Joeyjoejoe's E85 Tuning Adventutres

[Rolls]

Run it down to the empty line and then fill up with a full tank.

[linkems]

Thought i might add to this awesome e85 thread, during my z32 ownership there was a lot of talk about ethanol causing corrosion to injectors. In an early model z32 89-94 they ran pintle style injectors which recieved constant 12v powering the injectors even when the car is off, when using ethanol the alcohol creates a conductive bridge which caused corrosion over time. The later model z32 95+ were fitted with popett style injectors and did not have 12v powering injectors when the key is off, no injector failures have been reported with this setup.

It is a common mod in the z32 community to rewire the the injectors to only power 12v when the key is on, to stop the corrosion on pintle style injectors. On poppet style injectors there have been no reported failures even with the 12v circuit still intact. I would assume other Nissans of the same era might share similar wiring circuit for the injectors. Definitely something to look into if running e85, hope i didnt open up a can of worms

Edited August 4, 2010 by linkems

[joeyjoejoejuniorshabadoo]

it would be better if caltex would just make e70 and e85 only, and tell us the dates for the changes....

but i'm guessing they are aware of cold start issues and aren't willing to risk it on such a big $$$ venture

the caltex e85 will be aimed at normal cars, pushing normal revs in normal conditions, with the driver noticing no difference between pulp on cold start

that's why i'm going to stick with the manildra ethanol...

[Trozzle]

Yeah, the variance as I mentioned in GT's thread is between 70% and 85%. This is FAR too much variance. We need the ability to change the map ourselves at any time, and we need to KNOW the percentage when we fill up.

Hell, what if only half the servo's tank of E85 has been used when the truck arrives to fill it up with E70....then we will be filling up with ~E77.5, right? What if there was more or less of the previous fuel in there when we fill...we will never know the actual percentage coming out of the pump. The closest we'll get, is knowing what the tanks were filled with last.

This will not work for us.

[Randon_I_Am]

you're so pesimistic!

[scotty nm35]

Better give up now then ey?

Flex fuel cars have ethanol content detectors in the lines to adjust the mapping. They output a voltage to tell the ecu what percentage is in the lines, these could be fitted and wired directly to most standalone or p!ggyback computers and control a secondary map.

I run a wideband and would simply add 5 litres of 98 to the tank (keeping an eye on the afr) or swap to a different map.

I agree the Manildra blend seems to be the best option but if a servo pops up near me I will be using it regardless. 22k's for a fill is a bit excessive. They will only change the blend once a year and will hopefully warn the customers first.

[PM-R33]

I agree the Manildra blend seems to be the best option but if a servo pops up near me I will be using it regardless.

Agreed. Something is better than nothing for people that aren't as "blessed" to get the good shit

[SS8_Gohan]

it's funny though, as Powerplus (manildra) take on it is that Australia does not require a winter mix, so i'm not sure why Caltex believe the need is there... would they want to push as much petrol as possible? probably bigger margins

If they only use the winter mix (E70) for say 2 months of the year, hopefully Powerplus will be more readily available and we won't have to worry about having limited servo's for a couple months of the year. Most of us make do at the moment as it is, i'm sure we'll be ok for the winter months.

[joeyjoejoejuniorshabadoo]

as i said before, giving up servo real estate to ethanol pumps is a huge $$$ venture....

caltex will want nothing but good press from this venture and people having to crank their cars more than once will result in people saying it's shit.

also.. ethanol rated tanks are ~40k a pop aswell... so that's already a ~4 mil outlay for the 100 proposed pumps

[SS8_Gohan]

true, it is probably to make it as seamless an exercise as possible for joe public

i'm sure there's some conspiracy to it somewhere damn it!

[joeyjoejoejuniorshabadoo]

hehehe... yeh we are NOT the target market here

[scotty nm35]

as i said before, giving up servo real estate to ethanol pumps is a huge $$$ venture....

caltex will want nothing but good press from this venture and people having to crank their cars more than once will result in people saying it's shit.

also.. ethanol rated tanks are ~40k a pop aswell... so that's already a ~4 mil outlay for the 100 proposed pumps

Subsidised to some extent I think, I know the US govt definitely cover the costs of servo conversion.

My workmates say they get pissed just driving behind me when its cold, smells heavily of ethanol. I guess people will have to get used to the different smell.

[Trozzle]

you're so pesimistic!

No you're fase is!

[joeyjoejoejuniorshabadoo]

interestingly enough some race teams are reporting less driver fatigue awwell

[Trozzle]

[gwilkinson34]

My workmates say they get pissed just driving behind me when its cold, smells heavily of ethanol. I guess people will have to get used to the different smell.

I just tuned my car on a 50/50 ethanol / BP98 mix on Monday and it smells so sweeeeet

[rad100]

if my car only sees use every month or two what will the e85 do sitting in my tank/lines?

[scotty nm35]

if my car only sees use every month or two what will the e85 do sitting in my tank/lines?

Still just sit there?

All tanks are sealed so no moisture can get in the tank or lines and from my testing it doesnt go "off" like 98 does after a month or two. I have pure ethanol that has been stored for a few years, I should mix up my own batch and see how it goes...

It wont eat your lines out in a few months if that's what you were trying to ask. It seems to be a popular misconception due to the problems with methanol storage and acidity.

[Kinks]

^^ if a tank is completely sealed how can 98 go off?

tanks aren't sealed, they have a breather on them which goes to your charcoal canister. 98 goes off because the volatile chemicals evaporate, ethanol is 85% high octane stuff so if you lose some ethanol to evaporation all that happens is you have a bit less fuel than when you started. petrol is low octane base with some high octane additions and if these evaporate then you are left with shit fuel.

the main danger with ethanol is when it absorbs moisture, it will form two different layers in the tank with the water concentrated in one of the layers and this is obviously bad for your motor. it's a much bigger problem in boats because it's easier to get water contamination, in a car it's not so bad but something to be aware of if you let the car sit for long periods of time (especially outside - in a garage it would be fine).

[rad100]

yeh its just being a track car, it wont be used as frequent. starting the car weekly etc would help this from happening? keeping the fuel rotating?