Trip to Wisconsin

I should be leaving early on the 1st for a trip to Northern Wisconsin. I got a tank of approximately E25 and will report on the mileage during this trip.

Ford Escape E85 Hybrid details

I drive a 2005 Escape Hybrid that not a Flexible Fuel Vehicle (FFV). Ford has produced a number E85 Escape Hybrid vehicles for fleet testing. I am aware of at least twenty 2008 E85 Escape Hybrid vehicles that went out in June 2007 for a two year real world testing. Here is a photo of one of them.



Ford currently has at least 20 E85 Escape Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles undergoing fleet testing since December 2007. Here is a photo of one of them:



What is different in the E85 Escape Hybrid from mine? Read this: Ethanol also doesn't possess the same energy content or burn rate as gas, which requires the engine to flow more fuel to the injectors to keep performance levels comparable. To handle this increased fuel flow, the Escape Hybrid E85 has a larger fuel pump and larger injectors.
Ford researchers did have to navigate uncharted territory when it came to the Hybrid E85's engine control module (ECM). "An engine that is capable of running on straight gas to E85 has to learn what's in the tank and adjusts accordingly," says Varns.
A vehicle's ECM monitors the exhaust gas sensor and the fuel system's air-fuel ratio, as well as reads the float rod in the fuel tank. When the ECM senses a shift in the engine's air-fuel ratio to the lean side (more air than fuel), it deduces that the vehicle is filled with E85 and adjusts the fuel system accordingly.
"The vehicle learns while the engine is running," says Varns. "But with the hybrid, the engine may be shut off for long periods of time while the vehicle runs on electric power, so we had to make some custom software and calibration changes within the ECM to make sure it could seamlessly remember or relearn the correct percent of ethanol after a shutdown."

Ford, like GM, is using software found in the Engine Control Module to determine the fuel composition and to make fine adjustments with fuel deleivery. This software change can be slightly modified for previous years vehicles with minimum cost. There is also mention of a larger fuel pump and injectors. It is unknown if the fuel pressure also varies (increases with higher ethanol percentage) in the vehicle. These hardware changes are also do able with previous year models. It isn't rocket science to make vehicles "more" E85 compatible. If a lot of changes were needed, then how could the companies sell for the same price as the non-FFV?

Another visit to the GetGo station

I stopped today at the Wexford GetGo station after completing my last dog training class in nearby Cranberry Twp. The price per gallon had dropped 2 cents a gallon since last weekend. I did not need too much fuel so I added 0.9 gallons of E85 and then 4.0 gallons of E10. My tank was not full after this addition. I then drove home thru 3 inches of snow with an outdoor temperature of 26 degree. My Ford Dash reported a 30.0 mpg average since the fillup which is 3+ mpg less than a week ago. However, it is nearly 10 degree colder with snow and a wet road surface today that can partially explain the drop in mileage. I am going to be taking off my Eco-Plus tire (stock) and putting on my Goodyear Forenta Triple Tread (winter tires) in the next few days. I got a trip to Wisconsin planned at the end of the month and I should be able to drive the complete way on intermediate blends of ethanol.

Is ethanol more electrically conductive than gasoline?

There is a post today on www.E85vehicles.com from cgrey8 about "covering the fuel pump leads" for E85 useage. This is based upon the concept that ethanol is electrically conductive and more corrosive to metals that have an electrical charge on them than gasoline. This is something brought up in a previous post by "The Drunken Swede". This post on E85vehicles showed a photo of just such a device. However, others have also posted that reports of issue with this do not exist. Interesting concept but there is little documentation from manufactures or third party developers on this issue. Will have to wait for more information to develop on this topic.

I stopped at the Wexford, Pa. GetGo station for more fuel. I was about 1/2 empty running approximately an E30 mixture. I decided to decrease the ethanol blend by adding 1.4 gallons of E85 to 5.4 gallons of E0 in my 15 gallon tank. My scanguage II LTF values varied between 8-14.7 (around +12 on level cruising sections) on the 27mile ride home. Thus I believe I am running a blend between E20 and E25. The price of E85 was $2.49 while the gas price decreased 14 cents overnight to $2.59. The spread is poor and the station keeps it at a 10 cent difference. As for mileage on the way home (27 miles), my Ford dash readout reported 33.8 mpg which is .8 mpg better than my last trip home which was in mid 40F degree weather compared to today's upper 30F weather. I can't say the mileage is much different than what I would have achieved on E0. I forgot, I also brough along a red Jerry Can that had maybe a 1/2 gallon of E85 to which I added 3 gallons. I will add this to a future gas fillup.

After I pulled away from the E85 and moved like 10 feet to a E0 pump, a black Chevy Impala pulled up with a 20's male driver. I normally don't see individuals in that age group pull up to an E85 pump. I didn't get a chance to talk with him as I had to head inside to pay for my fuel and he was gone before I returned.

If I can get an E85 pump within 10-12 miles of my location, I will spring for an E85 ocnversion kit. I just can't justify doing so at this time without local access to E85 pumps. If one goes to www.e85vehicles.com, they can obtain a special deal on E85 conversion kits.

I try to report back within 8 days.

The Drunken Swede goes on hiatus

Well, the Druken Swede (http://drunkenswede.blogspot.com/2009/12/e85-experiment-going-on-hiatus.html) is going to stop posting about using intermediate blends of ethanol. I'm going to miss his posts and little rants from the Northwest corner of Indiana. I use to live 30 miles west of Chicago and have traveled thru this region many times on my trips to and from Wisconsin. His post states a non-flex fuel vehicle can handle around 40% ethanol. Well, my reading and understanding is this will vary. I have read of non-flex fuel vehicles running on E70 while others may start showing the check engine light on E25. Your long term fuel trim values play a major role in this issue. For my vehicle, I am aware of two individuals who have driven on E50 without throwing a check engine light. I personally have had my LTF trim values up to 18.4 via the scanguage II hardware reading. This is pushing E40. I normally attempt to run between E20-30 depending upon the price spread. It looks like I will be heading for the E85 pump on Saturday and will report back here later.

Two days ago, I emptied a partially full one red "Jerry" can of E85 and another "Jerry" can of E10 into my vehicle. My scanguage LTF is now hanging around +14 during steady state driving. This is correlates to an ethanol blend between E28 and E31. Vehicle is running fine. The weather is 10-18 degree colder than during my last post and this will effect the mileage negatively. Noticed a number of Federal Government vehicles at the local GetGo station and others pulling out from the franchise hotel which is located behind the station. I can't figure out why an E85 pump wasn't installed at this location where a federal mandate exist that states Federal Government vehicles are required to fill up with alternative fuels where available and at reasonable costs. There is a large Federal Government institution in town (500+ employees) and the location is the headquarters of the county government.

Stopped at the Wexford (north of Pittsburgh, Pa) GetGo station and filled a blend of around E22 today in my stock 2005 Escape Hybrid. The spread of 04% ($2.55 E85-$2.65 E0) was terrible but this the closest E85 pump (almost 27 miles) to my location. After resettiing my scanguage II and Ford trip odometer I drove home. My Ford dash reading indicated a 33.2 mpg average (mid 40F temperatures) which is no different than driving on E0. I later had to run some errands and drove no longer than five miles at a time dropping my mileage for the day to 31.8 mpg. Short trips do drop mileage. Of course a better figure is to compare cost per mile of E0 with E20.

I image some of you are asking how I determine the percent of ethanol blending in my tank. I normally figure for every 10% increase in ethanol blending, the scanguage II LFT increases 4.5 points. Even simplier math is to just double the LFT values by 2. Today's scanguage II long term fuel trim hung around +10-12.5 during steady state driving on level sections.

I have been using ethanol blends in my FEH for nearly two years now. I normally attempt to have between E20-E30 blends but because of the lack of local E85 pumps I sometimes can not fill my vehicle with these blends. This does mean I sometimes will bring a "red" Jerry Can to the E85 pumps and transport E85 back home for use.

It is interesting to note, a published study out of Minnesota utilize two vehicles identical to mine and found no difference between E0 and E20 for mileage. This year long study also included other cars and trucks with similar findings.