im thinking of making the switch to e85 instead of running 100oct. this year so aside from needing a shit ton more fuel my concern is that they have different blends for the winter, fall/spring and summer. who knows about the tuning/ octane differences between the spring and summer blend?
i thought we went over this on wnyfbody 
It’s simple. They can change the blend whenever they want and every station can have a different mix too. The E85 standard calls for a very wide range of ethanol concentration since it’s only designed for use in flex fuel vehicles which have sensors to monitor ethanol content and fuel temperature, then use those values to adjust fuel, timing, etc. accordingly.
If your car doesn’t have that equipment in place, and all the necessary compensation tables tuned perfectly, you’ll need to adjust the tune every time the mix changes. This may happen every time you fill up, every few times, or only once in a while, but unless you buy a quantity all at once and store it yourself or purchase from a fuel vendor that controls their mixtures so they’re always the same, there are no guarantees.
At a minimum you’ll want a good wideband air/fuel meter and a way to monitor for knock so you can see if you need to adjust your tune after filling up. Perferably you’d also have a sensor like the one Zeitronix sells to tell you the fuel temperature and ethanol concentration. Ideally you’d have all that and an ECU that can adjust fuel and timing on 4 or more axes, or just two axes plus two programmable 2d tables for trimming.
damn it, its looking more and more that despite the $6+ a gallon cost 100otc the easiest route. fawk
Yea I wanna go e85 but I dident see all that coming mike lol… that ruins my plans for summer
We mix our own for a few reasons:
- the mix is consistent
- we can choose the concentration
- we can mix it with whatever grade gas we want depending on the application
For example, the winner of the Ontario Pro Rally Championship for the 2009 season overall and in open class whose car we help out with and tune (shameless plug) runs ethanol which he mixes with gas himself and brings to each event so it’s always the same. That way he doesn’t have to worry about any of this and can just focus on kicking ass.
damn, so how does one go about making them selves, im assuming its a pain
So mike can you guys help me get this mixture straight if i get a tune by you this summer and do you sell e85, what do you mean by yo mix it ur self 93oct/e85?
We get E98 and mix it with gas for people. Some mix with 93 and some with race gas.
When it’s over 55 degrees we usually do 85% e98 with 15% gas.
so how much would that be cost wise to do that?
also interested in this.
I mean I wana sometimes drive my car daily but if im low on gas I dont wanna be freeking out about not having e85 mixed or not ect ect…I wanna know a cost and from others using it is it a hassle or should i just stick with 93:?
Nothing like mixing and storing large quantities of fuel at your residence :lol:
NFPA what?
Just do it in the basement so nobody snitches
I thought you’re supposed to empty your tank, or run it completely to E everytime you switch from e85 to 93…
it’s not like you can have a quarter tank of e85 in and say [sarcasm] “oh shit, im low on gas. but e85 station is 900miles away, ill just throw in some 93oct and be good!” [/sarcasm]
^this is true another reason why im not sure which route i want to go, if i were to run a 100 oct. and a 93 tune i could just switch the tune if i was low on 100 and use 93
Sorry guys I just got back from road tuning a rally car and I have to get right on the dyno for another one, but I’ll get you pricing tonight.
Does the xcal3 hold multiple tunes or would you need to use a flip switch?
i have the xcal2 but yes mine holds up to 3 tunes