Was coming back from the south the other day...

[thebbbusa]

I got to wondering. What would really happen if I filled up the tank with E85? This fuel has an octane rating of 105. Seems to me if people are running the highest octane they can find, some even run race gas, why couldn't you run E85?

I know there are little differences in the FFV vehicles and the regular versions, but they aren't significant.

Differences

Manufacturers claim different injectors and fuel lines and pumps because E85 is slightly more acidic. The computers in those vehicles also have special mapping because of the E85 oxygen levels.

Oops

But then they say if you accidentally fill up with E85 it shouldn't really matter.

So here's the question. E85 has a much higher oxygen content than regular gas. Could you tune the bike via a PC to compensate for the extra oxygen and thus make more power on a cleaner fuel?

Any Car?

Anybody know?

More info on E85

 

[milesbm]

The problem you will have won't show up right away. It will eat through your fuel line, lock up you fuel pump, and mess up your injectors. Basically you need to change over to stainless fuel line, get a new pump, and injectors. It won' happen right away but all that stuff will go out because of the corrosiveness of the fuel. Race cars that run alcohol turn the fuel off and let the car run out of fuel and then crank the engine over while spraying WD-40 in the intake to lube everything so that nothing is eaten up. And they have the parts (carbs or injectors, fuel lines, etc.) that are designed for it. The alcohol is really tough on components.

 

[thebbbusa]

So, if you changed injectors, lines and pump then you could do it? As far as the rest of the engine, they're they same right? What kind of performance gains could you get with the more potent fuel? 1hp? 10hp?

 

[BUTTER2BOY]

So, if you changed injectors, lines and pump then you could do it?  As far as the rest of the engine, they're they same right?  What kind of performance gains could you get with the more potent fuel?  1hp? 10hp?  

you know this could work & if all I hav to do is changed injectors, lines and pump & I can get 1 to 10 exstra

hp. !

DONE

 

[jwcfbd]

my Tahoe can run this stuff but it does say I may notice some power loss.

 

[thrasherfox]

There have been numerous threads on this board about the octane issue.

General consensus in the past has been run low octane on the Busa.. it will run better... if you want to know more use the search function

 

[Commuta_Busa]

they've got 10% ethanol in NJ for at least a few weeks now... The first time I filled up my bike at the pump I only saw the sticker on the premium nozzle. So I assumed it was only it that one... went with my usual mid grade and by the middle of the day I had a dripping leak in my fuel system!!! (found out later that all the fuel grades have the 10% ethanol in them) After tearing everything apart I found one (1) o-ring in my system that wasn't alcohol resistant. Guess what... that's where the leak was. The o-ring was hard and brittle! The ethanol that leaked in my garage stunk so bad! Worse than the MTBE additive! So I swapped the o-ring with one that can handle alc and everything was fine after that.

Caution - if you're running an aftermarket fuel system make sure everything is compatible with alcohol!!!

 

[thebbbusa]

So, if you changed injectors, lines and pump then you could do it?  As far as the rest of the engine, they're they same right?  What kind of performance gains could you get with the more potent fuel?  1hp? 10hp?  

you know this could work & if all I hav to do is changed injectors, lines and pump  & I can get 1 to 10 exstra  

hp. !

DONE  

 

No, I don't know that, I am asking.




Others:
Sounds like low octane is the way to go then for the normally aspirated engines.

Those race/nitrous/turbo guys might have different opinions though.

 

[thebbbusa]

they've got 10% ethanol in NJ for at least a few weeks now... The first time I filled up my bike at the pump I only saw the sticker on the premium nozzle. So I assumed it was only it that one... went with my usual mid grade and by the middle of the day I had a dripping leak in my fuel system!!! (found out later that all the fuel grades have the 10% ethanol in them) After tearing everything apart I found one (1) o-ring in my system that wasn't alcohol resistant. Guess what... that's where the leak was. The o-ring was hard and brittle! The ethanol that leaked in my garage stunk so bad! Worse than the MTBE additive! So I swapped the o-ring with one that can handle alc and everything was fine after that.

Caution - if you're running an aftermarket fuel system make sure everything is compatible with alcohol!!!

Doh!

Sounds coincidental if you've only run it a couple times. But those would be symptoms.

 

[Commuta_Busa]

they've got 10% ethanol in NJ for at least a few weeks now... The first time I filled up my bike at the pump I only saw the sticker on the premium nozzle. So I assumed it was only it that one... went with my usual mid grade and by the middle of the day I had a dripping leak in my fuel system!!! (found out later that all the fuel grades have the 10% ethanol in them) After tearing everything apart I found one (1) o-ring in my system that wasn't alcohol resistant. Guess what... that's where the leak was. The o-ring was hard and brittle! The ethanol that leaked in my garage stunk so bad! Worse than the MTBE additive! So I swapped the o-ring with one that can handle alc and everything was fine after that.

Caution - if you're running an aftermarket fuel system make sure everything is compatible with alcohol!!!

Doh!

Sounds coincidental if you've only run it a couple times.  But those would be symptoms.

I had gallons of non-ethanol blended gasoline with no problems... it was the ethanol that ate it... It just happened to be one o-ring that I didn't specificaly note alc friendly...

 

[TJFAST]

I have ran 10% for years without a problem.I think i'll try e85.My bike is a 1397 with 13:1 so the extra octane should be fine.But will it work with nos?

 

[bacharles]

(milesbm @ Apr. 11 2006,10:43) The problem you will have won't show up right away.  It will eat through your fuel line, lock up you fuel pump, and mess up your injectors.  Basically you need to change over to stainless fuel line, get a new pump, and injectors.  It won' happen right away but all that stuff will go out because of the corrosiveness of the fuel.  Race cars that run alcohol turn the fuel off and let the car run out of fuel and then crank the engine over while spraying WD-40 in the intake to lube everything so that nothing is eaten up.  And they have the parts (carbs or injectors, fuel lines, etc.) that are designed for it.  The alcohol is really tough on components.

You are absolutely correct. The E85 fuels are made to be highly oxyenated, but the problem will come from the Naphtha used to make it. High octane fuels like that tend to use a heavy naphtha blend over the ligther naphthas. As naphtha is a blending component for gasoline, and heavier naphthas generally carry a higher corrosion than do lighter naphthas. As a rule, a mixed/stable naphtha blend is used as the blending component for gasoline. A stable and/or mixed naphtha is a blend of a light and heavy naphtha. The gasolines we use in our cars (87-93 octane) typically uses a blend of naphtha that has a higher concentration of light naphtha, and for those higher octane fuels such as E85, the blend is just the opposite. And most heavy naphthas will be highly corrosive.