Gas now'a days
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Senior User
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 108
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From: Central Iowa
Gas now'a days
With gas prices hitting the ceiling, i've noticed that cars that can use high ethanol content are more and more common. The new flexfuel vehicles use E-85 (85% ethanol- correct me if i'm wrong). And ethanol gasoline is becoming more and more common.
E-85 i'm sure is a no brainer. Not for older vehicles. Around here we have a lot of ethanol gas and I think most of it is 10% or 15%. Will even this amount in gas cause any real damage to older vehicles? will it affect general performance?
E-85 i'm sure is a no brainer. Not for older vehicles. Around here we have a lot of ethanol gas and I think most of it is 10% or 15%. Will even this amount in gas cause any real damage to older vehicles? will it affect general performance?
Junior User
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 64
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I studyed this for a while at the University where I live. In actuality, Ethanol has a tendacy to be highly corrosive as well as higher octane. Generally, motors that can handle it have high compression, about 40% more fuel flow into the combustion chamber and Stainless Lines. A bigger pump is also required, it won't harm your motor, but you may to richen your carb to hit the full effect. Since year 2000, all of fords explorers have had FFV capability, Future..Fuel..Vehicle. You can pour in any percentage of Ethanol, and the computer will compute the air fuel ratio as well as ignititon timing to that percentage. Pretty wild, but definitely cool.
Posting Legend
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 30,255
Likes: 37
The alcohol will eat up the fuel systems in our older trucks. Actually it is the water that it attracts that causes everything to rust and corrode. Use only 100% gas in our trucks and your lawn mower or weedeater. My new lawn mower has a warning in the owners manual not to use alcohol fuel. High alcohol fuel (greater than 5%) will also eat up rubber parts, hoses, and O-rings etc.
