Re: [FWDLK] ETHANOL WILL KILL YOUR MOTOR
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Re: [FWDLK] ETHANOL WILL KILL YOUR MOTOR



 Lets not panic. I suspect the point of the referenced web site is to sell test kits. They do that by making you want one.

I live in Minnesota and I am not in favor of alky gas. That said, Minnesota is at the center of the alky gas debate. While it is patriotic to reduce oil imports for numerous reasons, and make profits for corn farmers, burning our food is not a great idea. For those of us who are carnivores, it also raises the cost of animal feed and the price of meat.

I also suspect it is a government plot to remove "old" cars from the road. By leaning out the fuel mixture, they hope to burn up our valves and engines. Without a government subsidy, alky gas would not exist. It takes more energy to make alky gas than we get back from it. To get rid of it, we should push our legislatures to remove the subsidy and require no input from petroleum in the production of alky.

The primary effect of alky is to lean out the engine. The goal of the green folks is to reduce hydrocarbons in our exhaust. Alcohol has about half the hydrocarbons to burn in a gallon as compared to pure petroleum gasoline. But a gallon still mixes with the same amount of air. The net result of 10% alky is a 5% reduction in the energy producing hydrocarbon content of alky gasoline. While there is some oxygen in an alcohol molecule, there is not enough to burn up all the hydrogen and carbon in that alcohol molecule, so it is still oxygen defficient. If there was enough oxygen, it could just explode in a sealed container because fuel and oxygen are mixed together. The "propaganda" here is that it is an "oxygenate", which is BS. It does not add oxygen for the petroleum gasoline to burn, it just leans out the mixture by removing half the hydrocarbons available for combustion. The only good real "oxygenate" I know of in common use is Nitrous Oxide. Maybe the government should provide us all with an NOS system!

We have had E10 here in common usage since about 1980. For about the last 25 years, it has been very difficult to locate a gas station that sells non-alky gas. And that is expensive since it is outside the normal bulk distribution system. I ran a 76 Olds from 80,000 miles to 185,000; a 92 Ford Crown Vic from 78,000 to 235,000 miles, and my current driver 97 Ford Crown Vic from 83,000 to 125,000. I have not had to replace any fuel pump, rebuild the carb on the Olds or replace a fuel injector on the Fords during this time.

My 56 Dodge D500 has run on E10 since 1983. While the original 1956 vintage AutoLite fuel pump failed in 1984, I attributed that to 28 years of age and 15 years of non-use. The replacement pump is still performing fine while feeding dual quad carbs E10 for 28 years and 26,000 miles. The rebuilt carbs have never been apart since and still run fine. The glass bowl fuel filter has never had a trace of any dirt or discoloration. The gas tank has never been out to be cleaned. The car typically starts before the engine completes one revolution. It sits for 6 months every winter with a full tank. I had similar results on my 56 Olds for 28 years.

For those of us worried, I would recommend cleaning the fuel tank and watch the glass bowl fuel filter. If the fuel pump, carb needle & seat, or rubber fuel hoses were manufactured more than 30 years ago, they may not be E10 resistant. To cure the 5% lean condition, set the float in the carb a hair higher. Or if your carb is already rich like mine, leave it alone.

From the referenced web site's comments:
"Fuel Testers Comments: Testing gas needed to confirm, but I suspect gas was both water contaminated and above 10% legal limit of ethanol. This is due to improper blending of ethanol and storage of gas.  In Florida many stations did not properly clean fuel tanks and remove all water before switching to E10. Not preparing tanks causes "dirty" gas, since ethanol is a strong solvent/cleanser. "

This is the real problem. Local stations just being cheap and swapping in E10 without cleaning their tanks. The same goes for car fuel tanks. The alcohol just cleans the tanks and loosens up all the dirt accumulated over decades. Or folks new to E10 and not following their mixing instructions. Since the E in E10 is more expensive, they will learn eventually. Cars manufactured since 1980 should be E10 resistant from their begining.

While I still don't like E10, I have learned to live with it for 30 years. As this spreads to the rest of the country, they will learn too.

Dave Homstad
56 Dodge D500

On Sun, Feb 20, 2011 at 10:19 PM, Ron Swartley wrote:

  
 
     Just finished a total research of Ethanol  in gas. It is one of the biggest rip off going on today. There are so many  rumors out there that people are confused. They planned it that  way.
   This is not just an opinion----it is a undisputable  fact.
   Bought a professional Ethanol test kit---------Oh how  retail services are lied to or lie or are misinformed!!!!!!
 
          OK, LET THE EMAILS BEGIN!!!!!!!!!!
 
http://www.fuel-testers.com/ethanol_fuel_disadvantages.html
 
Ron Allyn Swartley
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

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