Thinking about playing with E-85

[SV_Dude]

E-85 is much cheaper than premium gas and with a boosted vehicle it can produce a lot more power. I have the 2nd gen supercharger and the 6 injector kit with the piggyback ecu and a 2.1 pulley on my s/c. Since I can tune my ecu for whatever fuel map I want I'm thinking I can run it without too much issue and get more power and cheaper gas. I need to do more research to dig into the details but I figured I would put a feeler out here and see if anyone else has looked into it.

 

[Scott@Hightech]

E-85 is much cheaper than premium gas and with a boosted vehicle it can produce a lot more power. I have the 2nd gen supercharger and the 6 injector kit with the piggyback ecu and a 2.1 pulley on my s/c. Since I can tune my ecu for whatever fuel map I want I'm thinking I can run it without too much issue and get more power and cheaper gas. I need to do more research to dig into the details but I figured I would put a feeler out here and see if anyone else has looked into it.

I use e85 blends(50/50 with 93) frequently in my 335i, Yes it can make a lot more power, and it is cheaper. But you do get about 1/3 less fuel economy when using e85. You should be able to add it in and retune. You will need a good bit of room in regards to injector size. Subies running e85 usually run 1500-2000cc injectors for e85 and 750-850cc injectors for 93. These are the 500-700 hp cars though

 

[Skidmarcx]

^^ this

 

[Justin727]

Also may want to redo your complete fuel supply system. From a fuel pump E-85 compatible, lines, and of course as stated larger injectors.

Could be very costly. BUT if you're not planning anything north of 700hp I personally wouldn't do it.

 

[SV_Dude]

I already have bigger injectors with the urd 6 injector kit. I think the pump and lines will support e85 without issue since there isn't anything corrosive in it. To my knowledge the only road block is fuel mapping but I could be wrong. Still looking more into it though.

 

[98OzarksRunner]

The fuel lines and pump should handle E85 fine. However, the fuel pump might not be able to supply enough fuel for e85. The general rule of thumb in the performance world is 50% larger on injectors and double the fuel pump capacity. You may also need larger fuel lines to supply the extra fuel.

You will probably also want a back-up 93 octane tune (limp home tune) in case you are somewhere you can't get E85. I had a backup tune in my 65 Mustang (4.6L DOHC supercharged) since there are only a few stations around here that sell it, and I didn't travel far off the interstate since it's almost impossible to get in the boonies (like where you might go off-roading).