Ethanol ???

[ford40]

maybe I should know this but what experience have people had using ethanol in their cars? Mileage? Wear & tear? et.al.

[70Sixter]

Ethanol is hard on older cars as it ruins fuel line seals. I don't remember cut-off (maybe mid-70s), but I avoided the gas-eth mixture best I could it in my 914-6 when driving thru corn belt on coast to coast trips.

Other consideration is that it has less energy per volume than gas, so you basically burn more to go the same distance as with same amount of gas.

[986Jim]

Some gasonline is mixed with 10% ethanol. Its generally higher octane gas (From Sunoco around here 94 Octane) which is perfectly fine. You won't be running E85 or anything like that. No cars are really Flex Fuel around here. Ethanol is the way of the future really say 10 years from now everything will be E85 and older cars will be converted pretty cheaply to run on it. You don't get as many miles thats true but at a 1/3 of the price eventually, who cares...

[Rail26]

Corn Power!

[denverpete]

Originally Posted by ford40

maybe I should know this but what experience have people had using ethanol in their cars? Mileage? Wear & tear? et.al.

Well, for those of us in Ozone Non-Attainment areas we're pretty much forced to use a 10% mixture of ethanol. In Colorado that's only in the winter months. You definately notice a decrease in MPG. You won't see any additional "wear & tear" at that level.

[Brucelee]

You got to hand it to the farmer lobby, they have clout.

Ethanol is a technological joke!

[denverpete]

Originally Posted by Brucelee

You got to hand it to the farmer lobby, they have clout.

Ethanol is a technological joke!

Not to mention that it's probative value as an ozone reducer is dubious at best.