I am doing some changes to the car before summer starts because I want to keep my temps down. I will be adding a B&M fan/trans coolers in each front fender, and I will be venting my hood.

I was told that E85 will make the car run much cooler also. There is 3 or 4 E85 stations within 5 miles of me so getting the stuff is easy. My car DRINKS fuel, I am talking 7-10mpg in town and 16-18 on the hwy. I was told 25% increase in fuel consumption with E85 but is that on a stock engine? Does a modded engine drink more? If for some reason you did get stuck out someplace and had to buy standard fuel, would it hurt anything?

 

I think you have it backwards...E85 will likely result in a 25% decrease in fuel mileage. E85 has less energy content per gallon than does gasoline. E85 does have a higher octane number allowing more timing and compression before detonation. E85 with a proper tune, fuel pump and injectors should make more power, but not more fuel mileage.

 

I am not really concerned with how much fuel the car uses, but I would like to get at least 100 miles on a tank of fuel because I get tired of stopping for gas. Most of my fuel is wasted in traffic because my stall is not locked and my cam is just clucking like a big chicken. Does E85 stink when you are at idle like normal fuel?

 

The fuel system components are not compatible with E85. You can use gasolines with up to 10% ethanol by volume.

 

so what needs to be upgraded?

 

Nothing. You will be fine. If you are modded and pushing the envelope on fuel you may need to add a boost a pump to supply the extra volume you will need. Depending on the state of tune on your engine that could be 30-40% more fuel. Plus the gas mileage hit from that extra volume used. You'll get 4-6 in town and 11-13 highway based on your current mpg on gas. Your cam must have a huge amount of overlap. That's about what I got in my GTO with a 39 degree overlap cam.

Easiest way to swap back and forth is to have HP Tuners and flash the computer with the appropriate tune.

 

I have HPtuner, so i need to write a new tune for E85? Is it just spark & fuel tables or do i need to mess with the trans also?

 

Yes fueling and timing will be different for each tune. I wouldn't think your trans tune would need to be changed at all. I'm just going to have my tuner build me two tunes. One for 91 octane and other for E85. Then just put the 91 octane tune in when I want to road trip it. I'm going boosted, so I will also have to run an inlet restricter when on 91 octane to lower the max boost. Either that or run a wastegate on my inlet piping with a boost controller.

 

After as much forum research into E-85 as I have had I've found E-85 should burn 30% faster aka 30% less fuel mileage. The fuel burns much cleaner and will not leave carbon deposits on your exhaust tips, and reports say the internals of the engine are clean enough to eat on after 100k miles of pure E-85. From what I know E-85's higher octane prevents detonation, making it a choice for anyone running BOOST.

As of recent I talked to a very big name shop about adding intake, headers/cat delete and an E-85 tune. After some discussion they informed me unless I was running BOOST or increasing motor Compression E-85 was not a good option for overall street performance. Thus I will just have them Dyno Tune. They went on to talk about theactual octane/vs HP debate and the fact that E-85 can run various %'s of ethonol causing tuning issues.

 

There are three different blends of E85 sold. What is in your local pump is determined by climate. The three blends are 68% ethanol minimum, 74% ethanol minimum, and 79% ethanol minimum. In southern Arizona we only get 74% and 79% depending on what month it is. You can tune you vehicle safe so you don't have to bother testing the ethanol percentage. Some folks like to run on the ragged edge and they test the fuel with a test kit.

From the US Dept of Energy website:

Handbook that explains the different blends, locations, etc. Appendix "A" in there is what shows the blend breakdowns by state and month.

http://www.afdc.energy.gov/pdfs/48162.pdf

 

I have an e85 tune on my 12:1 LS7 and it makes a huge difference for me. Mostly because my car does not like 91 and I get knock retard. My tune has LTFTs turned off so it uses only STFTs. This way it is quick to adjust to different percentages of Ethanol. But, it is still usually with 5 on the trims. I have stock pump with larger injectors and a racetronix harness.

 

I would not use E85 in a Corvette.



#05-06-04-035C: Usage of E85 Fuels in GM Vehicles - (Jul 30, 2007)

This bulletin is being revised to add the 2008 model year and additional engines with E85 capability. Please discard Corporate Bulletin Number 05-06-04-035B (Section 06 —Engine/Propulsion System).Customer Interest in E85 Fuel


As the retail price of gasoline increases, some locations in the country are seeing price differentials between regular gasoline and E85 where E85 is selling for substantially less than regular grade gasoline. One result of this is that some customers have inquired if they are able to use E85 fuel in non-E85 compatible vehicles.
Important: Only vehicles designated for use with E85 should use E85 blended fuel.E85 compatibility is designated for vehicles that are certified to run on up to 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline. All other gasoline engines are designed to run on fuel that contains no more than 10% ethanol.
Notice: Use of fuel containing greater than 10% ethanol in non-E85 designated vehicles can cause driveability issues, service engine soon indicators as well as increased fuel system corrosion.
Using E85 Fuels in Non-Compatible Vehicles


General Motors is aware of an increased number of cases where customers have fueled non–FlexFuel designated vehicles with E85. Fueling non–FlexFuel designated vehicles with E85, or with fuels where the concentration of ethanol exceeds the ASTM specification of 10%, will result in one or more of the following conditions:
Notice: Use of fuel containing greater than 10% ethanol in non-E85 designated vehicles can cause driveability issues, service engine soon indicators as well as increased fuel system corrosion.
If the dealer suspects that a non–FlexFuel designated vehicle brought in for service has been fueled with E85, the fuel in the vehicle's tank should be checked for alcohol content with tool J 44175. If the alcohol content exceeds 10% , the fuel should be drained and the vehicle refilled with gasoline – preferably one of the Top Tier brands.
Repairs to non–FlexFuel vehicles that have been fueled with E85 are not covered under the terms of the New Vehicle Warranty.
A complete list of GM’s FlexFuel vehicles can be found in this Service Bulletin, or at www.livegreengoyellow.com.
E85 Compatible Vehicles


The only E85 compatible vehicles produced by General Motors are:
Notice:
GM bulletins are intended for use by professional technicians, NOT a "do-it-yourselfer". They are written to inform these technicians of conditions that may occur on some vehicles, or to provide information that could assist in the proper service of a vehicle. Properly trained technicians have the equipment, tools, safety instructions, and know-how to do a job properly and safely. If a condition is described, DO NOT assume that the bulletin applies to your vehicle, or that your vehicle will have that condition. See your GM dealer for information on whether your vehicle may benefit from the information.

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© 2013 General Motors. All rights reserved.

 

If you don't tune for it then it's bad to use E85 in a non flex-fuel vehicle. If you tune for it, there is no problem. If you are tuning your car, you are voiding the engine warranty, so who cares if it messes with the warranty?

Op,

you are going to get people like me who say it's fine to run and you are going to get people saying the sky will fall if you use E85. Do your research and make an informed decision.