Go Back  British Expats > Living & Moving Abroad > USA > The Trailer Park
Reload this Page >

Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

Old Sep 29th 2017, 12:41 pm
  #1  
BE Forum Addict
Thread Starter
 
Joined: Sep 2008
Location: Rural Virginia
Posts: 1,076
ottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond repute
Default Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

Looking for a new truck and saw Ford offer a 6.2 Flex-fuel engine.
I know there is plenty written online about it but is anyone actually driving one and can give feedback ?
ottotheboar is offline  
Old Sep 29th 2017, 12:53 pm
  #2  
BE Forum Addict
 
Joined: Jul 2015
Location: Panama City, FL
Posts: 2,034
chawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

My Chevy Impala is flex-fuel. I believe it just refers to the ability to use E85 fuel (85% ethanol). Can't say I've ever seen E85 fuel being sold. I just use regular gas. Runs fine.
chawkins99 is offline  
Old Sep 29th 2017, 3:40 pm
  #3  
 
lansbury's Avatar
 
Joined: Apr 2005
Location: Milwaukie, Oregon
Posts: 9,962
lansbury has a reputation beyond reputelansbury has a reputation beyond reputelansbury has a reputation beyond reputelansbury has a reputation beyond reputelansbury has a reputation beyond reputelansbury has a reputation beyond reputelansbury has a reputation beyond reputelansbury has a reputation beyond reputelansbury has a reputation beyond reputelansbury has a reputation beyond reputelansbury has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

I had a flex-fuel vehicle (Jeep Grand Cherokee) from 2007 until 2015. It never had E85 in it as the number of gas stations that sell it where I travel was/is so small that I was never near one on a regular basis. The recommendation when I had that one was not to keep swapping between fuel types, so I used regular gas.

Replaced it in 2015 but didn't get the flex engine. Unless there is a abundant supply of E85 I don't see much point in getting one.
lansbury is online now  
Old Sep 29th 2017, 4:45 pm
  #4  
Forum Regular
 
Phyzz's Avatar
 
Joined: Mar 2014
Location: Hershey, PA
Posts: 100
Phyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

My Silverado can run on Flex, but as others have mentioned it is not commonly available.

I am tempted due to the much cheaper price, but have read that there is a reduction in mpg. So far I have stayed on regular.
Phyzz is offline  
Old Sep 29th 2017, 5:19 pm
  #5  
Peace onion
 
Joined: Jul 2006
Location: Denver
Posts: 5,686
Octang Frye has a reputation beyond reputeOctang Frye has a reputation beyond reputeOctang Frye has a reputation beyond reputeOctang Frye has a reputation beyond reputeOctang Frye has a reputation beyond reputeOctang Frye has a reputation beyond reputeOctang Frye has a reputation beyond reputeOctang Frye has a reputation beyond reputeOctang Frye has a reputation beyond reputeOctang Frye has a reputation beyond reputeOctang Frye has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

Chemically, flex fuel doesn't have the same amount of energy as regular gas. So although it's cheaper, you'll be filling up more often.
Octang Frye is offline  
Old Sep 29th 2017, 6:28 pm
  #6  
I still dont believe it..
 
Joined: Oct 2013
Location: 12 degrees north
Posts: 2,775
uk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

In the uk, some people swear by old mercedes diesels, they can be run on old cooking oil with no modifications [just a group of cats following the fishy smell of the fish and chips shop...]

Jaguar make 4 litre engines with heated injection systems that can run on anything from marine oil via paraffin to jet a1 avgas, intended for lightweight tanks but they have been used in cars.

Gas power - lpg and cng is of course an available viable conversion.

What is the advantage unless you can get the fuel for almost free?
uk_grenada is offline  
Old Sep 29th 2017, 6:35 pm
  #7  
Forum Regular
 
Phyzz's Avatar
 
Joined: Mar 2014
Location: Hershey, PA
Posts: 100
Phyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond reputePhyzz has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

Originally Posted by Octang Frye
Chemically, flex fuel doesn't have the same amount of energy as regular gas. So although it's cheaper, you'll be filling up more often.
That is the reason for my not switching. I can save 40 cents per gallon (~15%) but have read 15-25% loss in mpg. So at best no benefit!
Phyzz is offline  
Old Sep 29th 2017, 6:37 pm
  #8  
BE Forum Addict
 
Joined: Jul 2015
Location: Panama City, FL
Posts: 2,034
chawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond reputechawkins99 has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

Originally Posted by uk_grenada
In the uk, some people swear by old mercedes diesels, they can be run on old cooking oil with no modifications [just a group of cats following the fishy smell of the fish and chips shop...]

Jaguar make 4 litre engines with heated injection systems that can run on anything from marine oil via paraffin to jet a1 avgas, intended for lightweight tanks but they have been used in cars.

Gas power - lpg and cng is of course an available viable conversion.

What is the advantage unless you can get the fuel for almost free?
I didn't buy my car for the flex-fuel. It just happened to have it. Had no influence on my decision.

In the UK, I had a Ford Explorer. 4.0 Litre gas guzzler. I had it converted to run on LPG which, at the time, was around half the price of petrol. It would run on either with the flick of a switch. With it's fuel consumption and the miles I was doing, the conversion paid for itself in about 15 months. Well worth it.
chawkins99 is offline  
Old Sep 30th 2017, 3:22 am
  #9  
BE Forum Addict
Thread Starter
 
Joined: Sep 2008
Location: Rural Virginia
Posts: 1,076
ottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

Originally Posted by uk_grenada
In the uk, some people swear by old mercedes diesels, they can be run on old cooking oil with no modifications [just a group of cats following the fishy smell of the fish and chips shop...]

Jaguar make 4 litre engines with heated injection systems that can run on anything from marine oil via paraffin to jet a1 avgas, intended for lightweight tanks but they have been used in cars.

Gas power - lpg and cng is of course an available viable conversion.

What is the advantage unless you can get the fuel for almost free?
The Mercedes O617 is firm favorite with the cooking oil and bio diesel people.
You can not just pour it in the tank usually a separate tank with a heater is needed as it will solidify in winter. The normal practice is to start on diesel then switch to cooking oil then for the last few miles before home switch back to diesel.
I have bought diesel Land Rovers in Southern Italy running on a mix, one smelt like kebabs for months.
Another had a fuel heater and was the fastest 19J engine Rover I ever had.
ottotheboar is offline  
Old Sep 30th 2017, 9:59 am
  #10  
I still dont believe it..
 
Joined: Oct 2013
Location: 12 degrees north
Posts: 2,775
uk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond reputeuk_grenada has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

Originally Posted by ottotheboar
The Mercedes O617 is firm favorite with the cooking oil and bio diesel people.
You can not just pour it in the tank usually a separate tank with a heater is needed as it will solidify in winter. The normal practice is to start on diesel then switch to cooking oil then for the last few miles before home switch back to diesel.
I have bought diesel Land Rovers in Southern Italy running on a mix, one smelt like kebabs for months.
Another had a fuel heater and was the fastest 19J engine Rover I ever had.
These days, you just filter it to remove any bits of fish etc, then add a small amount of a solvent intended for this, it looks suspiciously like paraffin to me. No heating is needed even in scottish winters.

Actually i had a morris minor sidevalve, that ran very happily on pure paraffin, more of a customs and excise issue really, esp as the exhaust was pretty paraffin like smelling, still, one gallon in 4 was no issue.
uk_grenada is offline  
Old Sep 30th 2017, 3:26 pm
  #11  
BE Forum Addict
Thread Starter
 
Joined: Sep 2008
Location: Rural Virginia
Posts: 1,076
ottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond reputeottotheboar has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

Originally Posted by uk_grenada
These days, you just filter it to remove any bits of fish etc, then add a small amount of a solvent intended for this, it looks suspiciously like paraffin to me. No heating is needed even in scottish winters.

Actually i had a morris minor sidevalve, that ran very happily on pure paraffin, more of a customs and excise issue really, esp as the exhaust was pretty paraffin like smelling, still, one gallon in 4 was no issue.
Very interesting do you have a link for the solvent used ? I did google it but did not see anything.
When the diesel price came down the interest in alternative fuels seems to have fallen off.
ottotheboar is offline  
Old Oct 1st 2017, 3:13 am
  #12  
BE Forum Addict
 
Boomhauer's Avatar
 
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 4,639
Boomhauer has a reputation beyond reputeBoomhauer has a reputation beyond reputeBoomhauer has a reputation beyond reputeBoomhauer has a reputation beyond reputeBoomhauer has a reputation beyond reputeBoomhauer has a reputation beyond reputeBoomhauer has a reputation beyond reputeBoomhauer has a reputation beyond reputeBoomhauer has a reputation beyond reputeBoomhauer has a reputation beyond reputeBoomhauer has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

Originally Posted by ottotheboar
Looking for a new truck and saw Ford offer a 6.2 Flex-fuel engine.
I know there is plenty written online about it but is anyone actually driving one and can give feedback ?
I rented Flex-Fuel full size trucks ; didn't like them as the fuel economy was worse than standard petrol versions of the same truck, even though I was running 87 octane. But this was a few years ago. So do not know how much engine technology has changed.

The 2017 and 2016 F150 and Ram 1500 standard petrol trucks I drove for thousands of miles returned around 24mpg if I kept the rpm around 1500-1700.

I am looking to buy a used fullsize truck , and won't be getting a Flex-Fuel one.
Boomhauer is offline  
Old Oct 2nd 2017, 12:30 am
  #13  
BE Forum Addict
 
zzrmark's Avatar
 
Joined: Apr 2014
Location: Lauren's Co. SC by way of Palmetto, Florida
Posts: 3,265
zzrmark has a reputation beyond reputezzrmark has a reputation beyond reputezzrmark has a reputation beyond reputezzrmark has a reputation beyond reputezzrmark has a reputation beyond reputezzrmark has a reputation beyond reputezzrmark has a reputation beyond reputezzrmark has a reputation beyond reputezzrmark has a reputation beyond reputezzrmark has a reputation beyond reputezzrmark has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

E85 would have to be really, really cheap or E10 really, really expensive to justify my running on E85. With 17mpg on regular it would just make me cry to see that display plummet when running E85!
zzrmark is offline  
Old Oct 5th 2017, 4:40 pm
  #14  
Bob
BE Site Lead
 
Bob's Avatar
 
Joined: Aug 2004
Location: MA, USA
Posts: 92,167
Bob has a reputation beyond reputeBob has a reputation beyond reputeBob has a reputation beyond reputeBob has a reputation beyond reputeBob has a reputation beyond reputeBob has a reputation beyond reputeBob has a reputation beyond reputeBob has a reputation beyond reputeBob has a reputation beyond reputeBob has a reputation beyond reputeBob has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

FIL, had a Chevy that was in his last job. He got the fuel free, from work, as he used it mostly as a works truck. I have no idea where the company got it as there isn't a supplier in Maine. Maybe Canada? was close to the border and they do work up there.

He didn't notice much difference in mileage, but much of his mileage was off road or on back road log trails and his mileage was pretty terrible full stop.
Bob is offline  
Old Oct 6th 2017, 3:15 am
  #15  
BE Enthusiast
 
jeepster's Avatar
 
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 429
jeepster has a reputation beyond reputejeepster has a reputation beyond reputejeepster has a reputation beyond reputejeepster has a reputation beyond reputejeepster has a reputation beyond reputejeepster has a reputation beyond reputejeepster has a reputation beyond reputejeepster has a reputation beyond reputejeepster has a reputation beyond reputejeepster has a reputation beyond reputejeepster has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Anyone driving a Flex-fuel vehicle ?

Originally Posted by ottotheboar
Looking for a new truck and saw Ford offer a 6.2 Flex-fuel engine.
I know there is plenty written online about it but is anyone actually driving one and can give feedback ?
E-85 has less btu than gas so it will get worse gas mileage. To get the same gas mileage with E-85 one would have to up the compression ratio. Diesel gets better mpg's than gas due to diesel engines high compression. Ethanol is kinda like diesel, it has a high flashpoint so you can run high compression without detonation.

I have a non flex fuel Jeep and I run E-85 cause it runs about 50 cents to a dollar cheaper a gallon than gas. If I do a lot of city driving it doesn't matter in regard to mpg's.
jeepster is offline  

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.