Food and Fuel America.com: E85 Conversion Kits Risk Damage and Fines

Saturday, August 11, 2007

E85 Conversion Kits Risk Damage and Fines

ethanol conversion food vs fuel food versus fuel

UPDATE - Oct 13 2007 - Some news report that Flex Fuel US has received an EPA certification for conversion for fleet vehicles.
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With all of the talk about ethanol, it's easy to get confused about key terms. We've seen media reports about why E10 can't be used (wrong!), consumers using E85 in regular vehicles (wow!), and E85 conversion kits sold online. So here's a quick summary to clear things up.

E10 - A blend of 10% ethanol and 90% unleaded gasoline. Every major automaker in the world approves the use of E-10 Unleaded in their vehicles.

E85 - A blend of 85% ethanol and 15% unleaded gasoline that can be used in Flexible Fuel Vehicles (FFV) which are available from General Motors, Ford and other car manufacturers. Consumers should never use E85 in a conventional, gasoline-only vehicle. This can lead to a range of problems, including not being able to start the engine, damage to engine components, illumination of the check engine light, and emissions increases.

E85 Conversion Kits - It is technically possible to convert a conventional gasoline vehicle to run on E85; however, such conversions would likely be illegal unless they are certified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). To date, EPA has not certified any E85 conversions. In addition, converting a conventional vehicle to E85 may violate the terms of the vehicle warranty and even be subject to fines from the EPA.

Learn more about Ethanol, E10 and E85 at the EPA, DrivingEthanol, EthanolFacts and the National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition websites.

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Source: EPA

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