Well I've searched and found quite a few threads about the flex fuel and all but what I've seen is a lot of "my brothers girlfriends uncle who works at an ethanol plant says..." and havent actually heard from many people who run it. I know it's not available much out on the coasts but here in SD E-85 is $1.54 gal. where 10% Ethanol blend 89 octane is $2.09 and straight 87 octane is $2.14 so it's very tempting but i just wanted to hear from some of the midwest guys that can get it and see what peoples experiences are.

2000 Ranger Supercab
4D Stepside
4x4 3.0L FFV

Dude i dunno where to get that stuff around here but i know it is cheaper cause its supposedly better emissions and less polutant. I would like to know more about it too!

they sell it at the mobils here in rolla..... i have no information about it except for its only for the FFV 3.0's which were in the gen 4 trucks only i believe..... but yea its only 1.45 here and its like damn wish i had a ffv :(

I live in Phoenix, AZ, and it's only sold in one station which is in Tucson. Usually, it's more expensive here in AZ (the cheapest I can find gas for is 2.21, and that's down 12 cents from last week) but since gas has gone up so much it is now cheaper. I read an article on it, and in Tucson it's $1.85. I'm moving down there to go to college, and if I can find the station I'll be using it.

E-85 only has about 65%~70% of the energy/gallon that pure gasoline has. That means that your fuel economy will drop drastically when you switch to E-85. Your per gallon cost will drop but your per mile cost will be comparable to using pure gasoline.

Every now and then I burn E85. My truck runs a lot better on it. Its a noticable power increase. I am told this is because the EtOH absorbs a lot of the heat prior to combustion keeping the cylinders cool. I've also noticed my temp gauge running lower because of this. My truvk does not like switching back and forth from the two, as the computer seems to take a while to recorrect itself. It always burns rich on the tank after E85 (when i burn petro again). I like to buy it because the money is going to our farmers instead of the Arabs and it does seem to burn a lot cleaner.

Does anyone know if Doug has a program for E85 in his bamachips?

Every now and then I burn E85. My truck runs a lot better on it. Its a noticable power increase. I am told this is because the EtOH absorbs a lot of the heat prior to combustion keeping the cylinders cool. I've also noticed my temp gauge running lower because of this. My truvk does not like switching back and forth from the two, as the computer seems to take a while to recorrect itself. It always burns rich on the tank after E85 (when i burn petro again).The alcohol fuel has more spark advance tolerance, so it actually makes more peak power on E-85. The stoich A/F ratio is far richer with E85 - about 9.7:1 versus 14.7:1 for conventional gasoline. That's why the fuel economy drops off dramatically with M85, roughly in proportion to the drop in price per gallon.

The earlier FFV Rangers had an in-tank optical sensor to determine what percentage ethanol was in the tank. I think the newer trucks like yours have no sensor but rely on a lambda shift instead to infer the mixture composition in software. So it needs to see the mixture for awhile after the engine has been warmed up and running rather than sensing the mixture immediately in the tank. That's probably why it takes a while for it to readjust.

If you went e85 only you could bump the compression WAY up, advance the base timing and get much better performance from it, but you will still burn more. Atleast your money isn't lining the pockets of some OPEC member!

If you went e85 only you could bump the compression WAY up, advance the base timing and get much better performance from it, but you will still burn more. Atleast your money isn't lining the pockets of some OPEC member!

If you go high enough with the compression you will get the same and possibly better milage than gasoline. You can go as high as 12.5:1 compression no problem. From the stock 9.3:1 that will give a nice effeciency boost that should more than offset the lower energy content. But then you better be sure you can get it every tank.

The alcohol fuel has more spark advance tolerance,

E85 ranges from 96-100 octane depending on the gasoline it is mixed with.

they sell it at the mobils here in rolla..... i have no information about it except for its only for the FFV 3.0's which were in the gen 4 trucks only i believe..... but yea its only 1.45 here and its like damn wish i had a ffv :(

I had no idea there was E85 in Rolla. I'll fill up the tank next time I'm up there. Hell, I might make a special trip just to try it out.

So would my 99 FFV have the sensors or would I experience the same issuses that other guys are mentioning, (the truck taking a while to sense that Im runnin E-85). Are there any long term effects to runnin E-85 rather than my normal mid-grade petro gas?
later guys

What is the 8th digit of your VIN.
"U" (Uniform) is a GAS ONLY engine.
"V" (Victor) is a "Flexible FUel" vehicle. Gas/E85 or any mix of the two.

Well mine is V for flex fuel. I know it is designed to run on the E-85 but what I am wondering is what Elutz is experiencing with the motor havin a hard time to figure out what fuel im running, will my flex fuel motor do that? Or can I fill up with E-85 and the motor will run like normal regardless.

Well mine is V for flex fuel. I know it is designed to run on the E-85 but what I am wondering is what Elutz is experiencing with the motor havin a hard time to figure out what fuel im running, will my flex fuel motor do that? Or can I fill up with E-85 and the motor will run like normal regardless.

I don't have a problem when I put it in, the truck seems to respond instantly (when i put it in on an empty tank; i always do that) but the problem comes around when i put my first tank of regular gas in after the E85 is spent. The truck still runs fine on the regular, sometimes is a dog compared to the E85. I just know its burning rich because 1. I can smell it, and 2. there is a black ring around the end of my tailpipe.

I would love to run E85 all the time, but going to school at Purdue is 1.5 hours away from Terre Haute. Terre Haute has, I believe, the only E85 station in Indiana so it's not like I can use it all the time. I've looked at e85.org's webpage and there's a ****load in Ill, but none in indiana...expect Terre Haute...more are coming though!

I had no idea there was E85 in Rolla. I'll fill up the tank next time I'm up there. Hell, I might make a special trip just to try it out.


yea the mobil on 63 right next to the domino's..... its on the pump closest to their new car wash.... the only have one pump for it so.... by the way where you from man?

yea the mobil on 63 right next to the domino's..... its on the pump closest to their new car wash.... the only have one pump for it so.... by the way where you from man?

Sweet man. I'll check it out next time I'm over there. I live in Iberia, if you know where that is. 63 to Vienna, 42 W to Iberia. I'm about an hour away. We have a Ranger specific dealership and salvage yard. You'll have to stop by if you're ever in the area.

your the one that has the ad in the weekly trader everyweek about the ranger parts???? i need a 3.0 tranny ;)

Yep we've had that ad ran continuously in the Ad Tracker for better than 3 years. You're in luck... my dad is an expert with the Mazda trannies in the Ranger. He rebuilds them frequently. Infact he's building a 3.0 tranny tomorrow for another guy. Give us a call. You obviously know where to find our number.