E85 in 2008 Tahoe

[Dan and Christy]

Is anyone running E85 in any of their vehicles? I searched the threads and in one of them, it was posted that you lose 1-3 mpg when using E85. Here in So. NV E85 is a few cents less than regular unleaded. Any thoughts, pro's, con's....thanks guys.

[chpthril]

First, is it an E85 Cert vehicle? And yas, you wont get the same MPG out of E85 as you will from reg gas. Less BTU's. I think you will notice more over a tank full, rather then by the gallon.

[Dan and Christy]

Thanks Mike, yes it is E85 certified. Do you, or does anyone, know if I need to run the regular unleaded just about all the way out then fill it with the E85 or does mixing the two matter?

[chpthril]

I know of no issues with mixing.

[dogbert]

Yeah, that means it will basically run on anything.

[Guest]

I just checked and it appears most 08 Tahoes have Flex Fuel option. You should check yours to be sure.

[scoot18]

Is anyone running E85 in any of their vehicles? I searched the threads and in one of them, it was posted that you lose 1-3 mpg when using E85. Here in So. NV E85 is a few cents less than regular unleaded. Any thoughts, pro's, con's....thanks guys.

That is true the miles per gallon economy with ethanol blended fuel will be lower. Dont use E85 if its not a flex fuel vehicle, most other cars are designed to run on a max of 15% blend. If the E85 is only a few cents cheaper you will probably gain no benefit. Spend less and go not as far, Spend more and go a little further, the whole Toe-mAto / Ta-mato thing.

The whole ethanol thing really gains us no benefits as a whole. The end consumer pays less at the pump, but gets deminished mileage, the corn crops are being sucked up for this and the amount of resources and energy it takes to produce the ethanol prior to blending with fuel far out ways the benefit environmentally gained by the end consumer.

[scoot18]

Check out his link it has a good FAQ regarding ethanol & E85:

http://www.businessweek.com/technolo...519_225336.htm

[buffman]

We run E85 when we can in my wifes 2003 yukon (yes it is the first to have flexfuel option) and it runs fine...

[Razzman]

Don't even get me started on this subject! I bought my '07 GMC Sierra with the Flex-Fuel option thinking i'd do the "green" thing. Guess what? You can't even buy that crap in Cali! It is only available in three, yes 3 locations in the state and they are all state facilities for state vehicles! Why even sell the Flex option in Cali if you can't buy it! BAH!

[dogbert]

Sorry, pal, but if you want flexible options I think you're going to have to move to Minnesota, Iowa, South Dakota or North Dakota. I think it's still cheaper than gas, but that's only because nobody lives there.

[Guest]

We picked up our 08 Tahoe LT with flex fuel and it says in the manual that it will average 3mpg less than 87 octane on the highway.

Could not resist buying it since the price was so attractive. It was way below MSRP and way below the dealer invoice.

It is a loaded LT, Leather, Bose Stereo, Driver & Passenger POwer Heated Seats, Navigation System and more.

[balair]

Heck I'm from Iowa and E85 pumps are few and far between. We have one car that runs on the stuff tho, it's a '68 camaro with a blown 383 and a 100 shot of NOS . The alcohol makes it run cooler. It's Green tho

[Timmy!]

I figured out at one time that the price of E85 needed to be 60-70% of whatever regular gas was going for to make a difference in the true cost of using it.

The newer Tahoe/Suburban might be better than the older ones but don't tow using E85! My buddy towed my RZ2 to the lake after a fresh fill up of E85 instead of chipping in for gas for the boat. It's 55 miles (110 round trip) to the lake from my house and by the time we got back he was below a 1/4 tank If I remember right he got right at 6mpg in his Burb towing my boat - I felt really bad and offered him gas money but he refused and said it was a lesson to himself

[samw]

Sorry, pal, but if you want flexible options I think you're going to have to move to Minnesota, Iowa, South Dakota or North Dakota. I think it's still cheaper than gas, but that's only because nobody lives there.

Com on now don't bash Iowa... It is a great state to live in. In Des Moines there are several places to buy the stuff.