e85 does produce more power in vehicles (the octane rating is higher), but you use almost twice the amount as you would with good ole' premium gasoline. it also takes more petroleum to produce e85 than it does to produce regular gasoline.

ethanol does have a tendency to hurt older vehicles. it eats away at the fuel lines and gas tanks sending debris into the filters and carburetors clogging the system. newer fuel systems are better protected and have less to worry about.

here in Nebraska they offer 87 octane gas with e10 for 10 cents less than regular 87octane gas. I've use both over periods of time and found that you do use alot more of the gas with e10 added than without. the savings don't add up to the extra gas used.

e10 and e85 are not the same thing. e10 will not give you the power gains of e85 and regardless of how much u think you are helping the environment you aren't. use regular gasoline and enjoy your s2000.

 

Holy thread back from the dead. How about I help with some misconceptions.

The Probe isnt designed for E85, your ECU or injectors probably cant compensate for the extra fuel needed. Older cars arent really designed for it, they need to be modified to make it work. Ethanol DOES have a higher effective octane, its a fact.

E85 has about 30% less energy by volume than regular gasoline does, and about 25% less than E10(most gas stations sell E10). E85 also needs less air to be completely burned than gasoline, meaning the the engine runs richer for complete combustion. 2 factors that both mean lower miles per tank.

There are many advantages though. E85 has an approximate octane rating of 105, depending on the blend. You really see the difference in a boosted engine. If you can run a limit of 10psi on pump gas before detonation, E85 can run about 15+. You do need bigger injectors to compensate, and its not uncommon to see Evos running 1600cc injectors for E85 and big power.

Another advantage is the compression ratios you can run. Compression ratio is a directly related to the efficiency of an engine. E85 allows for higher CRs than pump gas, even with a boosted engine. Another advantage most guys dont see if the AF ratios. Yes, E85 is supposed to run richer, but you can also tune to lean the engine out more to save fuel, but still resist detonation better than pump gas.

 

its now 1.61 a gallon at the Arco across the street from my house