Denatured Alcohol -Added to fuel to pass emissions

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JGmazda

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Short story... '94 Mazda Miata with 220K miles.. never failed a test... runs like a champ and has no visible issues.

I'm on my third Emission test and just missed by the NOX and HC standards by 0.07% & 0.05% respectively.

I've read some information and it's been suggested that I try adding some Denatured Alcohol to my gas and try again.

I'm worried that Denatured Alcohol will damage the rubber (and plastic) parts in my fuel system.

Any thoughts on this? Thanks!
 
Try Techron fuel system concentrate.

Get through an entire tank, then retest.
 
Don't.

Pony up for a new catalytic converter if all the basics are squared away.
CARB-approved bolt on DynoMax (optional in AZ
smile.gif
) are quite affordable on Amazon btw.

iirc yours is a 1.8L w/ EGR?
~8° BTDC with TEN bypass helped my sniffer inspection numbers considerably. Good Luck
 
The cat if the fix but if you insist on one more chemical attempt the product is Guaranteed to Pass from the parts store, not alcohol.
 
Originally Posted By: splinter
Don't.

Pony up for a new catalytic converter if all the basics are squared away.
CARB-approved bolt on DynoMax (optional in AZ
smile.gif
) are quite affordable on Amazon btw.

iirc yours is a 1.8L w/ EGR?
~8° BTDC with TEN bypass helped my sniffer inspection numbers considerably. Good Luck


Yes, it's a 1.8L w/EGR. I've pretty much replaced everything "but" the CAT. Thanks for the timing suggestion. It's ~10deg now.
 
Originally Posted By: OneEyeJack
The cat if the fix but if you insist on one more chemical attempt the product is Guaranteed to Pass from the parts store, not alcohol.


Interesting... any personal experience with this?
 
Many of us here in Colorado run a few gallons of E-85 mixed with gasoline for that very reason. In fact I just put in 4 gallons in my 99 Durango yesterday, will get e-test this week.
 
You replace the O2 sensors yet? Also clean out the throttle body, PCV valve, and MAF sensor if it has one.
 
That's a pretty common trick. Though, with E85 more available, I'd just run a few gallons of that rather than tossing in denatured alcohol.
 
As others have said, catcon is the real answer, but loading up with a dose of E-85 is the easy solution. It'll almost certainly lower your NOx enough to pass, probably HC as well since it will effectively lean the mixture without raising combustion temps.
 
Quote:


Denatured alcohol
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Denatured Alcohol)
Denatured alcohol, also called methylated spirits, is ethanol that has additives to make it poisonous, extremely bad tasting, foul smelling or nauseating, to discourage recreational consumption. In some cases it is also dyed.
Denatured alcohol is used as a solvent and as fuel for alcohol burners and camping stoves. Because of the diversity of industrial uses for denatured alcohol, hundreds of additives and denaturing methods have been used. The main additive has traditionally been 10% methanol, giving rise to the term "methylated spirits". Other typical additives include isopropyl alcohol, acetone, methyl ethyl ketone, methyl isobutyl ketone, and denatonium.[1]


It's relatively expensive in comparison. Just put in som E-85. If you haven't already done so, change the oil. It does matter. As a last resort, retard the timing a little, that's what I did back in my carburetor days. Causes the motor to need more throttle the run correctly, which provides more air in the exhaust. It always got my old mopars through.
 
Originally Posted By: Oldmoparguy1
Quote:


Denatured alcohol
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Denatured Alcohol)
Denatured alcohol, also called methylated spirits, is ethanol that has additives to make it poisonous, extremely bad tasting, foul smelling or nauseating, to discourage recreational consumption. In some cases it is also dyed.
Denatured alcohol is used as a solvent and as fuel for alcohol burners and camping stoves. Because of the diversity of industrial uses for denatured alcohol, hundreds of additives and denaturing methods have been used. The main additive has traditionally been 10% methanol, giving rise to the term "methylated spirits". Other typical additives include isopropyl alcohol, acetone, methyl ethyl ketone, methyl isobutyl ketone, and denatonium.[1]


It's relatively expensive in comparison. Just put in som E-85. If you haven't already done so, change the oil. It does matter. As a last resort, retard the timing a little, that's what I did back in my carburetor days. Causes the motor to need more throttle the run correctly, which provides more air in the exhaust. It always got my old mopars through.


Thanks for this! I will try and run some E-85 in the tank and see if this helps the test. It's worth a shot and probably safer than using the Denatured Alcohol straight from the bottle. I did change the oil also.

Thanks everyone for your advice!
 
Last edited:
Before I paid the money to replace a CC in a car with over 200K miles on it I'd try a miracle in a can first. I'd dose it with a good FI cleaner run a tank of that, then the E-85 trick. If it fails after that then consider replacing what needs to be replaced.
 
Ive used guranteed to pass now twice on fleet vehicles not worth the money to tune up. One missed the nox by 600ish iirc. Works good. You could also run through with your air filter out for the test. Make sure the engine is very hot and idle as little as possible.
 
Here to give an update -

I added 50/50 mix of E-85 and regular gas. Drove 30 miles and took the emissions test. Result: Passed!!!

Apparently the E-85 did the trick. Thank you everyone for your help and suggestions!!
 
Originally Posted By: JGmazda
Here to give an update -

I added 50/50 mix of E-85 and regular gas. Drove 30 miles and took the emissions test. Result: Passed!!!

Apparently the E-85 did the trick. Thank you everyone for your help and suggestions!!


Good. There are many old timers here that don't believe e85 runs cleaner.
 
Originally Posted By: turtlevette
Originally Posted By: JGmazda
Here to give an update -

I added 50/50 mix of E-85 and regular gas. Drove 30 miles and took the emissions test. Result: Passed!!!

Apparently the E-85 did the trick. Thank you everyone for your help and suggestions!!


Good. There are many old timers here that don't believe e85 runs cleaner.




Oh yeah, it really dropped the numbers down! I was right on the peripheral and the E-85 definitely did the trick.
 
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