Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

[Tubingluvr]

Looking at possibly purchasing a 2008 Chevy Impala with flex fuel....looking for any input or opinions any of you current FFV owners might have. I live in Michigan so E85 is readily available....I realize at current prices the cost is about the same considering loss in fuel mileage....what do you think E85 will do if gasoline continues to rise?
Current prices in my area: E85-3.19 and Gas-4.13

 

[partskenn]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

The last time gas went to $4.00 per gallon, I started using E85 in my truck. Gas mileage was almost 20 percent less. At todays prices (3.19 vs 4.13) it is a good deal, plus I like that at least some of the money goes to farmers around here instead of the middle east. Last time the price of E85 ended up around .50 cheaper than gas (3.50 vs 4.00), which is not such a deal.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

There are times when the E-85 = E-10 in overall cost when equated to cost per mile. It is a bit confusing but the E-85 is cheaper and does get a bit less MPG.

I would have no fears in a flex fuel motor purchase......... it's mostly gaskets and ECU that define it from a regular motor

 

[j_martin]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

Unless it's changed recently, a flex fuel engine running on E-85 has increased maintenance requirements. You might be surprized at the real cost.

 

[Tubingluvr]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

Unless it's changed recently, a flex fuel engine running on E-85 has increased maintenance requirements. You might be surprized at the real cost.

this is the first time I have heard this and I have read all the owner reviews

 

[Brewman61]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

Discuss the maintenance requirements with the dealer, they can give you the specifics.

 

[mommicked]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

Is there an Ethanol conspiracy?:facepalm:

 

[Tubingluvr]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

Did some research and this is what I found out:
"Ford and GM have no special maintenance requirements for their E85 ethanol flex-fuel vehicles, but other manufacturers may require use of specific engine lubricants."

 

[rogerwa]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

My suburban has a Flex fuel engine and I have never run the e-85 nor used any special maintenance. It has 130K and runs beautifully.

 

[mla2ofus]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

Not trying to make this political, but if the subsidies were cut off, what would the price of E-85 be?
Mike

 

[Tubingluvr]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

I have done some research and found out I can make my own ethanol for about $1.00 a gallon and thats if I buy the produce.Seriously considering this

 

[lakelover]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

We just bought an 06 Impala with flex fuel. It wasn't a conscious choice, but happened to come that way. E85 is not readily available here as far as I've seen. One thing that the dealer said that I did not see in the manual, is that when switching from one to the other, you need to gradually mix the two and fill up when partially down on fuel until you are running 100% of one or the other. Never heard of this before, is it true? He said you can't just run one to empty then fill up with the other. From my limited previous knowledge, I thought you could do that.

(IMO, ethanol is not going to solve our petroleum problems.)

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

Not trying to make this political, but if the subsidies were cut off, what would the price of E-85 be?
Mike

Really will not matter It is a flex fuel so there is always the regular gas choice. Price would be the only issue at that point.

 

[i386]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

My Nissan Titan has a Flex Fuel engine. None of the maintenance items I've seen for it were specific to a Flex Fuel engine. There's nowhere to buy E85 around here but nearly all gasoline sold here contains up to 10% ethanol. Having the Flex Fuel engine makes me think at least I won't be having the rubber and plastic in my engine eaten up by the gasoline.

 

[oldjeep]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

There have been no differences in maint on either of the flex fuel vehicles my wife has had. As for switching back and forth, you are not supposed to run your tank empty on one and then fill up with the other, better to make sure you have 1/4 tank or better if you switch. It is not the end of the world, but the computer needs to adjust for the fuel and you can be running really lean for a short bit if you switch from 10% to E85 all at once or really fat going the other direction.

 

[lakelover]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

...As for switching back and forth, you are not supposed to run your tank empty on one and then fill up with the other, better to make sure you have 1/4 tank or better if you switch....

Makes sense. The dealer was describing a multi-fill-up switchover by 1/8 tanks. Sounds like overkill.

 

[Brewman61]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

I have done some research and found out I can make my own ethanol for about $1.00 a gallon and thats if I buy the produce.Seriously considering this

IF you want to do it legally, have fun dealing with the Feds. Distillation requires permits, and all that fun stuff. If you do it on the QT, that's quite another story.
But then you'd probably be able to sell the white lightning for drinkin and make more than you would replacing gasoline.

 

[j_martin]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

I have done some research and found out I can make my own ethanol for about $1.00 a gallon and thats if I buy the produce.Seriously considering this

I did that back during the Arab fuel embargo times back in the 1970's. With a decent cap tube or equivalent still you can get it to about 90% alcohol. Any further dehydration gets tricky and expensive.

In the carbureted engines of the time, we found that if you increased the compression (piston change and head cutting) to about 12:1 and set up the mixture right, it'd get just about the same mileage on the ethanol as it used to on pump gas. We'd have to add a little bean oil to keep the valves and rings from sticking. Ethanol has 0 lubricity.

Oh, and it was fun tearing the rear tires off at a stop sign.

We got to where it was going to be pretty managable as a home brew thing, and then the feds put a $1000/year permit fee on the previously free experimental fuel alcohol permits. Most of us just folded. The rest got regulated out of existance.

There's no way home brew with the water in it would mix to E85, or run reliably in a flex fuel engine.

 

[greenbush future]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

Not trying to make this political, but if the subsidies were cut off, what would the price of E-85 be?
Mike

This is my beef too, not running that crap in my truck.

 

[j_martin]

Re: Flex Fuel Vehicle Owners

this is the first time I have heard this and I have read all the owner reviews

99 dodge caravan. Read it in the owner's manual.