@@sylent6 through experience and owning a lot of cars, I've noticed it really depends on the car, I currently have a 2014 VF Commodore with 3.0 V6 (I can't remember the engine code, but, assuming you're american, and I'm sorry if I'm wrong! You'd know it as a Chevrolet SS) and the needle moves the fastest between 3/4 and 1/4 of a tank, but most of my older cars, and all my older Commodores and Holden's were like that, you'd get heaps of K's until it hit half a tank then it'd just drop 😅 never had an issue loosing power though unless it was starving itself of fuel, and I've only had that issue on old cars with carburettors
It’s a little misleading and mathematically (if I’m thinking about it right) doesn’t work to your advantage. In this example the Flex Fuel cost $1.90 a gallon and the Regular Unleaded costs $2.20 a gallon. So he’s saving about 16% per gallon. However, he’s having to use 30% more fuel to get his car to run the same, so he’s at a 14% deficit. So unless you have all the fancy equipment and can adjust your fuel ratio and the cost of Flex Fuel is more than 30% cheaper it doesn’t make sense to buy it (unless you have a Flex Fuel vehicle of course)
Oil companies want us to believe that the pumps, seals, lines injectors are all different on flex fuel cars. But that’s not true. Today there is no difference in parts between the two, it is simply a small piece of software in the cars computer. E85 is the superior fuel and we all have the ability to run it in our cars. It just takes an E85 flex fuel kit. Please watch PUMP the movie.
I'm with you on this my 2015 accord had 175k miles only thing that I had to replace with the dumb CVT it just crapped out on me. Engine on the other hand was fine. No leaks or seal breaks.
I've e85 in 2016 a Altima and a 2020 jeep wrangler and both ran just fine even from empty to full...no problems with starting on either..however it has cleaned up the entire fuel system in the Altima this is highway running and it runs like it has octane boosts the car was getting rubber so the next day my girl comes in asking me what the f*** did I do to her car so I asked her what's wrong she said I barely touch the gas and it's burning rubber I started laughing even harder when she said my car got kick ass power nothing ever went wrong with the car..today if I just happened to trip to the pump in her car it's half e85 and regular...the jeep has bigger tires so it's harder to compare but the 3 times from empty to full I've had no problems starting but I not 100% sure but I thinks it drinks faster with e85 in it.
During summer 2018, I was doing DoorDash deliveries in my now 270K-mile 2001 Volvo S60, and used E85 on a moderately regular basis; Normally-aspirated, high-compression 5-cylinder. First, I filled up with ~20% E85, and the rest 87 AKI (or occasionally 93 AKI) when I started, and gradually increased that ratio. Then I started filling up on only E85 a few times, consecutively; no issues, whatsoever. Despite losing anywhere from 1-3 MPG--probably because of harder driving habits :D, she loved the denatured vodka. ...Must be a Scandinavian & Russian thing. XD
Your method is correct based on what I have learned regarding E85. As long as it is been introduced slowly to the system while allowing it slowly clean up the old build up inside of the system (which many people seem as negative effect of their car performance). Once the system is clean up almost all cars are able to adapt to them and some just need software update to run them.
@@W0LV1E45 Yes, but it was replaced only because of the regular service interval; still ran perfectly fine before/after changing the fuel filter-which was over a year after first using E85.
@@ProtoFalcon07 Thanks. I might try to run e85 on my 2013 Hyundai Veloster N/A. But I'm not sure if I should do it right now since its cold here in Canada and I heard E85 is harder to start on cold weather.
I have a 1.8 turbo Volkswagen with a hot stage 1 93 octane tune. It sounds smoother and runs stronger with 30-50% e85. It was a bit rich on 93. About 10.5:1 at wot. So the e85 leans it out a little and raises the octane, reduces chance of pre ignition, and cools the 18psi of charged air.
@@burlzabrah8315 He had a tuning interface with him so it doesn't matter. As long as your fuel pump is able to pump 30% more than it needs to this will always work. Problem is the pump and lines are going to wear out quicker if they aren't designed for e85. That's because E85 fuel pumps are overdriven to reduce friction since ethanol is a terrible lubricant compared to gasoline.
@@MrSenorhappy If you are tuned for it you will be able to bump up timing and get more power. Definitely get worse mileage, no way around it. My car gets 27mpg on 89 octane, about 18 on corn.
I used to filled up on E85 on a regular basis for several while driving my (Gasoline only) 2009 Ford Ranger. My engine performance actually improved. Although the engine light triggered, It turned off soon after I re-fueled with gasoline. Overall mpg did decline from 27mpg ( Gasoline) to 21 (E85). Engine ran smother and quieter while on E85, also had better torque. I would not recommend using it during colder winter months due to harder starting. Never had issues with rubber lines and other issues mentioned in the video.
I've tried this on my LS400. I had same experience as you. On the first run I didn't notice any difference, however the next day after a longer drive I noticed the injectors didn't tick anymore. Engine was smoother than before and I still haven't had any issues with anything. 1993 model, stock fuel lines, injectors etc. No leaks. Thinking of going full e85 with bigger injectors and higher fuel pressure. I am pretty sure the issues with rubbers etc come only if you let the car sit for long periods of time. Or if the components were about to go anyways.
I swear I saw a video from Engineering Explained that said E-85 is a good cleaner, it removed carbon deposits, probably cheaper than an "injector cleaner" too.
Your motor isn’t in danger of running hot due to it “running lean” on E-85 because your air to fuel ratio isn’t truly changing. You’re still injecting roughly the same mass of fuel (if not more if your car tries to compensate.) It’s the AFR sensor being tricked, it’s seeing extra oxygen due to there being less hydrocarbons in the fuel to burn (ethanol has less energy density as you know.) You’re still injecting the same amount of fuel so you’re still getting the same amount of cooling from the fuel. Your motor will actually run cool due to it now making 60-70% of its normal power. Really if your car isn’t built for E-85 the only thing in danger is the path the fuel travels through to get into the motor, not the motor itself. So tank, pump, lines, and injectors.
I mean, you can fix this by running more rich ar ratio. Some cars already adjust themselves due to the afr sensor being tricked, and telling the car to run richer (e.g. vw's notorious engine check light) so ethanol doesn't really make less power it's just the tune being offset
Psyko *IF* your car can actually adjust. Old cars like his and mine (I drive the exact same car but automatic) can’t adapt that fast and that much without a tune. Even modern day non-flex fuel cars typically will not adjust/can’t adjust to the extra 30% fuel needed. Even when they do they’ll throw a check engine light, which depending on the car it might gimp power thinking something is wrong. I plan on attempting the transition to E85 with no tune but I’m going to go slow to try and get it to adjust automatically. I’ll go to E15, then E20, E30, E40, E50, E60, E70, E80, E85 doing a full tank each. I’m guessing it’ll be fine under load, I’m just worried about the idle. Mine already idles like shit. It’s gonna take me at least 6 months to transition as I don’t drive that far for school and work.
Ayo Heem so far I’ve gotten to E44 (44% ethanol.) I started the experiment a little later than anticipated and since the virus lockdown I really haven’t been driving. Last time I filled up I got 5 gallons of E85 and the rest of the tank, 6.9 gallons, was E15. Every fuel up I basically go to empty and just add an extra gallon of E85 to the mix hence the weird number I’m at right now, E44. So far no major problems, no leaks that weren’t already there, no overheating etc. My idle is still poor but I need to clean the MAF and the idle air control valve. If anything the car has been running slightly cool but that could just be the thermostat going, 20 year old car. MPG is definitely down at least 5-10%. As for power, I honestly can’t tell since it’s been so gradual. When you’re trying to feel/measure a few percentage difference in HP on a car that only makes like 120HP, it’s going to be almost impossible. I’m going to keep going with it, but economically it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense unless E85 is like a dollar cheaper than E10 or E15.
U really need a flex sensor (monitors fuel continent and communicates with PCM to change fuel maps etc) and a tune done by a tuner.. E85 is awesome when done right, especially in a boosted application!
Hey boss I know I’m a year late but I have a 99 cobra with a vortech supercharger, the guy I bought it from said it was tuned for 85 so I ran 85 and now she what’s to idle between 7-800 rpms and she normally sits at 1k she even wants to stall out sometimes if I don’t give it gas, I’m guessing it wasn’t tuned properly for 85 any ideas? Note she runs perfect on 93
I've been running E85 in my '91 Silverado and '97 Regal with no real issues. I did add a quart of Naphtha to each tank before filling up to slightly lower the octane rating the first time I used E85. My Regal has set a lean engine code with E85 but there are endless stories out there that even the Flex Fuel cars and trucks will set this same lean engine code when using E85. The experiment continues......
Funny story i would like to share, i used to run my Corolla 92 on a mix 1/3, e85/gas, but before coming to this ratio i had to try other ratios including full e85 tank, which it didn't suit my car, i run into problems like slow starting, breaking acceleration and my car smelled like alcohol, i had my friend in my car that day, and he asked me if i have been drinking alcohol on my car, i told him no, it's E85, he never heard of!.
Salam Hamdi i filled up my 98 corolla with 7 gallons of 87 and 6.5 gallons of E85 and i didnt notice any negative side effects at all. Running like a top
I've ran e85 on my 2001 Mereceds C320 and it runs great and even gets a little more power. The only downside is lower MPG. I used e85 on that car almost all the time last year when gas prices were super expensive. So far I never saw any negative effects on the car.
E85 is very seldom if ever actually 85% Ethanol, even the label on the pump says 51% to 83% Ethanol. In the winter there is way less Ethanol in E85, then in the summer months. Ethanol has a lower flashpoint and so does burn as readily in cold weather and it would not burn right when cold. It also has about 30% less BTU per gallon, and so I got about 30% less MPG. I used Torque, on a fixed-length course to come up with those numbers. But it does burn a lot cleaner.
@@noname47032 idk, where around here is for you. But here in Northern Ohio in the winter especially E85 isn't really anywhere close to 85% ethanol. I used to own a Chevy Impala, that was flex fuel. I used torque and a repeatable highway course that I ran tests on all the time. Now I have lost most of my logs, because the car has been gone for very long time. But the one log I could find from September of 2015, my ECM shows 62.3% ethanol. I know I got lower ethanol numbers in colder months, but I couldn't find those logs anymore. I do want to thank you for your comment, it was fun digging through, and looking at my old torque logs, from my Chevy Impala.
I use a blend of E85 in my mk6 gti. I only run about 15psi boost. Fuel trims out of boost are +9.7 short term, +3.2% long. In boost I am -7.4% due to a snow 210 WMI kit. Using about 30% of e85 in the tank seems to run happy with it. On my other car I am going to try and run a blend of about 50% E85 and 93oct. That one I can tune for it easier but I don't have big enough injectors for full e85.
In a flex fuel vehicle, E85 tends to lower gas mileage. Fuel sensor reads the higher octane, advancing timing [higher octane, more resistance to pre-ignition/detonation]. The advance in timing will give you more power [usually negligible amounts depending on the vehicle], but that power gain is across the board. More power is gained through increased pulse width modulation on part of the injectors which subsequently sends more fuel [obviously this is still regulated by sending units like the upstream O2 sensor informing the PCM of the air/fuel ratio along with variations in air volume/velocity via MAF or MAP].
If you have e85 and your storing it, to keep the water out, take some Epsom salts and bake them at 400 degrees for about an hour (dehydrates the salts) then put the dried salts into like a cheese cloth bag (think tea bag) then put the bag of salts into the fuel container and the salts will absorb any water in the fuel (this works with all fuels if you have to store them). Do not try putting this stuff in your vehicles gas tank, and always filter any fuel from a fuel can
@@TwilightThrottle not really. Alcohol is almost half the potential energy as gasoline. So with burning it twice as fast you are only back to square one. I have a ton of experience with running alcohol in our midgets and sprint cars.
I just put 5 gallons in my 2001 Deville. I drove 40 miles home and it ran fine. The only thing i notice is the idle rpm is 625 instead of 650. I'm going to upload my video before I go to bed.
@@ichoozjc No. It ran like sht when it's cold and the cel light came on after 50 miles. The engine was running too lean. I filled it up with regular gas and it run fine now.
@@blackericdenice Lol, well that's a different story than your first reply. Of course it's gonna run like crap. You need 30% more fuel commanded with e85. Also your IDC will be over 100% on stock injectors. Get it tuned and new injectors and you will love it. I've been running it for 4 years. Took my wot timing from 15 to 19° while dropping s/c pulley sizes.
@@ichoozjc I ran e85 to see how my engine would run. It only ran like crap when it was COLD. It ran fine warm. The stock injectors don't have to be change but yes I would need a tune to use it.
IRL though, If you mix E85 with gasoline, increasing E85 amounts at every fill up, the ECU will compensate (the Long Term Fuel Trim) up to a point where you'll exceed how much the ECU is willing to compensate, and it'll light up the check engine light and throw a code for too lean. Don't just go from straight gasoline to straight E85 in a non-flexfuel engine.
@Dave Micolichek I drive and drove straight E85 on multiple non-flexfuel engines. First ones, a Corolla and a Peugeot 307, for those I changed injectors for bigger ones. (I used an ELM327 for checking fuel trim). Then I modified a carburetted Citroen AX, putting a bigger main jet allowed it to work, but barely, because even with the mixture screw as loose as possible it was still too lean at idle. I did not want to drill the idle jet, and it was not removable. After that I had a suzuki alto, for which i absolutely did not do anything, except for tricking the intake air temperature sensor (which allowed me to stop backfires on sudden accelerations) and adding a switch to trick the coolant temperature sensor to help cold starting. I then modified a second Citroen AX, which has a single point injection system, just by adding a washer in the pressure regulator. Works flawlessly. Now I'm driving a Daihatsu Move, for which I haven't modified anything. Works great, except for cold starting, I might trick the temperature sensor in the future.
@Dave Micolichek Yes, i did. And except for the carburetted engine, i always have added more and more E85 every fill up, to let the ECUs modify their fuel trim over a long enough time. In total, I probably have around 100,000 kms (60,000 mi) of e85 driving. I still haven't ever driven a car that was designed for e85 from the factory, or had a proper re-tune. The peugeot 307 and the two citroen AX I have not driven, except for testing purposes. they're cars driven by family. The 307 itself has driven over 70,000 kms since the modification (it has injectors bought used from a range rover v8, yes it fits and the flow+20% matches).
@@arabiantxn No, Just because WHEN I changed my fuel PUMP 10 YEARS ago, I replaced with a Flex Fuel Vehicle model. IF not, I would have to replace more pump.
Steve Hagedorn stock tune? I feel his car (and especially more modern cars) on their OEM stock tune will compensate for E-85 overtime. My guess is he was running a tune that won’t dynamically change like an OEM one will.
I run e85 in my 01 mustang gt. Runs better actually. I was getting spark knock and detonation with 87 octane. I now run mostly e85. Also ran it on my old 98 corolla stock tune
@@TurboTurdBurglar I got an 03 gt my friend what should I get done to be able to run it I got the tr 3650 Trany 4.6 v8 all mostly stock except hood pins new radio speakers and Mishi Moto radiator thank you
@@oves8197 i didnt do anything special. Just put it in and run it. My car has almost 200,000 miles and is redlined and beat on daily and i haven’t experienced any negative side effects. Sometimes i run half e85 and half 87 octane. But most of the time i run full e85
You can use e85 as an octane booster, and fuel system cleanser. There's no way I'm going to believe tthe gasoline mixed in with e85 will allow corrosion in the fuel system. Oxygen sensors can usually compensate for the little bit of oxygen that he 85 adds to the fuel system. Ading like 15 to 20% e 85 to tank will only boost your octane, clean your fuel system, and breakup carbon deposit in the combustion chamber. Sort of like when we use to dump water down the carburetor in an old car to clean out the carbon. Only your car will be drivable. When my car begins to ping, I often add a gallon of my used oil after an oil change, to clean out the fuel system and breakup carbon deposit in the combustion chamber. They're lying to you when they tell you not to put e85 in your car because they want you to go pay to have it converted.
I run 2 gallons of E85 every fill-up in a 15 gallon tank on an 07 supercharged Grand Prix and it runs Perfect! Been doing it for years on a completely stock engine with ZERO issues 🤷
Common misconception is that E85 is 85% ethanol. It generally is not. E85, according to it's specification\standard, contains 51-83% ethanol. It is not 85% ethanol unless you buy the racing version. The sticker at the pump sill tell you what % of ethanol it actually has. The best I found in my area is minimum 70% ethanol while most E85 in my area is minimum 51% ethanol.
You can use additives to reduce the corrosion problem. Racers who use Methanol Fuel use it all the time. Another problem is E fuel needs to be richened up to run properly. So if you have a good Chip Tuner you can solve that.
*_I heard that cars after 94 are e85 capable, and when I do more research apparently Hondas can't handle it from the factory even though they are supposed to. I was thinking half regular fuel and half e85 just to try it. I'll have to correctly convert my eK hatch someday for e85 I guess. This is a good test for science tho!_* love your content an keep it up 🔥
At the 4:05 mark, it sounds like someone is screaming “help me!” in the background. It’s chilling, knowing the kidnap victims are often grabbed or discovered at gas stations.
Yeah because a stock car will automatically adapt as much as possible to run on the right mixture. It only throws a lean code when it can't adjust itself any further. A tuned ecu won't have that function
A V8 appears to drive fine on E85. My brother put E85 in his Dakota Sport. He doesn't know anything about cars and keeps buying it because it's cheapest and someone told him it's a better fuel.
I bought a 99 Mustang GT and it has e85. I don't believe the guy about it being "tuned" for it but I can surely smell that race fuel, smells fantastic lol.
Id imagine if you put like 7/8 of a tank of gas in then top it off with E85, youd essentially be putting in octane booster and clean out your fuel system. IN THEORY
@triplecperformance9590 I was wondering. I used to fill up 90% of the way with low octane and fill it the rest of the way with E85. In my mind it always functioned like making 87 work like 93
@@buckwild6587 you are correct, that’s exactly how it works. Depending on your E mix it can raise your octane. As I said tho you do have to factor in the size of the tank. But for any factory stock car Ive ran 15% E in with no problem just a cheaper better burning fuel. Also just about anything 2008 and newer can support e85 on a bone stock system without changing anything. You can just get a e85 sensor kit and run e85 on any stock car, just put splitters on the injectors to go to the sensor computer and put a sensor between your hard line and fuel rain in the engine bay (sensors senses ethanol content and adjust fuel to compensate for leaning out (the only true damage e85 does. But running lean can cause serious damage)). The best thing to do is just research your car on forums and also get a Haynes heavy maintenance/parts book and see what your system is made out of. Chances are you’re fine to run e85, it’s also not as corrosive as big oil says it is but I’d still never let it sit in my system unless I had full aftermarket (just as a better safe than sorry). Other than that, just test out percentages and keep a log book handy for notes on percentages and how it responds. If it ever feels to lean and is dying out then add some lower grade to even it out
Actually, it's all in the software level. I have been running E85 pump gas in my 2005 Camry 2AZFE with just software tuned since 2015. No problem so far. I also run E85 same way on my 15 Murano and 11 FX35. No issues. You don't need different pump, better fuel lines or better fuel injector unless you want to race it.
@@om606channel I got THREE personal cars from different time that run same way on E85 to this days without issue. You got ONE random car that you don't know the history. And you gonna tell me it's bad advice? Something else happened to that car and it's not E85. A friend works at GM assembly line and witness first hand the difference between the two. Just the software.
@@om606channel My research? As a matter of fact, I did. And did YOU? Ethanol has been added to the gas in US for 20+ years, and they have already made all the components compatible to run it. You didn't think the engineers from those big car companies would overlook the "fuel line leak", did you? Mechanic to mechanic, tell me exactly what happened to that car in your shop then. And don't give me the fuel line leak, fuel pump failed, O2 sensors failed, and all that BS cuz I haven't seen any of those "thaz caused by E85" in my shop. If anything thaz related to E85 at all, it's on the software level thaz causing it to run too lean.
@@shanetseng6040 You don't technically need anything other than a tune, but you can do some serious damage in the long run without larger injectors and fuel pump. E85 needs about 30% more fuel to run properly than gasoline so you need 30% larger injectors and pump. WIthout them, you are running your engine lean.
Actually this supriesed me as my American friend is running his ford pick-up on e85 for years now. 1996 Ranger. He said it runs better than the regular petrol
The seals and whatnot may not be compatible with constant high exposure to ethanol and can cause leaks. Also with today's direct injected engines the high pressure fuel pumps are lubricated by the oil content in regular fuel, and running a high ethanol content can cause them to fail. That's not an inexpensive repair.
I just added 1 gallon of e85 and 10 gallons of regular just to clean up the engine a bit, so far nothing major happened. I'm just going to drive it until it's all dry just to play it safe for the fuel system.
I accidentally swapped fuel from a car filled with E85 into our `03 Lexus IS300. Car had issues idling and would barely even rev. Eventually the ECU mellowed out and allowed the car to rev and drive, but very weak with no power. Had a little over 1/4 tank E85. Filled the rest with 91 and am now waiting till the tank is empty to refill 91 again.
Based on what I have learned so far regarding E85. As long as it is been introduced slowly to the system while allowing it slowly clean up all the old build up inside of the system due to long term usage of regular fuel. This will cause the engine to perform less smoothly in the beginning; however, once the system is cleaned (like how we use alcohol to clean wounds) all cars are able to adapt to them (just like the first Ford engine would) and some may just need software update to run them.
I think he just doesn't understand that every race car period runs on alcohol so if race cars are doing it why not a civic I ran E-85 in my Camry for 3 years straight and all I did was get a piggyback ECU fuelflex.international/
It works Great on V6 and V8 engines 50% Gas and 50% ethanol with Additives I would use this to run 200 Miles no problems, BUT Make sure you will use it all Don't let it stored or for short runs it will ruin your Seals and what not rust etc. Recommend for long runs where you will be leaving your car on E
E85 should actually run at 9.6 to 1 air fuel ratio, you should add more fuel to actually see some power gains but your injectors probably can't supply that much at high rpm
A have a scooter with 50ccm and fuel injection with lambda sond. I tried more and more ethanol content, now I'm at about E50. It accelerates, sounds and runs quite normal, even under cold start conditions. The exhaust gases contains clearly less soot (cleaned the mufler pipe before), so I guess, the combustion chamber would stay cleaner. But what really surprises me: The fuel consumption rised only slightly, about 5 percent more compared to E5. I was expecting way more.
I did run a 1991 model MB 190E 2L for 2 years on E40 and it would not pass emmissions tests without it. But I did adjust the air fuel sensor (mechanically) to make it run a little rich, but it was already running rich before that. I tried 100% E85 and it was hard to start and had 0 torque (would not move at all without stopping) when the engine was cold, after 10 minutes you could could start driving and it did run ok but had lot less power then normal at low rpm, at higher rpm it felt like it had maybe more power. I tried 30% E85 in my Yamaha WR450f, it dissolved some plastic parts after 30 min in the carburetor and all the fuel emptied out on the tarmac ...
not really, same fuel lines , same fuel pump, same injectors, the only difference is the PCM sensor that detects what type of fuel you put in the gas tank .
Yeah, I tried a 30/70 Ethanol/Petrol in my 2006 Peugeot 407 2.2. Idled alright but could only rev up to 1450 revs before premature detonation, which is pretty useless for driving anywhere. Don't advise anyone do this unless they're planning on testing it with all necessary equipment to drain fuel lines or are able to run it dry, & you know, have a spare car lying around, just incase.
I have a 1988 e150 van and it ran good but I think of the bad compression it doesn't burn the e85 like it supposed to, that's what I think, that I need to bring the compression ratio higher..
Running as lean as he was actually will make the engine run cooler and wouldn't cause detonation. The power will be extremely lacking. Could detonate initially upon the fuel switching though.
I have an Au ford falcon (4L inline 6) and the only issue I have with E85 is starting.. harder to start, takes a couple of cranks, but after that, runs fine. I've run quite a few tanks of it, and once started, no problems. I think if you adjusted the enrichment values for starting, that would be all that would be required to run it on a regular basis.
Ethanol isn't corrosive. *Methanol* is. Ethanol doesn't have the energy per liter petrol does. I do agree it's not the best idea to put E85 into a non flex fuel vehicle and it could damage parts of the system. I put E85 into my wife's truck today, not thinking. Have not checked fuel trims yet, but we drove over 100 miles that way with no trouble at all. I'm going to use it up and refill it with pure gas. The reason this worked is the truck was built on a line that made both E85 and regular gas vehicles. It's very likely they used only one type of fuel line, fuel rail, and possibly one type of fuel pump, which would be the E85 version. The tank is meant for standard gas, the injectors are, and the ECM is tuned for petrol, but it still runs.
You will also use WAY more fuel with e85 then with no ethanol fuel. We run straight Methanol in our racecars, and it takes almost twice the amount of fuel as gasoline does.
@@randyschmidt19 A generic Honda at idle is not a race car and Ethanol is not Methanol. Backmarker is correct, about twice as much meth is needed. Ethanol, while not as bad as Meth, will still require more fuel per mile if running the correct A/F mix. Even if you adjust for the correct mix, like in the video, it doesn't mean the parts providing the fuel can deliver it. So that Honda with the 30% trim will likely work fine until it's floored, then it may self destruct. That's why I watched it (skimmed it) because I hoped it was going to be a full throttle destructive test.
@@chevota400 I did not say he was wrong. The rule of thumb for true E85 is 35% more fuel. The video clearly demonstrated 30% brought it right back. That is true regardless if it's a race car or a scooter. Baseline over pump gas to E85 is 35%. Methanol is a different fuel and it requires about 50% more over pump gas baseline. Whether his cars fuel system can deliver the required amount is a different issue, but 30% is more accurate than saying WAY more fuel. My ECU doesn't have a way more fuel setting
you're confusing METHENOL with ETHONOL.....e85 is not corrosive, all cars post 2000 are designed for E15 so they already can take ethenol, a higher percentage wont do any harm, I've been running E85 for 5 years in my C32 amg kompressor with zero issues, runs cooler has more power, and it's super clean.
Mathematically (if I’m thinking about it right) it doesn’t work to your advantage. In this example the Flex Fuel cost $1.90 a gallon and the Regular Unleaded costs $2.20 a gallon. So he’s saving about 16% per gallon. However, he’s having to use 30% more fuel to get his car to run the same, so he’s at a 14% deficit. So unless you have all the fancy equipment and can adjust your fuel ratio and the cost of Flex Fuel is more than 30% cheaper it doesn’t make sense to buy it (unless you have a Flex Fuel vehicle of course, it think).
Back in the 70's there were no flex fuel vehicles but they sold ethenol at gas stations. I put a ethenol mix in my 1995 vehicle runs fine. I doubt if this car stalled.
I just switched to E85 in my 2005 Dodge Neon. I am in California and gas is over $6 a gallon right now. E85 is $4 a gallon. I swapped the injectors from the stock 19#/hr ones to 24#/hr ones to compensate for about a 25% increase in fuel required. So far, she runs great and I haven't had any problems. Oh, and I disconnected the battery to reset the PCM so it will relearn the fuel curve if necessary, based on sensor input. I wonder why your Civic didn't do that... If the AFR from the Oxygen sensor is coming up lean, the computer usually adds fuel to compensate.
@@BoBuilds My understanding is that if you change the injectors to 25% larger ones, you will increase fuel injected by 25% and the ECU won't know. Because it will be opening the injectors for the same amount of time, but the opening on the injectors is 25% larger. Therefore, the ECU will not need to adjust the fuel trims. My car has not set a check engine code yet for a lean condition since filling with E85 and switching to the larger flow injectors.
I run 50/50 in my 68 Camaro with a 406 sbc.91 octane with 11 to 1 compression just doesn’t cut it.Had A little ping no matter we’re I set the timing.Now it purrs like A kitten and have the timing set at 40 total.No issues no ping.
I do like that stock Civic. Especially the RPF1's and the exhaust. It would look sweet if you detailed it. I need to do my Type S RSX a good detail. LOL
Would have been interesting to see you add a bit of timing before you added more fuel. Hondas arent known to be high compression engines so you aren't squeezing the e very hard. Good video and BTW gas is also very corrosive. Great vid
Seems to me like the Civic S¡ is camera shy... I use e85 every now and then in my Hondas with no issues other than a random CEL for fuel, usually depending on the mix. For my experience, I get less MPG's, but a nice power gain. And definitely no bogging or stalling issues like your Civic S!.
what does that mean "it likes to contain water if it sits to long." How is it containing water? Where is the water coming from? I just watched a guy open a tank of e85 that sat for 4 years and it looked fine...I'm in arizona with very low humidity. If the e85 comes from the pump with no water in it, then I'm not sure where it would be getting water from.
E85 is cheaper than racing gasoline. ethanol has high octane rating and you can run it in car. If run kerosene then you have knocking issues and might get what happen in back to future 3. race car engines have higher compression ratios to get more power so make sense to make race car a flex fuel car because racing gasoline is expensive while E85 is cheap.
Never pump gas in a near empty tank. You form vapor bubbles in the fuel line that will stall your car until you get them out. Meanwhile your computer will wig out and trip a bunch of weird codes.
I have a 2008 Buick Lucerne CXL and know how to make E85. I desperately want to use it in my vehicle. Any ideas on whether this will work, or how to make it work? Living in rural America and really need to be self-sufficient.
Id start with a 30% mix. You really need a wide band oxygen sensor to see where you are fuel wise. They can be installed pretty easily. If you can find a way to adjust your fuel pressure you should be able to get a decent tune with just that. Your cars O2 sensor determines the AF ratio when its warmed. WOT is where you will have to watch it doesnt use the O2 sensor just fixed fuel maps.
Mpg on E85 is a good bit lower. How much higher fuel consumption is obviously depends on the vehicle. If you have to travel long distances, E85 is a bad idea. It is not available everywhere and I often see areas where you can't find it at all or towns are to far apart to run it.
How about decapping the injectors for your 30 percent on a stock 1990 Honda Accord LX coupe f22a1 should run fine without having to tune it if it's obd1b after all one O2 sensor is what makes the ECU push more fuel or less fuel per the O2 sensor reading
This stuff is a really good fuel system and engine cleaner, most fuel system cleaners are made up of ethanol based product anyways. I usually put one gallon of e85 and the rest regular 91. Af ratios do change so slightly but i know my car runs so much smoother after the next fill up
that $20 fill up looks real good right now
After I spent over 60 dollars the other day😂
@@deondre294 I'd kill for a $60 fill 😂 I'm averaging about $160 for a full tank 😭
@@Michka1001 When it goes to half a tank fill up again because once it has the half mark you get less power and you burn more gas
@@sylent6 through experience and owning a lot of cars, I've noticed it really depends on the car, I currently have a 2014 VF Commodore with 3.0 V6 (I can't remember the engine code, but, assuming you're american, and I'm sorry if I'm wrong! You'd know it as a Chevrolet SS) and the needle moves the fastest between 3/4 and 1/4 of a tank, but most of my older cars, and all my older Commodores and Holden's were like that, you'd get heaps of K's until it hit half a tank then it'd just drop 😅 never had an issue loosing power though unless it was starving itself of fuel, and I've only had that issue on old cars with carburettors
It’s a little misleading and mathematically (if I’m thinking about it right) doesn’t work to your advantage. In this example the Flex Fuel cost $1.90 a gallon and the Regular Unleaded costs $2.20 a gallon. So he’s saving about 16% per gallon.
However, he’s having to use 30% more fuel to get his car to run the same, so he’s at a 14% deficit.
So unless you have all the fancy equipment and can adjust your fuel ratio and the cost of Flex Fuel is more than 30% cheaper it doesn’t make sense to buy it (unless you have a Flex Fuel vehicle of course)
Oil companies want us to believe that the pumps, seals, lines injectors are all different on flex fuel cars. But that’s not true. Today there is no difference in parts between the two, it is simply a small piece of software in the cars computer. E85 is the superior fuel and we all have the ability to run it in our cars. It just takes an E85 flex fuel kit. Please watch PUMP the movie.
mattrox1221 so true!!!!
I'm with you on this my 2015 accord had 175k miles only thing that I had to replace with the dumb CVT it just crapped out on me. Engine on the other hand was fine. No leaks or seal breaks.
Facts on today’s cars but anything like 2003 and prior might wanna get a conversion aka e85 pump and some upgrades lines
I've e85 in 2016 a Altima and a 2020 jeep wrangler and both ran just fine even from empty to full...no problems with starting on either..however it has cleaned up the entire fuel system in the Altima this is highway running and it runs like it has octane boosts the car was getting rubber so the next day my girl comes in asking me what the f*** did I do to her car so I asked her what's wrong she said I barely touch the gas and it's burning rubber I started laughing even harder when she said my car got kick ass power nothing ever went wrong with the car..today if I just happened to trip to the pump in her car it's half e85 and regular...the jeep has bigger tires so it's harder to compare but the 3 times from empty to full I've had no problems starting but I not 100% sure but I thinks it drinks faster with e85 in it.
"Eaty five"
🤣
💀😂😂😂i heard it too.
😂
Hahahahaha
🤣🤣🤣
During summer 2018, I was doing DoorDash deliveries in my now 270K-mile 2001 Volvo S60, and used E85 on a moderately regular basis; Normally-aspirated, high-compression 5-cylinder. First, I filled up with ~20% E85, and the rest 87 AKI (or occasionally 93 AKI) when I started, and gradually increased that ratio. Then I started filling up on only E85 a few times, consecutively; no issues, whatsoever. Despite losing anywhere from 1-3 MPG--probably because of harder driving habits :D, she loved the denatured vodka.
...Must be a Scandinavian & Russian thing. XD
Your method is correct based on what I have learned regarding E85. As long as it is been introduced slowly to the system while allowing it slowly clean up the old build up inside of the system (which many people seem as negative effect of their car performance). Once the system is clean up almost all cars are able to adapt to them and some just need software update to run them.
Did you change fuel filter? Since ethanol is a good cleaner but the cruds it cleans might clog the filter
@@W0LV1E45 Yes, but it was replaced only because of the regular service interval; still ran perfectly fine before/after changing the fuel filter-which was over a year after first using E85.
@@ProtoFalcon07 Thanks. I might try to run e85 on my 2013 Hyundai Veloster N/A. But I'm not sure if I should do it right now since its cold here in Canada and I heard E85 is harder to start on cold weather.
@@W0LV1E45 very hard I would wait lol, youd need a new starter in a few months or less
I have a 1.8 turbo Volkswagen with a hot stage 1 93 octane tune. It sounds smoother and runs stronger with 30-50% e85. It was a bit rich on 93. About 10.5:1 at wot. So the e85 leans it out a little and raises the octane, reduces chance of pre ignition, and cools the 18psi of charged air.
20-30% doesn't affect a/f He should have stopped filling it when the a/f gauge started going up but he just kept going haha rookie
@@burlzabrah8315 He had a tuning interface with him so it doesn't matter. As long as your fuel pump is able to pump 30% more than it needs to this will always work. Problem is the pump and lines are going to wear out quicker if they aren't designed for e85. That's because E85 fuel pumps are overdriven to reduce friction since ethanol is a terrible lubricant compared to gasoline.
I have been running my Ford excursion for the last 3 years on e85 ,all stock no problem,it's a v10,I will post a video
Please do! I too have a excursion v10
Have you experience worse gas mileage and less power?
Mars1313 I have a f250 2000 .What year is yours.
@@MrSenorhappy If you are tuned for it you will be able to bump up timing and get more power. Definitely get worse mileage, no way around it. My car gets 27mpg on 89 octane, about 18 on corn.
I Have been running My 2011 Nissan Titan non flex for the last 4 or 5 years on E85. Gets about 15hps or so more.
Tried this on a Toyota 2010, started and drives fine. Warm day, warm engine and AFR is at 14.7 to 15.0 within a mile.
I used to filled up on E85 on a regular basis for several while driving my (Gasoline only) 2009 Ford Ranger. My engine performance actually improved. Although the engine light triggered, It turned off soon after I re-fueled with gasoline. Overall mpg did decline from 27mpg ( Gasoline) to 21 (E85). Engine ran smother and quieter while on E85, also had better torque. I would not recommend using it during colder winter months due to harder starting. Never had issues with rubber lines and other issues mentioned in the video.
I've tried this on my LS400. I had same experience as you. On the first run I didn't notice any difference, however the next day after a longer drive I noticed the injectors didn't tick anymore. Engine was smoother than before and I still haven't had any issues with anything. 1993 model, stock fuel lines, injectors etc. No leaks. Thinking of going full e85 with bigger injectors and higher fuel pressure. I am pretty sure the issues with rubbers etc come only if you let the car sit for long periods of time. Or if the components were about to go anyways.
Oh, and I run 30-35% E85 generally as the ecu seems happy with that. Haven't tried full E85 yet. Seems even this % does something.
i stop using E85 when it drops below teens
I swear I saw a video from Engineering Explained that said E-85 is a good cleaner, it removed carbon deposits, probably cheaper than an "injector cleaner" too.
Your motor isn’t in danger of running hot due to it “running lean” on E-85 because your air to fuel ratio isn’t truly changing. You’re still injecting roughly the same mass of fuel (if not more if your car tries to compensate.) It’s the AFR sensor being tricked, it’s seeing extra oxygen due to there being less hydrocarbons in the fuel to burn (ethanol has less energy density as you know.)
You’re still injecting the same amount of fuel so you’re still getting the same amount of cooling from the fuel. Your motor will actually run cool due to it now making 60-70% of its normal power.
Really if your car isn’t built for E-85 the only thing in danger is the path the fuel travels through to get into the motor, not the motor itself. So tank, pump, lines, and injectors.
I mean, you can fix this by running more rich ar ratio. Some cars already adjust themselves due to the afr sensor being tricked, and telling the car to run richer (e.g. vw's notorious engine check light) so ethanol doesn't really make less power it's just the tune being offset
Psyko *IF* your car can actually adjust. Old cars like his and mine (I drive the exact same car but automatic) can’t adapt that fast and that much without a tune. Even modern day non-flex fuel cars typically will not adjust/can’t adjust to the extra 30% fuel needed. Even when they do they’ll throw a check engine light, which depending on the car it might gimp power thinking something is wrong.
I plan on attempting the transition to E85 with no tune but I’m going to go slow to try and get it to adjust automatically. I’ll go to E15, then E20, E30, E40, E50, E60, E70, E80, E85 doing a full tank each. I’m guessing it’ll be fine under load, I’m just worried about the idle. Mine already idles like shit. It’s gonna take me at least 6 months to transition as I don’t drive that far for school and work.
John Moore So how did it go? Or have you not tested it yet?
Ayo Heem so far I’ve gotten to E44 (44% ethanol.) I started the experiment a little later than anticipated and since the virus lockdown I really haven’t been driving. Last time I filled up I got 5 gallons of E85 and the rest of the tank, 6.9 gallons, was E15. Every fuel up I basically go to empty and just add an extra gallon of E85 to the mix hence the weird number I’m at right now, E44.
So far no major problems, no leaks that weren’t already there, no overheating etc. My idle is still poor but I need to clean the MAF and the idle air control valve. If anything the car has been running slightly cool but that could just be the thermostat going, 20 year old car. MPG is definitely down at least 5-10%.
As for power, I honestly can’t tell since it’s been so gradual. When you’re trying to feel/measure a few percentage difference in HP on a car that only makes like 120HP, it’s going to be almost impossible.
I’m going to keep going with it, but economically it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense unless E85 is like a dollar cheaper than E10 or E15.
John Moore thanks for the update
U really need a flex sensor (monitors fuel continent and communicates with PCM to change fuel maps etc) and a tune done by a tuner.. E85 is awesome when done right, especially in a boosted application!
Hey boss I know I’m a year late but I have a 99 cobra with a vortech supercharger, the guy I bought it from said it was tuned for 85 so I ran 85 and now she what’s to idle between 7-800 rpms and she normally sits at 1k she even wants to stall out sometimes if I don’t give it gas, I’m guessing it wasn’t tuned properly for 85 any ideas? Note she runs perfect on 93
Octane shouldn't affect the idle but bad quality gas will.
@@matt3613 The IAC is learning a new idle trim. I didnt have this issue but my 4.6 Dohc isnt supercharged
I've been running E85 in my '91 Silverado and '97 Regal with no real issues. I did add a quart of Naphtha to each tank before filling up to slightly lower the octane rating the first time I used E85. My Regal has set a lean engine code with E85 but there are endless stories out there that even the Flex Fuel cars and trucks will set this same lean engine code when using E85. The experiment continues......
So?????
Any update ?? I was planning to do this on my 97 silverado
I was thinking half 87 and half e85 in my 95 GMC Yukon
I don't know what's more weird, him leaving the car on while filling up gas, or him having finding Nemo playing in the background during his video lol
E85 being corrosive IS THE BIGGEST MYTH EVER STOP WITH THAT SHIT
Still gunks stuff up
Funny story i would like to share, i used to run my Corolla 92 on a mix 1/3, e85/gas, but before coming to this ratio i had to try other ratios including full e85 tank, which it didn't suit my car, i run into problems like slow starting, breaking acceleration and my car smelled like alcohol, i had my friend in my car that day, and he asked me if i have been drinking alcohol on my car, i told him no, it's E85, he never heard of!.
Salam Hamdi i filled up my 98 corolla with 7 gallons of 87 and 6.5 gallons of E85 and i didnt notice any negative side effects at all. Running like a top
I've ran e85 on my 2001 Mereceds C320 and it runs great and even gets a little more power. The only downside is lower MPG. I used e85 on that car almost all the time last year when gas prices were super expensive. So far I never saw any negative effects on the car.
Good to know. Just bought a 01 c320.
I was playing with 1/4 tank e85 to 3/4 87 octane in my 2001 Sequoia. Sequoia seemed to move a little more effortlessly when you pushed the pedal.
Burns faster
E85 is very seldom if ever actually 85% Ethanol, even the label on the pump says 51% to 83% Ethanol. In the winter there is way less Ethanol in E85, then in the summer months. Ethanol has a lower flashpoint and so does burn as readily in cold weather and it would not burn right when cold. It also has about 30% less BTU per gallon, and so I got about 30% less MPG. I used Torque, on a fixed-length course to come up with those numbers. But it does burn a lot cleaner.
Around here it's either 85% ethanol or 70% ethanol. I verified this by checking the fuel mix in my ECM. The mix is always dead on.
@@noname47032 idk, where around here is for you. But here in Northern Ohio in the winter especially E85 isn't really anywhere close to 85% ethanol. I used to own a Chevy Impala, that was flex fuel. I used torque and a repeatable highway course that I ran tests on all the time. Now I have lost most of my logs, because the car has been gone for very long time. But the one log I could find from September of 2015, my ECM shows 62.3% ethanol. I know I got lower ethanol numbers in colder months, but I couldn't find those logs anymore. I do want to thank you for your comment, it was fun digging through, and looking at my old torque logs, from my Chevy Impala.
I use a blend of E85 in my mk6 gti. I only run about 15psi boost. Fuel trims out of boost are +9.7 short term, +3.2% long. In boost I am -7.4% due to a snow 210 WMI kit.
Using about 30% of e85 in the tank seems to run happy with it.
On my other car I am going to try and run a blend of about 50% E85 and 93oct. That one I can tune for it easier but I don't have big enough injectors for full e85.
stock hpfp?
With an adjustable fuel pressure regulator raise the fuel pressure 10 psi I bet you can run no problems for years.
Exactly
In a flex fuel vehicle, E85 tends to lower gas mileage. Fuel sensor reads the higher octane, advancing timing [higher octane, more resistance to pre-ignition/detonation]. The advance in timing will give you more power [usually negligible amounts depending on the vehicle], but that power gain is across the board. More power is gained through increased pulse width modulation on part of the injectors which subsequently sends more fuel [obviously this is still regulated by sending units like the upstream O2 sensor informing the PCM of the air/fuel ratio along with variations in air volume/velocity via MAF or MAP].
my chevy with regular gas get about 30 mpg if i keep it about 75 mph..when i us E85 i get 28 mpg so it not that much of a lose
@@terrydarnell1954
Makes sense, but it’s also vehicle dependent.
@@notacreativehandle OEM Flex fuel tunes are notoriously bad. Like 150% fuel increase across the map, as if you were going to WOT all the time.
If you have e85 and your storing it, to keep the water out, take some Epsom salts and bake them at 400 degrees for about an hour (dehydrates the salts) then put the dried salts into like a cheese cloth bag (think tea bag) then put the bag of salts into the fuel container and the salts will absorb any water in the fuel (this works with all fuels if you have to store them). Do not try putting this stuff in your vehicles gas tank, and always filter any fuel from a fuel can
Zeolite as well
my grandfather used to run moonshine in his car back in early days when they was making shine,they would have to jet the carberator so it would on it.
It takes nearly twice the amount of alcohol as gasoline to run.
@@backcountryme yah but then u burn it twice as fast. Now ur flying
@@TwilightThrottle not really. Alcohol is almost half the potential energy as gasoline. So with burning it twice as fast you are only back to square one. I have a ton of experience with running alcohol in our midgets and sprint cars.
I just put 5 gallons in my 2001 Deville. I drove 40 miles home and it ran fine. The only thing i notice is the idle rpm is 625 instead of 650. I'm going to upload my video before I go to bed.
Did it blow up yet?
@@ichoozjc No. It ran like sht when it's cold and the cel light came on after 50 miles. The engine was running too lean. I filled it up with regular gas and it run fine now.
@@blackericdenice Lol, well that's a different story than your first reply. Of course it's gonna run like crap. You need 30% more fuel commanded with e85. Also your IDC will be over 100% on stock injectors. Get it tuned and new injectors and you will love it. I've been running it for 4 years. Took my wot timing from 15 to 19° while dropping s/c pulley sizes.
@@ichoozjc I ran e85 to see how my engine would run. It only ran like crap when it was COLD. It ran fine warm. The stock injectors don't have to be change but yes I would need a tune to use it.
IRL though,
If you mix E85 with gasoline, increasing E85 amounts at every fill up, the ECU will compensate (the Long Term Fuel Trim) up to a point where you'll exceed how much the ECU is willing to compensate, and it'll light up the check engine light and throw a code for too lean.
Don't just go from straight gasoline to straight E85 in a non-flexfuel engine.
@Dave Micolichek I drive and drove straight E85 on multiple non-flexfuel engines.
First ones, a Corolla and a Peugeot 307, for those I changed injectors for bigger ones. (I used an ELM327 for checking fuel trim). Then I modified a carburetted Citroen AX, putting a bigger main jet allowed it to work, but barely, because even with the mixture screw as loose as possible it was still too lean at idle. I did not want to drill the idle jet, and it was not removable.
After that I had a suzuki alto, for which i absolutely did not do anything, except for tricking the intake air temperature sensor (which allowed me to stop backfires on sudden accelerations) and adding a switch to trick the coolant temperature sensor to help cold starting.
I then modified a second Citroen AX, which has a single point injection system, just by adding a washer in the pressure regulator. Works flawlessly.
Now I'm driving a Daihatsu Move, for which I haven't modified anything. Works great, except for cold starting, I might trick the temperature sensor in the future.
@Dave Micolichek Yes, i did. And except for the carburetted engine, i always have added more and more E85 every fill up, to let the ECUs modify their fuel trim over a long enough time.
In total, I probably have around 100,000 kms (60,000 mi) of e85 driving. I still haven't ever driven a car that was designed for e85 from the factory, or had a proper re-tune.
The peugeot 307 and the two citroen AX I have not driven, except for testing purposes. they're cars driven by family. The 307 itself has driven over 70,000 kms since the modification (it has injectors bought used from a range rover v8, yes it fits and the flow+20% matches).
I am reading below 33% mix and you're good? 67% gas and 33% E85? Agree?
@@cat5tracker581 with no modification, most cars with fuel injection will work without any issue with this mix.
@@guillaumegaudin694 Why?
My non FFV 1995 Ford Taurus loves a half tank of E85 each full fill up.
Do you have any problems to report ?
@@arabiantxn No, Just because WHEN I changed my fuel PUMP 10 YEARS ago, I replaced with a Flex Fuel Vehicle model. IF not, I would have to replace more pump.
Added E85 to my Honda Accord 2000 V6 runs great
Steve Hagedorn stock tune? I feel his car (and especially more modern cars) on their OEM stock tune will compensate for E-85 overtime. My guess is he was running a tune that won’t dynamically change like an OEM one will.
I run e85 in my 01 mustang gt. Runs better actually. I was getting spark knock and detonation with 87 octane. I now run mostly e85. Also ran it on my old 98 corolla stock tune
@@TurboTurdBurglar I got an 03 gt my friend what should I get done to be able to run it I got the tr 3650 Trany 4.6 v8 all mostly stock except hood pins new radio speakers and Mishi Moto radiator thank you
@@oves8197 i didnt do anything special. Just put it in and run it. My car has almost 200,000 miles and is redlined and beat on daily and i haven’t experienced any negative side effects. Sometimes i run half e85 and half 87 octane. But most of the time i run full e85
@@TurboTurdBurglar is your stang stock ? Just asking
1999 Pontiac Bonneville SE - decided to do a test tank and it did great. I'm thinking of converting the pump, lines and injectors.
I used to use e85 on my Corolla 92, i found it's best to mix e85 one third with 2 third regular gas, no problem.
Salam Hamdi how do you properly do that ?
Ralph Mejia the gas pump tells you how many gallons you’ve pumped
For example, my car gas tank, takes 12 gallons, i mix 4 gallons of e85 with 8 gallons of regular gas.
How's the weather there - it sits around freezing here- thats my main concern. But mixing like this may work just fine for my 94 Camry
@@nzmegz2773 I don't have my corolla 92 anymore, I would stay away from e85 when it's freezing, or you might have slow starting.
You can use e85 as an octane booster, and fuel system cleanser. There's no way I'm going to believe tthe gasoline mixed in with e85 will allow corrosion in the fuel system. Oxygen sensors can usually compensate for the little bit of oxygen that he 85 adds to the fuel system. Ading like 15 to 20% e 85 to tank will only boost your octane, clean your fuel system, and breakup carbon deposit in the combustion chamber. Sort of like when we use to dump water down the carburetor in an old car to clean out the carbon. Only your car will be drivable. When my car begins to ping, I often add a gallon of my used oil after an oil change, to clean out the fuel system and breakup carbon deposit in the combustion chamber. They're lying to you when they tell you not to put e85 in your car because they want you to go pay to have it converted.
I run 2 gallons of E85 every fill-up in a 15 gallon tank on an 07 supercharged Grand Prix and it runs Perfect! Been doing it for years on a completely stock engine with ZERO issues 🤷
Common misconception is that E85 is 85% ethanol. It generally is not. E85, according to it's specification\standard, contains 51-83% ethanol. It is not 85% ethanol unless you buy the racing version. The sticker at the pump sill tell you what % of ethanol it actually has. The best I found in my area is minimum 70% ethanol while most E85 in my area is minimum 51% ethanol.
My experience is exactly the same as yours.
Put e85 in my 90s gm truck. Runs like a champ! Nothing different. Full tank. I do not do this on the daily it was my own experiment
You can use additives to reduce the corrosion problem. Racers who use Methanol Fuel use it all the time. Another problem is E fuel needs to be richened up to run properly. So if you have a good Chip Tuner you can solve that.
Normal cheap 87 is 4.60/gal an e85 is 2.90/gal.... so I filled the suburban up for 80$ first time since the mean tweets!
i’m jealous of that fill up price
With 30% less mileage why ????
Hell yeah man good video on the subject - was great to see it in real time mixing with the gas and its effects.
Thanks man, yeah it was pretty interesting to see what happens, now to dial in the tune on E85
@@BoBuilds you can just slowly put e85 mixed with regular gas like 20% 85 and the rest gas and it’ll be better for your engine till you get the tune
*_I heard that cars after 94 are e85 capable, and when I do more research apparently Hondas can't handle it from the factory even though they are supposed to. I was thinking half regular fuel and half e85 just to try it. I'll have to correctly convert my eK hatch someday for e85 I guess. This is a good test for science tho!_* love your content an keep it up 🔥
I put 60/40 gas and e85 in my camry v6 and it runs perfectly without issues and no CEL and saved me some money. 😅
At the 4:05 mark, it sounds like someone is screaming “help me!” in the background. It’s chilling, knowing the kidnap victims are often grabbed or discovered at gas stations.
I legit think you're right...before the kid screams help me I think he says "I need to get back to my dad"...😢
I think it was a seagull 👀
What fuel were you running before the E-85? And were you running the stock OEM tune or a custom tune before you switched to the E-85 tune?
Yeah because a stock car will automatically adapt as much as possible to run on the right mixture. It only throws a lean code when it can't adjust itself any further. A tuned ecu won't have that function
Use E30 most of the time. Don't have to adjust anything. It runs better than the e10.
In non-e85 vehicles, the lean condition will tell the ECU to illuminate the CEL and try to richen the mixture.
A V8 appears to drive fine on E85. My brother put E85 in his Dakota Sport. He doesn't know anything about cars and keeps buying it because it's cheapest and someone told him it's a better fuel.
I bought a 99 Mustang GT and it has e85. I don't believe the guy about it being "tuned" for it but I can surely smell that race fuel, smells fantastic lol.
Id imagine if you put like 7/8 of a tank of gas in then top it off with E85, youd essentially be putting in octane booster and clean out your fuel system. IN THEORY
Big brain that’s fax
Not a theory. I’ve done it my whole life. Bout once a month in ALL OF MY CARS I’ll do about 2-6 gallons of E85 (depending on fuel tank size).
@triplecperformance9590 I was wondering. I used to fill up 90% of the way with low octane and fill it the rest of the way with E85. In my mind it always functioned like making 87 work like 93
@@buckwild6587 you are correct, that’s exactly how it works. Depending on your E mix it can raise your octane. As I said tho you do have to factor in the size of the tank. But for any factory stock car Ive ran 15% E in with no problem just a cheaper better burning fuel. Also just about anything 2008 and newer can support e85 on a bone stock system without changing anything. You can just get a e85 sensor kit and run e85 on any stock car, just put splitters on the injectors to go to the sensor computer and put a sensor between your hard line and fuel rain in the engine bay (sensors senses ethanol content and adjust fuel to compensate for leaning out (the only true damage e85 does. But running lean can cause serious damage)). The best thing to do is just research your car on forums and also get a Haynes heavy maintenance/parts book and see what your system is made out of. Chances are you’re fine to run e85, it’s also not as corrosive as big oil says it is but I’d still never let it sit in my system unless I had full aftermarket (just as a better safe than sorry). Other than that, just test out percentages and keep a log book handy for notes on percentages and how it responds. If it ever feels to lean and is dying out then add some lower grade to even it out
Actually, it's all in the software level. I have been running E85 pump gas in my 2005 Camry 2AZFE with just software tuned since 2015. No problem so far.
I also run E85 same way on my 15 Murano and 11 FX35. No issues.
You don't need different pump, better fuel lines or better fuel injector unless you want to race it.
@@om606channel I got THREE personal cars from different time that run same way on E85 to this days without issue. You got ONE random car that you don't know the history. And you gonna tell me it's bad advice?
Something else happened to that car and it's not E85.
A friend works at GM assembly line and witness first hand the difference between the two. Just the software.
@@om606channel My research? As a matter of fact, I did. And did YOU?
Ethanol has been added to the gas in US for 20+ years, and they have already made all the components compatible to run it. You didn't think the engineers from those big car companies would overlook the "fuel line leak", did you?
Mechanic to mechanic, tell me exactly what happened to that car in your shop then. And don't give me the fuel line leak, fuel pump failed, O2 sensors failed, and all that BS cuz I haven't seen any of those "thaz caused by E85" in my shop. If anything thaz related to E85 at all, it's on the software level thaz causing it to run too lean.
@@om606channel and thaz the best you got, mechanic? And you like Chinese egg rolls? I knew there is Asian in you.
@@shanetseng6040 You don't technically need anything other than a tune, but you can do some serious damage in the long run without larger injectors and fuel pump. E85 needs about 30% more fuel to run properly than gasoline so you need 30% larger injectors and pump. WIthout them, you are running your engine lean.
@@sham_wow_guy +1 on the tune.
The ECU just need to adjust about 30% more of the fuel supply than pump gas.
Actually this supriesed me as my American friend is running his ford pick-up on e85 for years now. 1996 Ranger. He said it runs better than the regular petrol
The seals and whatnot may not be compatible with constant high exposure to ethanol and can cause leaks. Also with today's direct injected engines the high pressure fuel pumps are lubricated by the oil content in regular fuel, and running a high ethanol content can cause them to fail. That's not an inexpensive repair.
I run E85 on my 2004,2006,2009 vehicles all the time without any issues
I just fly my scooter.
I just added 1 gallon of e85 and 10 gallons of regular just to clean up the engine a bit, so far nothing major happened. I'm just going to drive it until it's all dry just to play it safe for the fuel system.
I accidentally swapped fuel from a car filled with E85 into our `03 Lexus IS300. Car had issues idling and would barely even rev. Eventually the ECU mellowed out and allowed the car to rev and drive, but very weak with no power. Had a little over 1/4 tank E85. Filled the rest with 91 and am now waiting till the tank is empty to refill 91 again.
Based on what I have learned so far regarding E85. As long as it is been introduced slowly to the system while allowing it slowly clean up all the old build up inside of the system due to long term usage of regular fuel. This will cause the engine to perform less smoothly in the beginning; however, once the system is cleaned (like how we use alcohol to clean wounds) all cars are able to adapt to them (just like the first Ford engine would) and some may just need software update to run them.
Well done on answering all the issues.
I was waiting for him to drive the car
Nah, just talking out his @$$. I shut it off after he started with old wives tales.
I think he just doesn't understand that every race car period runs on alcohol so if race cars are doing it why not a civic I ran E-85 in my Camry for 3 years straight and all I did was get a piggyback ECU fuelflex.international/
@@jemohammed lying 🤥
It works Great on V6 and V8 engines 50% Gas and 50% ethanol with Additives I would use this to run 200 Miles no problems, BUT Make sure you will use it all Don't let it stored or for short runs it will ruin your Seals and what not rust etc. Recommend for long runs where you will be leaving your car on E
E85 should actually run at 9.6 to 1 air fuel ratio, you should add more fuel to actually see some power gains but your injectors probably can't supply that much at high rpm
A have a scooter with 50ccm and fuel injection with lambda sond. I tried more and more ethanol content, now I'm at about E50. It accelerates, sounds and runs quite normal, even under cold start conditions. The exhaust gases contains clearly less soot (cleaned the mufler pipe before), so I guess, the combustion chamber would stay cleaner. But what really surprises me: The fuel consumption rised only slightly, about 5 percent more compared to E5. I was expecting way more.
I did run a 1991 model MB 190E 2L for 2 years on E40 and it would not pass emmissions tests without it. But I did adjust the air fuel sensor (mechanically) to make it run a little rich, but it was already running rich before that. I tried 100% E85 and it was hard to start and had 0 torque (would not move at all without stopping) when the engine was cold, after 10 minutes you could could start driving and it did run ok but had lot less power then normal at low rpm, at higher rpm it felt like it had maybe more power.
I tried 30% E85 in my Yamaha WR450f, it dissolved some plastic parts after 30 min in the carburetor and all the fuel emptied out on the tarmac ...
Smart move coming prepared to tune your way around that problem.
not really, same fuel lines , same fuel pump, same injectors, the only difference is the PCM sensor that detects what type of fuel you put in the gas tank .
Yeah, I tried a 30/70 Ethanol/Petrol in my 2006 Peugeot 407 2.2.
Idled alright but could only rev up to 1450 revs before premature detonation, which is pretty useless for driving anywhere.
Don't advise anyone do this unless they're planning on testing it with all necessary equipment to drain fuel lines or are able to run it dry, & you know, have a spare car lying around, just incase.
I have a 1988 e150 van and it ran good but I think of the bad compression it doesn't burn the e85 like it supposed to, that's what I think, that I need to bring the compression ratio higher..
I like how you walking in circles at the beginning of the video 👍🏽👍🏽 helpful video also thanks
Running as lean as he was actually will make the engine run cooler and wouldn't cause detonation. The power will be extremely lacking. Could detonate initially upon the fuel switching though.
Put a full tank of e85 in my 2005 Honda pilot check engine light comes on ran really well on the highway.
Yeah sure just use your phone and leave engine running while filling up with ethanol fuel..😂 you’d get arrested for this in Australia, love it haha
I have an Au ford falcon (4L inline 6) and the only issue I have with E85 is starting.. harder to start, takes a couple of cranks, but after that, runs fine. I've run quite a few tanks of it, and once started, no problems. I think if you adjusted the enrichment values for starting, that would be all that would be required to run it on a regular basis.
So is your Au stock. Untuned? I have 2010 fg xr6 can I blend it or fill up untuned for it?
Wow. 270 for premium sounds amazing.
Ethanol isn't corrosive. *Methanol* is. Ethanol doesn't have the energy per liter petrol does.
I do agree it's not the best idea to put E85 into a non flex fuel vehicle and it could damage parts of the system.
I put E85 into my wife's truck today, not thinking. Have not checked fuel trims yet, but we drove over 100 miles that way with no trouble at all. I'm going to use it up and refill it with pure gas.
The reason this worked is the truck was built on a line that made both E85 and regular gas vehicles. It's very likely they used only one type of fuel line, fuel rail, and possibly one type of fuel pump, which would be the E85 version. The tank is meant for standard gas, the injectors are, and the ECM is tuned for petrol, but it still runs.
You will also use WAY more fuel with e85 then with no ethanol fuel. We run straight Methanol in our racecars, and it takes almost twice the amount of fuel as gasoline does.
He just demonstrated approximately 30%increase
@@randyschmidt19 A generic Honda at idle is not a race car and Ethanol is not Methanol. Backmarker is correct, about twice as much meth is needed.
Ethanol, while not as bad as Meth, will still require more fuel per mile if running the correct A/F mix. Even if you adjust for the correct mix, like in the video, it doesn't mean the parts providing the fuel can deliver it. So that Honda with the 30% trim will likely work fine until it's floored, then it may self destruct. That's why I watched it (skimmed it) because I hoped it was going to be a full throttle destructive test.
@@chevota400 I did not say he was wrong. The rule of thumb for true E85 is 35% more fuel. The video clearly demonstrated 30% brought it right back. That is true regardless if it's a race car or a scooter. Baseline over pump gas to E85 is 35%. Methanol is a different fuel and it requires about 50% more over pump gas baseline. Whether his cars fuel system can deliver the required amount is a different issue, but 30% is more accurate than saying WAY more fuel. My ECU doesn't have a way more fuel setting
you're confusing METHENOL with ETHONOL.....e85 is not corrosive, all cars post 2000 are designed for E15 so they already can take ethenol, a higher percentage wont do any harm, I've been running E85 for 5 years in my C32 amg kompressor with zero issues, runs cooler has more power, and it's super clean.
did you need to change or add any e85 kit modification? are you running 100% e85 or mix with regular petro?
Mathematically (if I’m thinking about it right) it doesn’t work to your advantage.
In this example the Flex Fuel cost $1.90 a gallon and the Regular Unleaded costs $2.20 a gallon. So he’s saving about 16% per gallon.
However, he’s having to use 30% more fuel to get his car to run the same, so he’s at a 14% deficit.
So unless you have all the fancy equipment and can adjust your fuel ratio and the cost of Flex Fuel is more than 30% cheaper it doesn’t make sense to buy it (unless you have a Flex Fuel vehicle of course, it think).
Thought about that too but it varies w/different locations; here in CA it's approx. ½ cost of regular unleaded. "do the math now, ha! 😄🌽"
If you wanna run e85, just ger a kit, and works with stock fuel system if your car is newer than 93.
Awesome video, cuz! Next video, put diesel in it and see what happens.
Hey thanks! But who is this lol
Rocco
Haha oh cool! Not sure about the diesel I don't wanna screw it up lol 😂
@@BoBuilds haha yeah I know, it would be a good watch though. Lol
Back in the 70's there were no flex fuel vehicles but they sold ethenol at gas stations. I put a ethenol mix in my 1995 vehicle runs fine. I doubt if this car stalled.
I just switched to E85 in my 2005 Dodge Neon. I am in California and gas is over $6 a gallon right now. E85 is $4 a gallon. I swapped the injectors from the stock 19#/hr ones to 24#/hr ones to compensate for about a 25% increase in fuel required. So far, she runs great and I haven't had any problems. Oh, and I disconnected the battery to reset the PCM so it will relearn the fuel curve if necessary, based on sensor input. I wonder why your Civic didn't do that... If the AFR from the Oxygen sensor is coming up lean, the computer usually adds fuel to compensate.
Stock fuel trim are capable of about 20% adjustability but anything over 10% will throw a lean code / check engine light
@@BoBuilds My understanding is that if you change the injectors to 25% larger ones, you will increase fuel injected by 25% and the ECU won't know. Because it will be opening the injectors for the same amount of time, but the opening on the injectors is 25% larger. Therefore, the ECU will not need to adjust the fuel trims. My car has not set a check engine code yet for a lean condition since filling with E85 and switching to the larger flow injectors.
dope way to show this to people man, good video
I run 50/50 in my 68 Camaro with a 406 sbc.91 octane with 11 to 1 compression just doesn’t cut it.Had A little ping no matter we’re I set the timing.Now it purrs like A kitten and have the timing set at 40 total.No issues no ping.
I do like that stock Civic. Especially the RPF1's and the exhaust. It would look sweet if you detailed it. I need to do my Type S RSX a good detail. LOL
This video is good quality. Needs more views for sure.
What a difference from using my phone to an actual camera lol
@@BoBuilds That too. But i meant it is informational with real-time results Makes it even better.
4:05 love the nemo in the background
Would have been interesting to see you add a bit of timing before you added more fuel. Hondas arent known to be high compression engines so you aren't squeezing the e very hard. Good video and BTW gas is also very corrosive. Great vid
In one of my next videos I added like 3 degrees of timing lol
What about video running 30% mix of ethanol and gas to see what happens...
Seems to me like the Civic S¡ is camera shy...
I use e85 every now and then in my Hondas with no issues other than a random CEL for fuel, usually depending on the mix.
For my experience, I get less MPG's, but a nice power gain.
And definitely no bogging or stalling issues like your Civic S!.
i always wanted to see an experiment like this. nice one bro.
I’ve had a prelude in the past but never been a honda fan but i really like this civic
what does that mean "it likes to contain water if it sits to long." How is it containing water? Where is the water coming from? I just watched a guy open a tank of e85 that sat for 4 years and it looked fine...I'm in arizona with very low humidity. If the e85 comes from the pump with no water in it, then I'm not sure where it would be getting water from.
Can’t go over 30% ethanol in my set up with the stock HPFP. Also it’s imperative that if you’re gonna run 30% or more, you need a tune.
E85 is cheaper than racing gasoline. ethanol has high octane rating and you can run it in car. If run kerosene then you have knocking issues and might get what happen in back to future 3. race car engines have higher compression ratios to get more power so make sense to make race car a flex fuel car because racing gasoline is expensive while E85 is cheap.
I've been looking everywhere for an explanation on what happens on a standard afr reading to compare e85 vs regular fuel. Thanks for the information.
I thought this was a prank video to see what happens when you pump gas with your car on.... LMFAO! Great video and informative!!
You can run E85 on any carb engine, might not be such suitable for indirect/direct injection
Never pump gas in a near empty tank. You form vapor bubbles in the fuel line that will stall your car until you get them out. Meanwhile your computer will wig out and trip a bunch of weird codes.
E85 isn’t corrosive this guy needs to do research
Jacob kaul proved it
I have a 2008 Buick Lucerne CXL and know how to make E85. I desperately want to use it in my vehicle. Any ideas on whether this will work, or how to make it work? Living in rural America and really need to be self-sufficient.
Id start with a 30% mix. You really need a wide band oxygen sensor to see where you are fuel wise. They can be installed pretty easily. If you can find a way to adjust your fuel pressure you should be able to get a decent tune with just that. Your cars O2 sensor determines the AF ratio when its warmed. WOT is where you will have to watch it doesnt use the O2 sensor just fixed fuel maps.
I have been so tempted to run E85 in my 01 ram pick up
Id mix about 30% E85 to 87 octane and see what that gets you. Its a pretty good start on any OBD2 non tuned vehicle.
Wyf? 190? In California we pay 5 & 8 bucks a gallon
Mpg on E85 is a good bit lower. How much higher fuel consumption is obviously depends on the vehicle.
If you have to travel long distances, E85 is a bad idea. It is not available everywhere and I often see areas where you can't find it at all or towns are to far apart to run it.
How about decapping the injectors for your 30 percent on a stock 1990 Honda Accord LX coupe f22a1 should run fine without having to tune it if it's obd1b after all one O2 sensor is what makes the ECU push more fuel or less fuel per the O2 sensor reading
This stuff is a really good fuel system and engine cleaner, most fuel system cleaners are made up of ethanol based product anyways. I usually put one gallon of e85 and the rest regular 91. Af ratios do change so slightly but i know my car runs so much smoother after the next fill up
My mom flex fuel vehicle runs great on e30. No modifications.
???
Did you have zero gas in there when you filled it? Did it mix?
would'nt alot of stock ecu's adjust some for the mixture diffrences and possiby be able to get this pretty close to running good. vs your locked tune?
Yes it would. This isn't a valid test since it is not a stock tune