Its all good until it starts eating some of your fuel system components that arent meant to use it. And yes it will happen eventually....
Its all good until it starts eating some of your fuel system components that arent meant to use it. And yes it will happen eventually....
16 psi on E85
Originally Posted by Z06SUPERCHARGED
Good point but I think alot of people who are using e85 for performance reasons are also going to upgrade the fuel system due to the larger fuel demand. When doing this its very easy to use e85 friendly components.
from my recent studying it seems ethanol gets confused with another alcohol fuel called methanol where eating fuel system components in later model cars is concerned (mid to late 90's and newer)
one of the forums I have been reading for info on e85 is the Grand National forum ( www.turbobuick.com) they have an e 85 specific section on that forum as well as a few other forums i am on but the gn forum is really active since those guys have never been shy about finding new ways to make more power.
GN tuners have been using methanol both in supplemental injection systems and as a primary fuel in some of the wild builds so the differences between ethanol/methanol and their pros and cons are discussed on a daily basis with excellent input from people using these fuels and the occasional visit by people in the alternative fuel industry trying to keep the information and the mis information seperated.
I have been in the marine industry for over 10 years and I can tell you from real experience what some of the issues with ethanol/gasoline mixes are. Any aged fuel system that has run on gasoline that then has ethanol blended fuels introduced to it has the potential for some issues. Gasoline leaves a coating that is varnish like on the components it contacts , when ethanol gets added to those aged systems it acts like a solvent and breaks down the varnish like coating putting it into suspension in the fuel causing issues such as plugged fuel filters , plugged inlet screens on electric fuel pumps , plugged injector screens. carburetors have more issues with bowls filling with debris , jets getting plugged ,internal passages getting plugged ,etc...
The other issue with ethanol we see in marine application is it attracts water in craft that see infrequent use eventually causing phase seperation of the fuel. This is much less of an issue in a vehicle that gets used regularly such as every vehicle I own being run for a couple years now with e10 ( 10% ethanol)
All fuel sold at the pump in my state and the next state over has 10% ethanol in it as do all pumps in new england with the exception of 2 stations in the Boston area that dispense e85 ( 85% ethanol 15% gasoline)
manufactures knew the e10 was coming and have made components resistant to ethanol phasing them in in the years previous to seeing all the vehicles labeled "flex fuel" running around.
E15 is coming next as regular gasoline , it will be more challenging because its stoich is even further away from gasoline than e10 (14.1) I would have to research but it has to be in the high 13's stoich.
I know the guys at hpt have very full plates right now allready but looking forward a section for e 85 and or alternative fuels discussion would be valuable to us all since 90% of us are on here in search of making more power.
PB's 1/4 mi 12.21 117.75 trap ,1/8 mi. 7.779 93.99trap , 1.949 short time (FWD W body)
After 15 months on E85, and leaving some bare steel in the fuel system, no corrosion at all. And thats in a humid summer climate.
But! A regular off the shelf piece of rubber EFI hose does eventually see E85 discolouring after several months of permanent immersion.
E85 is worth keeping
Last year I changed my car over to e85. I picked up three miles an hour in the eigth and all I changed on my tune was the schoich. Milaege did go down but compared to premium fuel prices I was still slightly ahead finicially. I read the edmunds article and other that agree with it. I also found many articles that dispute edmunds claims and go on to explain how the lower btu content of e85 is countered by the increased volume of fuel.
Fuel AFRst FARst Equivalence Lambda
---- ----- ----- Ratio -----
=======================--====================================
Gasoline stoich 14.7 0.068 1 1
Gasoline Max power rich 12.5 0.08 1.176 0.8503
Gasoline Max power lean 13.23 0.0755 1.111 0.900
=======================--====================================
E85 stoich 9.765 0.10235 1 1
E85 Max power rich 6.975 0.1434 1.40 0.7143
E85 Max power lean 8.4687 0.118 1.153 0.8673
=======================--====================================
E100 stoich 9.0 0.111 1 1
E100 Max power rich 6.429 0.155 1.4 0.714
E100 Max power lean 7.8 0.128 1.15 0.870
=======================--====================================
As far as being used to dilute gas e100 is sold as a race fuel at tracks and distributers across the midwest. I was told by an IL. state police officer that 15% gas is added to stop people from drinking it, considering ethanol is used in alchoholic drinks it makes sense. Other than that cold starting concers and water absorbing properties are a concern.
For me e85 made my car faster at the track and is cheaper than 93 pump gas.
With you on the performance. Nothing diluted about the performance we get with E85.
Greatly diluted evaporative emissions are good though!
Maybe "displacement" is the right word? Ethanol displaces gasoline. And burns 50% more liquid per mile as it carries with it more oxygen.
$ per mile is similar to 93 and is measurably more knock resistant. How good is that?
And yes on the gas being added to stop people drinking it! Pump moonshine!!! If it is not "denatured" with gas it is taxed as alcohol.
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