This may come as a surprise to a fair few motorists out there, but unlike petrol, diesel isn’t regulated in South Africa. You see, when it comes to the fuel costs, the government sets the price and all petrol stations are obliged to charge the same price. But the same can’t be said for diesel, with prices varying depending on the petrol station and different geographical locations.  

As we approach South Africa’s favourite time of year to pack up their cars and hit the road for a jolly festive holiday, the cost of your road trip fuel is undoubtedly a major part of your planning. 

While you can use the AA Inform’s Trip Fuel Cost Calculator to find out how much it will cost you to drive over a certain distance, that’s typically all you can do if your car uses petrol. Make no mistake, this is hugely helpful, because knowing how much you need in order to pay for all the fuel you’ll use to get from A to B is vital to the whole road trip experience.  

But what if you’re a diesel user? Thanks to the launch of mytank, diesel users can use both our Trip Fuel Cost Calculator and this new tool to plan and drastically reduce how much they’ll spend on fuel during this festive season.  

Here’s what you need to know if you want to bring your diesel costs down, leaving more to spend on the things you actually like. 

What Is mytank? 

To put it simply, shows the best diesel price nearest to you for all fuel stations that have chosen to list their diesel prices. You will also see an accurate estimate of how much it would cost to fill your vehicle at petrol stations that don’t list their diesel price, as well as the cost of driving to each petrol station. As a side benefit, you can use mytank to check out which fuel rewards programme is the best – based on the overall ‘effective cost’ of filling up. 

Or to sum it up, mytank helps you find the cheapest diesel nearby and discover the best fuel rewards and fuel loyalty programmes in South Africa. 

How it works is that you create an account, filling in a few relevant details, and mytank will bring up the closest garages with how much you’ll spend on a full tank and how many points you could earn.  

How to use mytank: 

• Start by creating an account on the . 
• Fill in the correct details of your car. 
• List all the rewards programmes you’ve signed up to. 
• Tick which fuel type you use. 
• Save and enjoy using this tool to hunt down the cheapest diesel, wherever you are. 

The Benefits 

Clearly the biggest advantage is that you can look for the cheapest petrol station in your location and fill up there to make sure you’re paying the best price possible. You can also fill in a location for your different stopping points during your road trip and be very intentional about where you’re going to refuel during your trip. This way, you’re making sure to pay the best price every stop of the way. 

However, this isn’t the only benefit you’ll get out of using . Most of us have come to realise that if you choose the right loyalty programme and work it properly, the rewards can indeed pay off.  

Traditionally, this has been a case of trial and error – signing up and using the programme as best you can and hoping to see results. But what if you can compare the different loyalty options and get a real look at what’s working and what’s not? It’s not like you have to actually have these programmes linked to your profile in order to get a view of a simple fuel rewards comparison. 

Feel informed?  

As you plan your budget and pack your car, make sure to use our Trip Fuel Cost Calculator alongside to get a realistic idea of how much you’ll spend on diesel for your upcoming festive road trip. Or any road trip, for that matter! 

If you’re keen to sell your petrol-glugging car in favour of a diesel machine, then a Free Vehicle Valuation Report will help you find out how much the car you’re selling is worth and if the car you want to buy is priced fairly!