E85 long term update

[86viper]

Currently at 28,000km, 10,000km on e85 - OFT stage 2 tune, filter/snorkal mod, full exhaust, picked up 50hp.

Love the power, love the torque. Not a single issue

I do run the lucas ethanol treatment every few tanks just to make sure though.

[vgarcin]

I'm running on E85 since a few months now, have done 5 or 6 tank refill.
I've never experienced anything wrong.


pros:
WAY cheaper in Europe
more power and torque - definitely noticeable
Never had cold start on my side, even when temperature was down to -5°C (23°F). I'm living in switzerland, and trust me, it's cold over here.

cons:
higher consumption. I've noticed a 10-15% higher fuel consumption, but offset largely by the cheaper cost
Less fuel stations available. I think it's more of a problem in the US - I have 3 E85 station 10 miles around my home here.

note:I'm living in switzerland, and E85 in switzerland is actually different in summer and winter (it's E70 in winter and e85 in summer), and i've never had any cold start issue. Hence I guess that, in the US, cold start issue can be prevented if you simply add 1 gallon of standard fuel in your tank everytime you fill it up during winter

[86-tundra]

My biggest gripe about e85 isn't gas mileage, but rather how far you can go on a tank. I drive this car almost exclusively on the weekends, and I'm still at the pump every weekend.

Yes, I drive like a bat out of hell, so I'm averaging about 17mpg. But that's about 170 miles a tank (I fill up every 10 gallons or so on e85). The tank just isn't big enough to get 17mpg.

[tahdizzle]

Originally Posted by trevorovert

My biggest gripe about e85 isn't gas mileage, but rather how far you can go on a tank. I drive this car almost exclusively on the weekends, and I'm still at the pump every weekend.

Yes, I drive like a bat out of hell, so I'm averaging about 17mpg. But that's about 170 miles a tank (I fill up every 10 gallons or so on e85). The tank just isn't big enough to get 17mpg.

Kinda sounds like an MPG gripe, or a "the tank is too small" gripe.

But thats like Saying "My foot is too big for this sock!".

[garfull]

yeah no issues as long as you keep it slow and low rpm.
i've switch back and forth a couple times now and i've found it takes the ecu about 15 miles for all the trims to settle back down.
i usually would switch fuels, drive about a mile, pull over and flash new tune. then drive it normally for the next 15 miles before i get on it.

Originally Posted by Lemar58

Is it bad if you flash before the fuel trims start going negative?

Originally Posted by steve99

Should be fine as long as you drive sedatly no WOT, till the ecu i.e the ltft have settled back down to less than 10% or so on new fuel, might take 10 to 20 km or so.

[TM]

Originally Posted by tahdizzle

Kinda sounds like an MPG gripe, or a "the tank is too small" gripe.

But thats like Saying "My foot is too big for this sock!".

For a sec, I thought cg created another account after his foxy account was banned lol

[texasbound972]

Got my e85 and 91 tune about a week ago. I am also getting 19-20 mpg lol. It's worth it in my opinion. Also just put in the TRD short shifter and it is AWESOME!!! Oh and you can check out my fuelly profile to see my averages.

[Hawaiian]

Originally Posted by garfull

yeah no issues as long as you keep it slow and low rpm.
i've switch back and forth a couple times now and i've found it takes the ecu about 15 miles for all the trims to settle back down.
i usually would switch fuels, drive about a mile, pull over and flash new tune. then drive it normally for the next 15 miles before i get on it.

One thing to noten it takes a little time to pull the fuel from the tank to the engine so that will account for the "lag." With my FF setup it's usually a few miles depending on how hard I push it (and I'm boosted.) Non FI guys might take a little longer.