I needed gas (badly) and the FL turnpike stop had E85. It was $2.36 vs. $2.88. Not enough of a savings to fully justify the loss of BTU (and MPG), but not too far off. So, I went for it.
Glad I did. The Ford is rated at 320HP with E85 and 310 with gas. However, here in FL, the 310 is not accurate, (feels like 200HP) as the knock sensor is constantly pulling timing and the truck is slow and accelerates unevenly on regular gas.
The E85 makes this truck flat out fast. I can easily spin both rear tires (until the traction control kicks in) with the E85. On reg unleaded, the truck won't even think of spinning the tires.
I really enjoyed the new found power and my driving habits changed for the worse. However, my average MPG (on the dashboard liar) dropped to 11.2, not good. I generally see 14.4MPG around town on reg, and 16.7 on the highway. I tried some short highway runs and reset the MPG meter to see what E85 resulted in. About 13-14 on the highway going 65MPH. Whereas 16.7 going (I won't say how much) faster with gas.
Interestingly enough, the tailpipe is jet black inside. It was perfectly clean before. The E85 caused that.
I managed 326 miles on a nearly 35 gallon tank of E85. Not exactly good, but upon refill, I could not top off and check actual MPG, as my credit card is limited to 75 bucks and won't let me fill up. Gas will get me 450 miles per tank.
I enjoy the power and the way it runs on E85, but I probably won't do that often. It's not cost effective and I have to refuel more often.
BTW, premium unleaded does not produce the same power in my truck, though it does keep the knock sensor from yanking the timing and causing uneven acceleration that occurs on regular.
Glad I did. The Ford is rated at 320HP with E85 and 310 with gas. However, here in FL, the 310 is not accurate, (feels like 200HP) as the knock sensor is constantly pulling timing and the truck is slow and accelerates unevenly on regular gas.
The E85 makes this truck flat out fast. I can easily spin both rear tires (until the traction control kicks in) with the E85. On reg unleaded, the truck won't even think of spinning the tires.
I really enjoyed the new found power and my driving habits changed for the worse. However, my average MPG (on the dashboard liar) dropped to 11.2, not good. I generally see 14.4MPG around town on reg, and 16.7 on the highway. I tried some short highway runs and reset the MPG meter to see what E85 resulted in. About 13-14 on the highway going 65MPH. Whereas 16.7 going (I won't say how much) faster with gas.
Interestingly enough, the tailpipe is jet black inside. It was perfectly clean before. The E85 caused that.
I managed 326 miles on a nearly 35 gallon tank of E85. Not exactly good, but upon refill, I could not top off and check actual MPG, as my credit card is limited to 75 bucks and won't let me fill up. Gas will get me 450 miles per tank.
I enjoy the power and the way it runs on E85, but I probably won't do that often. It's not cost effective and I have to refuel more often.
BTW, premium unleaded does not produce the same power in my truck, though it does keep the knock sensor from yanking the timing and causing uneven acceleration that occurs on regular.
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