Are ethanol proponents dissappointed in Briggs & Stratton's latest product?

[Ken45101]

Non ethanol stations are catching on here. One used to carry nothing but ethanol free. Now you have a choice of two ethanol blends and one non. The non which is regular is about 15 cents higher then corn regular.

15 cents extra is probably money well spent since I've heard people get 10% (?) better mileage with pure gasoline. 10% of $3.50 is 35 cents per gallon wasted on the boondoggle.

Unfortunately, I don't know of any stations selling unadulterated gasoline around here.

 

[Finnster]

I know my cars take a big mpg hit over the winter when the fuel changes over.

One of my cars if rather old an on the way out. I get a lot of CELs in the winter due to the gas (EGR valve related), fortunately the inspections are int he summer and the problem is gone by then.

 

[adirondackmtnman]

I know my cars take a big mpg hit over the winter when the fuel changes over.

One of my cars if rather old an on the way out. I get a lot of CELs in the winter due to the gas (EGR valve related), fortunately the inspections are int he summer and the problem is gone by then.

Vehicles take a hit in mileage in wintertime because colder air is more dense, thereby necessitating extra fuel to be delivered into the engine to maintain the correct air/fuel ratio. Octane rating for the summer/winter blends still meet the same requirements throughout the year.

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[MossRoad]

Vehicles take a hit in mileage in wintertime because colder air is more dense, thereby necessitating extra fuel to be delivered into the engine to maintain the correct air/fuel ratio. Octane rating for the summer/winter blends still meet the same requirements throughout the year.

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I've found that my 2000 Impala with the 3.8 gets exactly the same mileage on the highway winter or summer.... 29MPG. It gets worse city mileage in winter because, I believe two things:
1. I start it up and let it idle to defrost the windows. 10 minutes a day ads up.
2. There's more stop, start, slippage, etc... in winter VS summer.

 

[MossRoad]

Also, my intake manifold is heated, so it regulates the air temp better and the computer adjusts the fuel mixture to compensate very well. That's why my highway mileage is virtually the same at 100 degrees and -5 degrees.

 

[dmccarty]

My truck gets 21.7 to 22.2 mpg during the summer with most trips at 21.9.

Winter mpg can drop to about 20.5 and even into 19.x when it is really cold out. I don't buy biodiesel and I use the same fuel stations. The difference is in the winterized diesel AND the colder air, which is denser, and it takes longer to get the engine temperature up.

Later,
Dan

 

[Midniteoyl]

Vehicles take a hit in mileage in wintertime because colder air is more dense, thereby necessitating extra fuel to be delivered into the engine to maintain the correct air/fuel ratio. Octane rating for the summer/winter blends still meet the same requirements throughout the year.

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Thank you.. someone who gets it.

MTFB in winter blend use to sux for mpg, but that is gone (mostly) so it no longer applies..

 

[Midniteoyl]

Also, my intake manifold is heated, so it regulates the air temp better and the computer adjusts the fuel mixture to compensate very well. That's why my highway mileage is virtually the same at 100 degrees and -5 degrees.

Many cars throtle bodies are heated.. If they werent, they would ice up in the winter..

 

[adirondackmtnman]

Also, my intake manifold is heated, so it regulates the air temp better and the computer adjusts the fuel mixture to compensate very well. That's why my highway mileage is virtually the same at 100 degrees and -5 degrees.

Regardless of whether the intake manifold is heated, the PCU makes it's adjustment to fuel mapping based on readings from the mass airflow sensor, which is located between the air filter and the throttle body. This sensor lets the computer adjust for cold/hot air or elevation changes. Preheating the air would raise the temperature of the incoming air by a relatively equal amount whether incoming temp was 20° or 100°

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[deezler]

Vehicles take a hit in mileage in wintertime because colder air is more dense, thereby necessitating extra fuel to be delivered into the engine to maintain the correct air/fuel ratio. Octane rating for the summer/winter blends still meet the same requirements throughout the year.

No, not quite, dude. If an engine simply dumped in more fuel because the air was more dense, it would make more power (at same air/fuel ratio). Thus where you might have been previously cruising along at steady state, you would now be accelerating. If the air is more dense, you can back off the throttle a little bit to produce the same power from very close to the same amount of fuel.

Vehicles lose mpg in the winter for all sorts of reasons. But BY FAR the biggest reason is simply that the engine are started up cold. Cold oil, cold coolant, cold gear oil, cold bearings, cold tires, etc. All consume much more fuel until they warm up. In addition, the engine will automatically over-fuel to help warm the engine up when it is very cold. Yes, gas additives used to put a hit on winter mpgs. But nowadays, a modern vehicle will get the same highway mpg in the winter as it does in the summer, once it is warmed up.