E85 Finally Cost Effective?

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SitKneelBend

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I live in Illinois with some of the highest gas prices in the US. Today gas was $4.85 for regular but I happened to be at an E85 pump which was only $3.85. I haven't done the math yet but I think this may be the first time (for me) that E85 has been worth using over regular. I filled up with it.

Are there any downsides to using E85 in an engine configured for it? I know ethanol is the bane of all my lawn equipment, but does it do anything in vehicles different from regular unleaded?
 

Fediej

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I live in Illinois with some of the highest gas prices in the US. Today gas was $4.85 for regular but I happened to be at an E85 pump which was only $3.85. I haven't done the math yet but I think this may be the first time (for me) that E85 has been worth using over regular. I filled up with it.

Are there any downsides to using E85 in an engine configured for it? I know ethanol is the bane of all my lawn equipment, but does it do anything in vehicles different from regular unleaded?
Expect a pretty good hit to your fuel mileage.
 
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crash68

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My neighbor who was a Dodge mechanic told me E-85 is hard on the fuel system, to the point some of the owner's manuals don't recommend running it in every tank.

As mentioned your fuel economy/engine power is reduced as E-85 has less energy density per gallon. E85 has an energy density close to 82,000 BTU per gallon. This means that E85 has roughly 75-percent of the energy of E10(typical pump gasoline).
 
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SitKneelBend

SitKneelBend

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Expect a pretty good it's to your fuel mileage.

My neighbor who was a Dodge mechanic told me E-85 is hard on the fuel system, to the point some of the owner's manuals don't recommend running it in every tank.

As mentioned your fuel economy/engine power is reduced as E-85 has less energy density per gallon. E85 has an energy density close to 82,000 BTU per gallon. This means that E85 has roughly 75-percent of the energy of E10(typical pump gasoline).

Its roughly 21% cheaper so I'm thinking I'm probably just around the break even point. By my calculations, I'll need to get better than 14.6 MPGs (which is right around the mileage I was expecting from past experience). I'll post up after I run through this tank just to satisfy the curiosity of anyone interested but this won't be a terribly scientific comparison.

Probably better described as "highly anecdotal"!
 

tidefan1967

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Most flex fuel engines gain significant horsepower and torque with E85 vs 93 E0 or E10. I don’t know what the specifics are for the Pentastar but as an example GMs rather weak 5.3 gains 27 HP on E85 according to GM. However with a 30% reduction in fuel economy it’s not worth it to me personally.
 

Fediej

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My neighbor who was a Dodge mechanic told me E-85 is hard on the fuel system, to the point some of the owner's manuals don't recommend running it in every tank.

As mentioned your fuel economy/engine power is reduced as E-85 has less energy density per gallon. E85 has an energy density close to 82,000 BTU per gallon. This means that E85 has roughly 75-percent of the energy of E10(typical pump gasoline).
A few years ago my roommate had a flex fuel V6 Ford Ranger and he couldn't run more than two consecutive tanks of E85 before switching to regular to get the truck to run "right" again. Hopefully things have improved since then.
 

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My old Town and county ran great in e85 and had at least a good power as on e10. But it took about 30% fuel economy hit. I don't think it's cheap enough yet. I'm my neighborhood of illinois the discount is much less than you saw a well so it wouldn't be worth it even though my wife's van could run it.
 

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I recall in my wife's 2014 & 2017 Journey's the cost of using E-85 had too be $1.35 less per gallon to break even to E10 and I recall oil change intervals (OCI) were also shortened when using E-85, if their is still a shorter OCI on newer engines when using E-85 that cost will need to be factored into your cost per mile...
 

crash68

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I recall oil change intervals (OCI) were also shortened when using E-85, if their is still a shorter OCI on newer engines when using E-85 that cost will need to be factored into your cost per mile...
More than likely the OCI is shortened, even diesels are subject to shorter OCIs when running B-20 biodiesel.
 

CamperMike

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I recall in my wife's 2014 & 2017 Journey's the cost of using E-85 had too be $1.35 less per gallon to break even to E10 and I recall oil change intervals (OCI) were also shortened when using E-85, if their is still a shorter OCI on newer engines when using E-85 that cost will need to be factored into your cost per mile...
The price difference needed depends on the price of gas. It's a percentage not a fixed dollar amount. It needs to be around 30% less to be a better deal usually. So if gas is $5 it needs to be about $3.50. At least around here they raise e85 fuel just as fast a gas which seems like bull. It shouldn't be tied to oil prices as much as gas is.
 
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SitKneelBend

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I recall in my wife's 2014 & 2017 Journey's the cost of using E-85 had too be $1.35 less per gallon to break even to E10 and I recall oil change intervals (OCI) were also shortened when using E-85, if their is still a shorter OCI on newer engines when using E-85 that cost will need to be factored into your cost per mile...
Thanks, I didn't know this...
 

airrecon

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My neighbor who was a Dodge mechanic told me E-85 is hard on the fuel system, to the point some of the owner's manuals don't recommend running it in every tank.

As mentioned your fuel economy/engine power is reduced as E-85 has less energy density per gallon. E85 has an energy density close to 82,000 BTU per gallon. This means that E85 has roughly 75-percent of the energy of E10(typical pump gasoline).
This is a perfect example of why bother. As you so well point out, the loss of gas mileage hardly makes it worth while. Watched the Indy 500 yesterday and since switching to ethanol they have to make more frequent fuel stops, irritating.
 

David James

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I live in Illinois with some of the highest gas prices in the US. Today gas was $4.85 for regular but I happened to be at an E85 pump which was only $3.85. I haven't done the math yet but I think this may be the first time (for me) that E85 has been worth using over regular. I filled up with it.

Are there any downsides to using E85 in an engine configured for it? I know ethanol is the bane of all my lawn equipment, but does it do anything in vehicles different from regular unleaded?
Simple answer: expect between 30-40% loss in economy. That equates to the BTU loss between 85 and E10. Do not allow to sit in your tank for more than 30 days.
 

copcarguy

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Here in northeast PA I haven’t been able to locate a station that’s sells E85 in quite a while now…
 

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Here in northeast PA I haven’t been able to locate a station that’s sells E85 in quite a while now…
Same here. I can't even remember seeing an E85 pump in or around the Rochester area.

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CaptOchs

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Same here. I can't even remember seeing an E85 pump in or around the Rochester area.

Regards,
Dusty
2019 Ram 1500 Billet Silver Quad Cab 2WD, 5.7 Hemi, 8HP75, 3.21 axle, 33-gallon fuel tank, factory dual exhaust, 18” wheels. Build date: 3 June 2018. Now at 70550 miles
I'm from Rochester too. I used to get it at Fastrac. If you google "e85 fuel near me" it should show you all the service stations. I think Gasbuddy also shows you as well.

As others have said, there is a noticeable drop in MPG using E85. Your best bet is to fill up with some and see what kind of range you get. Then compare range with gas. Compare the price between the two. I had an Impala and I figured out what that difference was. Back in 2008 when we were over $4, it was cheaper to use E85.
 
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SitKneelBend

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So far I'm a quarter tank down and my MPG have dropped from 18.5 to 16.6 with 70/30 city/highway driving.
 

Terry Nemitz

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I live in Illinois with some of the highest gas prices in the US. Today gas was $4.85 for regular but I happened to be at an E85 pump which was only $3.85. I haven't done the math yet but I think this may be the first time (for me) that E85 has been worth using over regular. I filled up with it.

Are there any downsides to using E85 in an engine configured for it? I know ethanol is the bane of all my lawn equipment, but does it do anything in vehicles different from regular unleaded?
Two of us at work tried E-85 in our company vehicles. One was Mopar, the other was GM. We did not see any performance increase, we both lost 2-3 MPG in combined driving, and both vehicles required the fuel filters chanced at EVERY Oil change. Not worth it to me.
 

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Nowhere close to cost effective around here. 10 cents a gallon different. With the mileage loss of 40%, (18mpg down to 10 mpg ) gas would need to be at least 2 bucks cheaper a gallon before I try it again.
 
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SitKneelBend

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So I noticed today that for whatever reason the E85 price isn't going up. It's still $3.85 and regular is up to $5.09. I decided to give it another tank before making a final verdict. One thing I noticed on the E85 I hadn't noticed before is the large variance in ethanol disclaimer on the pump? 51%-83% ethanol to be considered E85?
 

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