All of Kanatchikova's Dacha was rushing to the television: petrol as a diagnosis

I really didn't want to touch the subject of petrol: it's all a bit too trendy. But the hysterics and opinions spreading both on very shady websites and social media, as well as in fairly popular and quite respectable media outlets, simply drive me up the wall. You get the impression that these days the telly sometimes features people who used to watch it while sitting in a psychiatric ward. I won't even get started on the Internet. So, what do I personally think about fuel?

Let's start with its quality. Naturally, I don't believe all the shouting about "look, I filled up with Euro-3 and everything broke on me". That's not how it works. The main difference with such petrol is the permissible amount of sulphur, which isn't capable of wrecking an engine immediately. Of course, if you force a small-displacement turbocharged engine with direct injection to constantly run on such petrol, there will be consequences. But not straight away. And engines with port injection suffer virtually no harm at all. Although I would still advise changing the oil more frequently. As for knocking and fuel pumps dying instantly because of Euro-3 fuel, I will never believe that: it's physically impossible. I should also note that a half-dead fuel pump in an old car packing up immediately after filling up with absolutely any petrol is a classic situation, because during refuelling, debris from the bottom of the tank can get stirred up, which finishes off an already feeble pump. But the quality of the petrol has nothing to do with it. The only things that definitely fall into the risk zone with prolonged (very prolonged!) use of Euro-3 petrol are direct injection injectors and, to some extent, the places where soot traditionally accumulates in direct injection engines (intake valves, combustion chambers and other components, including the EGR valve). But none of this breaks immediately after filling up. You'd have to drive on Euro-3 petrol for a very long time and look after your car very poorly to notice the difference.

The second question: is the petrol shortage actually as severe as it seems? Well, you'd have to be a complete idiot or a civil servant who absolutely loves their job to deny the shortage altogether or claim with a straight face that the cause of the fuel shortfall is panic buying. In some places the situation is better, in others worse, and in some places it's very bad indeed. Naturally, the latter applies to the new regions – there's practically no petrol there at all, but in the rest of Russia's regions things aren't that bad. But what should we prepare for?

I won't make any predictions about Crimea and the territories close to it: things are far too unpredictable there. But across the rest of the country, the situation will definitely improve. Just not quickly, and not to the extent that we'll quickly forget that petrol can run short. Refineries are currently operating at maximum capacity, logistics are being reshuffled, so I'm confident that in the coming weeks something will change for the better. However, there's one "but". Repairing imported equipment to bring idle refining facilities back online is currently very difficult and expensive. And the refineries that are currently working like Trojans are unable to shut down for scheduled maintenance. So it won't be easy, and I don't expect an abundance of petrol in the near future. Perhaps we really will have to make up the fuel shortfall with help from India, Kazakhstan or someone else, but you understand that's only a temporary fix. Still, we shouldn't forget about it, so I'll say it again: the situation will, of course, improve. Just not as much as we'd like.

And most importantly: there are undoubtedly problems. But cashing in on them, building an audience with idiotic social media posts and spreading panic are the most thankless pursuits imaginable. The only thing worse would be completely denying that a problem exists. Then again, they don't let blind people behind the wheel here – yet.