BioFuel and diesel cars

I live in the country so use oil fired heating. Noticing a strange smell from the boiler I looked and found 1/2 inch of heating oil in the bottom, with the boiler running! Getting to the point the pump had leaked due to the seals failing by going hard and shrinking because there is now biofuel mixed in with the heating oil. Sure enough the new pump is marked up as biofuel friendly even with the word BIO cast into the body. The heating engineer said this is a regular job for him these days.

So its got me thinking about my diesel car, are the pump, solenoid and injector seals in that good for biofuel addition in the diesel or we all suddenly going to find older diesel cars needing the fuel systems replacing? A Google for anything on the subject only came up with manufacturers talking about seals able to stand up to biofuel. Anyone know if this is something to be concerned about or have car manufacturers dealt with this.

Bob

Reply to
Bob Dodds
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Thanks for the replies. They led me off in another direction to

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This seems say to that from 2013 there will be 5% biofuel in road diesel So the way I see it, unless the seals in your car can handle this Like my boiler they will fail over time and you will be left with the bill Another government green policy that will cost us and not them!

Bob

Reply to
Bob Dodds

Citroen, about four-five years ago, made a lot of fuss about running all their press fleet on B30, so it's hardly blanket.

Reply to
Adrian

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> This seems say to that from 2013 there will be 5% biofuel in road > diesel

AFAIK the current rule is that overall road fuel has to contain 2.5% "bio". Because the alcohol which you would put in petrol is more expensive, we currently have 5% biofuel in diesel (a level which is permitted) and nothing in petrol. (The amounts of petrol and diesel used are more or less the same). But the quotas and limits are only moving in one direction.

Reply to
newshound

95RON unleaded is right up to the E5 5% limit allowed under the current standard, but some 98RON is lower - some are E0. A few other EU countries have E10 in addition, and it's coming to the UK soon - but E5 will remain widespread.
Reply to
Adrian

I thought Germany was on E15 - but I'm obviously wrong.

However, I'm sure it's no coincidence that the fibre / rubber washer on the fuel tank drain plug of the MX5 sprung a leak after running a dozen or so tanks of E10 through it.

Reply to
SteveH

I must be out of date. On reflection, it's a couple of years since I was looking at this.

Reply to
newshound

That's a petrol engine, right? The issue with seals on diesels is to do with that the FAME (fatty acid methyl esters) which are derived from processed vegetable oils. I *believe* that the bio additive in petrol is methanol or ethanol. Not to say that this could not have an adverse effect on non-metallic parts.

Reply to
newshound

They claim E5 or E10 is OK.

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Ethanol eats zinc, brass, copper, aluminum.

Ethanol will strip the terne METAL (lead-tin) coating from older cars metal petrol tanks. Not a big risk with E5 and a good tank but if there is the least pinhole or defect in the terne lining it will set up a corrosion cell and hole the tank.

It eats copper fuel lines. It makes handmade "piecrust" soldered (lead-tin) motorcycle petrol tanks fall apart. Doesn't do brass (copper+tin) fuel jets any good and copper in acts as a catalyst for the reaction of other materials. It dissolves 60's fiberglass tanks.

It is a plot to destroy the worlds stock of historic vehicles.

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Petseal is eaten, so a long forgotten repair that has lasted 20+ years becomes a major safety issue. Go fill up for the "summer" and then park it back in garage the repair fails and it floods the garage with petrol. When the vehicle was in regular daily use it would have been found quickly but now it's just waiting to turn a garage into a bomb fueled by

50L of petrol vaporised petrol.
Reply to
Peter Hill

Given that this quote from the site is utter c*ck; "Ethanol is simply a form of alcohol modified to use it as a fuel by making it undrinkable (ethyl alcohol)" I'm disinclined to believe anything it, or you, have to say.

Reply to
Huge

In article , Peter Hill writes snip

snip

-but wasn't 'Cleveland Discol' widely used in the 'good old days'? It was supposed to contain a certain percentage of alcohol.

Reply to
Chris Holford

And National Benzole

Reply to
newshound

Quite why so many clubs are ignoring the FBHVC's much less hysterical advice on ethanol, I don't know. Oh, wait - yes, I do. It's because that fits better with their preconceptions...

Reply to
Adrian

Have you got a peer reviewed source for that, particularly in relation to aluminium?

Aluminum is used for the fuel rail on millions of vehicles, even those designed and used in the USA where the use of ethanol is commonplace and has been for years.

Reply to
The Other Mike

Correction; biodiesel has very good lubricity properties. Nobody simply adds methanol to vegoil.

Reply to
Grimly Curmudgeon

& yet nobody who actually makes diesel pumps supports this theory.
Reply to
Duncan Wood

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