E85 has an octane rating higher than that of regular gasoline's typical rating of 87, or premium gasoline's 91-93. This allows it to be used in higher-compression engines, which tend to produce more power per unit of displacement than their gasoline counterparts.
Right off the bat, any contest between 112-octane E85 and premium unleaded pump gas (91- or 93-octane) would be no comparison. The E85 offers more power, even before we get into the added ability to run more timing and/or boost from the lack of octane on the pump gas.
Faster Burning. 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%.
What is the octane rating of E85 compared to gasoline? E85 has an octane rating ranging from 100-105, making it a high performance fuel. In comparison, regular unleaded gasoline has an octane rating of 87.
Because of this, vehicles that operate on E85 fuel will typically see a reduction in fuel economy by that same 30-35% rate compared to what the vehicle would experience on gasoline. However, E85 is generally less expensive per gallon than premium gasoline so for most users this is not a significant concern.
The Disadvantages to using E85.
The main disadvantage to using E85 is the fact that it's less dense than traditional gasoline. This means that your car will need to burn more fuel to get the same amount of distance compared to petrol, this works out to be about a 30% increase in fuel consumption.
With use of E85 ethanol and appropriate tuning, we saw a net gain of 64 WHP & 38 WTQ over 93 octane gasoline! The gains do not stop there either, E85 enables the limits to be pushed to levels typically only seen with race gas!
E85 is better for your vehicle's health and lowers maintenance costs in the longer run. As for the lower MPG, consider that E85 costs much less than regular gas. So, even when mileage reduces, you could be saving money on fuel costs.
E85 Makes More Power
E85 provides the highest octane available at the pump. Higher octane fuels combust more completely. Also, E85 creates less denotation and knocking. It also can run more spark advance.
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 has an octane rating higher than that of regular gasoline's typical rating of 87, or premium gasoline's 91-93. This allows it to be used in higher-compression engines, which tend to produce more power per unit of displacement than their gasoline counterparts.
The higher the fuel's octane number, the more resistant it will be to knock. That mean running 98 octane in your car, allows us to give you more power, without putting too much stress on your engine.
E85 alone (even with a tuned engine) won't make your car louder. It may change the way your exhaust sounds, but most of the time there isn't a noticeable change in volume. Some car owners have reported a growlier sound with E85 and smoother running engine, but the sound isn't louder.
Rather than a straight linear curve, the benefit of ethanol is that the first 10 to 30 percent blend of ethanol with a pump gasoline like 91 will radically increase the octane rating of the fuel. So creating an E30 fuel by blending 91 octane pump gas with E85 would generate a fuel with an octane rating of 94 AKI.
E85 Race Blend
United E85 is a blended fuel of 85% ethanol and 15% Premium 98 with an octane rating of 107. It is only suitable for cars that have been specifically built or modified for engines to use E85.
E85 does get less mileage than regular gas, however, it's a matter of crunching the numbers, according to De Haan. He said if E85 is at a 20% discount or greater compared to gasoline, it may be worth it. The fuel can also run in short supply, and sometimes gas stations can have the pump shut off.
It's also often called 'Flex Fuel'. As the name suggests it's 85% ethanol and only 15% regular petrol, meaning that in addition to having better performance characteristics, E85 could have a slightly lower impact on the environment while supporting local industry.
E85 can damage your car's engine: Ethanol is a corrosive substance that can wear down your engine's components over time. Ethanol can also cause problems with your car's fuel system and ignition system.
This fuel's chemical make-up is derived mostly from biomass materials such as corn. 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.
By blending pump premium (or 91 if you like) with E85, you can create a custom blend of high-octane fuel.
The drop in fuel economy is because ethanol has lower energy content per gallon than gasoline. E85 also burns faster than regular gasoline because it vaporizes faster. So your engine may eat through E85 faster than regular gasoline.
Flex fuel that contains a higher ethanol content won't last as long as flex fuel that contains a lower ethanol content. For example, E85 contains 85% ethanol, and E20 contains 20% ethanol. That means E85 won't last as long as E20. The good news is if E85 evaporates and/or absorbs moisture, it doesn't happen right away.
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.
Let's bust some myths being perpetuated about E85 these days: The ethanol in E85 doesn't eat or damage fuel injectors. In fact, ethanol actually cleans fuel injectors. Ethanol doesn't corrode aluminum.