Can I run european e85 with USDM OFT tune?

[Frenatardi]

Hello guys,
I've found a gas station near to my house that has e85, and I was wondering if it would be fine to flash the OFT stage 2 UEL e85 tune or if it's not recommended due to different e85 specs.
Thanks.

[Chimera]

Originally Posted by Frenatardi

Hello guys,
I've found a gas station near to my house that has e85, and I was wondering if it would be fine to flash the OFT stage 2 UEL e85 tune or if it's not recommended due to different e85 specs.
Thanks.

If I recall correctly, OFT e85 tune is somewhat conservative, and needs something like 65% ethanol.. someone else might be able to give a more accurate number, Im going off memory here. Anyways, does the station post what the minimum E content is for the fuel? I know in the US the various stations put what the minimum content is for the fuel, like at my station is minimum 71% E.

[phrosty]

Openflash's E85 tune should work down to around E55.

[Frenatardi]

Originally Posted by Chimera

If I recall correctly, OFT e85 tune is somewhat conservative, and needs something like 65% ethanol.. someone else might be able to give a more accurate number, Im going off memory here. Anyways, does the station post what the minimum E content is for the fuel? I know in the US the various stations put what the minimum content is for the fuel, like at my station is minimum 71% E.

Well truth be told, when I said "gas station near to my house" I meant 50 kilometers away, and I don't know if they post the minimum ethanol content right now but I'll ask the employee as soon as I get there
I guess there won't be any issues if the tune is that much conservative as you said. Thanks for your reply!

[Chimera]

Originally Posted by Frenatardi

Well truth be told, when I said "gas station near to my house" I meant 50 kilometers away, and I don't know if they post the minimum ethanol content right now but I'll ask the employee as soon as I get there
I guess there won't be any issues if the tune is that much conservative as you said. Thanks for your reply!

Just in case you should definitely monitor IAM and FLKC at first, just to make sure nothing major comes up

[Frenatardi]

Originally Posted by Chimera

Just in case you should definitely monitor IAM and FLKC at first, just to make sure nothing major comes up

I've just found that on the forum:
Alert B ( knock alert & Fuel Trim alert)

For E85 suggest -1 for Petrol may -2
FLKC < -1
Knock Correction < -1
IAM < 0.9
LTFT > +10
LTFT < -10

I assume that would be optimal. However I must confess that I don't know what any of that acronyms means. This is starting to freak me out, maybe I should leave the car as it is.

[Chimera]

Setting up alerts will make the OFT make a noise if its out of the range


FLKC < -1
Knock Correction < -1
these are knock correction 0 is good

IAM < 0.9
this is timing advance multiplier, 1 is good, a .9 is 90% (xx value x.9)
also I would prob go with .77 on that one myself

LTFT > +10
LTFT < -10
these are long term fuel trim, which is part of the engines normal learning. single digits are pretty normal for daily variances.


Not trying to scare you away either from doing it, just advising you to be prudent, and watch for issues until you're confident.


edit: theres a thread around here on running e85 on a stock car, you should read that, it has lots of good info.

[MurderousPandas]

E85 tunes should be good from E60 to E90. As stated, fuel trims and knock are things to watch for. If you IAM is anything but 1, you have knock. Fuel trims, both LTFT and STFT combined should not go under -10% or over +10%.
You shouldn't have any knock on E85, but it's always good to watch. Fuel trims will vary due to ethanol percentage.

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[myioz86]

Put the turn in and then get Shiv to dial it in for you . the off the shelf tunes are conservative, but good once Shiv is finished with your custom tune,as every car is different in some way. All ways better to custom tune every car.

[Frenatardi]

Originally Posted by Chimera

Not trying to scare you away either from doing it, just advising you to be prudent, and watch for issues until you're confident.


edit: theres a thread around here on running e85 on a stock car, you should read that, it has lots of good info.

I appreciate your help. I've read the thread and I feel a little more confident about giving e85 a try. I'll fill the gas tank and follow the instructions, and if everything goes as expected I'll fill a couple gas cans too as and go back home.

I've also found on the web that the gas station which I'm planning to go has BioE-5(5% ethanol) BioE-10 and BioE-85 which has to be 85% for sure.

[Frenatardi]

Originally Posted by myioz86

Put the turn in and then get Shiv to dial it in for you . the off the shelf tunes are conservative, but good once Shiv is finished with your custom tune,as every car is different in some way. All ways better to custom tune every car.

Yeah, I sent him an email last week, asking for custom e-tunes, but since I'm a beginner in data logging I'm not sure if I will know how to record and send the information he may need. Making a tune could take ages. It seems this weekend I'll have to read the thread Data logging for noobs

[Frenatardi]

Originally Posted by MurderousPandas

E85 tunes should be good from E60 to E90. As stated, fuel trims and knock are things to watch for. If you IAM is anything but 1, you have knock. Fuel trims, both LTFT and STFT combined should not go under -10% or over +10%.
You shouldn't have any knock on E85, but it's always good to watch. Fuel trims will vary due to ethanol percentage.

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Thanks for your reply I'll pay special attention to IAM.
So, if fuel trims are between -10% and +10% that means I'll be running good quality e85?

[MurderousPandas]

Originally Posted by Frenatardi

Thanks for your reply I'll pay special attention to IAM.
So, if fuel trims are between -10% and +10% that means I'll be running good quality e85?

Not necessarily good E85, but workable E85. Those percentages can vary with air temps, exhaust leaks, and other variables. The closer to 0%, the better, but nothing is ever perfect. My trims range from +4% to +8% when i run E85. I also have a minor exhaust leak, which when fixed should drop the fuel trims a percent or two.

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[Frenatardi]

Originally Posted by MurderousPandas

Not necessarily good E85, but workable E85. Those percentages can vary with air temps, exhaust leaks, and other variables. The closer to 0%, the better, but nothing is ever perfect. My trims range from +4% to +8% when i run E85. I also have a minor exhaust leak, which when fixed should drop the fuel trims a percent or two.

Well yesterday I finally filled with E85, after some miles I pulled over and reflashed. After driving gently more than 35 miles I did some pulls and I saw FLKC at -1.59! It drops negative everytime I'm avove 6700 rpms. I should be worried about that?

[Edit: IAM stays at 1 all the time]



Thanks again for your help.