Anyone on the Forum using E85 in their race only car? I plan to switch from gas this spring. I want to do the carb modification myself. I can only find one kit on the market. Know of any other than Quick Fuel. Thoughts. RLB
I converted years ago, best thing I ever did saved me thousands. last batch I got I paid like $2.00 a gallon at the pump, not bad for 105 octane. Things needed to convert, conversion kit, fuel pump, fuel line and filters needed to support more volume. Grape scent optional smells good either way.
Thanks Rick for the post. I have heard all good about switching. 110 leaded race gas sells locally for around $12 a gallon. What conversion kit did you use? And is it still available? RLB
I use it in street cars whenever possible. The lower compression stuff works just as well with a 50/50 blend as full conversion because the engines tune can only be pushed so far anyways and octane tolerance isn;t the limiting factor for lower to moderate compression ratios. You'll also not need to do the full conversion parts either as the typical gas components will be tuneable enough and easily live for quite some time at 50/50 ratios. Still best to upgrade the fuel lines and accelerator pump diaphragm but is not mandatory at all. The mechanical fuel pumps diaphragm will eventually swell and start to weep as well. 2 years is about as long as I've gotten out of one running 50/50 mixes. If you are under 11:1 SCR with a longer duration cam(over 250° @.050")?.. don't expect miraculous power gains. Probably around 15-25 ft/lbs @ peak torque. OTOH, if you SPECIFICALLY BUILD THE ENGINE FOR E85?(over 11.5/1 or higher SCR).. the gains are much greater since you don;t need to crutch the tune to run much higher compression. This fuel LOVES compression and you'll need upwards of 13/1 to really get the best bang for the buck out of it. Otherwise for anything much under 11:1, you're basically just lowering fuel costs and adding safety margin if your tune ever goes way during a run.
I also use it and LOVE it! I won't be going back to race gas unless E85 becomes unavailable around here. I could possibly switch to straight Methanol sometime...but that's just because it's so readily available at the track. What's your combo? I bought an 850 QFT E85 directly from them, and it worked flawlessly for several years.
First of all its not a Maverick. Its a 64 Fairlane race only . Back half, big tires, cage etc. 390 inch Winsor, c4 brake. Weighs 3000+. 12 to 1 compression. Has run a 10.40 best. But I'm not setting any kind of record personal or otherwise. Locally 110 leaded race fuel is $12 a gal plus tax. I get it for less if I want to spend a day in travel. I have every thing except the carb kit. Not much on line in the way of conversion kits.
E85 should work pretty well with that! You might give Eric @ Horsepower Innovations or Mark Sullens a call. They both do conversions and I THINK they still offer the kits to do the conversion yourself. http://www.marksullense85carburetors.com/ http://nicholasjrice.wixsite.com/hpinnovations I haven't actually used their conversion parts, as I purchased the E85 carb complete from QFT, but I've spoken with both over the years for tuning advice, and both are a wealth of knowledge. Both also get high marks for customer service, and that's worth quite a bit right there. E85 went up here over the winter, and is now at $1.99 a gallon Our track is also scheduled to open in a couple of weeks, so I need to get in gear and get ready lol!
Hey Jay...If I can get away from work long enough...it's been crazy! I've only been out to race once this year...rain has been unreal this year.
Having messed a little with E85, I'll offer my experiences. First, IMO, it's not worth converting the entire fuel system over for it if your car is solely a race car. Street car? Questionable there too. You'll use more than you would gasoline. So fuel lines need to be good-sized. I like a return-style fuel system over a dead-head style for a lot of reasons. While it does make a little more power, the pump mix is also quite inconsistent. One batch might be E70. Next batch might be E91. You get the idea. If you're bracket racing especially, it's good to set a baseline and continue to use your big batch of fuel. In other words, buy 15 gal or so. It's not 'quite' as sensitive to weather changes, but nowhere near as forgiving as methanol is. I was going to say somewhere between, but closer to gasoline than methanol in that department. Tried Pro systems for a carb, flat out sucked. Zero ET and MPH improvements. Actually I think it may have lost a little overall, compared to gasoline. This was on a low-compression 552" BBF, 1050CFM spec'd and tuned over the phone by Patrick. Not impressed. Switched over to a home-brew 1050 and it picked up about .08 after tuning, compared to gasoline. Always ran hot but that's a separate issue with the car's setup and not the fuel or the engine. Ran out of fuel one race day, ran down to the local quickie mart that had E85 at the pump, got another 5 gallons to finish the day. Dumped it in and the car immediately picked up about a tenth. So test your fuel, and test every batch. Back to point #1. After changing every single fuel system component to be able to run the stuff, it occurred to me that methanol is a much better-and much more consistent-racing fuel than E85 is. It's cheaper too but you have to shop around to find the good deals. I was getting it at $1.62/gal at one point, I think it's back up closer to $2.00 now but I haven't bought any in a while. It runs cooler. More consistent. Smells better. Makes more power. I got out of that car's game and let them handle it, and they're still messing with the hat injector with methanol as we speak and it's already about .2 quicker than E85, with barrel valve problems. I expect another half tenth once it's fixed. Where E85 is nice is with forced induction street cars that need the ability to stop at a gas station for a refill Specifically the turbo guys, E85 will do well in those. But I'm also out of that game. If it's not a street car, it ain't really feasible to screw around with it, IMO.
