I spoke with a gentleman (a farmer of course)regarding the use of ethanol. Subsequently, I have read that E30 and E20 blends can produce MPG equivalent to or better than unleaded gasoline. Any thoughts on this? Secondly, can E20 and E30 blends be used in a non-flex fuel vehicle?
E30, non-flex fuel vehicles.
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Secondly, can E20 and E30 blends be used in a non-flex fuel vehicle?
My toyota manual says 10% ethanol is MAX, so I would say "no"
Secondly, can E20 and E30 blends be used in a non-flex fuel vehicle?
My toyota manual says 10% ethanol is MAX, so I would say "no"
Originally Posted By: otis24
I spoke with a gentleman (a farmer of course)regarding the use of ethanol. Subsequently, I have read that E30 and E20 blends can produce MPG equivalent to or better than unleaded gasoline. Any thoughts on this? Secondly, can E20 and E30 blends be used in a non-flex fuel vehicle?
As a previous poster has said, its less energy dense. There is less btu's per volume of fuel than gasoline. Therefore the fuel mileage will be less than straight gasoline. You might have success running e 20 0r e 30 but the components may break down i.e. fuel injectors, o-rings , throttle body components etc. Some vehicles run poorly some run okay.
I spoke with a gentleman (a farmer of course)regarding the use of ethanol. Subsequently, I have read that E30 and E20 blends can produce MPG equivalent to or better than unleaded gasoline. Any thoughts on this? Secondly, can E20 and E30 blends be used in a non-flex fuel vehicle?
As a previous poster has said, its less energy dense. There is less btu's per volume of fuel than gasoline. Therefore the fuel mileage will be less than straight gasoline. You might have success running e 20 0r e 30 but the components may break down i.e. fuel injectors, o-rings , throttle body components etc. Some vehicles run poorly some run okay.
your mileage can only be similar if you get a tune to run that specific blend.
We're on a steady diet of E10 here for a long time and it is a significant mileage KILLER!
We're on a steady diet of E10 here for a long time and it is a significant mileage KILLER!
There was a study done about 3 years ago that claimed higher ethanol blends could provide better gas mileage than straight gasoline:
Higher Ethanol Blends Can Provide Better Fuel Economy than Gasoline
Even if this is true, I would never risk running anything higher than E10 in my car.
Higher Ethanol Blends Can Provide Better Fuel Economy than Gasoline
Even if this is true, I would never risk running anything higher than E10 in my car.
Otis I've read the same studies that I think you're talking about, and from my experience it depends largely on the engine in question.
In our Toyota Sienna 2GR-FE engine I've tried running E30 (4 consecutive tanks in 2009, and another 4 consecutive tanks in 2010) and found that it consistently reduces MPG by 15%. However, there were no CEL's or noticeable performance differences. This same engine shows no difference in mileage between E0 and E10.
In our Toyota Sienna 2GR-FE engine I've tried running E30 (4 consecutive tanks in 2009, and another 4 consecutive tanks in 2010) and found that it consistently reduces MPG by 15%. However, there were no CEL's or noticeable performance differences. This same engine shows no difference in mileage between E0 and E10.
An improvement in fuel mileage? I doubt it since ethanol has less heat value per unit than pure gasoline. I think that idea comes from the ability to raise the static compression ratio. If an engine is designed to run on XX% ethanol and used valve timing and a higher compression ratio then you probably could get up to the same mileage and or HP.
Eddie - It can, in some cases, actually improve mileage. Sometimes, the higher octane of the higher ethanol blends allows compression and/or timing to be bumped enough that the gains in combustion efficiency outweigh the loss in energy content of the fuel.
If you tune for it, it'll make better mileage due to better timing. If I have my facts correct.
Otherwise, it won't work.
Otherwise, it won't work.
I agree sciphi but, the ECM does not have the fuel maps corrected for E fuel. I stand by my statement about higher consumption. With less heat energy you should never get better fuel mileage, only worse by 4.3% with E10.
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