87octane pure gas versus 93 w/ 10% Ethanol

I think you would be hard pressed to find any gas out there today that isnt a blend. 4% to 5% in the lower Octane and as much at 10% in the higher ratings (short of race gas of course).

In fact, Ethanol has an Octane rating of about 110/113 so adding it to fuel raises the rating; it doesnt lower it. High compression engines can manage (10:1 or better) ratings up to the 95 ish mark...outside of that, you are throwing money down the (gas) tube.

 

I have no idea where you live as you have no profile, but where are you going to find straight non-ethanol 87? Even if you did, I'm sure the 360 and 430 both say minimum 91 and I'm not sure you should run 87 no matter what unless it was a gallon or two for an emergency. I run 93 with 10% ethanol in my 430 as that is all we can find in the NYC area. I wish I could buy straight 93 but no one sells it.

 

Go to pure-gas.org for a list of gas stations in the U.S. and Canada that sell ethanol-free gas. Octane varies. In Florida, never seen it availabe in less than 89 octane and it runs up to 100 for race cars, etc. you'll pay about a buck a gallon more for ethanol-free. it's only worth it if you don't drive your car regularly. if you have trouble finding the web page, PM me.

 

best I have seen here in FL is 90 octane ethanol free at the marina

 

In the York, PA area we have Hakes convenience store which sells pure gas. He gets 93 octane pure gas out if VA. About $.40/gal more. The 575 loves it.

 

I think Kutztown, PA is the closest . Not terribly realistic is it.

 

Ya I have no idea where that is. I wish someone close to me had it. I'd put it in my boat too. The boat mags slam ethanol every month. In fact I wish ethanol was never mixed with gas in the first place or just with 87.

 

For small quantities, e.g., winter storage, lawn mower, etc. one can use water to remove the ethanol and then add an octane booster if required. Motorcycle Consumer News had an exhaustive article on how to do it. The web has less complete descriptions, but they're adequate.
Unfortunately, not practical for feeding a car regularly.

 

Dan- In the olden days, we used alcohol to get rid of water. Now you want to use water to get rid of alcohol?

 

People really need to get over the ethanol fears. If you live (or have lived) in most major cities with winter inversion layers, you've been using ethanol-blended fuels for decades, you just didn't know it. It was called "winter blend" in the old days. When I started driving in the 1980s in the Pacific Northwest the service station pumps all had stickers indicating the blended fuel. Somehow all those years cars survived just fine...and that's with far lower quality parts and lower engineering tolerances.

Yes, ethanol reduces power. No, the reduction in power is not nearly as much as when your car's computer is required to retard the timing enough to prevent detonation on 87 octane if it specifies 91 or 92 octane. The higher the octane, the more compression it can withstand before detonating.

Keep in mind that when you're going to stations providing ethanol-free fuel (such as indian reservations), chances are that you're getting fuel with minimal detergent additives. What you gain in getting rid of the ethanol, you're more than offsetting with damage caused by insufficient detergents to keep engine internals (and even things such as the fuel gauge sender) clean.

 

Terry, Yes, one can use water to get rid of ethanol. Here's a video demonstration:
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfZgDkRwAUk[/ame]
There are tons of posts and different techniques for processing and storing. However, if anyone plans to really do this I highly recommend reading the Motorcycle Consumer News article on it. You should be aware that the octane rating drops when you remove the ethanol.
Sammy, Ethanol damages a lot of material still used in vehicles. Ducati just settled a class action suit because their gas tanks were not sufficiently ethanol resistant.

 

Dan- The reason we used alcohol in the gasoline was because it made the water miscible with the gasoline. Works the same way in reverse. There is a cross-over point, though, where you just end up with too much water.

 

Yes, exactly. The old dry gas products could remove a bit of moisture, overload them and they precipitate. In this case useful for removal. The problem is the 10%. Most systems really don't like it although the good ones are engineered to tolerate it. Does not play well with aluminum.
There's another thread here:
http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=389564
with info.

 

i guess we are blessed here in British Columbia as we have Chevron 94 with no Ethanol! its the only fuel my 355 drinks.

 

I guess we are even more blessed here in Switzerland. Regular has 95 octane, Premium 98 otane. Maximum Ethanol content is 5%. My 355 and MV Agusta F4S love the 98.

On the down side, both cost more than $ 7 per gallon.

But then we aren't blessed with the weather. Winter in SoCal or Florida is much better suited to open-top or two wheel rides along back lanes.

 

I am also using Ethanol free Gas there are a lot of Shell stations in Ontario that have it.I think it helps with the corotion on Cars before the 90,s,