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[jeffdoane]

There is an gas station near my house that is selling 102 octane that is 70% ethanol and 30% gas,  it is cheaper than 87.  I know that the store says not to run it in a vehicle that is older than 06 because it will burn it up. I have the 08 springer and don't know if i should run it or not.

Thanks for the help.

   Jeff   

[vagabond6542]

There is an gas station near my house that is selling 102 octane that is 70% ethanol and 30% gas,  it is cheaper than 87.  I know that the store says not to run it in a vehicle that is older than 06 because it will burn it up. I have the 08 springer and don't know if i should run it or not.

Thanks for the help.

   Jeff   

I wouldn't recommend it. If it is a SE110 engine especially. They don't even like 10% ethanol. 
Just my .02.

[Gecko]

What do you hope to gain other than saving a few cents?  Besides, the injectors measure volume, and alcohol requiring about 40% more volume (check the mileage of E85 vehicles when they are using E85, they compensate for the fuel mixture it's way less than on straight gasoline), you will likely not appreciate the results.  Don't.

[Hugh Janis]

Ethanol has about 1/3 less energy in the carbon bonds than gasoline.  That means less HP, and less fuel efficiency.  I wouldn't do it either.

[RedDevil]

Alcohol has a tendency to burn hotter than gasoline also...not a good thing for an already hot 110 engine.

     

[RJ749]

Yikes, unless you're looking for a big headache  I'd say to anything but premium fuel with all the additives you get from a "major" brand.

I wouldn't trust the high ethanol stuff to be good to my engine.  I would think any seals it comes in contact with could be jeopardized as well.  Not sure if there are any on the bikes, but even E85 ate fuel pump seals in older cars when first introduced before the seals were formulated to handle it.

[sadunbar]

Yikes, unless you're looking for a big headache  I'd say to anything but premium fuel with all the additives you get from a "major" brand.

I wouldn't trust the high ethanol stuff to be good to my engine.  I would think any seals it comes in contact with could be jeopardized as well.  Not sure if there are any on the bikes, but even E85 ate fuel pump seals in older cars when first introduced before the seals were formulated to handle it.

I have to agree with you - I see no reason to feed my bike anything but premium - I don't like using 10% ethanol - and I would not use E85....

[grc]

DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT run anything more than 10% ethanol in your bike unless you enjoy paying large amounts of cash to repair the fuel system and engine.  The fuel system components were not designed to handle the corrosive effects of heavy concentrations of ethanol, and your ECM and injectors are not set up to supply a proper air/fuel ratio using it either.  True flex fuel vehicles have special fuel system components and they have special sensors which tell the special ECM's the exact percentage of ethanol in the fuel you are using so that the injector pulse width can be adjusted to supply the correct amount of fuel.  The closed loop system of the '07 and later bikes is not sufficient to deal with large concentrations of ethanol, just like the much more sophisticated closed loop system in cars and trucks is also not capable of handling it.  There is a reason why manufacturers label only certain vehicles "flex fuel".

The reason that stuff is cheaper than 87 octane is that ethanol enjoys a large subsidy from the taxpayers.  It also has less energy than gasoline, so it takes more of it to achieve the same output.  If you have a state consumer protection division I would alert them to this scam before these clowns create a lot of damage to people's vehicles.

Jerry

[tysndys]

Are there any fuel additives ( injector cleaners, stabilizers) we should be putting into these motors? I see claims out there for performance and durability, but only experience can tell.  Experience usually has a price.