info on converting to E85?

Other than an octane boost, are you sure you would gain anything? I live in the corn belt and E85 is $.20 a gallon HIGHER than regular unleaded. Remember that alcohol is a commodity and the price could be more volatile than gasoline. Getting back to your question, for starters you would need a whole new set of injectors and they aren't cheap.

Would be the usual.... seals, fuel lines, and other fuel system parts that can tolerate the ethanol content. In addition to that a wider range O2 sensor and perhaps new programing for the computer.

To the person saying ethanol was higher... here in IL it's typically 40 cents a gallon less at the station I go buy occasionally that carries it.

Here in WI it's 95 cents less. I use it in my 04 Sport trac and I do get less miles per gallon but i get more miles per dollar(range). It's costs me $67 to fill the tank with gas and if I'm luck get about

375-400 miles range.Now for $75 I can fill the tank and three five gallon cans which gets me 540-570 miles. For almost a dollar less I'll drive the extra 15 miles to get it. I also have been running a test with E-85 for a while now as I run it exclusively in my Sport trac. Here are some amazing results.

1. After 4,000 miles the oil comes out just as clean as when it went in. CAT oil anyalsys says no HC, no Carbon, no metal.
2. I have more HP. On gas the dyno power to the rear wheels was 192hp, on e-85 it was 201hp at the same rpm.

I just love this stuff and I love sticking it to all those mid east and oil companies bastards. Next up is my Jeep which currently is running on 50% e-85 50%gas. the only noticible odities were a few plugs "bridge gapped" with chunks of carbon. I have seen no failed seals or fuel lines and it has been well over a year. I spent 14 years as a drivability tech and the only real things that looks funny on the scan data in a much wider pulse width and everyonce in a great while it sets an 02 out of range code and I got a max rich limit code once as well. it's usually due to mitigating circumstances like towing, excesive idiling ect. I have a feeling that this will be like the 134a freon conversion controversy. In the beginning the SAE guys said replace everything not they say just drain and refill. the only things I know that alcohol attacks is aluminum and that still takes a while to eat up. Brazil has used alcohol in their VW's for decades and the carbs look like a sandblaster got to the float bowls but other than that I guess it was a great success. Anyone else here doing what I am doing????

I decided to see what a roughly 65% ethanol mix would do to my lawn mower. The inside of the carb started to corrode. I ended the experiment when the corrosion started to cause problems. The only reason I did it was because the mower has a very simple fuel system, a couple simple gaskets and no much to damage. The carb clogged easily, normally it was bits of debris, the corrosion made that worse of course.

That said, when I helped build an electric/E85 hybrid over 10 years ago, the junkyard geo 3 cylinder we used actually ran better the moment it started running on E85. Since it didn't have to last a long time we didn't do anything to upgrade the fuel system. Just used the stock saturn and geo bits.

I am for E85 (provided the ethanol is made using energy forms that cannot become a motor vehicle fuel), I would just make sure the materials are up to it first. Many materials may be up to the task as is. However without knowing what Ford used, it's hard to say what fuel system components need replacement.

Yeah carb float bowls get eaten up just because of the fuel sitting in them over peroids of time. I have a non alky carb on the racecar and I just drain the fuel when I am done using it. The float bowls look lit a fine white crusty layer in in them. I usually just wipe this out with my finger. In anycase my alcohol jets are so big (you could almost fit a 1/8 drill bit in them) I doubt they would ever clog anyways. I have had some rubber diaphram issues until I switched to the alky kit from Holley. I doubt fuel injectors would be affected as some of the gas additives of old like MTBE, fuel injector cleaner ect were worse than alcohol. You need stainlesssteel or plastic fuel lines. Change the fuel press reg to a alky safe aftermarket one. I doubt the pump would bet hurt maybe change the tank but I don't think alky hates steel too much. You will need a program change as your pulse width will go up and your

02 sensor will probably read max lean with all the 02 now present in the exhaust. Valves might get a bit hot as well as exhaust. you might want to try a blend first then slowly work up to full bore. I currently use 50-50 blend in my 93 Jeep Cherokee and I have had no problems except for an ocational piece of carbon bridging the plug gap and causing a misfire. this stuff burns so clean it actually cleans out the engine and exhuast.

: I just love this stuff and I love sticking it to all those mid east and : oil companies bastards.

Uh-huh. And when we've all been forced to convert to ethanol and we're at the mercy of the American agribusiness bastards -- or the same oil company bastards, once they take over the ethanol production and distribution industries -- who will be sticking it to whom then?

Your car is always going to need fuel to run, and the people who make and sell the fuel that you can't live without are going to stick it to you, because they can.

Good luck.

Paul

Just work on being able to utilize "dark energy".... or more practically for todays technology one can build an electric car and generate one's own electricity. Make one's own ethanol and use 100% ethanol. Convert to bio diesel and make it. All of course require good portion of land to grow the crops or put up winde turbines.