My family is in cropdusting and i am just wondering if i can run Jet/A fuel in my pickup.

Isnt jet/a just a cleaner more purified diesel.


Thanks Mike

89 7.3 ats turbo 4x4 c6 tranny

 

I've seen lots of posts on running JP-4, JP-5, JP-8, Jet-A, kerosene. My opinion is they make better solvents than fuels in a engine design for much heavier oils.

 

The answer is yes, but,
Jet A is close to kerosene and a lighter fuel than #2 diesel.
Since it is lighter, it has less BTU's per gallon, which means less power and mileage.

Also I do not know what the price Jet A is any more, but the lower BTU's it contains make it a less desireable fuel unless it is way cheaper than diesel.
Last time I knew the price, it was about twice as expensive due to the extra refining required.

It also lacks some of the lubricity of heavier fuels which modern #2 is already a little light on. The sulpher that the EPA is making the oil refineries remove from the diesel is what lubricates your injection pump and injectors.
This is the reason that fuel conditioners that enhance lubrication are a very good investment on a regular basis.
Stadyne makes a couple of good lubrication enhancers.

It will also run on home heating oil #1 and #2.
Kerosene #1
JP 4 jet fuel
Diesel #1, #2 and #3.

Diesel #3 is the most power and mileage that you can get out of a gallon of fuel.
Down side is it gells very easily and is not usually available.
I have not run #3 diesel since I left Denver in 1985.

Also the other big thing is it does not have highway use tax paid on it, so if you get caught you are looking at a big fine.

 

I just saw a few inquiries about using Jet A as motor fuel. The responder indicated that you can use Jet A as well as #2 fuel oil, heating oil, etc. I just want to make sure that everyone is aware of the penalties involved if you get caught. The price for diesel fuel purchased at gas stations and truckstops includes approximately 50 cents per gallon in Federal and State road taxes. Realizing that some people were buying "off-road" diesel (which is what airplanes, bulldozers, farm tractors, etc. use and is taxable only at State sales tax levels) for their "on-road" cars and trucks, the Federal government now requires refiners to add red dye to Kero or Diesel products used for anything besides cars and trucks using public highways. Why red dye?. So that they can randomly check, at truck scales, service stations, road blocks, etc., your fuel tank. If the fuel in your tank is red - you go to jail. I'm not kidding. Over 24 cents per gallon on diesel fuel is the Federal diesel tax and the Feds view this just as if it were Federal Income Tax evasion or Payroll Tax evasion. As with most Federal Tax issues you are presumed guilty and are obligated to prove that it was ignorance or an honest mistake. You will also be required to prove that you haven't been doing this for years. Even if you manage to stay out of jail, the fines are enormous. So be careful. Simple rule- if your vehicle has license plates on it, do not under any circumstances put any fuel in it that is red in color. Period. By the way, ever wonder why premium gasoline isn't red like it used to be back in "the old days"? Now you know. See ya.

 

You mean the pink stuff when I was a kid? I always thought it was marked to show it's the high test. You paid taxes on it if you bought it from a gas station.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chick R.

I just saw a few inquiries about using Jet A as motor fuel. The responder indicated that you can use Jet A as well as #2 fuel oil, heating oil, etc.

Hi Chick -

Welcome to the forum! The 'Responder', you're referring to is Dave Sponaugle, the guy whose answer appears just above yours. Being a new user, you probably haven't read too many of his posts. In a nutshell, Dave S is a BIG (that's B-I-G) proponent of using only legal over-the-road fuels. He's shared more than a few horror stories of what happens when people try to shortcut government tax regulations. Not pretty. Fret not, Dave was speaking from a hypothetical what-actually-works viewpoint. His legal views are already well known. Hope this sheds some light!

 

Chick R,
The last line of my reply did indicate huge fines.
Federal Highway Use Tax (HUT) is 24.4 cents
WV HUT is 26.9 cents per gallon.

With all the federal grant cutbacks, if you think the state is going to let you slide on their share you thought wrong.
Remember it is the state tax boys that collect the tax.

Here the actual guys that do the road checks are the,
West Virginia State Tax Department Criminal Investigation Division
These guys have no sense of humor at all. They will take your money, all of it. If you do not have enough money, they will take your house, truck, car and wife.

wife...

Maybe I should go run some red, I have not been stopped for a couple of weeks so I am about due for the next checkpoint. Well maybe I won't, after 30 minutes with my wife they will probably put me in jail forever.

The fine here is equal to two years worth of highway legal fuel for my truck.
There is 250 gallons of Off Road fuel in the tank in the back of my truck right now.
If I ran out of fuel in my road tank, I would walk to the station to get highway fuel before I would put a gallon of off road in my truck.

The IDI engine is able to run on many more fuels than I listed.
Is it legal, most are not.
Will it harm the engine, some will some won't, most can be made to not harm the engine with other addatives.

Bottom line is most of the others are more expensive or more expensive to make safe for the engine and usually give less power and performance.
So why spend more money to get less of what we all want, power and performance. And the above more expensive is provided you don't get stopped by the fuel police. I have been stopped four times this year so far.
I just smile, raise the bed and say "Stick'em Dano".