Ethanol destroying small engines

[akmnstr]

2nd, I'm just old enough to remember the debates around lead in gasoline. It sucked for a while, but eventually everyone adapted to gasoline formulated without it.

Merits / Problems with Ethanol aside, this all seems eerily familiar.

I suspect they will eventually figure this out, and most likely from an engine engineering standpoint as the Ethanol lobby is stronger than the "small engine" lobby

+1  I've heard this kind of whining many times before.  And the reference to the lead fuel is a good one.  We are in a time of rapid change and it makes us uncomfortable.  But our world and technology is not going to remain stable.  We could not run on lead gas forever and we cannot run on pure gas forever either.  I also remember 45 records, cassette tapes, and CDs, none of which will work in my MP3 player.  Who is to blame for this.  It must be those damn green liberals, or the farm lobby, or the greedy right wingers stuffing their pockets, or corporate corruption, somebody is getting rich off my misfortune and discomfort with change, Glen Beck knows who done it, oh I know, it's the government.  

By the way when I was a kid formula 1 ran 1.5 liter turbocharged engines that put out 1500 hp on pure alcohol.  

[Bill in OKC]

I believe a comparison to MTBE is better than a comparison to lead. 

[Drunken Monkey]

<mod hat>

NO POLITICS. Final warning.

</mod hat>

[ducatiz]

[Rob Hilding]

Is that a Mod Hat or a Final Warning

I keed I keed

[akmnstr]

AKmnstr is backing off and from now on 

[Drunken Monkey]

I want that hat!



The rest of the package... not so much.

[Howie]

I repeat, (excluding any environmental discussion) ethanol is a good fuel and add E 85 is a good fuel.  E 10 is not.

[ducatiz]

I want that hat!

The rest of the package... not so much.

but the gloves are just fab--ulous!

I repeat, (excluding any environmental discussion) ethanol is a good fuel and add E 85 is a good fuel.  E 10 is not.

Any fuel with an appropriately designed engine/system is fine for me.  Do you mean E10 sold as gasoline for gasoline vehicles is bad?

I agree otherwise, I wish they sold it like they do in Australia.  You have E85, E10 and G100/E0 being sold right next to each other.  You can choose what you like.  E10 is about 10% cheaper than G100/E0.

You know what's to blame here?  MID GRADE.  The stations realized people are stupid.  So they mix premium and regular to make "MID GRADE" and charge you essentially 105% of the cost.  It's for people who think putting a higher octane gas in their tank will help, but are too cheap to use premium.  VOILA!  marketing.

My solution would be to have E10 regular, G100 premium and if they want to put an "E5" midgrade, fine.  I'd use the premium for everything, it's not that much more.

Then again, my car and truck are diesels...

[Howie]

You got it, ducatiz, E10 instead of G100.  If E10 was run in vehicles with closed loop vehicles designed to read the mixture properly and perhaps use the ethanol as an octane enhancement so higher compression ratio and/or ignition advance to make up for the power loss plus modify the product to reduce water separation and fuel pump problems E10 would be fine.  Until then...