[secutanudu]

Ethanol-free gasoline is pretty easily available in my area. I am wondering if :

1. Would it be bad for my passport?

2. Is it better for the engine?

3. Would I get better gas mileage? (I can figure this one out myself of course).


Thoughts?

 

[Jermboy777]

Ethanol is bad try to get 100% whenever possible

 

[draiken78]

Ethanol is bad try to get 100% whenever possible

Agreed

 

[darksky]

Aren't all modern cars set up to run 10% ethanol gas? "Clear" (non-ethanol) gas is much more expensive and available only at very few stations in my area.

 

[Jermboy777]

Yeah they are designed to run on 10% but 100% is better. Ethanol absorbs a lot more moisture than gasoline does so I prefer to not have it in my fuel system. When we travel we sometimes have to get 10% though so sometimes it’s unavoidable.. but where I live we have 100% everywhere.

 

[19BCPDave]

The more Ethanol the better as it’s a good detergent for your engine. Keeps the combustion cycle a lot cleaner and reduces emissions. This also prevents carbon build up in the engine and EGR system , especially the tops of the intake valves since our engines are DI. 10-15% Ethanol in your gasoline is preferred , however you would suffer a slight decrease in overall fuel efficiency as Ethanol is 30% less efficient in terms of combustion power when compared to gas..... give and take in everything in life

 

[Jermboy777]

The gas doesn’t pass over the intake valves in DI fuel systems. Top tier gasoline has detergents in it and is the recommended fuel for DI systems to keep the fuel system, primarily the high pressure injectors, clean. To prevent carbon build up in our 3.5L engines it will be required to have a periodic induction cleaning done. Honda will recommend this to you at some point if you take your vehicle to them for service. It is pretty expensive which is sad because it’s such an easy process to perform.

 

[darksky]

... To prevent carbon build up in our 3.5L engines it will be required to have a periodic induction cleaning done. Honda will recommend this to you at some point if you take your vehicle to them for service. It is pretty expensive which is sad because it’s such an easy process to perform.

required?? If is is actually required it seems it would be in the list of required maintenance procedures. Then you say Honda will recommend... I'm sure most of us know dealer service departments will often recommend service items that are not necessarily required or necessary.

 

[Jermboy777]

To prevent carbon build up on intake valves yes it will be required. It is the ONLY way to clean the intake valves on DI fuel systems. You don’t HAVE to do it but overtime you may experience driveability concerns. This isn’t anything new, this has been an issue with direct injected engines for a long time now. Some manufacturers are starting to implement dual injection systems using both port and direct injection to combat this issue, Honda is not one of those.

 

[19BCPDave]

To prevent carbon build up on intake valves yes it will be required. It is the ONLY way to clean the intake valves on DI fuel systems. You don’t HAVE to do it but overtime you may experience driveability concerns. This isn’t anything new, this has been an issue with direct injected engines for a long time now. Some manufacturers are starting to implement dual injection systems using both port and direct injection to combat this issue, Honda is not one of those.

Thanx for the replay . I think what maybe some sea foam are something similar every oil change should prevent it from building in the first place. I think there are a few YouTube videos comparing them all, and although they do work, they seem to work best in preventing rather than “cleaning” the valves.

 

[Jermboy777]

Thanx for the replay . I think what maybe some sea foam are something similar every oil change should prevent it from building in the first place. I think there are a few YouTube videos comparing them all, and although they do work, they seem to work best in preventing rather than “cleaning” the valves.

Are you implying dumping Seafoam in the gas tank every oil change will clean the intake valves on our engines?

 

[19BCPDave]

No

Are you implying dumping Seafoam in the gas tank every oil change will clean the intake valves on our engines?

No definitely not.... I’m saying using sea foam through the intake tract or vacuum lines to clean the valves. ChrisFix on YouTube has good videos on this.

 

[scooter1]

I did a FI service on my 12 Accord using BG products. Helped the mileage and power after 115k miles. Mechanic says they have used every product out there and BG is the best.

 

[Jermboy777]

I use BG as well, it’s easy to get on eBay, and it’s what Honda uses. We do induction cleanings at work every 20k because it’s better to keep it cleaned than to let carbon build up so thick that it becomes a problem. Some of the pictures out there of GDI intake valves are pretty scary.

 

[Tadakatsu]

I would like to further discuss the topic of ethanol free gas without it going further off topic. That being said I did want to respond to the posts quoted below.

I have had a lot of good results using ethanol free gas in multiple vehicles over the course of probably a decade. I don't mind paying slightly more for a fuel that provides better performance and fuel economy. Anecdotally I recall seeing information that suggests that ethanol free gas can contribute to a reduction in carbon buildup in gasoline direct injection engines. I will have to dig around to find it again.

The more Ethanol the better as it’s a good detergent for your engine. Keeps the combustion cycle a lot cleaner and reduces emissions. This also prevents carbon build up in the engine and EGR system , especially the tops of the intake valves since our engines are DI.

I would like to request citations from you to validate everything you have stated in the quote above about the notion that ethanol somehow prevents carbon buildup in direct injection engines.

The gas doesn’t pass over the intake valves in DI fuel systems. Top tier gasoline has detergents in it and is the recommended fuel for DI systems to keep the fuel system, primarily the high pressure injectors, clean. To prevent carbon build up in our 3.5L engines it will be required to have a periodic induction cleaning done. Honda will recommend this to you at some point if you take your vehicle to them for service. It is pretty expensive which is sad because it’s such an easy process to perform.

To clarify and make distinctions, there is NO way to prevent carbon buildup in direct injection engines. In the event that carbon buildup occurs to the point of severely impacting engine performance and/or operation, yes there are methods to deal with said buildup.

I would not concern yourself with it too much because it primarily affects TURBO gasoline direct injection engines (TGDI).

 

[Tadakatsu]

My recently purchased PP is loving ethanol free gas. Though this pic shows 26.7mpg it was fluctuating and getting in the 27-28mpg range during my drive after fillup this morning. The engine is running much smoother with it, better performance and overall improved drivetrain operation.

 

[14v6]

Here, ehtanol free isn't readily available and only in 91 grade. I just use it for lawnmowers and snowblowers. I'd be more concerned about top tier than Ethanol free (since the manual alludes to top tier) and not too worried about that either. Now if I had a plug in Hybrid that gets filled with the Solstices and Equinoxes ethanol free would get my attention due to the water builldup.