Fuel Safe does not make fuel jugs, so the comparison people are usually reaching for is the wrong one. Fuel Safe makes fuel cells, the bladder or aluminium tank that lives inside the car; VP Racing makes the plastic jugs you carry fuel in, and Hunsaker makes the quick-fill dump cans you actually refuel from.
The three do different jobs and you may well need all three. A VP Racing jug from £35 ex VAT is for carrying and storing fuel around the paddock. A Hunsaker quick-fill can from £100 ex VAT is for getting fuel into the car fast, in 19, 30 or 41.5 litre sizes, with pouring spouts or dry break couplings. A Fuel Safe cell from £715 ex VAT is the car's fuel tank, and it is the part your championship's fuel cell regulations apply to. VMEP supplies all three from its UK workshop. This guide sets out what each one is for, what they cost, and how to pick.
Why the Fuel Safe versus VP Racing comparison does not work
They are not competing products. Putting them side by side is like comparing a fuel tank to a jerry can.
- Fuel Safe builds FIA-certified racing fuel cells, drag cells, formula cells, complete vehicle fuel systems and the plumbing around them: collectors, dry break valves, remote fill kits, level gauges and sending units. This is in-car equipment
- VP Racing Fuels supplies racing fuel and the plastic utility jugs that carry it. This is paddock equipment
- Hunsaker builds quick-fill dump cans, the aluminium refuelling rigs used in the pit lane. Also paddock equipment, but a different job again from a VP jug
If you are choosing what to carry fuel in, the real comparison is VP Racing against Hunsaker. That is section 02. If you are choosing the tank inside the car, see the FT3 vs FT3.5 vs FT5 fuel cell guide.
VP Racing jugs vs Hunsaker quick-fill cans
This is the comparison worth making, because both hold fuel and one costs six times the other.
VP Racing jugs. Moulded plastic utility jugs. The 12 litre is from £35 ex VAT in blue or white. The 20 litre is from £40 ex VAT, in circular or square form, in orange, yellow, white, black, red, green or camo. They are for transporting, storing and decanting fuel. Cheap enough to own several, light enough to handle full, and easy to colour-code by fuel type or by car.
Hunsaker quick-fill cans. Aluminium dump cans in 5 US gallon (19 litre), 8 US gallon (30 litre) and 11 US gallon (41.5 litre). They are built to empty fast and cleanly into the car, and the price depends almost entirely on which hose end you specify:
- Pouring spout (1.5in, 1.75in or 2.25in): £100 for 19 litre, £155 for 30 litre, £175 for 41.5 litre
- 1.25in dry break: £500 for 19 litre, £555 for 30 litre, £580 for 41.5 litre
- 2in dry break: £585 for 19 litre, £640 for 30 litre, £660 for 41.5 litre
- Dual 2in dry break (4in or 100mm centres): £1,050 for 19 and 30 litre, £1,130 for 41.5 litre
All ex VAT. The pattern is the important part: the can itself is not what costs money. The dry break coupling is.
Do you need a dry break, or is a pouring spout enough?
A dry break is a self-sealing coupling. It mates to a matching valve on the car, opens as it seats and closes as it comes off, so fuel does not spill during the transfer. It is faster than a spout and it removes most of the spill risk in a hot pit lane.
The honest answer for a lot of buyers is that a pouring spout is enough:
- Pouring spout makes sense for sprint racing, testing, track days, and any car that gets fuelled with the session over and no clock running
- Dry break earns its money for endurance and pit-stop racing, and for any championship whose regulations require closed refuelling
A dry break is only half a system. The can carries one half; the car needs the matching half. That is where Fuel Safe comes back into it: the Dry Break Valve at £525 to £1,010 ex VAT, the fender mounted dry break at £385 to £880, and the Fender Mount Remote Fill Kit at £385. Coupling size and specification have to match across the can and the car, so confirm both sides before you order either.
Where Fuel Safe fits: the cell in the car
Fuel Safe's range starts with the cell itself. Current UK prices, ex VAT:
- Club Sport Race Safe cells, non-FIA, £715 to £1,745 across 10 sizes
- Racing Cells Core Range, FIA certified, £735 to £1,800 across 10 sizes and 3 container options
- Drag Cell, 4 US gallon, £755 to £770
- Pro Cell complete steel, 8 to 22 US gallons, £1,295 to £1,635
- Pro Cell complete aluminium, 5 to 44 US gallons, £1,320 to £2,230 across 18 capacities
- Formula cells CB300 to CB304 and CB401, £1,365 to £1,870
Then the system parts that go around it: the collector at £310 to £805 depending on type, the Holley Hydramat at £295 to £1,055 across 14 sizes, the fuel level gauge at £150 and the 0 to 90 ohm sending unit at £180 to £220.
The critical point on cells is certification, not price. FIA-certified cells carry a certification date and championships care about it. Check your championship's wording and the cell's certification status before you buy, and if you are unsure which standard you need, read the FT3, FT3.5 and FT5 guide first.
Carrying jugs safely in the truck
Loose fuel jugs in a race truck are a genuine problem. They fall over, they chafe and they leak. We build two cases specifically for VP jugs:
- VP Racing Open Top Fuel Case VME-Fuel1, £165 to £535 ex VAT
- VP Racing Fuel Jug Container Flight Case VME-Fuel2, £250 to £665 ex VAT
The wider fuel transport case range runs £165 to £1,135 ex VAT.
Quick answer by use case
- Club sprint racing, one car, no timed stops: two or three VP 20 litre jugs from £40 each
- Endurance with driver changes and refuelling: a Hunsaker can sized to your stint fuel load, with a dry break matched to the car's fill valve
- Building or re-shelling a car: a Fuel Safe cell to the standard your championship requires, plus collector, gauge and sender
- Moving fuel to and from the circuit: VP jugs in a fuel transport case, not loose in the truck
Before you order
Fuel equipment is the one area where ordering the wrong thing is expensive and slow to fix. Confirm the championship's regulation wording, the fill valve fitted to the car, the coupling size on both halves and the fuel type. Stocked items ship in 1 to 2 working days. Cells and fuel systems are ordered in, so ask for a lead time with the quote.
Browse fuel and refuelling equipment, or contact VMEP with your car, championship and fill valve before ordering a dry break.