As fuel prices continue to rise, many motorists are trying to find a way to reduce costs, and are turning to converting their vehicle to ethanol.
Indeed, the price of SP95 is close to 2€, that of bioethanol E85 is 0.89€*
(*Everage price in France on 10/18/22).
What is bioethanol?
Bioethanol, marketed under the name Superethanol-E85 or E85, is a fuel in which alcohol (ethanol) replaces part of the gasoline contained in traditional fuels.
Two types of ethanol exist: synthetic, derived from petroleum, and organic, bioethanol, made from wheat, corn or sugar beets.
Ethanol is present in all fuels in different proportions. E85 contains between 65% and 85% bioethanol, compared to 5 to 10% in fossil fuels.
source: geo.fr
Is ethanol corrosive?
Despite popular belief, ethanol is not a corrosive substance. Ethanol is hydrophilic and will therefore tend to attract water molecules which are corrosive. But the European standard for E85, EN 15293, imposes a maximum water content of 0.4%. In France the limit is even lower, at 0.3% water in Superethanol-E85.
There is therefore no risk of corrosion for the elements of your engine.
On a two-wheeler, is a conversion to bioethanol possible?
Many professionals have embarked on the conversion to ethanol of 2 or 4 wheelers with 4-stroke engines.
Some vehicles can also run on several types of fuel in the vehicle tank (flex fuel). Using an additional box, your vehicle will be able to adapt the correct mixture during injection, regardless of the fuel present in your tank.
Today we are going to talk about an inexpensive and easy to install solution for a Honda Forza 350* E85 conversion.
(*this solution can also be applied to other vehicle models: ADV, SH 350 etc).
Before starting, it should be taken into account that this conversion will no longer allow your forza to run (correctly) on SP95 or 98, and will therefore now only have to run on E85.
Simply access to the injector of your Forza and replace it with a larger injector, type DRM-16450-B14-5PJ: High flow injector
Et voilà! Your full tank of fuel will go from around €22 to less than €10.
Can I run on E85 only?
Indeed, without an additional box, your vehicle will not be able to determine the percentage of alcohol contained in your tank.
Without this crucial information, the possibility of driving while mixing the different types of fuel is therefore not possible.
source: bioethanolcarburant.com
The benefits: 👍
- An inexpensive modification.
- No additional box to install.
- Refueling almost 3 times cheaper.
- A gain in power (higher octane number than on SP95-98).
- Reduction of greenhouse gases by approximately 70% (over the entire bioethanol production cycle). Only 5% drop at the exit of the vehicle’s exhaust.
Cons: 👎
- Higher fuel consumption than with traditional fuel (+20-25% approximately).
- Slightly less autonomy, because more consumption.
- Possibility to run E85 only.
- Indeed, without an additional box, your vehicle will not be able to determine the percentage of alcohol contained in your tank, and therefore to adjust the quantity of fuel injected.
- Limited fuel station (about 3150 in France).
List of petrol stations offering E85 fuel: Petrol stations offering E85
If you are interested in additional power gain on your Honda Forza 350, you can also install an exhaust elbow, an air filter and a performance transmission kit:
Thank you for taking the time to read our article!
