E85 Fuel

[R6n350GT]

I was filling up at caltex with 98 and some guy in a turbo'd mitsubishi asked if the V35 runs E85, i was like wtf is that, and he said caltex now has it, its called flex or something.. he runs it after he changed his fuel filter and says he gets much better performance and almost as good mileage...

Anyone confirm if we can run this?

Thanks

[Shazza24]

Unsure about v35 but i know R32, 33, 34 would need to be tuned for it. It burns cooler and with less knocking, with potential power gains. Use your search function there are whole threads on this stuff.

http://theage.drive....0205-1ahgx.html

Edited February 16, 2011 by Shazza24

[R6n350GT]

Unsure about v35 but i know R32, 33, 34 would need to be tuned for it. It burns cooler and with less knocking, with potential power gains. Use your search function there are whole threads on this stuff.

http://theage.drive....0205-1ahgx.html

Well that was a long read... Thanks ! I tried to find if our car can run it but after reading that i doubt i would bother... If i didnt have to change anything to run it i would give it a few tank full runs ... Any one know?

[sh@un]

no- you cannot run a V35 on E85 without reprogramming the fuel and ignition

the only cars in Aus that can take it in OE spec are the recently updated Flex Fuel Commodores (and possibly some new Bentleys, but don't quote me)

[scotty nm35]

There are I think 4 models of cars that can run E85, they don't make any more power over petrol because their engines are designed to run on 91 also, which means the compression is too low to reap the benefits of the higher octane.

You would need to bump up the compression to around 15 or 16:1 and remap the ecu to see any real gains on the VQ35, You couldn't run petrol again if you took that route. That said there are other ways to increase compression, supercharger and turbo, either could easily double the power of your engine if you ran ethanol.

You could probably run a mix on your stock map, perhaps 1/3 e85? It will re-learn the fuel requirements and as long as you don't go too much, it wont throw a error. You would expect only small gains and up to 20% worse fuel economy.

Ethanol is a very clean burning fuel and carbon neutral. (other than the production/transport of it) The only down side I have found, you will need to fill up more often, and there aren't that many servos yet. Caltex do also plan to vary the mixture, between e70 for winter and e85 for the warmer months, (This is to help with cold starting) although they have tanks full of e70 still due to the low demand. This wont pose any problem if you tune it a little on the rich side.

[M34N]

Unsure about v35 but i know R32, 33, 34 would need to be tuned for it. It burns cooler and with less knocking, with potential power gains. Use your search function there are whole threads on this stuff.

http://theage.drive....0205-1ahgx.html

Well according to this article from The Age, there seems to be no point running it on E85, as it costs more to run overall compared to Premium 98RON, so what is the point of it? And like the others have said, I wouldn't go anywhere near your V35 with E85 petrol.

Just look at this chart, why would you risk it anyway? And this is from a car that is designed to run on E85 fuel from factory, seems kind of pointless to me. Stick to higher-grade fuel and have peace-of-mind.

[mosoto]

As with any alternative fuel, you just can't throw it in your tank and expect a good result. E85 will not just require a specific tune. You'll need to ensure fuel lines are compatible (usually only teflon lines) and to get the most out of the fuel you may need aftermarket Engine management. Check out the E85 thread, there are certainly performance benefits to be had on a modified vehicle. As for the article I'd look at it in the correct light. On a stock standard vehicle like the commodore E85 the tune will be conservative and not at all performance based so results may not be all that impressive. Just for reference the V8 supercars run E85.

Edited February 16, 2011 by mosoto

[Shazza24]

Well that was a long read... Thanks ! I tried to find if our car can run it but after reading that i doubt i would bother... If i didnt have to change anything to run it i would give it a few tank full runs ... Any one know?

Sorry about the long read but i am a fan of giving people a certain amount of info and seeing if they can figure it out themselves(Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day, but teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime) + i don't think u used the search function as suggested. Guilt-Toy has been using it since 2008 and on the first post he, through his story explains about its usage and the need for tuning. However that link i posted from his thread also gave you the answer but i guess you glanced over it, which is fine as everyone is unique.

"Ethanol started off as the bad boy of alternative fuels, damaging some fuel systems not designed to take what is almost pure alcohol - albeit with additives to make people vomit if they drink it and blended with petrol in varying ratios."

"In a classic chicken-and-egg dilemma, car makers and fuel companies have been at a stalemate about using the fuel in Australia. Fuel companies haven't rushed E85 to market, given only a handful of cars are engineered to take it, while car makers argue there's no point selling E85-compatible cars because you can't buy the fuel.

Last year, though, Holden bit the bullet by modifying two of the three engine variants available in its top-selling Commodore range to run on E85. However, Holden wasn't the first to use E5. Saab, Chrysler, Dodge and even Bentley offer E85-compatible vehicles."

Nissan is not listed as a maker of cars from factory that can run e85, at least according to the article.

Good luck to that fella chucking it in his turbo Mitsubishi.

Edited February 16, 2011 by Shazza24

[R6n350GT]

Sorry about the long read but i am a fan of giving people a certain amount of info and seeing if they can figure it out themselves(Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day, but teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime) + i don't think u used the search function as suggested. Guilt-Toy has been using it since 2008 and on the first post he, through his story explains about its usage and the need for tuning. However that link i posted from his thread also gave you the answer but i guess you glanced over it, which is fine as everyone is unique.

"Ethanol started off as the bad boy of alternative fuels, damaging some fuel systems not designed to take what is almost pure alcohol - albeit with additives to make people vomit if they drink it and blended with petrol in varying ratios."

"In a classic chicken-and-egg dilemma, car makers and fuel companies have been at a stalemate about using the fuel in Australia. Fuel companies haven't rushed E85 to market, given only a handful of cars are engineered to take it, while car makers argue there's no point selling E85-compatible cars because you can't buy the fuel.

Last year, though, Holden bit the bullet by modifying two of the three engine variants available in its top-selling Commodore range to run on E85. However, Holden wasn't the first to use E5. Saab, Chrysler, Dodge and even Bentley offer E85-compatible vehicles."

Nissan is not listed as a maker of cars from factory that can run e85, at least according to the article.

Good luck to that fella chucking it in his turbo Mitsubishi.

Oh dont worry i read the whole thing, i should have then asked (since i was told there was a 40c difference in price) if anyone bothered to get a diff fuel filter that can handle both fuel and the article said if E85 is more than 25c cheaper its then in your favour.... I wont bother now after reading it and people confirming you need a specific tune etc...

Yeah that Mitsubishi guy said he just replaced the filter....