Around here in the NW they are still E85 its a pain to start at even 50deg out. If I do a blend of E80 I am good down to about 40deg and E75 I am good down to low 30s. Has not gotten any colder around here yet. I am sure you guys are on E70 so the starting is great. I think some of the newer areas with E85 ware it does not freeze a lot they are not knocking the blend down and that is why guys are having starting problems.

I have also found on stock ECU we have no timing control for startup. On AEM with True E85 no E70 I can make them start like a champ down in the mid 30s.

A little bit of gas goes a long wases in helping them start when cold. My car on E98 stock ECU and under 50deg takes a good 20 tries to start and with just a E90 blind its about 4trys.

 

Thanks man this helped me alot... made up my mind now.....

 

I read most of this thread, but did not see a breakdown of AFR/Lambda by rpm. Could someone who is using E85, please give us the breakdown by rpm? Specifically what is you AFR/Lambda at:

Spool up
Peak boost
Mid range
redline/7500 rpm

If you can use E85 AFRs that would be appreciated.

 

Unless you are the running the same afr targets in the load cells, you probably hit leaner afr targets when you lowered the boost. That is why the car became lean when boost was lowered.

I really respect what all the e85 guys are doing. You guys are trendsetters for the rest of us. Here in CA we only have 2 e85 stations that sell to the public ENTIRE state. I have to drive 60 miles round trip to get to the closest station. E85 is not feasable at the moment.

 

Maybe you should look into using that natural gas that some of the Honda's are running? Maybe you can get something good out of it. I heard CA has a lot of those stations.

 

No the cells i'm hitting are similar to the ones i was hitting before, so that's not the issue here.

My theory on why it started running leaner on E70 is this:
I have my 1000 injex scaled at 597, so when it switched to E70, i started running richer, and because i'm reluctant to change the scaling to 609 or even bigger which would be more appropriate, - my trims went negative. And as we all know by now, trims affect WOT, so that's why it became leaner. IMO. But whatever it's all an easy fix.


When it comes to AFR's it's easier to just use gas configured AFR because that's what they all show without converting it to actual E85 afr. So I try to run 11.3 tapering to 11 -10.9 at redline usually. So that means around 0.77 - 0.75 lambda (so that's around 7.3 actual E85 afr). And I can't stress enough that gas doesn't make good power leaner of 0.85, while E85 does so all the way down to almost 0.7 (AFAIK)

So unless you're after mileage gains there's no need to run E85 extra lean. In other words "lean is mean" school of tuning doesn't apply here so much.

And spool-up is similar to what i had on gas, i never worry about it too much, i have lean spool still enabled (extended to 7500) and my green spools to 305-310 load by 4000rpms. So whatever you have now for gas should work for E85.

 

Here it is, I thought the E85 conversion was some mystery and intense process. I'm glad to see that I was/am wrong. Reading through this entire thread... I see that it's basically a matter of pennies difference between 93 and E85 and as long as you have stations relatively nearby, then one can enjoy the benefits of roughly 105 octane (~ 45whp/45wtq). I also see that running a methanol kit (though some would probably disagree) isn't needed in this case. I was considering the Green with a 400whp/400wtq goal but right now I'm thinking that the E85/stock IX turbo set-up would be pretty exciting. I already have ECUFlash and the Tactrix cable in the event of being stuck between stations and I agree that having two separate maps is highly recommended. I currently have the Forge MBC but I like what I've read about the Apexi AVC-R EBC and what it's capable of doing. I also (though some would probably disagree) like the sound of having a wideband O2 sensor just to have an idea and sense of comfort how things are running. I'll check on the CEL modification by Tephra as I've never heard of this. I appreciate the feedback on the 1K injectors along with colder burning plugs (i.e. - BR8ES). I think I'm about 60% committed to the E85 set-up...

 

i believe tephra has the cell mod as well as a map switch mod. this would be very benificial for people who want to run E85 and still be able to do long drives where you may not find any e85. with tephra's mod you could switch on the fly. i do not know the details to it but i remember seeing that. As far a i could remember for the VIII they use the ic switch for map switching but for the IX i think you have to connect a switch. either way tephra's mod would definitely be useful for E85 users. i plan on switching to E85 later on when there more stations carrying it.

 

Tephra's map switching is a very good patch and will be useful for E85/pump switching as soon as he incorporates 2 different injector scalings. As of right now scaling switching is unavailable.

 

I love this.

I converted my CRX B16 Turbo about 5 years ago.

I have a T3/T4e stage 5 turbonetics
Walbro 255l
720cc injectors
hondata

It is a lot of fun and i am glad more people are doing it.

I am going to leave my evo alone but this summer my DSM is getting a AEM EMS with 1000cc injectors and a 255lph.

 

anyone know when they switch from E70 to E85 blend? I plan on converting, but don't know when it's official.

 

So I read this entire thread through which was very good reading and helped ease my mind about using E85. Knowing my car is mostly used for daily driving, I'll be okay here in the state of Colorado as there seems to be an abundance of E-85 stations throughout the state. I have a couple questions that don't seem to be answered in this thread:

1) Knowing the majority of my driving will be statewide (Mostly between Colorado Springs and Denver), I need to be realistic and expect my car to be taken out of state on road trips, etc where E85 may not be as available as it is in Colorado. I have heard and please confirm this, that as E85 depletes from the tank, I will be able to pour 91 over top of it and still be fine and then run 91 octane from there on out?

2) Is it absolutely required to drain the fuel tank of all E85 if you know you'll be driving to areas with no resources for E85 to replenish the tank with 91?

3) I understand the need to lower the boost when switching between the E85 and 91 octane but can one safely keep the E85 tune in there and just not beat on the car while running on 91 octane? ie. just cruising on the highway to another state?

Basically, I am contemplating the conversion to E85 but know that my wife and I will be taking my car to a wedding in Arizona and this trip weighs heavily on my mind about converting to E85. We will also be visiting family in California after the wedding in Arizona and we all know the People's Republic is ***-backwards about fuel and stuff.

I would basically just like to leave Colorado Springs on E85, get low on fuel and fill up at the next gas station with 91 and be on my way. Is this realistic?

Cheers-
E

 

You will be able to swap back to 91 if you run down to nearly empty on E85 AND LOAD A NEW TUNE FOR 91. You will not be able to drive your car on 91 with an E85 tune. Assuming you have a laptop, tactrix cable, and a tune for each fuel it would just be a matter of loading the other tune in as your tank fills. The first tank of gas will have a little bit of E85 left in it, but the gallon or two mixed in with the rest of the 91 will not cause a major problem.

-Paul

 

Paul-

Thank you for your response. I appreciate the straight-forward answer. I do have and am efficient at using the cable, ecuflash, etc.

I'm assuming the fuel light is low enough to refill with 91? (The gallon or two you mention).

Cheers-
E

 

Yes, that will work. You may find yourself slightly lean side that first tank, but after that it won't be a problem.

-Paul