[Rhodes22-list] E85

[Rik Sandberg]

Slim,

What you're buying here in MN isn't E85, it's gasoline with 10% ethanol 
added. You've been running the stuff in your car for years. So have I. 
Most pumps say "this fuel contains 10% ethanol"

There aren't many stations around yet that have E85. If you find one, 
the pump generally has a yellow hose and the pump definitely says E85 on 
it. Our Cenex in town has E85. It's the only one. Yes, unless you have a 
flex fuel vehicle, you don't want to try to use this stuff.

Ethanol enriched gasoline is 10% ethanol and 90% gas. Most any internal 
combustion engine can run this stuff, unmodified, with no problem. This 
has been sold at most every station in MN for almost 30 years E85 is 85% 
ethanol and 15% gasoline ..... Big difference.

Your scooter friend doesn't know what he is talking about.

Rik

Steven Alm wrote:
> I've got some good news and some bad news.  The good news is that we finally
> got some spring-like weather up here in Minneapolis and I got the scooter
> out for a nice long ride.  The bad news is that I was talking to another
> biker dude who told me he goes down to Iowa and loads up on gas for his bike
> because Iowa doesn't use any ethanol.  He told me virtually all gas stations
> in Minnesota have it.  I thought they had to put a sticker on the pumps
> saying it's E85.  WTF?
>
> I know we've discussed this before but IIRC engines have to be reworked to
> run on ethanol because it's hard on hoses, gives lower gas-mileage and so
> on, and so-called "flex fuel vehicles" have undergone this modification.
> But I'm sure the vast majority of Minnesotans have not made these
> modifications to their cars so I'm wondering if we're all ruining our cars
> or was this biker dude just blowing smoke.  I've googled around a bit and
> can't find evidence one way or the other if all or how many Minnesota gas
> stations have it now.  Or if it's required that pumps display a sticker.
>
> I'm not at all on the corn-produced ethanol bandwagon and don't see it as a
> viable option--unless of course you're a corn farmer of which there are a
> lot in this neck of the woods.  But there's probably no place that grows
> more corn than Iowa.  So what do the Iowegians know that we Minnesotans
> don't know about ethanol?  More importantly, am I wrecking my scooter's
> engine?  My out board?  My V-8 without even knowing that I'm running E85?
> Aside--they're all running well but I haven't checked gas mileage lately.
>
> Slim
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