Diesel Quality, ULSD & Adblue/DEF Availability in Guatemala — A Field Report

Overlanders traveling to Guatemala with modern Diesel engines have one additional concern on their mind: the availability and quality of Diesel.

Valentin Despa

Published in

Travelling with Valentine

5 min readJul 7, 2023

Last updated: April 2024

An overview

As of 2023, Guatemala does have some Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel (ULSD) but most Diesel sold is at 500 ppm. However, the meaning of ULSD in Guatemala is a bit different. In other words, ULSD is considered anything with a sulfur content below 50 ppm. As a comparison, in the USA and Canada, ULSD needs to be below 15 ppm. In Europe, it needs to be below 10 ppm.

Global Sulphur Levels. UN Environment Programme. [1]

It is important to mention that you will not encounter the term USLD at gas stations in Guatemala. Most gas stations will give no information whatsoever about the sulfur content.

In Guatemala, Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel (ULSD) is known as Ultra Bajo Azufre Diésel or Diésel Ultra Bajo en Azufre.

It is worth noting that Guatemala uses the US gallon.

Where to find ULSD in Guatemala

There are only two reliable gas stations in Guatemala that sell ULSD: Uno ( (at 50 ppm) and Puma Energy (at 15 ppm).

Uno

Uno sells two Diesel products: one at 500 ppm called Diesel LS (Low Sulphur) and ULS Diesel LS (Ultra Low Sulphur) at 50 ppm. It is important not to confuse the two as their names as similar. [2]

Their website provides an interactive map showing their chain of gas stations throughout Guatemala. [3]

Unfortunately, it is not possible to use the map to figure out if a particular gas station has ULSD. Not all gas stations have ULSD.

This is an example of a UNO gas pump that only has Diesel LS, at 500 ppm.

Since UNO does not offer “true” ULSD, consider UNO to be your safety net: 50 ppm sulfur is better than 500 ppm!

This is an example of a UNO gas pump that only has both Diesel LS at 500 ppm and ULSDiesel at 50 ppm.

Puma

Puma Energy sells ULSD 15 ppm under the name ION Puma Diesel. This makes Puma the only “true” ULSD supplier in Guatemala.

Puma gas stations that have ULSD are rare but evenly spread out across Guatemala. This ensures that you can explore Guatemala without worrying too much.

The most recent posts from social media indicate that their Diesel is at 15 ppm. [4] [5] [6] The only reference to 50 ppm is on their website. I hope this information is outdated. [7]

Puma sells two Diesel products: one at 500 ppm simply called Diesel and ION Puma Diesel at 15 ppm. It is important not to confuse the two as their names as similar.

Unfortunately, Puma Guatemala does not offer a list of all their service stations that offer ION Puma Diesel. Not all Puma gas stations in Guatemala have ULSD.

This is an example of a Puma gas station that only has Diesel at 500 ppm.

Puma gas stations have ULSD and are mostly located within the major cities of the country and along some important roads.

This is an example of a Puma gas station that has two types of Diesel: regular at 500 ppm and ION Diesel at 15 ppm.

Since they are only a handful, it will be hard to pass by a Puma gas station that has ULSD by accident.

Even if a particular gas station has ION Diesel, not all pumps might carry it. So it is important to locate the pump that has ULSD.

Some but not all pumps also give the content of sulfur in Diesel. This makes it easier for you to determine which one is which.

Here is an incomplete list of Puma gas stations that sell ULSD at 15 ppm. These gas stations should provide enough range to allow exploring Guatemala.

Gasolinera Puma El Tinajon

Gasolinera Puma Altense

Gasolinera Puma (near Patzicía)

Estación Puma Libramiento Chimaltenango

Gasolinera Puma Cabcor

Gasolinera Puma San Agustín

Gasolinera Puma Km 14.5 (just outside Guatemala City)

Do you know another gas station with ULSD in Guatemala? Drop a comment below.

AdBlue/DEF (Diesel exhaust fluid) in Guatemala

Every now and then you will also need AdBlue/DEF. Finding AdBlue/DEF in Guatemala is a bit harder but still possible.

You might find it at Autohaus Zona 10 or at Napa Auto Parts in Guatemala City.

In Guatemala, AdBlue/DEF can also be called ARLA32 or Urea32 but you should check on the product if the ISO 22241 standard is followed as this guarantees the right proportion of urea.

Major car dealerships such as Volkswagen sell Diesel vehicles in Guatemala and their parts department might have AdBlue/DEF.

Conclusion

I hope this article helped you get an idea of the Diesel situation in Guatemala. Leave a comment in the section below if you have any questions or would like to share your own experience. I would love to hear from you!

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Going north or south?

Check out the following field reports for these countries: