[alhartman]

My summer Ariel Motorcycle Club newsletter contained a nice link to a website that contains all the service stations that sell gasoline w/o ethanol. I drove to the one nearest me, confirmed that they usually have it and that there isnt anything in the way of restrictions on their selling it. Octane 92 for $4.39 per gallon--about a 50c cost over the cheapest area premiums.

Ethanol-free gas stations in the U.S. and Canada

I think we all know the damage ethanol does to rubber, added moisture being a hydrophylic chemical, etc, but does anyone have any comments on performance and tuning. My 1974 GTV has Spica and is a daily driver--so burn thru about 5 tanks a month year round.

And hope this is best subforum for this discussion.
.............al

 

[AlfaVeloce]

Thanks for that link, Al. Very useful. I know of two in the Huntsville area that aren't on the list. I'll get their addresses and add them.

There are several threads that cover all the damage and alcohol horror stories.

 

[alhartman]

Nearly empty today so drove up and got a full fillup--$51 for 11.5+ gallons. Maybe my imagination, but GTV ran better on the way home.

I am still seeking anyone else experience on performance or tuning.

TIA.....................al

 

[2Tomato]

Drove 4.5 hours last night on decaf. Didn't know till this morning... when my wife told me her friends don't serve regular because of medical reasons. Sure seemed like I drank regular.

But without a doubt, premium w/o ethanol is a good choice for SPICA, but certainly not necessary. The Alfa manual for the '77 clearly states premium fuel for the car and 91 R.O.N. The U.S. uses PON, so 91 RON = 87 PON... So, 87 gas is fine - per the owners manual.

As per the website you listed, I can only get 89 w/o ethanol, so that is what goes in. It drives better on the ethanol free gas. (Ethanol has different weight than pure gas.) The driver who delivers our Exxon gas told me about all the places in town with Ethanol free a while back, and it is nice to see the website confirm his words.

I imagine Wes is the go-to guy for performance and tuning - as he is the only guy with a lab for SPICAs. If you are going to continue to spend that kinda bling on premium 5x a month... I sure would consult the guru.

(The guys that repair our diesel injector pump wouldn't even consider taking a gasoline pump. I wish I had a utube video of that conversation.)