sunoco 100octane in FI Lightning

[Buell_Cru]

nativeXb12Rbuell,

Last year all of our local gas stations made the switch to 10% ethanol. I had no choice but to run E10. I was worried so I checked my mileage and I actually gained about 5% better mileage. If you read through your owners manual it clearly states that our bikes are ok for blends up to but not exceeding 10%. Water in an ethanol blended tank creates phase seperation which is tracked at the gas station itself. It is very highly regulated here by the department of weights and measures. The gas station is responsible for making sure there is no water in the tank by using a stick with water paste on the end that changes colors in the presence of water. If a station sells fuel with water they have a huge lawsuit on their hands. Below is a picture out of our owners manual and there is also a link to a couple interesting reads regarding the instance of phase seperation or water in a gas tank.



American Fuels - Ethanol Phase Seperation

What do you do for a living by the way?

[nativeXb12Rbuell]

aircraft mechanic..

i have worked for gas sation in the past they dont make but about a penny per gallon profit(their profit is from whats sold in the store)they usually dont do alot to prevent or remove all the water in their tanks,unless it is alot , but not all water is fully 100% separated in the fuels which is normal. but the bigger company the more they might do for water and other problems, small stations may not care as much about the problems.
that water cause corrosion in the tanks cause the filters to clogg faster and change filters more often,
also there is fuel water seperation going on inside the vehicles' fuel tank. you are probably one of the few that might get better mpg with ethanol E10, glad to hear that for you.

most states dont have enough employees in departments that check gas for proper amount of additives or ethanol or to check if the pump is within regulation specs for the amount it says it gives you and the amount you actually get , here there are so few here that they said it maybe 1 to 2 years between checks and and it can several months to a year to check most complaints unless they get alot of complaints about 1 station..

and i did say" yes even that the newer engines are designed to run "OK" with ethanol (see owners manual) but it does not mean that they will run their best with ethanol or the same with ethanol as compared to 100% real gasoline." ..meaning buell owners manual says it ok to run E10 .
I guess I should of said that MAY OR MAY NOT run their best with ethanol or the same with ethanol as compared to 100% real gasoline.
every vehicle is a little different along with the way and enviroment in which it is driven. as such for that reason each vehicle will have some different results and different pros & cons to different fuel types or oils for that matter.

also it says harley davidson motorcycles were designed to give the best performance using unleaded gasoline.
it also says 10% ethanol and 90% gasoline blends can be used in your motorcycle if the ethanol content does not exceed10%. but does not say anything about how it will effect mpg or performance, or anything of that nature.
also some studies show the more ethanol in blended fuels (especially above 75% to 90%ethanol)usually help to increase mpg in vehicles designed or converted to run higher ethanol percentages, the problems is most vehicles made today are NOT designed to run more than E10 (10%) .

but the fact of the matter is like your state , most of the US is going to E10 only and sooner or later thats all that will be available everywhere along with E15 , E20, E85 . which means if you what keep driving your classic(OLDER) vehicle you will have to change the rubber hoses at least or other things to keep possible problems from accuring if you drive it alot.

[xtremelow]

I run 110 Unleaded, not all the time but when I ge a chance, I never notice any down falls, but I do notice a small increase of power but nothing major.

[buelladdicted]

The octain higher than 94 should still be at least a slight advantage in the fi buell even with 10:1 comp or stock ignition timeing, as the O2 sensor adjusts for it.In the carborated bikes,the rejeting would be nessicary for best results,Higher octain fuels are so ,becase of stability and uniform flame front,causeing more complete combustion with lower piston crown temps,thus allowing for leaner mixtures and or more ignition advance.to take advantage on the carb bike you need to make adjustments,w/ modern fi ,it makes the adjustments itself.raceing fuels dont usually damage componants as long as they contain less than 25 percent aromatic boosters such as tolulene, keytones etc.