Is anyone on the forum currently using E85 fuel in their vehicle(s) (85% ethanol/15% gasoline)?
We now have several stations in our region that dispense E85. I’ve got a Sable that might be able to run with it. With our dependence on OPEC getting dicier, I’m interested in finding out more about how E85’s working out in actual use.
Thanks
Nope.
Especially not when it’ll eat plastic and corrode metal in my gas system.
A guy I know has a boat that the fuel tanks got eaten cause of Ethanol. It’s costing him $5000 to have them replaced.
If I got some kinda auto that is MADE for E-85 we will see.
I found this site that lists some vehicles that can handle the E85:
That list is certainly not complete, as I believe my 2002 3.6L Grand Caravan is capable of using E85 (it says so by the gas cap, anyway). We do have one distributor in the area, a Co-op station on the east side of Marion; it’s alittle out of the way for me, and the lower price per gallon is offset by less efficiency (I’ve heard you lose about 10-20% MPG), so I haven’t tried it yet.
The Iowa Legislature finished up the state’s spending bill this week, which includes tax breaks to encourage more E85 usage. The governor seems inclined to sign it, so we’ll see what happens. If more stations start carrying it around here, I’ll probably give it a try.
Every car can burn a 10% blend right now. We’ve been doing it for years hear in Ohio.
Here is some sites that will shed some light on the subject.
http://goyellowlivegreen.com/
http://running_on_alcohol.tripod.com/id36.html
And the ultimate site that will transform the industry http://xcelplus.com/e85/e85dealerinfo.htm
There is another one which is running on TV adds here locally.
http://livegreengoyellow.com
If anything it’s going to generate alot of business for the railroads. These big ethonal plants are being built or are in the process of being built in alot of midwestern states.
I have a 10-year-old emergency generator that specifies “NO ETHANOL.”
In da old days, I would fill it with Amoco 93 gas – until they began adding ethanol to it, too. So now the generator tank (plastic) sits empty until I need to use it. I test it once every six months with 20 minutes of fuel mixed with some Stabil and let it run until all gas is gone and it shuts off. Here is Illinois, all gasoline has 10 percent corn squeezins.
Not only corn squeezins, but frappe’d air in the summer. Chicago-area summer gasoline is the pits! And it hurts mileage.
That’s odd, my mileage always improves when the weather gets warmer.
This site also talks about reduction in mileage happening because engines aren’t optimized for E85.
http://www.e85fuel.com/e85101/faq.php
I got a Toro mower recently which operates only at one “speed”. The dealer told me it’s optimized at that rate. To adjust it like you could on old mowers lowers efficiency, and is hard on the engine.
I’ve also read that hybrid car engines also run at one speed to get the best from them.
Anybody know further?
Thanks.
My understanding is that the electrical component of a hybrid car stores energy in a flywheel. How much kinetic energy is released has to do with acceleration and the transmission. The gas engine kicks in by default when the electric-generated momentum is insufficient.
Couple of thoughts here. Most engines run well enough on gasoline containing up to 10% ethanol, or thereabouts, although some highly optimized engines don’t (aircraft piston enginers, for instance). Anything much over that, and the engine and fuel system better be built for the ethanol, or you will have, guaranteed, a very very large repair bill.
However, even though they will run on fuel with up to 10% ethanol, the mileage will drop, as ethanol, per pound or per gallon, has less energy than gasoline – so you need to burn more of it. Physics and chemistry have a way of being quite inflexible that way, and are not subject to regulation, legislation, or PR.
Hybrid cars (such as my Honda) store the excess energy in a battery, not a flywheel. Depending on the specific type of hybrid (Toyota technology or Honda technology) the engine may or may not run all the time. The differing engineering approaches of the two concepts yield just about the same results, all else being equal (which it usually isn’t).
I admit to being a little confused–a car with E85 “flex fuel” – will it have a different fuel-injection and timing system as opposed to the “regular” (up to E10) system? It seems to me the completely different volatility of alcohol instead of gasoline would call for such–or maybe microchips can adjust fuel flow and timing???
they won’t put more than 5% ethanol in over here, with the benefits so minimal its really pointless, but they want to introduce a blend with 20% ethanol, and most cars here can take the blend.
I believe your last comment is correct.
“I’ve heard you lose about 10-20% MPG”. Closer to 40 to 50%. Window stickers on Caravans showed estimates that high. Also you need to check your owners manual before you use E85. Most vehicles like Chrysler must use a special oil to prevent washing of the cylinder walls. If you use regular oil, you will damage the cylinder walls of the engine when using E85.