Ethanol Blended Fuel

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headly
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Ethanol Blended Fuel

Post by headly »

Guys,

Just wondering if anyone (particularly my fellow Aussie 'Woo owners) has found any documentation regarding the use of Ethanol blended fuels in our 'Woos.
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Post by JohnnyC »

I am curious about this as well. (Though I'm in the states)
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headly
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Ethanol blended fuel

Post by headly »

Okey Dokey, I think I've found something:

http://www.fcai.com.au/ethanol.php/2006 ... 00005.html
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lanowoo
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Post by lanowoo »

interesting,i guess daewoos arent made to have Ethanol blended in them.
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Post by DomWoo »

ive ran it in my daewoo and nothing has happened...
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Post by headly »

DomWoo wrote:ive ran it in my daewoo and nothing has happened...

Dude,

Forgive my ignorance and lack of searching, but what model & engine are you running and whats the blend percentage (e-5% or e-10%)? I called our GMDaewoo help line today and based on accent and call quality I would say I was calling Korea, they told me that the "technical advisors" said that it wasnt recommended, however could not tell me what effects it may have. They also said to stick with whats in the owners manual but then said "methanol is not to be used however it doesnt say anything about ethanol !!" . So Im still as clear as mud. My reasons for pushing this question? well apart from the ecological reason (no Im not a hippy, but I will do my bit if its not too hard or expensive, or sucks the power out of my woo), all the reading Ive done indicates that ethanol will get rid of any moisture in your fuel system and ethanol based fuels will also clean out your system better than most other fuels, additionally you get a few more octane points for the same $$ as normal 91 unleaded.

Interestingly, shell australia have a fuel out call optimax extreme which is a 5% ethanol blend high octane, puching out 100 octane points...this I would love to try. I know for fact that the shell quality control process is of a higher standard than most other companies (well in australia at least) and am 80% sure that it wont harm the car in any way, but there is that 20% of doubt, and knowing my luck, it will mess things up in a major way.
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Post by woo »

headly wrote:optimax extreme which is a 5% ethanol blend high octane, puching out 100 octane points...this I would love to try.
Ive tryed it in my brothers EFI kingswood. The thing idled better and was more responsive.
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headly
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bit the bullet

Post by headly »

Well I bit the bullet and tried some shell optimax extreme (5% ethanol blended, high octane 100 RON) and apart from the obvious benefits of running 100 RON I didnt notice any immediate ill effects on the car (I have now travelled around 80km on it). Im thinking that they (Daewoo) may be concerned with ethanol blended fuels being used for long periods as it will probably cause all the rubber components in the fuel system to dry out and shrink. I think I'll probably run a tank through every now and then to clean the system out and get rid of any moisture.
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Post by ChiPPy »

I've been running my Optra5 exclusively on Sunoco fuel, which has a %10 ethanol mixture with all it's fuel grades, and I've had the car for a year and a half. 18,000kms with not a single issue. Don't be scared, it's the fuel of the future. :lol:
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lanowoo
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Post by lanowoo »

really, thats neat to know
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Post by Wooboy »

G'day Guy's,

I've used E10 on and off in my Lanos over the past 12 months and dont think I've noticed any changes good or bad.

Having read this post I thought I'd check out a few web sites and manufacturer sites and came to the conclusion that GM Daewoo dont want me to use it. to quote, Daewoo GMDaewoo does not recommend the use of ethanol blended petrol.

I've copied a part of this site, http://www.fcai.com.au/ethanol.php/2006 ... 00005.html some of the information given is:

REASONS WHY ETHANOL BLENDED PETROL IS NOT RECOMMENDED FOR USE IN SOME OLDER VEHICLES

Introduction

The following information outlines the key reasons why vehicle manufacturers do not recommend the use of any ethanol/petrol blended fuels in vehicles made before 1986. This information is also applicable to post-1986 vehicles listed as unsuitable to use ethanol blended petrol.

Ethanol has a number of important chemical and physical properties that need to be considered in a vehicle's design.

Fuel Injected Engines

In addition to the issues mentioned above for carburettor equipped engines, the use of ethanol blended petrol in fuel injection systems will result in early deterioration of components such as injector seals, delivery pipes, and fuel pump and regulator.

Mechanical fuel injection systems and earlier electronic systems may not be able to fully compensate for the lean-out effect of ethanol blended petrol, resulting in hesitation or flat-spots during acceleration.

Difficulty in starting and engine hesitation after cold start can also result.

Exhaust And Evaporative Emission Levels

Lean-out resulting from the oxygenating effect of ethanol in the fuel may affect exhaust emissions.

To cut a long story short, I think I just used my last tank of Ethenol
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Post by PrecisionBoost »

Ummm.... guys.... I think when they are talking about Ethanol.... they are talking about E85 which is commonly used in places like Brazil.

E85 is 85% Ethanol and 15% Gasoline for those who don't know much about it.

Most of the newer vehciles are "flex fuel" types where the ECU can accomidate and run E85

Methanol does affect natural rubbers and things like cork.... but since the mid eighties they've been using synthetic rubbers for most seals... which are not affected by Ethanol.

The "lean-out" is talking about E85 as most ECU's are unable to accomidate for the large difference in the amount of fuel that needs to be injected.

In many cases you need to pump as much as 30% more fuel in at a given power point..... which is off the standard ECU fuel maps for most cars.... the end result.... lean conditions due to a bad A/F ratio.

The newer vehciles are setup with maps to accomidate E85

As well.... most manufacturers have the ability to flash your ECU to allow you to run E85.

Turbo cars love E85 as you can run much higher compression..... that is to say that it's possible to run 11:1 pistons in a turbo
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PrecisionBoost
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Post by PrecisionBoost »

As far as E10 or E5 ( 10% and 5% ) I don't think you will have any problems.

Canada only has three places to get E85..... but in the USA there are lots of gas stations that have it.

I've been trying very hard to find a local place that can bring me some E85 as I want to use it in one of my drag racing project cars.... I will have 8 injectors.... 4 running off 91 Octane pump gas and 4 running off E85

The E85 will be in it's own separate fuel cell with it's own fuel lines, regulator, fuel pump.

The net result is that the E85 will kick in once I pass 10 PSI of boost.... up to 10psi it will run regular 91 Octane fuel.

This way I don't have to upgrade the injectors or fuel pump of the factory vehicle... and it also means I can use the stock ECU (turbo ECU) without modifications ( the ECU does a fuel cut if it sees over 14psi of boost )

Of course this also means the addition of a custom intake manifold but I was allready planning that due to the crappy design and tiny throttle body.
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Post by headly »

Acknowledge what yr saying about modern fuel systems. In the early/mid 90's a few privately owned fuel outlets were adding up to 30% ethanol to their fuel, this cause a lot of damage to a number of cars that were regularly filled at these places (average repair ~ $2500). Australian fuel regulations state that ethanol can be blended but at no more than 10%, E85 is available in about 3 places around the country. Based on the effects of the activities undertaken by those privateers (who were later answering to a few lawyers), I was a little hesitant about putting ethanol into the car, especially when a government backed authority advises not to. Now I dont take government advice as gospel, far from it but here in Australia, we do have some pretty stringent guidelines and the government does listen to registered automotive bodies.

All that said, I am now running on 10% (supplied by BP) and have not noticed any negative effect, in fact, idle seems a little smoother....cleaning properties of ethanol I guess.


That drag car, is that a funny car based on a 'woo?? Im thinkin 5 door hatch shell but with a rear wheel drive setup, tubbed, pillars cut and roof lowered, twin turbo ..........oh yeah and road registered !!
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