Hey guys! Prepare for more corn in your gas tank!

MattD1zzl3

2 Slow 2 Noisy
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Miamishire
Car(s)
1996 & 2003 Mazda Miatas, 1995 Chevy Camaro Z28
Jan 21, 2011
EPA approves higher-ethanol gas blend for more cars


The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Friday approved higher levels of corn-based ethanol in gasoline for cars and light-duty trucks made in the past decade.

The agency has decided that 15% ethanol in gasoline, known as E15, is safe for such vehicles made between 2001 and 2006. In October, it approved this blend -- higher than the 10% it previously allowed -- for cars and light-duty manufactured since 2007, but it postponed its use in older cars pending additional tests by the U.S. Department of Energy.

http://content.usatoday.com/communi...ves-higher-ethanol-gas-blend-for-older-cars/1


On a personal note, i guess my 1996 and 1995 cars (my only vehicles) will just have to suffer. Thanks farmers, for ruining soda, cars, and most of america in general.
 
Can we defund the EPA until they get a clue now?

Also, that takes out ALL of my vehicles. Every single one of them says DO NOT OPERATE WITH GAS THAT HAS MORE THAN 10% ETHANOL in the manual.

We tried this before under Carter and it was a huge disaster. Most cars, even today, have that same warning in their manuals in big bold type. I am pretty sure I trust my car's maker to know what fuel it can and should run on a lot more than the government.

Oh, and that immediately hoses everyone with a forced induction motor. Niiice.

EPA: "It's okay to put more corn in them, because if they stop running or catch fire you'll have to buy a new Government Motors vehicle - which coincidentally just happens to be one of the few makers supporting this new blend!"
 
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Check out my vehicle list. I guess i'll be walking to work. I also wanted to pick up a cheap 90's motorcycle. Nothing fast or dangerous. I just like the sound of a high RPM engine. I hear those dont like ethanol at all.
 
Nope, and even with ethanol-resistant seals (hard to find) in the carbs, you're still hosed because the stuff changes to varnish quickly. Worse, it's not the usual residue that re-dissolves into fuel most of the time, but a nasty, sticky brown crap.

If you voted for or supported the Democrats, YOU are responsible for this mess. Thank you OH SO VERY FUCKING MUCH.
 
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Great worse fuel economy and more carb rebuilds. Thanks EPA.
 
Someone in the Department of Agriculture had a friend in the EPA.
 
Now for those of us with older cars, will there be something like what they had in Britain when they switched from leaded to unleaded gas (I watched an Old Top Gear clip about it....) and you could add an additive to your fuel to ensure things would be fine?
 
If you voted for or supported the Democrats, YOU are responsible for this mess. Thank you OH SO VERY FUCKING MUCH.

Could we maybe not paint with such a broad brush?
 
I'm hoping it will be like it was up north. I had a choice between straight gasoline and ethanol. I don't care if they put more corn in as long as they sell good old pure gas right next to it.
 
Could we maybe not paint with such a broad brush?

No, because in this case it's true. This effort is part of that same idiot bill that brought us the mandated CFL lightbulbs and other such idiocy. I draw your attention to the party of the majority of persons that composed it, passed it and refused to fund the wars until the President signed it.
 
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Whats wrong with CFL lightbulbs?

They have abysmal light output, they buzz, they take forever to fully turn on and they produce a harsh unnatural shade of light unless you buy really expensive ones. Oh, and if you break one, they contain mercury and you are supposed to call the HASMAT team and pay for them to clean it up.
 
Whats wrong with CFL lightbulbs?

You mean other than the whole "they contain toxic mercury" thing? And that most people won't be disposing of them in 'approved toxic waste disposal' methods? Most of the ones that break or burn out get tossed in the trash and from there go into landfills. And from there, once they inevitably break, if they haven't already, their 'tiny' little bit of mercury leaks out. Problem is, there's thousands of the things that get thrown away every day. 'Tiny' times 'thousands per day' equals 'significant amounts' in not a lot of time.

At which point, you suddenly have mercury in the soil, mercury in the ground water (the stuff you drink) and if someone disturbs the landfill, mercury in the air. Health effects of mercury. Yes, they include madness (why do you think the Mad Hatter was mad?), brain dysfunction, and death.

If you want to see how the mechanism works, look into the story of how 'tiny' spills of gasoline lead to shocking percentages of MTBE showing up in the watershed. Same story all over again, right down to the same bunch of idiots rejecting the Dow Chemical company's lead fuel additive replacement (which was bismuth based and non-toxic) and instead mandating MTBE - because they thought Dow was evil. Please note the health effects of MTBE, especially the part where the EPA (who was championing MTBE back when) grudgingly admits that it does look like it's a carcinogen at higher doses... i.e., a cumulative dose, because your body does not get rid of MTBE particularly fast.

Hope you like mercury in your drinking water.

That doesn't even go into the chilling effect it's had on the development of better lightbulbs in the US. The US-based developers all cancelled their programs or moved them offshore. Once again, another idiot equipment instead of performance standard. If you can get an incandescent bulb down to the power consumption of a CFL or less, why shouldn't it be allowed? But nooooooo....
 
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No, because in this case it's true. This effort is part of that same idiot bill that brought us the mandated CFL lightbulbs and other such idiocy. I draw your attention to the party of the majority of persons that composed it, passed it and refused to fund the wars until the President signed it.


Are you admitting that the other times you were wrong?
 
Nope. :D Just saying that especially in this case, it's true.
 
In ALMS Pratt & Miller Corvette run E85 gas, when they go overseas the ACO make them run a completely different gas; there's a reason for this, it's because ethanol sucks.
 
In ALMS Pratt & Miller Corvette run E85 gas, when they go overseas the ACO make them run a completely different gas; there's a reason for this, it's because ethanol sucks.

No, E85 has been allowed at Le Mans since 2009 AFAIK. As for the LMS though, yeah, highest-percentage ethanol blend allowed is E10. And particularly turbocharged engines don't like it.
 
Really, I swear I remember Speed saying something about them using something other than E85 at Le Mans.
 
Might be, that was just my understanding of the situation. 2009 and 2010 results don't list E85 though, so I could be wrong. In 2008 E85 was definitely not allowed at Le Mans.
 
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