Is any body running an E30 mixture of E85 Ethanol on stock fuel system?

[Wafernut]

Does anybody know of any long term effects of running the car as I am running it now? Been running E30 mix for almost a year without problems. However I would like to check the plugs and see how they look. I have a JB4tune, I also a full catback exaust system. Any body have any ideas? Is anybody running the same mix I am.

 

[ChaneRZ]

I’ve been running E30 also. I’m pretty sure the stock system can handle it.

 

[auty9000]

E30 is better for the plugs than running octane booster. Yes the stock high pressure fuel pump sucks, for E85, but you'll be fine running E30. I daily drive jb4 map 6 E25ish (93 octane+E85), injen air intakes, mbrp catback, rpm inter cooler and ja snorkels that runs mid 11's and I'm fine. Not showing off, just letting you know an idea of where i'm at so you can judge where you can go with an average "any guy" kind of build. I know every car is different, and not every experience is the same. Just my 2 cents.

 

[Jake747]

E30 is better for the plugs than running octane booster. Yes the stock high pressure fuel pump sucks, for E85, but you'll be fine running E30. I daily drive jb4 map 6 E25ish (93 octane+E85), injen air intakes, mbrp catback, rpm inter cooler and ja snorkels that runs mid 11's and I'm fine. Not showing off, just letting you know an idea of where i'm at so you can judge where you can go with an average "any guy" kind of build. I know every car is different, and not every experience is the same. Just my 2 cents.

Nice you basically have the same set up as me other than the intercooler. When you first went to get an e mix did you just try and mix like a quarter tank or did you do a full tank?
My car sits during the week and I heard it’s bad to let e85 sit in your tank and lines and stuff

 

[auty9000]

Nice you basically have the same set up as me other than the intercooler. When you first went to get an e mix did you just try and mix like a quarter tank or did you do a full tank?
My car sits during the week and I heard it’s bad to let e85 sit in your tank and lines and stuff

I usually wait till I'm at 1/8th tank and do 3.5ish gallons of E85, then the rest 93. I also try to alternate on fill ups, 3.5 gallons of E85 one fill up, then 2.5-3 gallons of E85 the next fill up. That away I avoid eventually having to much E85 in the tank. Other people will do one tank with E85 and then the next fill up with no E85, which I do every once in awhile just to do a reset if that makes sense.

The car sitting with E85 in the tank mixed with regular fuel won't cause an issue unless it's months on end. If it was straight E85, then yes, it would be an issue. I don't drive very much, maybe fill up twice a month, and I've not had any issues since I got the car last March. I also haven't read or heard of anyone here having any issues either unless they mixed to much E85 and caused the high pressure fuel pump to crash.

One last thing, if you decide to get some E85 and keep it stored in the garage or where ever and you put it in a container like one of those red gas cans, it can go bad after a couple months or so since those aren't sealed containers.

 

[G-864815]

Does anybody know of any long term effects of running the car as I am running it now? Been running E30 mix for almost a year without problems. However I would like to check the plugs and see how they look. I have a JB4tune, I also a full catback exaust system. Any body have any ideas? Is anybody running the same mix I am.

I would recommend changing plugs every 15000 to 20000 miles if your daily running e30. Also it could possible deteriorate the fuel lines so maybe think about the flex fuel kit because it has fuel lines that will work with e30. Also would recommend a oil catch can because e30 sucks up moisture like crazy and the catch can really helps separate the water that gets into your motor oil.

 

[Wafernut]

Nice you basically have the same set up as me other than the intercooler. When you first went to get an e mix did you just try and mix like a quarter tank or did you do a full tank?
My car sits during the week and I heard it’s bad to let e85 sit in your tank and lines and stuff

My car was in the shop for 3 weeks hand I had half a tank of E30, no water was created and it was fine for at least 20 days or so.....

 

[Wafernut]

I would recommend changing plugs every 15000 to 20000 miles if your daily running e30. Also it could possible deteriorate the fuel lines so maybe think about the flex fuel kit because it has fuel lines that will work with e30. Also would recommend a oil catch can because e30 sucks up moisture like crazy and the catch can really helps separate the water that gets into your motor oil.

I do have a catch can....I probably should get the fuel lines I guess...,

 

[Highlo630]

E30 is better for the plugs than running octane booster. Yes the stock high pressure fuel pump sucks, for E85, but you'll be fine running E30. I daily drive jb4 map 6 E25ish (93 octane+E85), injen air intakes, mbrp catback, rpm inter cooler and ja snorkels that runs mid 11's and I'm fine. Not showing off, just letting you know an idea of where i'm at so you can judge where you can go with an average "any guy" kind of build. I know every car is different, and not every experience is the same. Just my 2 cents.

How do i get the proper mixture? I got cat delete, bov, k&N air filters and jb4. Just got the car a week ago and will be my first time trying to change maps

 

[socalvn]

Can you run the E85 mix without a tune ?

 

[ChaneRZ]

Pure E85 on the tank? No.

 

[AdrianG]

The stock system should be able to handle between 3-5 gallons of E85 without issue, based off all the reading I've done on the threads here regarding the subject. Realistically, most E85 isn't truly 85% ethanol, it is more like 70-75% at the most. Testing it using one of those kits, or the dedicated flex fuel setup for our vehicles will obviously give you a very good idea of what the actual levels are. I don't think running a high E ratio on our vehicles will have any devastating long-term effects. I'm sure there are at least marginal effects on the spark plugs and potentially some other parts seeing as ethanol burns hotter than gasoline, from what I understand.

 

[socalvn]

The stock system should be able to handle between 3-5 gallons of E85 without issue, based off all the reading I've done on the threads here regarding the subject. Realistically, most E85 isn't truly 85% ethanol, it is more like 70-75% at the most. Testing it using one of those kits, or the dedicated flex fuel setup for our vehicles will obviously give you a very good idea of what the actual levels are. I don't think running a high E ratio on our vehicles will have any devastating long-term effects. I'm sure there are at least marginal effects on the spark plugs and potentially some other parts seeing as ethanol burns hotter than gasoline, from what I understand.

Thanks just wanted to try one full tank at 3.5 gallon E85 and fill up on 91 octane thats the best I can do were I'm at

 

[AdrianG]

Thanks just wanted to try one full tank at 3.5 gallon E85 and fill up on 91 octane thats the best I can do were I'm at

No problem. You should be totally fine at that. That's typically what I run if I use E85.

 

[DrewB]

How do i get the proper mixture? I got cat delete, bov, k&N air filters and jb4. Just got the car a week ago and will be my first time trying to change maps

 

[DrewB]

How do i get the proper mixture? I got cat delete, bov, k&N air filters and jb4. Just got the car a week ago and will be my first time trying to change maps

Look for an app called “E85 App”. It lets you input your overall target gallon amount, current ethanol added to your 91/93 if applicable, actual ethanol content of the E85 if you have a test kit, and what mix of ethanol you want i.e. E30, E40, etc… Once your inputs are entered, it shows you how much 93 and E85 you’ll need down to the hundredth of a gallon.

 

[Thomby]

I'm sure there are at least marginal effects on the spark plugs and potentially some other parts seeing as ethanol burns hotter than gasoline, from what I understand.

Ethanol has more of an evaporative cooling effect, and you inject more of it, so my understanding is that it runs cooler. I guess if you're using that and its octane to run even higher boost, you may end up in the same place under full load, but just cruising around I'd expect lower temps.

Look for an app called “E85 App”. It lets you input your overall target gallon amount, current ethanol added to your 91/93 if applicable, actual ethanol content of the E85 if you have a test kit, and what mix of ethanol you want i.e. E30, E40, etc… Once your inputs are entered, it shows you how much 93 and E85 you’ll need down to the hundredth of a gallon.

It's always going to be a rough estimate, unless you can hold your fuel absolutely constant and dyno tune it to the ragged edge. 4-5 gallons per tank, of "E85" that's actually E60-E80, and you're going to be in the E30 ballpark, which is recommended because you get most of the octane + cooling + oxygen benefits. There are guys running E40-E50 as well, you're just getting into diminishing returns.

The rule of thumb I use is about 1.25 gal per quarter tank. So if I'm at half a tank, I add 2.5 gal of E85, the other 5-5.5gal of 93, and I know I'm about E30-E33 and about 97 octane.

 

[Volfy]

It is true that ethanol has substantially higher latent heat of evaporation, compared to gasoline. That's why when you brush alcohol on your skin and blow on it, it feels quite cold. Try to do that with gasoline (actually you really shouldn't), and the cooling effect is not as strong. What this does is to reduce the intake charge temperature, which in turn lowers the combustion chamber temp just prior to ignition. The result is less likelihood for auto-ignition/pinging/detonation, which allows the ECU to advance timing for improved efficiency and to produce more power... and for turbo engines, safe running of higher boost pressures.

This doesn't really have much of an effect on the spark plug temperature.

FWIW, water has an even higher latent heat of evaporation than ethanol. That is why injection of water/alcohol became widely used in WWII aviation supercharged engines. Water provides the primary cooling effect, and alcohol provides additional fuel enrichment and anti-freeze properties.

 

[Highlo630]

Look for an app called “E85 App”. It lets you input your overall target gallon amount, current ethanol added to your 91/93 if applicable, actual ethanol content of the E85 if you have a test kit, and what mix of ethanol you want i.e. E30, E40, etc… Once your inputs are entered, it shows you how much 93 and E85 you’ll need down to the hundredth of a gallon.

Thank you !

 

[Navaids]

It is true that ethanol has substantially higher latent heat of evaporation, compared to gasoline. That's why when you brush alcohol on your skin and blow on it, it feels quite cold. Try to do that with gasoline (actually you really shouldn't), and the cooling effect is not as strong. What this does is to reduce the intake charge temperature, which in turn lowers the combustion chamber temp just prior to ignition. The result is less likelihood for auto-ignition/pinging/detonation, which allows the ECU to advance timing for improved efficiency and to produce more power... and for turbo engines, safe running of higher boost pressures.

This doesn't really have much of an effect on the spark plug temperature.

FWIW, water has an even higher latent heat of evaporation than ethanol. That is why injection of water/alcohol became widely used in WWII aviation supercharged engines. Water provides the primary cooling effect, and alcohol provides additional fuel enrichment and anti-freeze properties.

Since water doesn’t compress, wouldn’t you also get a very slight bump in your compression ratio Using water?