E85 - Simple Yes or No

[Xinnes88X]

2023 Bronco Big Bend with Squatch Package 2.7 Liter
Can I run E85 fuel yes or no?
Thank you!

Sponsored

 

[Smocaine]

No, not stock at least. I hear it is possible with a tune.

 

[Ducati1098]

Full pump E85, no. Not without a custom tune.
Mix pump E85 with gasoline, Yes. As long as it stays under ~30% ethanol.

 

[BroncoChallenger]

Yeah, not something you can just put in in stock form. If you have it tuned to run on E85 you could probably get away with it.

 

[GA2Dr]

I have been running roughly 25-35% e85 in mine (usually 3.5 to 4.5 gallons of e85 on top of 93 for the rest of the fill) for about a year now with no issues. I have a ProCal, no custom tune.

 

[Ukko Wildtrak]

I'm running the same setup and fuel mix on mine with no issues.

 

[ScottyC]

No

 

[rdg04578]

I have been running roughly 25-35% e85 in mine (usually 3.5 to 4.5 gallons of e85 on top of 93 for the rest of the fill) for about a year now with no issues. I have a ProCal, no custom tune.

So how does that work out cost wise? Seems to me either running straight 87 would be cheaper and easier. Just doing the math it seems to be more costly to run E-85 given the reduced fuel mileage combined with buying more expensive 93 fuel. Bronco's are not designed to run on 85 so I ask myself why?????????

 

[BroncoChallenger]

So how does that work out cost wise? Seems to me either running straight 87 would be cheaper and easier. Just doing the math it seems to be more costly to run E-85 given the reduced fuel mileage combined with buying more expensive 93 fuel. Bronco's are not designed to run on 85 so I ask myself why?????????

E-85 isn't 85 octane, it is 85% ethanol (well, it's supposed to be - it can vary). It actually has an octane rating over 100...but it has significantly less energy and therefore requires more of it. And Broncos (and indeed many boosted engines) aren't tuned to run on it. And because it can vary so widely (actually anywhere from 51% to 85% ethanol), the tune needs to be able to adjust to a pretty wide range, not just the 87-93 octane range they're currently designed and tuned for.

As far as cost, it can be a mixed bag, depending on where you live and how much E85 runs. Flex-fuel vehicles typically see a 30% drop in mileage when running pure E85. So to break even, E85 needs to be 30% less than whatever fuel you usually run. If you're running 93 octane, you're probably there. If you're running 87, well, in my area you're shooting yourself in the foot because E85 is only $.50 cheaper, and at current prices that's only 12% cheaper than 87 octane - the math says you're spending even MORE on fuel than you would otherwise. Somewhere like California, though, (where I guess E85 is something like half the cost of 87 octane), you're going to be coming out ahead running E85.

As with everything, it's not really a black-and-white answer of yes or no. No, you can't just run E85 in a stock Bronco. Yes, you can mix it with regular gasoline at an appropriate mixture and not have a problem. Yes, you can get an E85 tune to run straight E85. And it depends on if you're coming out ahead or not - the price spread has to be there or you won't.

 

[GA2Dr]

So how does that work out cost wise? Seems to me either running straight 87 would be cheaper and easier. Just doing the math it seems to be more costly to run E-85 given the reduced fuel mileage combined with buying more expensive 93 fuel. Bronco's are not designed to run on 85 so I ask myself why?????????

Cost is not the reason. I do it to increase the effective octane rating. It has the added benefit of being a little cheaper than doing a full tank of 93 (e85 is about 2.25-2.50/gal by me as compared to 3.50+ for 93), but again that's not the reason.

 

[rdg04578]

Cost is not the reason. I do it to increase the effective octane rating. It has the added benefit of being a little cheaper than doing a full tank of 93 (e85 is about 2.25-2.50/gal by me as compared to 3.50+ for 93), but again that's not the reason.

Gotcha. For me I never saw any real difference in performance with higher octane-- I primarily use my Everglades for off road so that may explain why for me there is no difference. For us in the great white north E-85 is not an option anyways--but we do have non ethanol fuel which there is a noticeable increase in fuel mileage due to the higher BTU's per gallon

 

[swamp2]

One will need to be beyond the Ford Performance tune to have any power increase above 93 octane. There may be a small bump, but not noticeable. It just isn't designed for such. A real custom tune will support more power up to about 98 octane.

Neat (pure) ethanol (EtOH) is 100 octane on the money on the (R+M)/2 scale.

When considering a blend from the cost perspective neither cost to fill your tank nor mpg are really relevant. What matters is $/mi, and as I posted here just a week or so ago, with the cost ratio of 91/E85 now greater than 2:1 here in So Cal you can absolutely save some money. I assume my thread (top viewed of the week) was shut down as I advertised my novel and very powerful fuel mixing app. Mods were nice enough just to close it and not remove it.

 

[BroncoChallenger]

When considering a blend from the cost perspective neither cost to fill your tank nor mpg are really relevant. What matters is $/mi, and as I posted here just a week or so ago, with the cost ratio of 91/E85 now greater than 2:1 here in So Cal you can absolutely save some money.

Yep, this is exactly what I was saying - just worded a bit better I think. When the cost between E85 and gasoline is far enough apart, you can absolutely save money running it...but the spread has to be there or it's not worth it.

 

[ThunderFlash]

I was an engineer and the VP of Sales I used to work with would always DEMAND a yes/no answer to his questions. Neither option was the complete answer, therefore not the correct answer to his question. So, I'd always answer "NO", and then he'd proceed to argue with me as to why the answer should be yes or at least some form of maybe. Ah, good times.

 

[Aknobronco]

2023 Bronco Big Bend with Squatch Package 2.7 Liter
Can I run E85 fuel yes or no?
Thank you!

Common sense by looking for yellow gas cap or flex fuel label would give you an answer yes or no.

Sponsored