Currently my ‘19 GLI 2.0T is tuned on E85 - power wise around 340-360 IIRC. Car is spec’d for 0w20, which I already have replaced with ESP 0w30. The e85 was a recent addition and in my research, I see some in the tuning group suggest a 40w to help account for the dilution issue that E85 apparently causes. If that’s the case, should I stick where in at with 30w, or go thicker? 502, 504, 511, etc
Thicker oil with E85?
- Thread starter John9721
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Your thinking is correct. E85 will result in addl fuel dilution. Viscosity is key here. I would stick with a quality synthetic 40 viscosity of your choice. There are some oil choices, and I'm sorry I don't know what they are, that do not play well with E85. They tend to gel up. Non synthetic oils are to be avoided, if I remember correctly.
E85 results in higher rod bearing loads, due to a nice bump in mid range torque. This too requires adequate viscosity. Don't go too low here.
Change frequently too. 5% oil dilution is quite normal with E85 use.
E85 results in higher rod bearing loads, due to a nice bump in mid range torque. This too requires adequate viscosity. Don't go too low here.
Change frequently too. 5% oil dilution is quite normal with E85 use.
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You can either go to a thicker grade, or shorten your oil change intervals.. or both. As long as you get your engine temp above 170 degrees, it'll burn off the moisture from the ethanol. You'll definitely break down the oil faster if you're running the car for short intervals and not letting it get enough temp.
I run 5W-30 in my E85 fed 565 big block, mainly because of my bearing clearances, I just don't keep oil in it long. Also, run an oil that was meant to play with E85, something like Driven GP-1 or HPL PP PCMO or their bad ass racing oil. Definitely don't follow the advice from armchair engine builders on facebook groups that blindly praise Valvoline VR-1 and Shell Rotella for their high performance cars. Not saying the VR-1 isn't a good oil, but it wasn't made with ethanol in mind.
I run 5W-30 in my E85 fed 565 big block, mainly because of my bearing clearances, I just don't keep oil in it long. Also, run an oil that was meant to play with E85, something like Driven GP-1 or HPL PP PCMO or their bad ass racing oil. Definitely don't follow the advice from armchair engine builders on facebook groups that blindly praise Valvoline VR-1 and Shell Rotella for their high performance cars. Not saying the VR-1 isn't a good oil, but it wasn't made with ethanol in mind.
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Not just thicker but shorten intervals by a lot. The ethanol poisons the oil making it acidic while still looks clear on the stick and i haven't seen it myself but maybe it gels up like how you sau.
Of the few tuned e85 uoa's I've seen every one showed high acidity. If it was mine I'd use whatever sp rated euro 30/40 that's cheapest and change every 2-3 months or 1500 miles or less.
Of the few tuned e85 uoa's I've seen every one showed high acidity. If it was mine I'd use whatever sp rated euro 30/40 that's cheapest and change every 2-3 months or 1500 miles or less.
I'd say that's probably your best option. Run it 3k, sample to confirm you can go to 5k and just dump every 5k from there on out.
