/noise level when the engine is running;
• increase of regulation terms of MM replacement;
• reduction of the wear rate of the injection system parts;
• extension of the life time of the crankshaft;
• prevention of injector parts deposit formation;
• more stable and failure-free operation of diagnostic systems;
• more than threefold reduction of sulfur content in comparison with conventional fuel;
• fivefold reduction of sulfur concentration.

It should be noted that all these advantages will be most noticeable in cars with low mileage. For power units of venerable age, at the initial stage of using new gasoline from Lukoil, there may be some minor deviations in operation, related to the action of detergent additives. The fact is that modern effective additives are able to dissolve a considerable part of deposits, which, getting into the fuel filter, will accumulate in it, reducing fuel supply. Therefore, it is recommended to replace the fuel filter element soon after you start using eco-fuel. It is this action that is considered the main disadvantage of the ECTO family of gasoline. However, no one prevents the owners of used cars from using this fuel periodically, only for cleaning the fuel system. In this aspect, it has no equal among domestic analogues. The owners of relatively new cars are mostly satisfied with this gasoline. In principle, in the medium term, the entire domestic car fleet will have to meet European environmental standards, which, with difficulty, but take root on our roads.

Which is better: EKTO gasoline or Euro

In principle, both motor fuels comply with European environmental standards, prescribing the use of an extensive class of additives. So the answer to the question of which gasoline is better, ECTO or EURO, is largely a matter of personal preference. Many experts note that for new cars the use of domestic fuel is preferable, although the cost of imported gasoline is slightly cheaper. In the case of a car with a long exhausted resource is recommended to use Euro-95, because its composition is the minimum presence of detergent additives. The use of Lukoil gasoline in two-stroke engines, according to experts, also will not give significant advantages.

95 ECTO or Euro: is it worth paying the difference?

Do you know which gasoline is better, 95 ECTO or 95 Euro? Which type to choose for your car? At first glance there seems to be no difference, the price tags differ by a ruble or two. And yet, there is a reason for their separation, isn’t there? And let us all together try to understand!

What is ECTO?

That kind of fuel with that marking appeared at our gas stations about 10 years ago. The abbreviation is brilliantly simple: Ecological Fuel. Based on the name, we conclude – it is less harmful to the environment, reduces the amount of harmful substances in the exhaust gases of cars.

Control over their maximum permissible content is carried out by Euro-standards. In 1988, Euro-0, as it is called today, was adopted, and today Euro-5 (in Europe – 6) is already in force in Russia. True, it is still a question what is better than Euro 0 or Euro 5. But the revision of the European standard regularly led to the tightening of requirements. For example, the permissible limit of toxic emissions of the zero standard is 22 times higher than that of Euro 4.

The chemical composition of the emissions depends both on the settings of the vehicle’s exhaust system and on the gasoline itself. Therefore, it is important to monitor the technical condition of the car (oxygen sensor, catalytic converter, particulate filters, ECU indicators of malfunction, etc.), and the quality of the fuel in the tank.

So, answering what are the differences between ECTO and Euro gasoline, we should note the main advantage of the first one – it is more ecological.

Diesel is also divided into EKTO or Euro, with the first, by analogy, considered more environmentally friendly. It prevents the formation of an emulsion, when water enters the tank (together with atmospheric air, which, when cooled, condenses and flows down). Although diesel fuel has its own labels.

Of gasoline fuels, not only 95 gasoline, but also 92 is produced under the ECTO label.

What is Euro fuel?

We continue to find out what the difference between EKTO gasoline and Euro is, using the example of the Lukoil brand (they were the first to produce eco-friendly fuel).

Euro marked gasoline means that it meets European pollution standards. It provides low toxicity of exhaust and reduction of fouling in the engine. However, in terms of environmental friendliness, for example, AI 92 Euro gasoline is inferior to 92 EKTO and is considered less pure. True, the service of flashing for Euro 0 is becoming more and more popular among drivers, but that is another story.

What are the differences?

Let us summarize the above mentioned and outline the difference between EKTO or Euro, listing the advantages of the former:

• Contains a perfectly balanced set of additives, including unique detergents that protect and clean the engine;
• Produces a smaller amount of toxic substances produced by the engine and released into the atmosphere with the exhaust;
• Gentle operation of the engine;
• Combusts better quality, leaving no deposits on the walls of the injector;
• Contains anti-corrosive components that protect metal parts of the fuel system and engine from wear;
• Extends the engine oil replacement period;
• Provides reduced foaming;
• Stimulates better atomization of gasoline;
• More expensive than Euro gasoline with a similar octane rating by 1-3 rubles.

Now you can say yourself which gasoline is better, ECTO or Euro 95, but it’s not that simple. There are nuances and they also need to be voiced!

What to give preference to?

At first sight, choosing between 92 EKTO or 92 Euro, one would like to stop at the first one, especially because the difference in cost is not great.

Ecological fuel prolongs service life of vehicle components, prevents formation of deposits and sediments. It is preferable for cars with automatic transmission, because with it the engine runs more smoothly and smoothly.

BUT! Let’s remember, what is the difference between the 95th gasoline from Lukoil with EKTO brand and Euro in the first place? By the presence of detergent additives! If you have an old car with not the cleanest of insides, detergent components may overload the fuel filter and it will fail faster.

Imagine, you pour eco-friendly fuel into the tank and it instantly starts to show its shiny properties. The catalyst, along with the filters, will just choke from the suddenly increased workload. If you, nevertheless, having read articles about what is better – EKTO or Euro Lukoil 95, have decided to drive on ecological fuel, great! But be prepared, the engine will start behaving a little bit differently, the exhaust will become visually larger, the pipe may even emit black smoke. But it is only the first couple of hundred kilometers. Then everything will be fine, the accumulated rubbish will go out. True, most likely, you will have to change a catalyst. And that’s not cheap. In short, weigh the pros and cons.

If you have a brand-new car, then there should not be any doubts! You should bravely fill up the tank with eco-gasoline and not think about above-mentioned problems!

By the way, speaking about differences between AI95 Euro and AI95 ECTO, it is worth mentioning that the engine power does not depend on them in any way. The octane number remains the same. Physical properties (color, density) do not change either. Except that the smell of ecological species may be more perfumed.

That’s all, now you know what the difference between 95 ECTO gasoline and Euro gasoline from Lukoil is. Feel free to fill the ecological type in a new car, and “feed” the European type in cars with high mileage. By the way, if your catalyst is removed – sometimes you may use ECTO for preventive maintenance. For cleaning of pipes, so to say! Questions?