5% ethanol
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john tynan
5% ethanol
I don't know if it's been posted before, but, has anyone used the 5% ethanol unleaded in their fulvia? I pulled into a petrol station in Dublin recently and they only had this 5% ethanol stuff, and no standard unleaded. I drove on to the next petrol station, but i am worried that this may be a sign of the future. Will we be ok to use this fuel?
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brian marler
Re: 5% ethanol
i have been wondering the same thing. i think this ethanol is coming whether we like it or not. i have been reading about it (mostly in boating magazines), and they are mostly having trouble with fuel tanks and long term storage. the fuel seems to phase separate over time and this can cause some problems. fuel stabilizer will help this but i'm not sure of the other issues of the fuel. i would like to know a little more before i put it in my fulvia or appia engine as well.
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ecoangel
Re: 5% ethanol
Agreed that in high % cases this will present problems due to corrosion of non stainless fuel lines and issues with rubber seals and carburettors.
At Race Retro there was a big debate about ethanol. It is very fashionable in the USA right now but Gen 1 fuels are not best for the environment or old cars. Gen 2 is fuel made from waste such as wood chippings, or better crops than corn (that use less water and can actually stabilise the soil for food crops to be grown in difficult semi arid climates eg: jatropha or elephant grass in Sub Saharan africa).
A good source of information is: EEMS: http://www.the-mia.com/index.cfm?editID=130
At Race Retro there was a big debate about ethanol. It is very fashionable in the USA right now but Gen 1 fuels are not best for the environment or old cars. Gen 2 is fuel made from waste such as wood chippings, or better crops than corn (that use less water and can actually stabilise the soil for food crops to be grown in difficult semi arid climates eg: jatropha or elephant grass in Sub Saharan africa).
A good source of information is: EEMS: http://www.the-mia.com/index.cfm?editID=130
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Kim Roberts
Re: 5% ethanol
Definitely bad news for carburettor cars due to its reaction with rubber seals according to what I've read. On the plus side on more modern cars it is brilliant due to the higher octane rating than normal unleaded.
Here in Ireland the ethanol is a byproduct of whey,seperated during cheese making,this is certainly more ecological than growing specific crops as bio fuel.
Here in Ireland the ethanol is a byproduct of whey,seperated during cheese making,this is certainly more ecological than growing specific crops as bio fuel.
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Jan Goossens
Re: 5% ethanol
Another consideration is if you had your gas tank cleaned and lined. Not every lining can withstand the dissolving effect of the ethanol. Here in the US we already have 10% ethanol and especially in outboards it wreaks havoc.
Definitely adding fuel stabilizers if you don't use the car often. The gas has a shelve life of about 90 days.
combine this with another solution: a water fuel separator filter, as close as possible to the carbs. There are theories of keeping the gas tank as full as possible as to give as little chance as possible for the gas to separate,
however I can't confirm that. I just got my Fulvia here from Belgium where it was mothballed for 25 years so I have
no
experience as how it will behave to the gas (and since I will have to overhaul her it will be a while), but my cars don't seem to have a problem running on it. Though with my boat engine (a 1986 Yamaha 4 stroke), I had a lot of problems in the beginning.
Definitely adding fuel stabilizers if you don't use the car often. The gas has a shelve life of about 90 days.
combine this with another solution: a water fuel separator filter, as close as possible to the carbs. There are theories of keeping the gas tank as full as possible as to give as little chance as possible for the gas to separate,
however I can't confirm that. I just got my Fulvia here from Belgium where it was mothballed for 25 years so I have
no
experience as how it will behave to the gas (and since I will have to overhaul her it will be a while), but my cars don't seem to have a problem running on it. Though with my boat engine (a 1986 Yamaha 4 stroke), I had a lot of problems in the beginning.