Ethanol-Free Gasoline

[Jebiruph]

I've found I get 20% better mpg with straight gas compared to 10% ethanol blend.

Based on other's reporting of around 10 - 15% improvement, I'll add that my 20% is based on a cross country trip where my highway mpg varied from 21-22 to 25-26, which I attributed to using ethanol blend versus straight gas.

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[cornercanyon]

So, on longer off-grid trips using (and carrying) pure gasoline allows for greater mileage. A week in The Maze would allow for less gauge watching with ethanol free fuel (E0)—

 

[Desert Raptor]

More details and Interesting history about ethanol.
https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/biofuels/ethanol.php

 

[Left Field]

A couple of non-ethanol snippets that might be of use:

The website www.pure-gas.org lists current state by state location and grade information for non-ethanol fuel.

If you want to verify whether there is alcohol in fuel, it is easy to check:
Place some fuel in a clear test-tube shaped container then add a little water. Make a mark a the water level, then give the container a good shake to mix any alcohol with the water. If the water level is now above the original line, that's the alcohol now separated out and mixed with the water. If no change in level, no alcohol present.

I hadn't thought of using non-ethanol fuel as a way to provide a little more driving range margin - great idea! An extra 13% on my 21.5g tank would boost its effective size to 24.3g.

 

[Heimkehr]

The website www.pure-gas.org lists current state by state location and grade information for non-ethanol fuel.

Twice now has that site directed me to gas stations that were closed, or no longer sold ethanol-free fuel.

It's best to call first, before driving to a particular location.

 

[Fatboy97]

I try to run non ethanol fuel as much as I can. It seems like I get better mpg when doing so but a 2500 mile trip using 93 premium Fuel seemed to get almost the same mpg.
Isn’t it a little odd that with all the governments talk of climate change and the mpg new vehicles have to meet we are still driving vehicles that could get better fuel mileage with better fuel. No matter how you look at it more mpg = less pollution.

 

[jjvincent]

I can't wait for the debate when it comes to synthetic fuel like we have been testing out in the Porsche GT3 Cup Series. They call it eFuel.

 

[DaltonGang]

More details and Interesting history about ethanol.
https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/biofuels/ethanol.php

I've looked for several of those stations, on their list, and couldnt find any still around, or still selling ethanol free gas. That was a year or two ago.

.

 

[DaltonGang]

I made a quick trip this weekend. After filling the tank with 3/4 ethanol free gas, I was getting 1.5 mpg better, driving the same speed and highways, 200 miles. I am sur e the mpg would have been better with straight ethanol free gas, but it just wasnt in the cards, this trip. I did notice a much smoother engine with the EtOH free stuff. I did bring 10 gallons home, for the yard equipment.

 

[SKJEEP]

Have a station local to me in NH but the ethanol free gas is $10+ per gallon … I use for small engines but can’t see why I would bother for that price to fill my Jeep (when I get at some point in 2022….)

 

[Heimkehr]

Have a station local to me in NH but the ethanol free gas is $10+ per gallon

That's ridiculous. The station that I use to purchase real gas has historically maintained a ~.40 per gallon price difference (increase) when compared to the average per-gallon price of E10 sold everywhere else. I'd grumble about it, but I've too many carbureted mouths to feed to consider using the demon corn liquor in them.

What's interesting is that as fuel prices continue to balloon, the aforementioned .40 per gallon variance has shrunk to perhaps .10 per gallon. Just today, I filled the Jeep up with 91 octane E10 selling for $4.44 per gallon. Ugh.

 

[omnitonic]

I just wonder why NY or NJ gas stations do not sell ethanol free gas? Matter of fact I do not recall seeing Ethanol free anywhere in the North East from NH down to Virginia.

The northeast is concerned about air pollution. Ethanol in current formulations of gasoline is engineered to take the place of some environmentally-toxic chemical they used to use. All of this has to do with the amount of raw fuel vapor escaping into the atmosphere, and the additive is meant to reduce the evaporation rate somehow or other. I'm not a chemist, I'm a former gasoline tanker driver who read a bunch of posters at the loading racks.

Anyway, that's why non-ethanol gasoline is rare in Virginia. Virginia is aligned with the northeast. Many localities have pollution sniffers as part of the state inspection process, and this state is fairly strict on emissions-related issues.

It does exist, however. In southwestern Virginia, non-ethanol gasoline can be found at Pure stations, and at some Liberty stations. I run it in my outdoor power equipment, but I don't run it in my Jeep. It costs $0.20 more than premium for 87 octane fuel. There is no way the performance improvement would offset the dramatically higher cost.

We do also have some Marathon stores around here that sell what they call Rec 90, which is a 90 octane non-ethanol fuel. These locations seem to cater to the boating market. None are nearby, so I'm not sure how the prices stack up. I haven't been a gas hauler in years. I don't really miss standing ankle deep in gasoline while the terminal operator yells at me, "You have to finish loading that compartment with that arm! I don't care if it's leaking!"

Yeah, no more of that. I haul soft drinks now. Soft drinks rarely explode.

 

[Bocephus]

I have 20 gallons of non-ethanol and stabilizer that I keep on hand. Should be good for 2 years, and I’ll use and refill. Honestly freaked me out just a little when I couldn’t find gas for several days back several months ago, when some russkies hacked an east coast refinery or whatever it was. 20 spare gallons may get me where I need to go.

 

[DaltonGang]

It would be nice if members post what EtOH-Free stations they have, near them, and what the Non-Corn gas is selling for.

 

[Mad Hatter]

It seems a pattern that everyone struggles to get EPA-rated mileage out of their vehicles, regardless of Wrangler or Prius. "You drive too fast," "Road conditions aren't the same as a laboratory," etc., etc. I wonder if the manufacturers run their EPA mileage tests, and maybe the EPA, too, on ETHANOL-FREE gasoline...

(That would be akin to the official government inflation numbers which never translate (UP) to what we mortals are experiencing in the grocery store and at the pump...)

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