Who's running E15

[joshc64311]

The local watering hole just got E15, the pump says its 88oct and its cheaper than 87. I only run 89 but the price is hard to ignore. So whos running it and what are you thoughts on it?

[TxTruckMan]

Don't use it in any older vehicles or lawn equipment. And your mileage will possibly suffer a little bit. It's nothing more than an attempt to put more money in farmer's pockets. There's no benefit to the end user. I didn't think E15 was authorized yet? I guess they can offer it, just not mandate it? I'd stay away.

Edited April 3, 2017 by TxTruckMan

[99SSCamaro]

Been running E15 or E30 quite often (whichever one I'm near when I fill up), or sometimes E85. I don't really notice anything in mileage or power, but I don't pay that much attention either. Lots of ethanol plants in my neck of the woods, so it's fairly normal. As far as I'm concerned, the more ethanol the better. Better gas for less money is a win in my book.

 

Anything more than about E30 can eat up seals in some older vehicles. Although I ran E30 in my '07 NON-flex fuel Silverado quite often for 9 years and 100k miles, and never had a problem, and so do lots of other people around here.

[HawkeyeSierra]

Been using it for about two months. Haven't noticed any drop off in mileage or power.

 

I keep it out of my small engines though. Mowers, snow blowers, etc.

[Donstar]

I used it regularly on my trucks as it was readily available by my previous work place. If it was still readily available and it was top tier I would definitely use it in my current truck.

[TxTruckMan]

Been running E15 or E30 quite often (whichever one I'm near when I fill up), or sometimes E85. I don't really notice anything in mileage or power, but I don't pay that much attention either. Lots of ethanol plants in my neck of the woods, so it's fairly normal. As far as I'm concerned, the more ethanol the better. Better gas for less money is a win in my book.

 

Anything more than about E30 can eat up seals in some older vehicles. Although I ran E30 in my '07 NON-flex fuel Silverado quite often for 9 years and 100k miles, and never had a problem, and so do lots of other people around here.

Better gas? How is it better? There's less energy content as compared to regular gas. You get worse gas mileage. It's more corrosive to your engine components. And it absorbs water into your fuel. There's no benefit other than the octane.

[joshc64311]

I used it regularly on my trucks as it was readily available by my previous work place. If it was still readily available and it was top tier I would definitely use it in my current truck.

Thats is my next question since ethanol burns cleaner than gas and cleans to, wouldn't it be considered a top tier fuel?

[Cowpie]

I have been primarily using E15 for almost 2 years now. As prices fluctuate seasonally, sometimes E20, E30, E50, and E85. On road trips is the only time I fill with E10. E15, for me, delivers virtually the same mpg as E10, but E15 is 5-10 cents a gallon cheaper, so I use it.

 

Can't speak to E15 being all that much better than E10 as it pertains to clean and being equivalent to top tier fuel, but the higher blends definitely leave fewer deposits and are significantly cleaner than E10 or non ethanol fuel.

[ewiski]

Strange I live in houston and have yet to see an e15 pump.

[16sierra]

Do you need to have a flex fuel engine to run E-15 or will the standard injectors work? My internet searching led me nowhere.

[sdog4127]

E15 is borderline for non-flexFuel engines. NonFlex engines do not monitor alcohol levels in the fuel so the only adjustment is fuel/air ratio and knock retard. Since ethanol has 30+% less BTU content and requires 10:1 fuel/air ratio versus 14.7:1 ratio for gasoline you will burn 30% more fuel vs straight gasoline. So unless you are saving 30% in filling at the pump, you are gaining nothing except a little extra power. (No power gains unless you have a FlexFuel engine that recognizes the alcohol content).

 

Plus ethanol is hygroscopic, which means it absorbs water. So anytime it's exposed to air it absorbs water. This puts more water in your fuel tank and causes corrosion and poor performance/clogged injectors. Also alcohol acts as s solvent, cleaning all the shit out of your tank and it gets picked up by the fuel pump and goes through your fuel system. This is why FlexFuel cars have higher dollar stainless fuel lines and special seals in the fuel system, as well as alcohol sensors to determine the ratio of fuel to alcohol so it can inject the correct fuel ratio.

 

So unless you have a FlexFuel equipped fuel system, you are flirting with eventual problems with anything above 10%. I suggest to use no ethanol at all unless you have a flex capable engine to recognize the alcohol and adjust fuel ratio and timing as needed, otherwise you get no performance gain from ethanol because the engine will think it's running lean and add 30% more fuel). Best to use straight gasoline. Enjoy better economy and less fuel system problems.

 

 

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[Lance455]

I think e15 would be fine if there was more of a price gap depending on the side of town there about a 15 cents difference just in e10 which makes it about 5 cents cheaper then the e15 on the higher price side of town. My only question is why with the 8 speed and the 5.3 they don't offer the flex fuel option.

[TxTruckMan]

FlexFuel (E85) only became popular with OEMs because the EPA used to give them CAFE credits for being FF capable. Starting in 2016 (I think) those credits stopped. So now GM is saving a few bucks by not offering it or making it an option. There's not a large population of the country that even has access to E85. There's only like 3-5 stations in all of North Texas. Why spend money on something that nobody uses?

[Cowpie]

There is some truth to that, but the $100 for the upgrade to flex fuel capability is pretty cost effective, even for those that rarely use the stuff. It can be a good thing having the ability to use any fuel, except diesel, that is at the pump... regular to premium, E0 to E85. I can sure think of many, many things that people will spend $100 on their pickup that has no beneficial use or return on investment.

Edited April 6, 2017 by Cowpie

[mtobeck]

I just got my first tank of e15 in my 2015 2500, and mileage is on par with premium 93 octane. The pump said it was e15 + 88 for flex fuel vehicles only. I do a lot of city driving and get about 15mpg with 93, 13mpg with 87, and 10mpg with e85. So far I'm holding 14.5mpg with the e15 and it's a hell of a lot cheaper than 93. It's a little more expensive than e85, but was 10 cents cheaper than 87. We'll see how the truck runs after this tank, then I decide whether or not to use e15 full time. It sure is nice being able to pick and choose which fuel to use.