VikkiC Posted March 5, 2020 Report Share Posted March 5, 2020 Been seeing on the news that it's likely here in the UK for E10 to become the norm at petrol stations from 2021. Does anyone know if the GTI will run on this? I can't find it listed as a problem but I'm not sure the gov issued list is very difinitive, (eg showing rarer models) it seems to be a problem with the first gen FSI models? I'd run it on E5 if it continues to sell along side but I've a feeling they will try to price us out and it will become the new super. 🤬 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mk2 Posted March 5, 2020 Report Share Posted March 5, 2020 The idea of adding ethanol (sugar based alcohol) to fuel is to increase the octane rating by slowing down the burn rate. It does work. It's also "greener" because it uses fuel derived from fermenting freshly grown carbohydrates like corn, wheat or potatoes (like vodka). The only problem, is that alcohol absorbs moisture and when it oxidises slowly, it turns into acetic acid (spirit vinegar). So if the fuel is fresh, no problem. If you leave it in a tank for a while (months), you end up with acidic fuel which corrodes away metals (apart from stainless steel). Which is why people with carburettors don't like it as it corrodes away the brass and zinc based parts. You get a green residue from the brassy bits and a powdery grey residue from the diecast zinc (or ali). Most modern petrol cars use almost entirely plastic fuel components so not a problem. In brazil, they've been using neat ethanol for years. Just like petrol. At the pumps you have a hydrometer on each hose showing the density of the fuel, to show if it has any moisture in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LR5V Posted March 6, 2020 Report Share Posted March 6, 2020 It was Morrison’s who were selling E85 a while ago -googling it was in 2006 they started & 2010 they stopped. Seem to recall there were issues with the ethanol dissolving parts of the fuel systems. Before that Shell tried a more powerful fuel back in the late 80’s or 90’s, this didn’t agree with some engines - ur-quattro cast iron manifolds were very prone used to cracking because of it amongst others.  - shell ended up withdrawing the fuel from sale after much litigation head3d their way. i surpose it’s going to be the same as the change from leaded moving over to unleaded - we will find out what “bits” of the car fails, then replace with resistant items. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mk2 Posted March 6, 2020 Report Share Posted March 6, 2020 I think most electric lift (fuel) pumps don't like it. Many designs have the fuel running through the pump not only to cool the magnetic coils (think regular electric motor), but also to lubricate the bearings and keep the seals wetted. The fuel in effect replaces air as a coolant, circulating around all parts of the pump. Trouble is that high carbon steel, as used in ball bearings is more susceptible to fuel contamination. It corrodes more easily, leading to pump failure. I can see the most common cause of problems in modern cars being fuel pump failure. And then you also have the fuel sender that tells you how much fuel you have left. As soon as the fuel becomes a little conducting (pure fuel is a good electrical insulator), the sensor will fail. Most seals and pipes are designed to cope with just about anything. Same goes for fuel injectors. I wonder what happens to cat convertors if the fuel gets old and is acidic? Would it clean or block the matrix? No idea. @Skezza is good at chemistry stuff... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lupo1.0se Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 (edited) Been looking into this  Read some where the only lupo that is not compatabilte is 1.4 FSI (we did not get so ok - link https://www.acea.be/uploads/publications/ACEA_E10_compatibility.pdf). However RAC contradicts this with the following "As a rule, drivers of cars registered prior to 2002 are advised not to use E10 in their vehicle, as problems have been reported. And as of 2011, all new cars sold in the UK must be E10 compatible." But this does not make much sense as the lupo gti was produced between 2000 to 2005 :S. So i would go with the ACEA doc on that. Although i run my on super unlead which i think is being kept on the lower E5 grade (need to confirm this)   Edited March 7, 2020 by lupo1.0se Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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