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BMW 3-Series (E90 E92) Forum > E90 / E92 / E93 3-series Powertrain and Drivetrain Discussions > N54 Turbo Engine / Drivetrain / Exhaust Modifications - 335i > E85 is only 54% ethanol



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      09-09-2016, 02:45 AM   #1
Monster335
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E85 is only 54% ethanol

Hello forum members, I have been getting e85 from this Chevron station and today I see they put a sticker that says 54% ethanol. I have been and still running e40 with MHD and I dont know if I should still mix the same (4.5gal of e85 to 3.5gal of 91oct) for e40 or am I gonna have to recalculate the mix? The clerk told me this is statewide for e85. Thanks for your help.
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      09-09-2016, 03:15 AM   #2
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There's a range that the pump will list. I've seen 50-85% so it's normal just test it. Pumps around me don't drop below 75.
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      09-09-2016, 03:29 AM   #3
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My concern is Ive been mixing incorrectly and I normally dont log my car as much but I guess I will have to. BTW what do you use to test it?
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      09-09-2016, 04:01 AM   #4
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You can physically test with a sample volume and water volume, or you can datalog and look at fuel trims/fuel pressure/timing. I prefer logs.
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      09-09-2016, 07:37 AM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Monster335
Hello forum members, I have been getting e85 from this Chevron station and today I see they put a sticker that says 54% ethanol. I have been and still running e40 with MHD and I dont know if I should still mix the same (4.5gal of e85 to 3.5gal of 91oct) for e40 or am I gonna have to recalculate the mix? The clerk told me this is statewide for e85. Thanks for your help.
U can get the kit from Steve at fuel-it to measure the ethanol
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      09-09-2016, 10:02 AM   #6
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I just found this out as well. Got set up for a full e85 tune and ended up with e53. I have a Bluetooth ethanol analyzer. Had to drive around until I emptied the tank and tried a few pumps. Best I could find around me was e73.
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      09-09-2016, 10:32 AM   #7
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What states do you guys live in?
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      09-09-2016, 10:33 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DailyN54 View Post
I just found this out as well. Got set up for a full e85 tune and ended up with e53. I have a Bluetooth ethanol analyzer. Had to drive around until I emptied the tank and tried a few pumps. Best I could find around me was e73.
I don't understand why the norm for this platform isn't to run an ethanol fuel sensor. I realize that running a full flex-tune is likely not feasible with the stock ECU (although that would be amazing) but being able to check your ethanol content with your phone and then flash a custom (interpolated) map designed exactly for your current tank of fuel would take a lot of the guesswork out of ethanol tunes.
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      09-09-2016, 11:14 AM   #9
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damn, looks like I need an e85 sensor. I just noticed the same sticker at my pump
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      09-09-2016, 11:54 AM   #10
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Really?! This must be new.

I haven't gotten E85 for a few months but the only sticker it has said "No less than 70% ethanol" or something like that. I get it at a 76 station. It's typically been around 80% ethanol.

I have fuel-its sensor kit and bluetooth analyzer.
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      09-09-2016, 12:11 PM   #11
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Here locally from Valero it can be in the E50's to E70's, I have never seen it hit E80+. I don't run it in my 335i (yet) but I do run it in my Turbo RX-8 and when it's off, it screws with my tune big time. And with a Cobb tune it is not so easy to change the tune so I have to play with the mix using gas cans. Luckily I don't drive it much so once I get the tank right it lasts for a while. I have VP fuels locally, I am considering getting it from them.
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      09-09-2016, 12:58 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 9krpmrx8 View Post
Here locally from Valero it can be in the E50's to E70's, I have never seen it hit E80+. I don't run it in my 335i (yet) but I do run it in my Turbo RX-8 and when it's off, it screws with my tune big time. And with a Cobb tune it is not so easy to change the tune so I have to play with the mix using gas cans. Luckily I don't drive it much so once I get the tank right it lasts for a while. I have VP fuels locally, I am considering getting it from them.
but show me some pics of your RX8. I still miss mine
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      09-09-2016, 01:03 PM   #13
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I have Steve's kit but I've never tried it. I use U Gas, which is from Urbieta Oil, a local company that has most of the E85 stations in the Miami area. I just upped the percentage a bit in the winter months, being in the southerly zone where the ethanol content doesn't drop all that much then, and have simply used the standard ratio of 2 gallons of E85 to a gallon of 93 octane for achieving E60 the rest of the time. Guess I'll have to bust out the kit.
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      09-09-2016, 04:09 PM   #14
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Here in Illinois I get mine at the Speedway stations... I run it 100% with a custom Wedge tune, and the last 5 fill-ups its been right around E80 according to my Fuel-it sensor/ bluetooth analyzer
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      09-09-2016, 05:50 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ritzzzzzwik View Post
but show me some pics of your RX8. I still miss mine


Quote:
Originally Posted by Eracer76 View Post
Here in Illinois I get mine at the Speedway stations... I run it 100% with a custom Wedge tune, and the last 5 fill-ups its been right around E80 according to my Fuel-it sensor/ bluetooth analyzer
I need to look into this hardware when I finish installing the stuff I have on hand for the 335i.
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      09-10-2016, 01:42 PM   #16
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I get E85 st Krogers here in the DFW area. Running a 50:50 mix that results in E44 on the Bluetooth readout.
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      09-10-2016, 08:43 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by doublespaces View Post
Many states are switching to E54. There will be no more E85 and the term E85 won't be the official name, but rather it will be called "Ethanol Flex Fuel".

Arizona as one example, has revised and enacted the new ASTM D5798 specification (HB2171). E54 will be pushed through pumps year round. Lastly, the product codes will be divided up depending on geographical location north or south of 34 degrees latitude. North of 34 latitude will be called 7154, which contains 54% ethanol and 46% conventional gasoline (CBOB). South of 34* latitude will be called 7254, which contains Arizona CBG(Cleaner Burning gasoline). These changes were implemented August 19th, 2016 by "the jet companies".

I would assume this means that those in affected areas such as Arizona, and likely California and Nevada, would receive this E54 mixed with their CBG octane equivalent to "ACN91".
Correct. I live in AZ, and the Subaru platform has been outraged by this as most are tuned for E85 and cannot accommodate E54 without a retune. I've tested the fuel here and it has indeed changed (~E55 was the last reading I grabbed a week ago in Phoenix).
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      09-11-2016, 08:26 AM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ozzie335i View Post
I get E85 st Krogers here in the DFW area. Running a 50:50 mix that results in E44 on the Bluetooth readout.
That's good to know. I buy from a Kroger in Crowley and a Racetrac off 35W and Golden Triangle.
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      09-11-2016, 03:20 PM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ozzie335i View Post
I get E85 st Krogers here in the DFW area. Running a 50:50 mix that results in E44 on the Bluetooth readout.
A guy on another forum posted this from a Krogers outside of Houston, so it may be taking its time to head north.



I was originally thinking that if this makes its way to Florida, I should get Steve's ethanol sensor/fuel line installed. But if pump ethanol is going to vary at any given time from E50 to E85, what good is that going to do if, say, you run an E60 tune like I do, you fill up with 10 gallons of what you think is E85 and 5 gallons of 93 octane to get the E60 mix, and find out the pump really had E50 because the sensor shows you're running E37? The only option I see is testing with the little plastic cylinder with water before filling up. Not sure of the logistics of doing that every time (carrying around a small gas can into which you can pump a splash of ethanol, and a bottle of water?).
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      09-11-2016, 07:05 PM   #20
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You guys had to know that this was coming. No one is using E85 for it's original intention. I am sure that the government knows that the only consumers using E85 are those people seeking higher octane for performance reasons and not for it's cleanliness.

It won't be long until E85 is not available anywhere. In my state (NC) you can hardly find the stuff. I think that there might be a few stations in the entire state and none in Charlotte.
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      09-11-2016, 08:12 PM   #21
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I for one am using clean burning ethanol as my little part in fending off global warming. Uh huh.
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      09-11-2016, 08:35 PM   #22
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damn well this is gonna suck....time to run port injection meth lol
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