The Ethanol nighmare continues.

[72HCODE]

well today the EPA held hearings on raising the amount of Ethanol in gas from 10% to 15%.

they are using cars made from 2007 on as a basis for saying 15% is fine.

and as of an half hour ago they agreed to raise the mix of ethanol in gas:

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/driveon/post/2010/10/epa-to-allow-15-ethanol-in-gasoline-up-from-10-now-/1

so what does that mean? Well to me in my regular car that means I'm going to see a further reduction in my MPG which means Gas will cost me even more then it did before since i will have to fill up more often.

that also means new cars which get a MPG rating from the EPA just recently will take a big hit, and that new 34mpg car you got is going to drop down in the mid 20s. This is going to screw the car companies also since now they will have to possibly redesign engines yet again to make up the difference in lost MPG that is mandated by the government.

however horse power ratings will most likely not change much since ethanol does tend to increase horsepower.

so that sucks for my 5 year old car but what about my 15 year old car and my 39 year old car.

I've already seen the effect of going from 0% ethanol to 10%, and its eating my rubber hoses in my cars, I've had to replace fuel lines twice in 2 years because I've seen visible cracks forming in the hoses. They say that ethanol is suppose to reduce engine ping because it is suppose to increase octane rating, however i did have to lower my advance when they switched over because suddenly my engine was pinging.

now when 15% comes along i'm going to start to worry more about fuel pump failures.

also Ethanol is known to absorb water, we store our classic cars in the winter and that can lead to tank corrosion and its known to eat seals in carburetors and in the engine when the fuel is sitting around for months at a time. Boaters are having a hell of a time right now because of Ethanol.

in short its just going to cost me even more money in fuel costs and maintenance, pay 3.09$ a gallon and 15% of what i buy is watered down.

sucks

 

[RocketFoot]

Yet another hit to us when we're already down! How much will the US population take until we grab our pitch forks and head to Washington?

 

[Nance]

VOTE !

 

[Tnfastbk]

Just freakin wonderful Ready to head to D.C. here

 

[cobra3073]

This is another one of those issues that will require some sincere "soul searching", in my estimation.

It reminds me of the departure from the wide availability of lead based gasoline in the early 1970s. Due to the clamor over what lead was allegedly doing to the environment, the laws were changed and so were the Manufacturers (and hobbyists) approach to how they built or modified engines. In the intervening 35 - 40 years, the hobby has survived and dare I say it - - actually thrived.

In 1973, I would not have imagined that the "factories" or "rodders" would be routinely building cars running in the sub 11s in the quarter on unleaded fuels. Yes, there was a "learning curve" but in the end technology prevailed and the hobby remains healthy - - we simply had to adapt.

As a 63-year old, I would like to think that my offspring will continue to enjoy the hobby that I love without unduly negatively impacting the planet to the point that their offspring (or they themselves) cannot survive on it.

A lot of folks have seen the "writing on the wall" as it relates to the use of fossil fuels in powering their race and/or hobbyist vehicles and are converting to E85 with apparent excellent results. I have not yet made that move but I am surely going to look into with the passage of this type legislation.

If you think about it, I believe most will agree that hotrodding, modifying and/or restoring our cars are really about making it/them "better" than what the other "guy or gal" has done within the limitations placed on us and/or the equipment.

I see this type issue as just another challenge to American ingenuity in our observance of the hobby while taking the lead in trying to do the right thing for the planet and our fellow humans.

That having been said, as Americans we have the right to lobby against those laws we feel are not in our best interests. In that regard, The Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA)" and the "Specialty Equipment Market Association Action Network (SAN)" are actively recruiting people to join at www.SemaSAN.com to enhance their ability to lobby for the hobby on this particular issue and several others.

BT

 

[CrashOverdrive]

Ethanol is kind of a give and take fuel. It's hindrences are the fact that it is more corrosive than gasoline so if your running pure ethanol it will rot your tank and valve seals. It is also harder to ignite. On the other hand since alcohol fuel stays cooler temp before burning so you can raise your compression ratio without detonation. What will happen that has to be designed for is you cant have any sharp edges in the cylinder. I forget what its callled but a hot point willl ignite alcohol before you want it to causing detonation.

 

[mickmatt1]

Ethanol is kind of a give and take fuel. It's hindrences are the fact that it is more corrosive than gasoline so if your running pure ethanol it will rot your tank and valve seals. It is also harder to ignite. On the other hand since alcohol fuel stays cooler temp before burning so you can raise your compression ratio without detonation. What will happen that has to be designed for is you cant have any sharp edges in the cylinder. I forget what its callled but a hot point willl ignite alcohol before you want it to causing detonation.

last month in france every time i fuelled up it was 10% ethanol have not seen any in the uk yet hey i know your galls are different to ours but we must be buying less petrol same as bubbles gas in beer and ice in already cold drinks maybe i need a phycisist to explain mass/volume/densityetc mickmatt

 

[72HCODE]

ethanol reminds me about increasing your MPG by mixing acetone in your tank scam that keeps going around.

ethanol is such a joke when you think about it. it takes more energy in to produce and its shooting corn prices to the moon.

it costs you more money in the short and long term also, its subsisted by the government so your paying for it in taxes, and it rapes your wallet each month because your fuel costs are 10% more on top of the inflated price of gas already.

if they really wanted to save the environment they would switch 90% of the vehicles on the road to diesel, except when they tried that in the 1980s they realized emissions would go insane and it took about 30 years to get cleaner burning diesel, then they bitched about low sulfur fuel.

blah blah blah, Europe is making a killing off diesel and getting like 70mpg.

this nonsense just keeps going round, thank jimmy carter and the insane dept of energy that has killed everything and gone off its charter right from day one.

all this boils down to is more nudging from idiots to make cars so expensive that you won't own one in the future and more government control of your lives. The amazing thing is lets say 100 years from now everyone is riding bicycles everywhere for everything, people will still be loosing there minds over body emissions and bicycle environmental impact studies. I think 50% of the population of the planet favor species suicide as the only viable way of living in our universe.

the colonies rebelled against England for taxes being around 10% last i checked my tax rate is around 47% of income in my state. Tax, Tax, Tax, redistribute.

 

[CrashOverdrive]

ethanol reminds me about increasing your MPG by mixing acetone in your tank scam that keeps going around.

ethanol is such a joke when you think about it. it takes more energy in to produce and its shooting corn prices to the moon.

it costs you more money in the short and long term also, its subsisted by the government so your paying for it in taxes, and it rapes your wallet each month because your fuel costs are 10% more on top of the inflated price of gas already.

if they really wanted to save the environment they would switch 90% of the vehicles on the road to diesel, except when they tried that in the 1980s they realized emissions would go insane and it took about 30 years to get cleaner burning diesel, then they bitched about low sulfur fuel.

blah blah blah, Europe is making a killing off diesel and getting like 70mpg.

this nonsense just keeps going round, thank jimmy carter and the insane dept of energy that has killed everything and gone off its charter right from day one.

all this boils down to is more nudging from idiots to make cars so expensive that you won't own one in the future and more government control of your lives. The amazing thing is lets say 100 years from now everyone is riding bicycles everywhere for everything, people will still be loosing there minds over body emissions and bicycle environmental impact studies. I think 50% of the population of the planet favor species suicide as the only viable way of living in our universe.

the colonies rebelled against England for taxes being around 10% last i checked my tax rate is around 47% of income in my state. Tax, Tax, Tax, redistribute.

I agree 100%.