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On bikes that were built before-or-just-after the introduction of E10, there can be problems with fuel lines and plastic or aluminum parts. Because Ethanol is hygroscopic (there�s that word again), aluminum parts can corrode and will produce aluminum oxides. You may remember that aluminum oxide is the abrasive material used in sandpaper. Some plastics also react poorly to ethanol. My Yamaha 4-wheeler�s fuel gauge float was reduced to a black blob by the stuff. My �03 Triumph needs a new fuel petcock and a carb rebuild after less than 20K miles also and it reduced four of my line trimmers and a mower to piles of junk. The good news is that most bikes built after about 2008 have fuel systems that deal with E10 well. However, I now use electric line trimmers and diesel mowers...
I've just read on the Jaguar website that they're going to start selling petrol with 10% ethanol in th UK shortly. I believe it's been in American petrol stations for a while now. Any feedback?
A bad idea created by a lot of non engineers (lawyers, and scientists) to provide poorer fuel economy, more harm to the vehicle from water absorption etc, shorter maintenance intervals, etc. Don't believe me? Read the back of your modern car owner's manual where there is discussion of using ethanol blend fuel- short version is you need to use the "severe service maintenance interval".
The US Government is trying to maintain farming capacity at times when the grain is not being bought as food. It is a strategic initiative not unlike the Strategic Petroleum Reserve run by the USDOE. Energy independence is the stated goal.
Can anyone say what the benefits of using 10% ethanol are? except the benefit to repairmen
Basically These are the Pros of biofuel:The Pro:its biodegradable if left unused...more environmental friendlyless greenhouse gas emissionThe biggest one is the Positive Energy Balance. It has a balance of every 1.06btu per G with 1.00btu energy usedHOWEVER there are more cons to the whole biofuel IMO:It reduces MPG as you will need to use MORE for the same amount of mileage as you would with crude oil base gasOlder engine does not like it which result in rebuild more oftenIt attracts water which is bad for storageDue to its water attraction property, electronics & untreated plastic will die (faster)and yes, it competes with food suppliesas other mentioned, newer models of cars & bikes have been designed to "compromise" with the biofuel, but still no guarantee no damage.I personally ignore it like a plague. In Canada, a lot of stations still offer non-ethanol gas just higher grade and more costly...which is fine by me as a motorbike doesn't use THAT much comparing to my 4 wheels.In the states, a lot of stations are ethanol mixed regardless which grade...If you do fill up with bio-fuel mixed gas, burn it off and don't sit on it.
less greenhouse gas emission? the fact that you get less MPG offsets that "pro" doesn't it?
YUP...that is what the pro group keeps on harking about...which doesn't make sense as you pointed out.somehow normal math doesn't work for them *shrug*
I'm trying the Bel Ray fuel additive, it claims: "neutralizes all of the harmful effects that ethanol".http://www.belray.com/all-one-fuel-treatment-0
Valid point, it does have fewer BTUs. But in my experience, it's imperceptible. Someone said you get a 10% loss in milage, that's not at all accurate. If you are going to use 10% alcohol fuel, you will lose something in the order of 3% fuel economy, at that might be a substantial overstatement.Bottom line, don't worry about it, you won't notice it.
I haven't experienced any E10 fuel related issues with any of my gasoline powered machines - ever. My two Lawn-Boys, Snow-Boy, Echo trimmer, Husqvarna leaf blower, Husqvarna and Remington chainsaws, Yardvaark chipper/shredder/blower/vac and two Gravelys all run it. The Lawn-Boy oil I use has a stabilizer in it (always has) and I use a stabilizer in the other's gas during whatever the off-season is for each machine. No carbs have needed rebuilding, no fuel hoses have rotted off, no fuel tank issues (rust, swelling, etc.). All of them start easily and run well. The Echo sometimes needs a little mixture adjustment between (infrequent) uses, but that's it. The motorcycles (currently two Guzzis and the Morini) have likewise suffered no issues. I do use the latest float needles with Viton tips and Tygon fuel hose, but that's the extent of any "work" necessary due to E10. My mpg is quite good for each bike: 43 for the Convert, 50 for the Ambo and 65 for the Morini. The two times I've run "pure gas" in the Convert, it ran worse and gas mileage dropped! Same thing happened with my old Yamaha XT500. I do know that mpg has dropped on my crusty old VW Eurovan (approx. 3 mpg) and maybe the Mercedes would do better on pure gas (currently averaging 25 mpg) too. Look, I'm no big fan of having ethanol in my gasoline, but for me at least "the sky isn't falling" because of it. And are you sure that all of the issues are due solely to the ethanol in the gasoline? There are lots of volatile chemicals in modern gasoline and isn't it possible that one of those additives could be causing the issues? Just a thought.
I'm calling BS on you Lannis. 10% ethanol will NOT lower mileage by 10%! If it did, then running straight ethanol ought to yield 0 mpg! But even if my science thinking is off, I can report that to my disappointment, as I get quite excited to run across pure gasoline, it makes no real difference in mpg, certainly nothing close to 10%. It's a thrill to find premium no octane gas when traveling, but aside from my wish, mpg and performance are static. I have never had a fuel related problem with any internal combustion motor due to ethanol. Shrug