When a vulnerable material is exposed to ethanol, it deteriorates over time. That can lead to some pretty serious engine damage. Back in the old days (pre-1994), E85 could eat away at some engine components. Most vehicles produced in and after 1994 are immune to ethanol.
On the downside, E85 burns faster and produces lesser energy than gasoline. Because denatured ethanol contains around 30% less energy per gallon than regular gas.
Commonly, it is 25% to 35% less expensive than other high-octane fuels. You'll see big savings on fuel. E85 can lower your vehicle's MPG by up to 25%, but many vehicles only lose 15% to 20% in fuel mileage. Even if you see a 25% drop in your vehicle's mileage, you'll still save money anyway.
E85 Cools Your Engine Better Than Regular Gasoline
It requires lower combustion temperatures. Also, it creates a thermodynamic cooling effect that regular gasoline doesn't offer. This is quite beneficial because E85 helps keep the engine cool. This helps keep the engine healthy.
E85 contains less energy than 100% gasoline. Based on its energy content and cost per unit volume, it is actually less efficient as a motor fuel, with fewer miles per gallon.
If you accidentally put E85 fuel in a car built for regular petroleum-based gasoline, chances are your check engine light will come on. And while that's never a good feeling, a one-time mistake shouldn't cause engine damage.
In Australia, E85 is uncommon compared to unleaded and premium unleaded alternatives, but is more readily available at certain United Petroleum service stations around the country. One reason for E85's low popularity locally is the small number of vehicles available that can use it.
“The reason for that is because the main ingredient in E85 - ethanol - is priced far below gasoline right now. You look at the wholesale terminals where the fuel is blended and ethanol today is selling for about $2.80 a gallon. That compares to gasoline that is selling for about $4.20 a gallon.
E85 flex fuel not only powers your engine but also cleans your engine, fuel lines, and fuel injectors. That's because E85 contains a high amount of ethanol, up to 83%. Ethanol is an excellent cleaner. It clears the engine, fuel lines, and fuel injectors of deposits.
E85 also burns faster than regular gasoline because it vaporizes faster. So your engine may eat through E85 faster than regular gasoline.
E85 fuel has a faster ignition time and flame propagation when compared to gasoline. This leads to higher cylinder pressure, as well as increased engine torque and power, gaining up to 20%. The increased exhaust gas flow allows turbos to spool quicker.
While E85 is typically cheaper per gallon than gasoline it might be more expensive per mile. Since ethanol contains less energy per volume than gasoline, FFVs will generally get 15%-27% fewer miles per gallon when fueled with E85, depending on the car and the driver's driving habits.
MPG. Due to ethanol's lower energy content, FFVs operating on E85 get roughly 15% to 27% fewer miles per gallon than when operating on regular gasoline, depending on the ethanol content.
E85 Is Better For Performance Than Gasoline
Your car will also run better because the ethanol in E85 is a solvent that can clean the carbon deposits throughout your engine and fuel system, and the high octanes enable the engine to produce more power. As far as performance goes, E85 is a better fuel than gasoline.
Putting E85 in a Gas Car
The check engine light will most likely illuminate, but you can top off the rest of your tank with regular gasoline and ride it out. A one-time mix-up with E85 gas shouldn't cause any long-term damage.
Ethanol has a corrosive action on fuel-system components, magnesium, aluminium and rubber. Running E85 on older model engines without tuning and replacing some components will ruin the engine in short time. Replacing fuel hoses, fuel pumps, gaskets, seals, fuel filters, fuel injectors, throttle bodies, etc.
The ethanol in E85 doesn't eat or damage fuel injectors. In fact, ethanol actually cleans fuel injectors. Ethanol doesn't corrode aluminum.
Using any octane level of gasoline in a flex-fuel vehicle is acceptable. The sensors in an FFV detect whether the fuel is pure gasoline or 85% ethanol and make necessary changes for optimal fuel injection and timing of combustion. Putting E85 in a car not designed for flexible fuel can be harmful.
It can last years, or it can go bad in as little as three months. Its longevity depends on a lot of factors, including: The amount of moisture in the air. Whether the fuel system is sealed.
If you don't have a flex fuel vehicle, putting E85 in it isn't recommended. “Using high-content ethanol (E85) in an engine not designed for it can also void the manufacturer's warranty,” AAA wrote in 2019.
E85 is a blend of between 70% and 85% ethanol and unleaded petrol, with an octane rating of 105. It can only be used in cars that have been specifically built or modified to use it, including flexible-fuel vehicles and V8 racing supercars. You should not use E85 in any vehicle that is not specifically designed for it.
However, at the moment, E85 costs about 90 cents per litre at a time when regular unleaded has been between $1.20 and $1.30 per litre.
Putting 91 or 95 fuel in a car designed for 98 petrol can lead to engine knock, whereby the petrol burns too early and may damage the engine, or lead to greater wear and tear over the long term. E10 and E85 also have octane ratings, with E10 usually having a rating of 94 whilst E85 will exceed a rating of 100.
Ethanol takes more time than gasoline to vaporize. This is why a car with E85 doesn't necessarily run or idle the best in cold weather until the engine is warmed up.
It actually has a lower BTU content than gasoline. E85 makes less power per volume of fuel than normal gasoline. But because it resists detonation better than premium unleaded gasoline, you can run a higher compression ratio and be more aggressive with ignition timing.