E85 Fuel Advantages and Disadvantages

[Junkyard Dog]

Now that tuning is out for the S650, E85 for fuel is a real possibility.

This video is an excellent tutorial about ethanol as fuel, and, even if you already know about some of it, you will learn some new things within just a few minutes. It will answer questions such as, why is 1.63 used as a fuel multiplier in flex fuel tuning? Is port or direct injection more advantageous? Why was E30 so helpful to our Mustang's performance back before tuning was a thing? If octane rating does not increase beyond 30-40% ethanol, is there any performance enhancement running higher levels of ethanol? What will happen to my fuel economy, mpg?

There is also a very good explanation of why E10, which is what you get when you fill up with 91 or 93 octane premium, allowed manufacturers to raise compression ratios from roughly 10:1 to up to 12:1 (not coincidentally what our Mustangs now run). It was not all engine technology advancements. We have alcohol to thank.

It also has a neat study from Ford Performance cited and broken down/translated near the end.

It is time well spent.

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[ChitownStang]

I’ve been running E30 for last few months and couple thousand miles. Dark Horse runs strong consistently on this!
Use the ecal app.
Probably need to start from scratch again since mixing at pump isn’t most accurate.

 

[Dave2013M3]

Most modern cars can run on E30 with no issues. By mistake with my S550 I added 6 gallons of E85 to my car giving me an E45. Believe it or not the car ran fine. My car just had the Ford Racing tune, not a specific E85ntune. I run E20 in my G87 M2 now with OEM tune and it runs like a scalded dog. I want to add, if you live in California we get true E85, if it falls below that it gets taxed like regular gasoline.

 

[Q6543]

Love the freedom that E30 gives us, a friend converted to E85/injectors and a custom tune, it’s running 9.0s now.. be in the 8s soon but it’s almost 6K for the parts… not worth it to me.

 

[Junkyard Dog]

Love the freedom that E30 gives us, a friend converted to E85/injectors and a custom tune, it’s running 9.0s now.. be in the 8s soon but it’s almost 6K for the parts… not worth it to me.

What e.t. is yours running on E30 and, I assume, no tuning but the Whipple tune.

 

[Q6543]

My car has ran 9.9 on the stage 2 kit, haven’t been back with the tune update and 3.5 pulley.. probably a few tenths quicker

 

[Junkyard Dog]

So you just put on the 3.5 and drive around on the street, get groceries?

 

[Junkyard Dog]

Now that tuning is out for the S650, E85 for fuel is a real possibility.

This video is an excellent tutorial about ethanol as fuel, and, even if you already know about some of it, you will learn some new things within just a few minutes. It will answer questions such as, why is 1.63 used as a fuel multiplier in flex fuel tuning? Is port or direct injection more advantageous? Why was E30 so helpful to our Mustang's performance back before tuning was a thing? If octane rating does not increase beyond 30-40% ethanol, is there any performance enhancement running higher levels of ethanol? What will happen to my fuel economy, mpg?

There is also a very good explanation of why E10, which is what you get when you fill up with 91 or 93 octane premium, allowed manufacturers to raise compression ratios from roughly 10:1 to up to 12:1 (not coincidentally what our Mustangs now run). It was not all engine technology advancements. We have alcohol to thank.

It also has a neat study from Ford Performance cited and broken down/translated near the end.

It is time well spent.

My major concern with E85 is the very small gas tank on these Mustangs.

I actually drive mine.

 

[ChitownStang]

My major concern with E85 is the very small gas tank on these Mustangs.

I actually drive mine.

When I ran it on my Mach 1 , I calculated at least 30% reduction in gas mileage.
So I filled up at my local station anytime I passed.
That why I like the Flex, you don't have to worry if you are far from E85 station.

 

[Q6543]

So you just put on the 3.5 and drive around on the street, get groceries?

yep… took my nephew to the zoo this weekend, nice 200 mile fall cruise

It’s not really all about the huge rwhp at max rpm.. the extra 2-300ft/lb TQ low rpm cruising is incredibly useful and fun

 

[DarkMatterGrey]

In Arizona, "E85" doesn't appear to be. Instead it's between E51 and E83. What I don't understand, the pumps near me that have "Ethanol Flex Fuel" have the E85 yellow tag, but then state that it's "minimum 51%", which is supposed to be an orange tag. Next time I'm near one, I'll grab a screen capture.

Per https://agriculture.az.gov/sites/default/files/Dispenser Labeling in Arizona 09.18.2023.pdf:

"Ethanol Flex Fuel is defined as a fuel meeting the standards of ASTM D5798, containing between 51 and 83 volume percent ethanol. It shall be labeled in accordance with 16 CFR Part 306. The label may either state the range “51% - 83%” or may have the ethanol content rounded to the nearest 10%. These labels shall be printed in black on an orange background. NOTE: The description “E85” is prohibited in Arizona, as this product does not meet the specifications in ASTM D5798"

So how in the heck can that be relied upon?!?!?!?

 

[Q6543]

A lot of people test, on my facebook groups people have cars with ethanol content gauges

so there should be a local network community consistently sharing and updating stations content.

look in your area for something like this

 

[Junkyard Dog]

It is never exactly or consistently E85 anywhere and can be as low as E50. The range you describe, 51% to 83%, is typical, with winter blends having less alcohol than summer.

 

[Q6543]

It’s only a problem when you get something HOT like E90 or higher… then you may start to go lean

 

[DarkMatterGrey]

This is what we're supposed to have.

This is what we have:

This is how it's supposed to be labeled.

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