Can I run E85 in my m20?

[CorvallisBMW]

well, can I? It's only $2.89 at a Shell store down the road, and I want to try it. I know it's high octane, and I'll get less mpg, but can I actually use it?

[NC325iC]

i donno why dont you be the guinea pig

[fretburnr]

IIRC it's not good for the rubber in your fuel system, so you may develop leaks/issues. It also needs to be run richer than the normal 14.7:1 ratio for air/gasoline, so you may need to have a way to adjust fuel settings.

[matt]

If your motor is tuned for gas, you need to run gas.

You can't just put in E85 all of a sudden and have it work. You will need new fuel hoses, probably a new pump (e85 is electrically conductive) and new injectors, plus you will need a chip that will account for the fuel change and injector change.

[NC325iC]

so with a new pump new special e85 fuel lines larger injectors and say a piggy back you could do it, thats good knowledge to have in case e85 becomes widely available

[matt]

Piggybacks suck, but you get the idea.

[NC325iC]

piggy backs get the job done, i wouldnt want to have to make a map up from scratch, im not that smart/patient

[CorvallisBMW]

so with a new pump new special e85 fuel lines larger injectors and say a piggy back you could do it, thats good knowledge to have in case e85 becomes widely available

Ya, the very high octane of E85 would make for some really awesome turbo/high CR engines.

[etxxz]

ethanol is not compatible with most rubbers ~ hoses, gaskets, seals.
it has about 65% of the energy per volume of gasoline, you're not going to get noticeable power increase (if that's what you're looking for, only a cleaner more environmentally friendly burn/emissions) and between the J/vol and the different A/F you'll need to run it'll cost just about the same to travel the same distance as filling with gas...

BUT you will support companies like where i'm right now that work with alternate fuels...specially our project where companies who make Citrus derived ethanol leave us some orange peel Methanol to power our 5KW fuel cells so thanks for the thoughts d:

[Jscotty]

When I read the subject of the post the first thing that I could think was, "WHY?" Even at a lower price of $2.89 seems attractive but not enough to make me environmentally conscience. But if the price of E85 goes down to.. say, $1.50 a gallon I think it would be worth me swapping out the entire fuel delievery system for something compatable. Even if it could run on E85 with no problem, I would not mess with alternate fuels on a 20 year old car that I had planned on keeping. When we get an E85 pump in my neighborhood I might get an old toyota or nissan just to see what happens but I am never going to use it in the E30. Right now we have have a hydrogen gas pump as the local station and they have orange cones going all the way around the island as if they are afraid of someone crashing into it.

[e30 Luv]

I live in Iowa where we have ethanol pumps at every station. I've been using ethanol since it became available and the newest car ive ever owned was an 89. I've never noticed a problem, but that my be because any problems caused by the ethanol just blended in with the rest... Actually I never even considered that it could cause problems- maybe thats because I've been spoon fed all the "wonders of ethanol". Now Im worried, and Im going to avoid it...

[matt]

You probably get E10, 10% ethanol, which is fine for use in any car.

[HST]

You probably get E10, 10% ethanol, which is fine for use in any car.

Many gas stations around here only sell E10, and they do a crappy job of letting people know what they are putting in their car. I'll pay more for good old 100% gas, that is what these older cars are made for anyway.