Last week we headed out of Austin, TX for Atlanta, GA, then on to Charlotte, NC and back in our "new to us" V10 '02 Excursion Limited 2WD, 3:73 gears. The truck is bone stock. This was our first road trip in the "X" and I decided it was also a great opportunity to test the Acetone theory. (We ended up logging 2905 miles)

For those who have not heard of using Acetone as a gas treatment there are volumes written about it, just google for it. In a nutshell the theory is that the Acetone(100% pure) lowers the surface tension of gas and helps keep the fuel atomized longer, thus providing a more complete and efficient burn. It seems that most gains are made when you mix 2 ozs of acetone with 10 gallons of gas...yes that is only .15% or so by volume.

We religiously set the cruise on 75 and and averaged 15.2 MPG on the way to Atlanta. I then filled with no Acetone for the trip to Charlotte and back(1 1/2 tanks), we averaged 13.7. Filled and added acetone for the trip from ATL to AUS and returned to the 15 MPG mark.

Sure you can shoot holes in this test, but I'm pretty convinced that we did indeed realize a gain in MPG's when using acetone. BTW, all the reported data was manually calculated. I did have a ScangaugeII and also had the onboard computer. The Scangauge is really a nifty little device that allows you to calibrate it's odometer/speedometer to reality based on a GPS, so the numbers are more accurate than the vehicle could provide.

I also found that we used about 2 qts of oil, and that seemed excessive. The motor ran great, obviously, and the coolant temp hovered in the 188° - 193° range. I just bought this truck, so I cannot say what oil was in it, but based on the "Champ" brand oil filter on it, it probably wasn't MC 5w - 20. I have since changed to Mobil 1 5w - 30 and a MC oil filter, so we'll see what happens.

I really am impressed with this truck, the ride rivaled it's replacement(a '97 Lincoln Towncar) and the extra breathing room for the kids made the 15.5 hr straight through jaunt to/from ATL much more sane. Thumbs up to Ford on this one...too bad they're nearing extinction.

 

Thanks for the info, PROSTOCK.

I have always wondered if it's actually vaporizing the fuel or is it "fooling" the sensors; telling the PCM that there's a "too rich" condition. However, I can't argue for or against since I've never tested the theory.


The other problem - oil consumption - could be synthetic oil or semi-synthetic. I have experienced that myself after going from dino to full syn. I "lost" a quart at 2000 miles. I then went back to dino (Castrol GTX) and the problem went away.

Did you ever notice a puff of smoke at any time?

 

I'm not absolutely sure that it works as advertised(surface tension), but it does work. And I can assure you, this subject can stir up more emotions than a diesel vs. gas debate.
As far as the oil loss, like I said, I have no idea what was in there, only that I have Mobil 1 5w - 30 in there now. My '97 TC w/ 120K on it never uses oil and switching it to Mobil 1 had no ill effects(or gains for that matter), but who knows! On the "X",there is no visible smoke at start-up or at any time that I have seen. I just got off the phone w/ a buddy and he had similar oil cumsumption issues that were solved with the "High Mileage" version of Mobil 1.

 

What ratio of mix did you use?

 

I can't see a reason for going to full-synthetic other than a placebo effect...


Now we're talking....

My son believes that Royal Purple created the earth. When it gets black and syrupy I ask him to change it. He says, "It's got 5000 more miles to go..." ARGH!!!!!!


As far as the acetone theory...I'm gonna read more about it.

 

Ford says that 900 miles to a quart of oil is acceptable.
I wouldn't be too happy about that though.

 

My V10 has burned a quart per 3K miles since day one. Now after 75K miles it is burning 1 quart per 2K miles.

I always run MC 5W-20

I would be interested if any of these high milage oils actually do anything benefical. And are they available in 5W-20

 

Thanks for the post!

I too have to be very skeptical about this. Not as an argument, or anything, but I wanna see proof.

There's a new "device" for the dieslers, I don't know if it's been mentioned over there or not, but it's http: SLASH SLASH www DOT turbo3000d DOT com SLASH index.asp - I don't want to give them more Google exposure than they deserve - which I don't think is much.

Supposedly, you can install this device almost anywhere, even behind the injection pump, and it "changes the fuel flow" to help atomization. ON DIRECT INJECTION DIESELS.

Acetone (CH3COCH3) - hmm... not a lot of O. Lots of C and H. Hydrocarbons anyone?

Wanna do me a favor? I want you to get one of those point-and-shoot infrared thermometers, and on two days when the temperature is about the same, do a run, say 20 miles on way on the highway, pull over and check the cat temp at a certain spot, from a certain angle. Put the acetone in it, drive another few miles, turn around, and make the same run back the same distance. Pull over and check it again. Same angle, same spot.

Do that as many times as you can

I'd love to see if the cat is running any hotter than normal.

Think about it ...

I wonder if it effects injector life, because lowering the surface tension reduces the lubrication properties ... and fuel pump life, for that matter.

 

Id like to see a before and after oil analysis after \say 1500 miles on either one. Just does not seem healthy for the trucks. Not sure exactly what it'll do harmful, but i have a theory or two.

 

Art, I've got an IR gun, but it wont be as easy as you described, since I have to go thru an entire tank and then some to ensure that I purge out all the acetone, but I can measure it now, and I have a bud w/ a 2000 "X" that I can compare to.

I am as skeptical as the next guy and wouldn't just jump into this sort of thing without doing a little research. I've talked w/ a couple of guys who have been running it for years and 10's of thousands of miles(like over 60K in one case) and have had no ill effects.

 

If you ask a chemist about CH3COCH3 and H2O emulsification and then tell him her it is in an gasoline environment they will scratch their heads and ask why would you do that.....(I have two chemistry PhDs across the hall from my office).... so you tell them the surface tension theory and they laugh you out of their office.... you step outside for a smoke and then back upstairs to type these words on company time....

Then if you do a simple google search for acetone and just read the first 4 or 5 pages that relate to being a fuel additive you soon get the notion that everybody hyping this "additive" is secretly trying to sell scangauges

Hell, I don't know guys n gals... I have not had a vehicle in the last 7 years that was not under warranty...and I would NEVER do this to a warrantied 39 thousand dollar truck...

just my 0.0002c worth

 

Fred, exactly... in my limited chemical knowledge, I look at acetone as a biologically produced agent.

Petroleum, ie: gasoline, is not. I know, it supposedly is organic matter from millions of years ago. But that's a lot of time to "perk"

And it mixing with water, well, that's another thing.

I wonder if there's a puddle of acetone in the fuel filter?

 

Well, as an industrial chemist with 30+ years of experience in the field, I can tell you that acetone is not biologically produced in any meaningful amount. It is usually made from the oxidation of isopropanol. Sometimes it occurs as a by-product in various reactions where isopropanol reacts with air over a catalyst to produce acetone. The cumene phenol process uses a series of reactions that start with cumene (isopropylbenzene), oxidize through the hydroperoxide stage, and then decompose the hydroperoxide via aqueous acid to produce phenol and acetone simultaneously. I don't know of any "natural" reactions that produce acetone, except for trace quantities that could not be commercialized to any extent.

There is considerable debate about the true source of petroleum. Look up Thomas Gold sometime and see his theory of microbial petroleum formation. He once did a test where he drilled deep into a basalt rock formation, where the dead-dino theory of petroleum formation says none will be found, and found several barrels worth. This is significant since it may indicate that petroleum formation is a bacterial process that occurs widely with the petroleum thus formed seeping along rock strata and collecting in pools. It is these pools that oil drillers tap into when recovering crude oil from the ground. All this is just a theory but there are some facts to back it up.

As to why acetone addition to gasoline improves gas mileage, my guess would be that it helps develop a much larger flame-front when the fuel ignites. Acetone is tremendously volatile and flammable. It's also a an excellent water scavenger so it would dry the fuel. Lastly, acetone is a great solvent for varnish, so it should keep the fuel system squeeky clean. All of these could contribute to cleaner burning. Reduced surface tension? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHA!

If only I knew less about this and more about my '84 F250!

Ed

 

Ed - Thanks. I'm still wondering about the residual affect on sensors...

Fred - Sorry you got laughed out of your office. I bet they didn't know who they were messing with, bygawd!

 

Ed

While I do not profess to having any chemistry skills beyond what my Catholic schooling "beat into me" (literally) from 8th through 12th grades, I do know that the PhDs across the hall thought the idea of it (acetone) as a fuel enhancer was met with much skepticism

They did mention that it had flammable qualities but they both thought that it sounded like a snake oil idea for any extension of fuel efficiency with any MPG benifit... in fact both said about the same time that if it truly was a fuel extender or viable additive then the current government (who is enamored with alcohol as an extender) would certainly be seriously examining it, as acetone is relatively cheap to produce...Neither was aware of any such studies or effort, certainly from a military perspective