E 85

I've used it in other non-E85 vehicles. Runs fine, gas mileage drops considerably. Tough on rubber hoses, might be bad if you have a Viton tipped needle valve. Can't see what else it could hurt...
 
E85 has less energy than regular gasoline, so more of it is necessary to run the engine and gas mileage suffers. E85 is good for muscle cars because it burns cooler and enables more ignition timing. E85 is not beneficial for the Model "A."
 
I doubt if too many tanks still have a lot of lead/tin coating left in them but the stuff is an oxidizer so it will definitely promote moisture absorption and corrosion. It's nasty to pot metal or about any other soft metal due to the oxidation so it would be hard on any remnants of lead/tin that might be still in there. Tillotson carbs or other fuel system parts made from zinc die castings wouldn't like it much.

A model A engine could run on straight alcohol but it would have to have some big jets in the carb to do it. It would likely get about 8-miles to the gallon or worse but it would run.
 
to Big Hammer: DON'T USE GASOLINE TO CLEAN PARTS - I HAVE A DECEASED FRIEND WHO DID AND PERISHED WITH HIS CAR, GARAGE AND HIMSELF.
 
rotorwrench said:
I doubt if too many tanks still have a lot of lead/tin coating left in them but the stuff is an oxidizer so it will definitely promote moisture absorption and corrosion. It's nasty to pot metal or about any other soft metal due to the oxidation so it would be hard on any remnants of lead/tin that might be still in there. Tillotson carbs or other fuel system parts made from zinc die castings wouldn't like it much.

A model A engine could run on straight alcohol but it would have to have some big jets in the carb to do it. It would likely get about 8-miles to the gallon or worse but it would run.
Click to expand...

"---but it would run." If you could get it started on a cold day, that is! Alcohol does not like to vaporize when it's cold, and it has to be a vapor to ignite as a liquid does not burn. (Thus you see gasoline squirted into the injectors to start alcohol dragsters.) I was working at the Arizona Hiway Dept. when they bought a fleet of the first Ford Taurus's designed to run on E85. They came equipped with block heaters (Flagstaff sees some 20 below mornings in winter), they called for more frequent oil changes (with synthetic oil) due to alcohol dilution, more frequent spark plug replacement as E85 is harder to ignite, fuel system lines and components had to upgraded, and fuel mileage dropped by at least a third! The Feds also required state fleets to buy a certain percentage of alternate fuel vehicles or lose hiway funds so we got stuck with some natural gas cars and vans, but that's another story (disaster).
Interestingly, the government requires at least 15% gasoline in E85 (thus the 85%) so there will be visible flame if the stuff catches fire (an alcohol fire is invisible). This is so first responders (you maybe) to an accident don't walk into a raging fire.
 
Last edited:
You are right about starting on alcohol. Ether is the usual way to start one but few folks mess with stuff like that now days. Ford tractors could be set up to run with kerosene back in the war time era. Up in southwestern Kansas where I'm originally from, they used to run casinghead gas from the natural gas wells. The stuff was a lot like running kerosene.
 
I live in an area where I can get real gas that is alcohol free, so that is all I use in my Model A , lawn mower and chain saws.
 
Stay far away from the stuff.

Brother-in-law ran it in his brand new Chevy pickup and by the time he had 60,000 miles on his truck it was back in the shop with major engine problems. The Chevy mechanic, first thing, asked him 'You aren't running E-85 are you?'

Brother-in-Law said 'yes I thought that was a good thing' they told him never ever use that crap again and showed him how it screwed up the motor in his truck.

E-10 is hard to stay away from. If you use MMO and a good fuel stabilizer like Startron that the outboard motor boat guys use that helps a lot. Buy straight gasoline when you can.
 
Ethanol has a high octane rating so you could run more ignition timing. E-85 probably has an octane rating of nearly 100 but if your car is not set up for it, it won't do you any good. As a matter of fact along with the other problems it creates it has less energy than regular so your milage would suffer. It is just like people who think that running high test in a car that doesn't call for it think they are going to get better millage.
 
rotorwrench said:
You are right about starting on alcohol. Ether is the usual way to start one but few folks mess with stuff like that now days. Ford tractors could be set up to run with kerosene back in the war time era. Up in southwestern Kansas where I'm originally from, they used to run casinghead gas from the natural gas wells. The stuff was a lot like running kerosene.
Click to expand...

30 years back our local Model A Club had a WWII vet member of the American Volunteer Group (The Flying Tigers in China and commanded by Lee Chennault). The conditions there in China were primitive at that time before Pearl Harbor and they had to make do with any fuel they could find... Real gas was for the exclusive use in the aircraft only and was scarce... Therefore all small engines and cars were all running on pure Alcohol that was distilled locally from any organic plant materials they could get.

The point of this story is that he said that they always carried a small glass whiskey flask filled with real gasoline in their pockets. They always had to prime / start these engines on the real gas first then would wean it onto the alcohol once warm and running. Necessity is the Mother of Invention.....
 
Jeff/Illinois said:
Stay far away from the stuff.

Brother-in-law ran it in his brand new Chevy pickup and by the time he had 60,000 miles on his truck it was back in the shop with major engine problems. The Chevy mechanic, first thing, asked him 'You aren't running E-85 are you?'

Brother-in-Law said 'yes I thought that was a good thing' they told him never ever use that crap again and showed him how it screwed up the motor in his truck.

E-10 is hard to stay away from. If you use MMO and a good fuel stabilizer like Startron that the outboard motor boat guys use that helps a lot. Buy straight gasoline when you can.
Click to expand...

Did your brother-in-law's new Chevy have that little emblem on the tailgate (or maybe front fender) that says "Flex-Fuel"? If not, he had no business putting E85 in it! The manufacturer adds special equipment when the vehicle has this option. Corrosion-resistant this and that's, different O2 sensor (possibly), special computer programming, etc. Without the computer greatly richening the fuel mixture, the engine will run extremely lean on E85. I think the modern wide-band O2 sensors are able to richen it up enough, but don't count on it unless your rig is set up from the factory for it.
What was the fuel mileage on your BIL's pickup? I bet he complained about it! Mileage drops by a good third. If it got, say, 21 MPG on plain gas, it would have dropped to about 14. Does he still have it? Still using E85?:rolleyes:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top