Does Shell V-Power 97 works?

We've heard about the big fuss of Shell V-Powers. But how good are they? Not to be mistaken, there are 2 types of V-Powers in Malaysia, the V-Power 97 which replaced the regular 97s (RM2.10/litre) and the premium racing fuel, the V-Power Racing (RM2.48/litre), where the latter is only available at selected stations nationwide. The regular Shell FuelSave RON95 is retailed at RM1.85/litre, in comparison.

The killer barrels.

What does RON means? A fuel’s RON rating corresponds to its ability to resist from causing the engine to “knock”, and excessive knocking would harm the engine in the long run, as a result of using lower RON ratings than recommended by your car manufacturer. Most cars in Malaysia are safe enough to use RON95s. Its good to know your car's minimum RON rating, as a car which requires a higher RON rating running on lower RON fuel would experience under-performance, and knocking in the engine bay, which translates to higher fuel consumption. V-Power 97 are RON97 fuels, while the Shell V-Power Racing is speculated to be in the region of RON98, and not 100.

What makes the V-Power 97 special is the brand’s unique Friction Modification Technology (FMT) additive in the fuel. This is claimed to reduce the fiction generated by fuel, thus creating more power. FMT in V-Power also has cleaning properties which is claimed to start the cleaning job from the first fill and prevents build up as well.

Curious about it, I've decided to give it a try. On my second tank now, a full tank of V-Power 97 (30 litres) is about RM6-7 more than the regular 95s. The difference? I felt the gear-changes are a little smoother, and the engine makes less noise. I guess its a good thing as the CamPro engines in Protons are noisy and rough in nature. But I don't really feel any improvement in performance, which is a letdown as Shell aggressively advertises it to be able to increase power. So does the extra RM7 per tankful justified? If you want a smoother driving experience, yes. Fuel economy is improved by a tiny margin, which is a good thing as well.