What is E85 ?
E85 is an alcohol fuel blend of 85% denaturalized ethanol with 15% gasoline. In addition to the ethanol and gasoline, the fuel often contains small amounts of MTBE and isobutanol for better combustion and or engine maintenance. The percentages mentioned are percentages by volume.
Ethanol is obtained from plants, and is therefore also called bio-ethanol. By using plants, the fuel is more CO2 neutral.
This fuel is already widely used in Brazil, Sweden and the mid-western United States, where the ethanol is obtained from corn. The racing industry also uses E85 widely as a fuel because ethanol has a higher knock resistance than normal gasoline. This allows the fuel to handle higher compression without igniting on its own like a diesel engine.
The disadvantage of ethanol as a fuel is that it is highly polar and thus attracts water. This also results in it not being suitable for blended lubrication. You will also have to change your oil (or have it changed) at a faster interval.
What is the difference between E85 Conversion and Flexfuel
If you want a vehicle to run on E85, the software must be adjusted accordingly. For example, +/- 30% more fuel needs to be injected. But by using E85 or other mixing ratios with alcohol and gasoline (E-blend) extra power can be obtained since this fuel is more knock resistant and thus the ignition can be increased.
With an E85 conversion we ensure that the software is adjusted so that the car CAN run on this bio-fuel without you experiencing any adverse effects. We will ensure that the necessary maps are adjusted such as extra injection, with or without extra power.
With flex fuel we go one step further: your car has (or will be equipped with) an ETHANOL sensor. The measured alcohol value is transmitted to your ECU and, depending on the information received, it will adjust the maps related to fuel and ignition. So we can ensure that your car e.g. on normal petrol runs on 16° ignition and when using E85 it gets extra injection with an ignition to 22° and thus extra power as a result. Your ECU is "flexible" in function of the fuel.
What advantages does E85 conversion / Flexfuel have?
There are several advantages to using this fuel:
- A more CO2 neutral car
- This fuel is much cheaper in purchase than normal fuel
- Due to the composition and knock resistance of this fuel, better performance can be obtained from the engine.
E85 conversion - Flexfuel we offer.
DVX can offer conversion to E85 for just about any gasoline car. This allows the owner to save a lot of money.
Flexfuel is not possible on all vehicles. You should always ask us in advance if we can help you with this.