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Drop in gas mileage, Ethanol?

F

falcon556

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Tulsa
I have been watching my mileage and in the last few months I noticed a general drop in gas mileage.
Everything seems to be fine, but I cannot get the mileage I was used to.
Today I called Quiktrip and asked them if they have changed anything in their gas. They told me that they recently (couldn't tell me exactly when) they started mixing ethanol in all their grades.
Could this be the reason for my mileage drop?
 
falcon556 said:
I have been watching my mileage and in the last few months I noticed a general drop in gas mileage.
Everything seems to be fine, but I cannot get the mileage I was used to.
Today I called Quiktrip and asked them if they have changed anything in their gas. They told me that they recently (couldn't tell me exactly when) they started mixing ethanol in all their grades.
Could this be the reason for my mileage drop?
Click to expand...

Quite possibly. Ethanol (Alcohol) burns cooler and less efficently that standard gasoline.
You could run a couple of tanks of another (non-blended) gasoline through and do a quick comparison for yourself.

:patriot:
 
10% ethanol mix isn't going to make a noticable difference.

But what other factors are contributing here.....

Miles driven, overall maintence, driving styles, other drivers on your jeep, tire inflation, did you buy new tires?, road conditions, do you let your jeep warm up now with the lower temps, leave it running when your 'talking' to the female friends???
 
Musjunk22 said:
There is usually 15% ethanol in any gas you buy. But anyways... YES! ethanol gets you less mileage but it costs cheaper.
Click to expand...


Its a 10% blend not 15%, many engines(toyotas,hondas,etc.) can't take a 15% blend.
 
crystalship1 said:
Quite possibly. Ethanol (Alcohol) burns cooler and less efficently that standard gasoline.
You could run a couple of tanks of another (non-blended) gasoline through and do a quick comparison for yourself.

:patriot:
Click to expand...

I just got off the phone with Quiktrip customer service. They use 10% ethanol and it started about the same time I noticed the drop.
Now I need to find a company that doesn't mix ethanol.
You'd think that they will inform us for such a change!
:patriot:
:us:
 
My bad. Quick question:


Has anyone tried using E85 in their XJ?
I'm pretty sure that to do this you would have to replace the fuel line, and possibly anything else that is synthetic and touches the gas. is this true?

The reason I ask is that E85 is significantly cheaper than regular near me.
 
Musjunk22 said:
My bad. Quick question:


Has anyone tried using E85 in their XJ?
I'm pretty sure that to do this you would have to replace the fuel line, and possibly anything else that is synthetic and touches the gas. is this true?

The reason I ask is that E85 is significantly cheaper than regular near me.
Click to expand...
I want too, but we dont have it around here. There was talk in the street+performance discussion about it. I believe someone in Brazil has done it (they have tons of it down there).
 
Nothing wrong with E10, I'd put E30 if they had it. I believe that was the ideal mixture according to some research somewhere online (forgot if it was EPA or what). Especially with you guys in the midwest getting E85 for low $2.xx compared to regular at $3/gal.
 
BBeach said:
I want too, but we dont have it around here. There was talk in the street+performance discussion about it. I believe someone in Brazil has done it (they have tons of it down there).
Click to expand...

Thanks, I'm already searching for it :spin1: I'm excited cause regular costs 3.19 and E85 cost like 2.75
 
falcon556 said:
I just got off the phone with Quiktrip customer service. They use 10% ethanol and it started about the same time I noticed the drop.
Now I need to find a company that doesn't mix ethanol.
You'd think that they will inform us for such a change!
:patriot:
:us:
Click to expand...

Well..... you'd think, but alas unless forced to do so by a governent agency some won't. Regardless of what some say the "norm" claim is 1-5 MPG loss when introducing a 10% ethanol mix. But that's not really written in stone and seems to vary wildly from vehicle to vehicle. Some reports that I've read even indicate a small increase in MPGs in some vehicles. I still say do your own comparo. and let us know your findings!! :cheers:
 
Musjunk22 said:
Thanks, I'm already searching for it :spin1: I'm excited cause regular costs 3.19 and E85 cost like 2.75
Click to expand...
An EPA survey of flex-fuel vehicles EPA reported an average loss of 26% mpg when using E85 over normal gas. Some vehicles were over 30% lower. So even at $2.75 a gallon you're paying around 20% more $/mile. The midwest states have cheaper E85 because the govt is subsidizing the cost. Ethanol has 50% less energy than straight gasoline (75kbtu/gallon versus 115 kbtu/gallon).

Despite the "green" marketing of E85, the exhaust produces different toxic compounds such as formaldehydes which are not mitigated very well by today's standard catalytic converter. The auto makers don't care because EPA hasn't addressed the problem and there is no incentive or penalty for them to change anything. The only reason manufacturers are producing flex fuel vehicles is because they get pollution credits regardless of whether anyone actually puts E85 in them. For 99% of the owners it doesn't make financial sense to do so.
 
Last edited:
WOW e85 here in denver is at I think 2.15 gal ......
 
mileage also drops with colder temps, engines are running rich longer, to warm up, grease and oil is thicker, giving greater friction during warm up
 
My local station started with the 10 percent ethanol a couple of months ago. The fellow working there said it was mandatory now across the country, a claim which I have not verified.

I do know that it smells differently, but at the commercial station I go to for work (card lock), it still smell like good old gas. Maybe a commercial/consumer thing like they did with pressure treated lumber last year.
 
jonnycat said:
My local station started with the 10 percent ethanol a couple of months ago. The fellow working there said it was mandatory now across the country, a claim which I have not verified.

I do know that it smells differently, but at the commercial station I go to for work (card lock), it still smell like good old gas. Maybe a commercial/consumer thing like they did with pressure treated lumber last year.
Click to expand...


It is switching slowly. MTBE was banned now, leaving Ethanol as the leading oxygenate available for fuel. There is one more that is oil-based but I can't remember the name. Methanol has been used at times, but it is worse than everything else on the enviroment so it will be slowly phased out.

And no it doesn't smell, or look any different...... Can't tell you about the taste though.
 
w_howey said:
And no it doesn't smell, or look any different......
Click to expand...

Could be a local thing, but smells noticeably different here, not sweet and heady like gas used to smell, but just like ethanol (grain alcohol). It also smells differently behind someone who is running rich, again, like a mix of ethanol and aldehydes.

It also tastes differently too, as I discovered when I siphoned some gas a few weeks ago; it is still sharp on the tongue, but it doesn't leave the nasty lingering taste of petro.
 
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