What’s the Best Oil for e85?
 

Hey guys so I just started running e85 about almost 3,000 miles in and I was wondering what do you guys recommend for the type of oil for e85 and also in intervals of how many miles should I change the oil? And any other tips I should know about e85 and oil. The dealer only has 5w30 Pennzoil (sn/gf-5) synthetic but I don’t know if those are good for e85? Thanks Ahead if time!

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=67310
http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=59585
http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=126406
https://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=114784

So I guess there’s no one true answer for this huh? The dealer has 5W-30 Pennzoil Pure Plus (meets specs for ILSAC GF-5 / API SN ) have you heard of this oil being good for FA20’s on e85? Thank you btw for those links!

Run some oil. Take a UOA. Tell us the results.

i ran synpower 0w20 for a year and blackview said i looked great. im currently YOLOing it with amazon 0w20 and will report back after 5k miles

Motul Gear 300.

Any oil rated for API SN /w Resource Conserving // ILSAC GF-5

I run AMSOIL 5w30.

The best oil you should run is under deez nuts!




But seriously run what ever fucking oil you want or want to be fan boy part of.

Mobile 1 for life bro!

Fuck Amsoil, Pensoilz, cock-sucking Motul, and Royal-butt-fucking Purple.

Oh man that gave me the happies.

Sorry for bump,
Every thread has different opinions, hard for someone with no knowledge to make a decision.

I’ve ran e85 only for the past 30k kms, I’ve just used the standard oil recommended for the stock car and changed the oil every 5k kms. I want to go with a more focused oil and have settled on 0w-20 as that seems to be the most common answer.

Just wondering if there is any noticeable difference between the Penrite Enviro+ 0w20 and the Valvoline synpower 0w-20.
Penrite seems to have better reviews but only comes in 5L whilst the Valvoline seems slightly better value as it comes in 6L.

The best oil you can run doesn't matter nearly as much as changing it more often.

Let the UOA tell you how long you can go but start short and work your way up.

One of our big power shop mules we change every 1K miles, and it reeks, but the UOAs say it's still good.

Running E85 and Mobil 1 0w30 or 5w30 whichever I can get. It gets hot in Florida. Peak street oil temp runs 210-220. Change at 5k, or 6 months. Numbers come back fine every time, but I slipped up and went 7K before changing the last time. Aluminum was ever so slightly high, but not sure that could have been the cause.

Your fuel type has nothing to do with oil. Stick with a good synthetic 5-30 or 0-20

Driven Racing Oils...

The growing use of Ethanol in modern pump fuel significantly increases the risk of carburetor and fuel system corrosion. Ethanol is added to fuel as an “oxygenate” for emissions purposes. But Ethanol is hygroscopic, meaning it absorbs moisture, which causes corrosion in the fuel system and inside the engine. Plus, high levels of Ethanol dilution in the motor oil can lead to increased moisture in the crankcase, thereby causing rust and other corrosion problems.

Ethanol by itself is corrosive to components made of Aluminum and Zinc, while gasoline-oxygenate blends can corrode other materials such as Magnesium and Steel. Problems caused by Ethanol in gasoline and oil are then compounded by long periods of storage between uses.

Motul...

• Improved compatibility: Motul 300V now fulfills modern engine requirements: compatible with exhaust gas after-treatment systems such as particulate filters, compatible with biofuels (especially Ethanol) and protects against LSPI (on downsized engines).

Here's a vid (somewhat cheesy add) for an oil made to provide additional protection when using ethanol fuels...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMSFPvXzp8c

Testing done by Engine Labs...

https://www.enginelabs.com/engine-te...ur-engine-oil/

A technical White Paper...

https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/arti.../ra/c7ra00357a


That's a quick search, there's more.

Not trying to say E85 will make your oil the devil's spit, but KNOW what's going on with your oil and engine wear. Compare long term UOA trends with 93 vs long term use with E85, on YOUR car. If your particular engine, mods, environment, driving style, oil brand, etc... lets you go 6K miles between OICs with comparative results to 93 fuel, that's awesome, but just know. Those results may not be the same as the next guy. This is why saying "I do it and it works well, so anyone else can too", can be problematic. I prefer to err of the side of caution, spend a bit more on UOAs and oil changes vs replacing parts.

Our shop mules (Stock, and big power) and all have modified OCIs when running E85. We also NEVER park a car for more than a month with E85, they always get 93 before and long-term parking due to the hydrophilic properties and corrosion that accompanies it. The exception is a car with a fuel cell that has an added desiccant breather setup that pulls moisture out of the air, but even that gets checked monthly and changed as necessary.

I believe that there is the biggest key. The number of people running flex fuel or E85 for years now has significantly increased in the last decade. There are many who have been on E85 for 5-7 years with no issues. This goes to show that the modern cars, fuel systems, engines, etc. can handle it quite well.

But as you say, it is best to be at least a little cautious. Potential moisture buildup is really the one major and only worry of E85. So the solution is quite simple... don't let your car sit around with it for long periods of times. Fire it up and take it out for a drive. I'm on flex so that makes it easier to switch around, but with any decent mix of E85 in my tank, I've never let the car sit for more than a week or two. Maybe I'm being extra and maybe I'm not. But there's nothing wrong with firing her up and taking her out for a spin as it only brings me more joy. :) Besides, it's cheap insurance and there's nothing difficult about doing this, so there's no reason to be lazy about it.

Not true.

ok so then what’s better than a good racing quality synthetic? Is there some e85 specific oil that must be used instead?

Ok let me tell you a secret that no one knows……………… New oil is the best.

Some oils straight up aren’t friendly with alcohols.

so which are better than the ones mentioned?

Ones that are designed and rated to work with alcohol are better than those that don’t play nice with alcohol.
You didn’t mention any oils. You mentioned 2 different weights.

I mentioned good race quality synthetics. So what is compatible with e85 other than those?

“Good quality racing oil” isn’t a type. Without knowing what oils you’re talking about, it’s impossible to know if they are compatible with e85 or other alcohols.

Some recommended oil which is more diesel compatible however some of the guys running higher rpm like us have a problem with it foaming.

The consensus seems to be more frequent changes and even going up one notch in viscosity.

I've been using the 0w-20 Penrite Enviro+ on E85 as well, about a year and a half now (15-20,000kms), going very well. Not exceptionally cheap by any means, but then that's not the point, is it?

I’ll likely go with that next time, just wasn’t keen on spending $140 (they didn’t sell anything less than 5L) when I wasn’t sure of what to go with. Ended up going with the Valvoline 0w-20 synpower as it was on sale for $60 for the 6L.

Likely to be placebo but the acceleration felt better after the oil change compared to previous use of standard 5w-30. Had only been 4K kms since last oil change and the old oil came out still looking clean