BP Gasoline and Ethanol

[Nabco]

Was just looking at the BP website and according to this (see below) they are stating that their Ultimate grade does not contain ethanol.

BP ULTIMATE
BP Ultimate is the highest octane retail fuel that BP has on the market. It has an octane rating between 98 and 100 and does not contain ethanol. It is suitable for all cars but pre 1986 vehicles designed for leaded fuel may need to add an additive to prevent valve seat recession if they do not have hardened valve seats. BP Ultimate also contains a high dose of additive to protect the fuel system and to remove deposits that foul intake valves and the combustion chamber causing poor combustion and knock.

[Joe K]

For me the issue of alcohol in the gas in the Model A regarding PERFORMANCE is moot. The engine actually will run quite nicely on most any rot-gut gasoline - such as was being produced back in the day.

More important to me though would be the fact that Alcohol is hygroscopic (absorbs water) and is an oxygenator (hence it's attraction to the EPA weenies seeking low CO emission) and between the water and the oxygen the "clean gas" tends to increase the possibility of rusting out one's gas tank.

I read with interest someone's rather straighforward 'water washing' method of removing alcohol from gasoline.

I have yet to try it though.

Here in Cow Hampshire we're sort of at the end of the "Gasoline pipeline" supply wise and the prevailing wind nationally. Thus we get everyone else's acid rain and the EPA is wont to impose ADDITIONAL emission constraints on us in a "day late-dollar long" effort to quell the damage - and massage the minds and hearts of local bleeding heart enviro-whackos who excuse a local response to a national problem as justified, and accept the hit on local commerce as "their" contribution.

Um. Weenies, it's not just "Your" contribution. It's mine too. Thanks for your ineffectuality...

Thus, here in New England we have not alcohol free gasoline at ANY pumps that I'm aware. And now a few years back New England was among the first to be forced to a tailpipe enema/testing regimen - although the Model A is exempt.

For now...

Joe K

[BlueSunoco]

We use Ultimate from BP regularly in our older Mustang runs great. No alcohol, worth the extra $$ even in the other cars. I get about 4 MPG better mileage in our everyday car.

[whirnot]

Originally Posted by Joe K

Thus, here in New England we have not alcohol free gasoline at ANY pumps that I'm aware. And now a few years back New England was among the first to be forced to a tailpipe enema/testing regimen - although the Model A is exempt.

For now...

Joe K

Colorado has had emissions (tailpipe) testing for over 20 years.

[Joe K]

Colorado has had emissions (tailpipe) testing for over 20 years.

In 1987 when I began commuting to Massachusetts to work in the powerplant there, testing was already underway in MA. They also banned MTBE in that timeframe first in MA. I remember well the 7 cent price jump for the "new" breathe easy gas (gotta love marketing!)

New is ALWAYS better, isn't it? New and improved 1.75 quart ice cream.

Cow Hampshire dragged their legislative feet for a few years beyond that probably starting auto testing in earnest in 1996 when the computers in cars became mandatory. (and inviolable)

To this day an emission test is required to be done to my diesel VW - but no emission limit is enforced - and no results are recorded. I pay $45 for the minion to pretend to do an emissions test? Mostly the garages now call this a 'safety check' for inspection purposes.

Too many people bitched about the charade?

Not the garages - you can be sure of that.

Joe K

[JOES31]

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Joe
You think you have it bad in Hampshire? You should try California. We haven't had non alcohol fuel for years and 100 octane fuel, what's that? Hell they even banned rat poison this year. You want to paint your house so you might have to do some sanding. Not without being certified for lead and asbestos. Certification costs $660 for the classes.

[stewwolfe]

Oh come now, everything the government does is done with the best intent, and they know better than any or all of us.

[Patrick L.]

Everywhere I've been along the east coast, marinas have 90 octane non-ethanol. In our little town the only place that has non-ethanol except for the marinas is now Fast-trac in the high octane.

[Joe K]

Originally Posted by Patrick L.

Everywhere I've been along the east coast, marinas have 90 octane non-ethanol. In our little town the only place that has non-ethanol except for the marinas is now Fast-trac in the high octane.

I confess I haven't tried the local marinas. We're seacoast Cow Hampshire (cows swim here) and not far from a dockside pump.

But perhaps the BEST (not easiest) solution is found in one's middle finger?

It's been done before...



http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/t...gas-generator/

Joe K

[rusty12]

After what BP did to the Gulf Of Mexico (which still hasn't and will never completely recover) and the less publicized, but still damaging spill in Lake Michigan awhile back (http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2...-spill-whiting), I wouldn't buy their gas if they were the last gas company left in the world. I would walk before I would buy their gas. This British company has no regard or respect for America what so ever. They should have been banned from this country years ago for their decades of known violations (most which have never made the press). BP's CEOs made a mockery of the situation and never even pretended to be sorry.

[CarlG]

Alaska did away with Ethanol laced gasoline several years ago, did away with emissions testing last year.

WhoooooHooooooo!

[Tom Wesenberg]

Originally Posted by CarlG

Alaska did away with Ethanol laced gasoline several years ago, did away with emissions testing last year.

WhoooooHooooooo!

You need some exhaust emissions that kill those hoards of mosquitoes.

From the pictures I saw they are thick enough to carry off cattle.

[CarlG]

Mosquitoes were pretty healthy and plentiful when we drove our old cars up to Wiseman (~100 miles north of the Arctic Circle) earlier this summer. They would zap you right thru your clothes. Had to wear nets like the bee-keepers use.

[whirnot]

Originally Posted by JOES31

Joe
You think you have it bad in Hampshire? You should try California. We haven't had non alcohol fuel for years and 100 octane fuel, what's that? Hell they even banned rat poison this year. You want to paint you house so you might have to do some sanding. Not without being certified for lead and asbestos. Certification costs $660 for the classes.

I deal with Building depts all over the country. California is the worst!
I recently had to replace a diesel fire pump engine, that will throretically never run, except once a year for testing. the permitting was unbelievable!

[Buckelew]

We dodged the mandatory ethanol or oxygenated (content-standard) fuel here in Alabama 'til 2005.

In 1998, the corporate and EPA weenies got checked at our door -- they didn't anticipate us ignorant hicks understanding and appreciating their game, so they were exposed and stripped naked when "the people" insisted on an alternative.

Ironically, both BP and Marathon stepped up and provided us the alternative, and other states followed suit. We would be better off without food in our tanks.

[Keith True]

I got myself a little education a few years ago hauling gas.I'd hauled a lot of oil from the tank farm,but no gas before.I was in line at the rack and saw a half dozen different brand trailers in line.They were all loading out of the same tank for the same grades,they just had different additive packages.Some have their own tanks,such as Irving,as they have their own refineries.But I saw Mobil,Shell,BP,all load from the same tank.We have had ethanol here in town since 1980,it was marketed as gasahol.The brand here was Gulf,we never paid much attention to it,we just used it.

[Joe K]

Originally Posted by Keith True

I got myself a little education a few years ago hauling gas.I'd hauled a lot of oil from the tank farm,but no gas before.I was in line at the rack and saw a half dozen different brand trailers in line.They were all loading out of the same tank for the same grades,they just had different additive packages.

A former work associate used to be in the merchant marine. He was frequently on tankers and would make several round trips under his contract before his "rest period."

The usual modus for these trips is the tanker would leave wherever, and about half way to their destination, negotiations would be ongoing between the vendor and the final buyer: the ship was kept appraised of ongoing negotiations as it would make a difference to which dock (or possibly even which port) would be their final destination.

Usually, about a day before reaching port, a call would be sent down to engineering deck to "take the red cannister located in locker No. X" (or something like that) "and put it in hold number 5." This would be done in differing cannisters/lockers for the entire cargo.

An engineer (and maybe someone to be trusted?), it was my work associates job to do this. The hold would be unlocked (under supervision of the ship's purser) and the chemical, dye usually, added to the cargo. Then the hatch would be re-locked and lastly re-sealed by the purser.

The next day they would make destination and pull up to someone's offloading terminal.

My friend resolved henceforth to buy the cheapest rotgut gasoline he could since (in his mind) it really didn't make a difference. Gasoline was all made to specification - and except for a little tweaking at the end depending on the buyer, that specification did not change.

Joe K

[700rpm]

Originally Posted by rusty12

After what BP did to the Gulf Of Mexico (which still hasn't and will never completely recover) and the less publicized, but still damaging spill in Lake Michigan awhile back (http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2...-spill-whiting), I wouldn't buy their gas if they were the last gas company left in the world. I would walk before I would buy their gas. This British company has no regard or respect for America what so ever. They should have been banned from this country years ago for their decades of known violations (most which have never made the press). BP's CEOs made a mockery of the situation and never even pretended to be sorry.

None of the oil companies has any civic consciousness. They are corporations that exist for one reason: Profit. But some, like Shell, Exxon, and BP are egregious in their disregard for careful extraction practices, and, like Rusty, I refuse to buy from them simply because of their blatant flaunting of the law and refusal to take responsibility for their environmental damage.

And the people who work at the EPA are not weenies. They are professionals working to protect us, our children, and our grandchildren from lead poisoning, acid rain, depleted fisheries, ocean degradation, unhealthful air, and undrinkable water. It's called Environmental Protection, and I don't have a problem with that, and frankly, anyone who does is either being short-sighted or willfully ignorant.

That now brings this thread fully into the political arena, and it will probably be pulled, and I may be banned, but I feel strongly enough about this that I had to say it.

[sidevalve8ba]

For those who don't want to get involved in a political tirade here is a website where non-ethanol gas is available.

http://pure-gas.org/index.jsp?stateprov=VA


Just click on your state and you can see what is available and where. I hope this helps.

[DougVieyra]

My Model A has sat with empty gas tank for about 3 months now, while I was doing a clean out of old 'gas-proof' "Sealant", and the ever-present rust dust. Finally, feeling that I had done all I could do, short of removing the tank from the car, to get my gas tank clean, I put in some 'new' gas. Just a gallon, to test all the fuel lines, valve & carb. fittings.

While the car had been sitting for the 3 months, I rebuilt the carb, fuel filter and gas shut-off; so all of these items, as well as all fuel lines were empty and dry. When I put in the 1 gallon of new gas, I found the next day that my carb. had leaked over night, filling up the 'catch' can I had layed under it in the engine pan. The collected new gas, had a significant amount of water in it !

I spent the next several days taking stock of this new gasoline and found that it continued to develope water in it. Not being a petro-scientist, I can not assign guilt to the gasoline. But I certainly did take note, and will now constantly be on the look out for water in my California gasoline.

I live in California, which is a foreign country on the far left side of the American continent, with extremely dictatorial environmental agencies. Here they have a ban on any type of oil in their gasoline. Many old car motorists have reported finding corn husks in their gasoline, as well as residual evidence of soy beans, yogurt and Vitamin B-12.

The results for old cars has been catastrophic to every step of the fuel system. And now too, perhaps, our gas developes water. Which is ironic, seeing that California is now in it's fourth year of the most severe drought in 100 years !

Perhaps THAT is the new environmental game plan - formulate California's gasoline to make precious water as a by-product of this once-useful fuel source.

- Doug Vieyra, in Eureka, California. Today's high of 58 degrees.