is e85 feasible in my area?
 

I am still really new to the club but I am super fascinated with the car and its potential. After seeing so much on e85 and the power that it can hold, I am really interested in getting it down the line. However I see a problem I expect a lot of others may have and I want to know whether they just ignore it and stock up or what their route is. The nearest e85 gas station is 17 miles away, aka there and back would cost almost 1/4 of a tank. In this case, is e85 just completely unfeasible or what?

Just run a flex fuel set up so you are never stuck.

They may add/remove pumps in the future.

I use the AFDC site to find stations. it was good when I took a cross country trip, there was a big 350+ mile gap in my route.
https://afdc.energy.gov/stations/#/f...arest?fuel=E85

You can either:
- Get a flex fuel kit
or
- Have a tune loaded up for 93 and one for E85 so you can switch out if things don't go as planned.

Since my car is completely stock right now, should the first thing to save up for be an OFT? Im getting the feeling that I need that no matter what component I buy first. I am interested in getting an n1 exhaust and then headers, do I need an OFT to tune the car after those too?

If you plan on driving your car in NJ in the winter, the first thing I suggest you save up for is a set of winter tires.

If you are going to put an aftermarket catless header on you car, it would benefit from some sort of tune.

There is lots of good information on this forum, try searching using google and preface your search with - FT86club.

Before you start messing with the car their is a couple of considerations:

* how will your messing effect the warranty?

* renewing the re-registration your car with the DMV?

I would recommend that you just put a cat-back muffler on and leave the rest of it alone - :)


humfrz

Where do you live in jersey? Im in Essex county so nearest one to me is Newark Airport, consider buying a few gas cans if you dont want to make the daily trip, ive seen a few people set up a 55 gallon drum in their garage and order fuel from shops also.

Also, i recommend you get comfortable with the car first. Personally, i got wheels and tires first, plus winters on my stocks, and then coilovers. IMO that makes the biggest difference in both handling and appearance

Dont forget that this is your car and you dont have to listen to anyone on these forums (except for humfrz! listen to him)
but in a reality do what makes you happy

Narf is correct.

Also to answer your question OFT has a flex fuel kit available now so I don't see why not. For the N1 only there really isn't a need for a tune.

For the headers they definitely need a tune.

Also even the stage 1 tune is a bit more peppier and has better performance even with a simple catback with the n1. I would get the n1 and OFT first so then you can dabble in e85 if you feel like it.

I was looking at the UEL catted header, but yea I am covered under warranty til 125k, nearing 20k now. The only thing that may mess with the warranty that I see is the OFT, other than that I should be good with the N1 exhaust. Also for the tires, I have been looking at Pirelli P Zero All Seasons, would these work for winter? I was thinking I could just use the OEM tires for summer until they wear out. Im currently just saving money and planning the build, I wont be pulling the trigger on any $400+ purchases (other than tires) for at least a few months.

In reference to FRSBRZGT86FAN, I think this will be the first step for me honestly. I didn't learn about the OFT flex fuel kit until today.

Im in south jersey towards philly, Im definitely going to be getting better tires soon, just searching for the best summer/winter tires currently as I am staying on the stock wheels for atleast a year or two from now. I believe coilovers are a little out of my price range, lowering springs may be more my speed but Im unsure about them due to speed bumps and the like.

It has been my experience with my FR-S, that any good all season tires in the winter, in cold climates, is better than summer tires. All season tires allow me to comfortably drive on cold and wet roads. They are "OK" on lightly covered snowy roads, if you take it slow. For deep snow or ice covered roads, I just leave my FR-S in the garage.


humfrz

Awwww.....that was nice of you - :wub:


humfrz

Do you really have Summer tires on there right now? Or are they all seasons?

Since it sounds like cost is a big factor, the way I would go about it, is Tires-->OFT-->Header-->Catback-->Flex Fuel Kit.
When I started modding my car, I lived in Arizona so i actually got OFT & Header at the same time instead of tires. However I grew up in Chicago so I know how important good tires can be. I've missed class before because my brand new FWD Civic couldn't go up a slight incline with snow :mad0260:


The catback requires the least work to get going which is why a lot of people get it first, but it is the least effective if you are looking for a little more hp.

Believe me though, while E85 & Header will make the car feel GREAT especially if done at the same time, you will still not be beating anyone around town, it's still only 190-200whp. The car would be great for track & autocross events though =)


And personally, the reason I would save flex fuel kit for last is that I have pumps very close to me with E85 (and all are at least 70% ethanol) so I rarely have to change out. But, if I have to switch back to regular gas, the OFT allows you to save up to 5 tunes on it which can be uploaded to your car in about 10 minutes (find the threads on here on how to do it).
I currently keep the v4 Gas, v4 E85, v4 Gas + Pops, and two v2 tunes because i don't have anything else to keep.

34 miles is not 1/4 tank unless you've contracted with GE to replace your FA20 engine with a turbofan. I routinely get around 240-260 miles per E85 tank in the city and closer to 270-290 miles on the highway at 70-80 mph. I run a Flex map from OFT using their kit. When I briefly ran an E85-only map, I actually saw slightly higher fuel economy.

But, of course, you can always fill a fuel can to help extend your range if the station is truly out of your way. Or run some intermediate mix of E85/93 to boost range while retaining most of the added performance benefit of E85. On straight 93, I will get between 340-360 miles on a tank at highway speeds (80 mph). I have no idea what my fuel economy is in the city on 93...I almost always switch to E85 when in the city.