Motoring

How much more you’re paying to fill up and drive your car after record price hikes

Malcolm Libera

 ·1 Apr 2026

South African motorists are now paying significantly more per litre to fill up their cars, as of Wednesday (1 April 2026), with petrol rising by over R3.06 per litre and diesel by over R7 per litre.

These increases mean motorists with a small 37-litre tank will pay R113 more in petrol, while those with diesel engines will pay an extra R278 per tank.

However, motorists with tanks up to 80 litres will pay R245 and R601 more per tank, respectively. Additionally, these increases will mean some will pay over R50 more every 100km, depending on what car they drive.

The Department of Petroleum and Mineral Resources has published the official fuel price adjustments on 31 March. March saw a massive swing in both global oil prices and the rand’s strength versus the dollar.

Following the United States’ initiation of war against Iran on 28 February, escalations in the Middle East threw markets into chaos.

Retaliatory strikes by Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz sent global oil prices soaring past $100 a barrel, while investors pulled out of riskier markets, impacting the rand.

With both sides of the fuel price equation working against motorists, this led to steep under-recoveries, putting petrol and diesel prices on the block for the biggest increases in South Africa’s history.

In a bid to soften the blow to motorists, the National Treasury announced it would temporarily cut the fuel levy by R3.00 per litre.

From 1 April, petrol prices will increase by R3.06 per litre. Diesel prices will see a staggering R7.37 and R7.51-per-litre leap.

The table below shows the expected pump prices for April 2026 for the highest grades of petrol and diesel.

The tables below show how much you will pay to fill up your car’s tank with petrol and diesel inland in April compared to March 2026.

Petrol – 95 unleaded

Diesel – Diesel 0.005%

While it is impossible to accurately track exactly how much petrol you will consume due to traffic and road quality, it is possible to get a rough estimate of how these petrol prices will impact your current petrol allowance based on manufacturer estimates.

The table below shows how much it could cost you to travel 100km this month in some of the country’s best-selling cars compared to what you paid in March.