AKTUNG

As we all know there is 10% ethanol at almost all pumps in the country although there are some that still have non ethanol gas. Since our cars were not engineered to run on ethanol is there some kind of additive we can add or is there any reason to be concerned about the effects of ethanol on our cars?

Arena993

Try this site. Ethanol free gas stations by state. Here is AL

http://www.pure-gas.org/index.jsp?stateprov=AL

Mike

AKTUNG

Thanks very much. I know non-ethanol is better but will ethanol harm our engines?

jo-hans

Do this search for Ethanol but there is always Lucas Safeguard™ Ethanol Fuel Conditioner.

1stgear

I'm glad I have an ethanol-free station in my town. It's an old station with 3 pumps and they pump the gas for you. It's like stepping back in time.

justin993

Chad - does this guy pump your gas?

No HTwo O

^that was an awesome movie. Thank you Coen brothers.

1stgear

"Don't put it in your pocket, sir. Don't put it in your pocket. It's your lucky quarter."

Cactus

Lucas with every fillup.

Quadcammer

At 10%, I can't see this being a significant issue.

In NJ, we don't have any ethanol free pumps. I've run my car on the 10% stuff for over 2 years with nary an issue. Had my injectors cleaned and they were nearly perfect, no evidence of any hose erosion or degredation.

Is it the best? No...but I don't anticipate having any issues with E10 in the near future.

Falcondrivr

I switched to ethanol free gas recently after having found a good source right by my office. I have always checked my gas mileage at every fill. I am seeing approximately 10% increase in mileage with ethanol free gas, I am assuming because of the better thermodynamic properties of pure gas.

No HTwo O

I see the same. And it's due to pure gas having more energy.

ABCar

The one near my house is 90 octane...any need to boost up to 91 or 93?
Which makes me wonder what most 993 drivers are using 89? 91? 93?

WBYonder

91, because that's the highest ethanol-free available here (thank you Conoco). Typically, all the other premium gas available here is 92.

2Many Cars

Ethanol has less specific energy than gasoline (ergo you get less mpg) but it is also higher octane so even if not required it's often found in premium fuel. As an owner of a few older Brittish cars this is a very hot topic. I've actually spent a fair amount of time on this and my take is that for most modern cars (newer than 20+/- years) this is no real problem, at least at up to a 10% concentration. You shouldn't have problems with 993s but you definitely could with older cars, although the oil companies and EPA deny it. The real problems relate to the alcohol dissolving older nylon garkets and seals but it is a very gradual process and seems to be worst in old carbs. (Think those old SUs were a problem before...just wait) In higher concentrations alcohol can dissolve some types of fiberglass resins too but that's usually not a problem as few if any modern street cars have FG tanks (at least not without liners). The other problem is that alcohol will mix with and hold water (now you know what "dry gas" is made of). That's not a problem if you're routinely using up what's in your tank but if it sits in the tank, like when in storage, it can lead to corrosion. This is probably the biggest problem we have to worry about in our cars. I know we have plastic tanks but there are metal fuel lines too. I'd use the additive whenever I'm storing a car and of course always store a car with the gas tank fully dry or completely full so moisture doesn't have a chance to collect. If you do that ethanol, at least up to a 10% concentration, shouldn't be a problem for your 993. That said, I'd still buy the 100% real deal if I could, which unfortunately I can't around here.