The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has publicly acknowledged that ethanol in gasoline can damage internal combustion engines by increasing exhaust temperatures and indirectly causing component failures, the American Motorcyclist Association (EPA) reports. The EPA statement is contained in a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) rule proposal about a new label for pumps that supply fuel blends high in ethanol.
EPA admits now that ethanol E15 (a gasoline formulation that contains up to 15 percent ethanol by volume) impacts motor vehicles in two primary ways. 1- ethanol elevates the [air/fuel] ratio (increases the proportion of oxygen relative to hydrocarbons) which can lead to increased exhaust gas temperatures and potentially increase incremental deterioration of emission control hardware and performance over time, possibly causing catalyst failure. 2- ethanol can cause materials compatibility issues, which may lead to other component failures. In stating that in motorcycles and non-road products, using E15 and higher ethanol blends creates overheating and raise engine-failure concerns EPA is now supporting the long-held position of the American Motorcycle Association.
None of the estimated 22 million motorcycles and ATVs currently in operation can use fuels with blends higher than 10 percent ethanol. Doing so could void the manufacturer’s warranty, in addition to causing damage to the vehicle. “The American Motorcyclist Association has fought the distribution of E15 fuel blends in an effort to protect motorcycle and all-terrain vehicles from the damage that ethanol causes,” said Wayne Allard, AMA vice president for government relations. “Now the EPA acknowledges that ethanol itself is harmful to emissions hardware and other components on all motor vehicles. It is time for the federal government to pause, take a hard look at this product and change its entire approach to ethanol in fuels.
Wouldn’t it be nice if the MoCo dropped their MDA campaign and instead did something for their customers and mounted a massive campaign against the use of ethanol using the same resources that they used in MDA. It would be joined by all people who were against the ethanol in gasoline and a massive coup for the MoCo!
I only use E0 non-ethanol fuels. There are stations all over the country that sell it. There are web sites that give you the locations. Please don’t use that garbage in your motorcycle.
Nothing most of us didn’t already suspect. I fear that if the government pushes forward with E15 then my options for fueling up without damaging my engine or voiding my warranty will begin to dwindle. Hopefully it won’t get to the point that I have to figure out a way to convert my hard bags into gas tanks =).
now I am no fan of Ethanol by any means. but a friend of mine uses E-85 on his drag Bug, says the cylinder heads run much cooler , and overall engine heat has dropped by 20 degrees in certain circumstances. of course though he had to convert his fuel lines and other rubber fuel delivery componants over to something ethanol tolerant, but in temp savings he’s happy… to bad it takes almost 1 1/2 times the fuel now to make the same pass on ethanol as compared to gasoline…
Rodent…HUH?
Thanks to the AMA. They’ve been fighting this for some time now.
E85 is great…..on a vehicle that is set up to burn it. For racing it’s a no-brainer, just don’t let it sit in the fuel rail for longer than a day. peace
Gas Buddy and Pure Gas are a couple of websites, and they both have apps for your smartphone. They list stations with non-ethanol gas. Just call ahead to make sure they have it, and are open. Some are in marinas or industrial centers, and have limited hours. I have a 15 gallon roll tank for my lawn equipment. It varies by state, but most permit the sale of pure gas for use in motorcycles, even new ones, whereas a car usually has to be 20+ years old.
Another site for ethanol free fuel is http://www.pure-gas.org . They have listings for the whole country AND a database you can download to put into your GPS so you can get the good stuff while on the road. I have not noticed any performance or mileage improvements. A year ago I had to replace the shutoff petcock because the ethanol ate the seals, and I had to have the carb rebuilt because the needle seats were shot from ethanol.
Oh they’re aware, alright- they just don’t care….. In the twisted minds of those in power, they see this issue as a way to turn over all those nasty, obsolete, paid-for bikes, creating an entire economic event ouf of this “problem”, similar to the idiotic “cash for clunkers” program…..
Corn should feed people not feed vehicles.
Drill, drill, drill.
Cheers,
How much corn you wanna eat? Hydrogen, hydrogen, hydrogen!
Ran an 1800CC bug for many years.
It loved “Gasahol” when available.
(no hot-motor-overrun)
But the drop in performance was noticeable.
Unfortunately the K100 beemer eventually suffers fuel system damage.
Will the EPA help pay for that….???
-nicker-