[455rebel]

It all started last summer, if I got it up to temp and shut it off,it took forever to start.
If I waited 30 min or more it would start after 5-10 seconds of cranking,but when cold it would start right up.
I worked on this untill weather cooled.
I cut 2 holes in hood and put mini scoops on to allow hot air to escape,no help.
I backed the float down about 1/4 in below sight plug,no help.
I backed the timing down to 8 deg btdc,no help.
I put in a 160 thermostat, no help.
I insulated my fuel lines under hood, no help.
I was going insane, this is embarasing.
So this winter I googled hot start issues and found a lot of info on fuel.
At the beginning of warm weather I started getting the same problem,so I decided to try non ethanol fuel.
Wow, what a difference. It starts now hot ,cold and all the time.
I was also running out of fuel at the track just before second to third shift, now it just keeps on pulling.
In my research I found ethanol boils at around 175deg, and gas don't boil until a lot higher.
It is a little more trouble and money to burn pure gas , but I will not put any more ethanol in my tank.
I have to drive 9-10 miles to get gas, but it is worth it, at least in warm weather.
It may be scratched
It may be dented
But I DRIVE the beast
Like it was RENTED

[68azbird]

I have had same problem here once the weather started getting warmer here. The junk was actually vaporizing while stopped at a traffic light for 10 minutes.
I wish there was a station locally that had ethanol free.

[steve25]

Today's fuel is designed for a fuel injection system where the high fuel pressure keeps it from turning into a gas!

[panhead59]

puregas.org lists gas stations, by state, all over US. that sells non ethanol gas. It's pretty accurate to because anyone can update or add/subtract stations.

[Navy Horn 16]

I was also having the issue of the engine running out of fuel right before the 2-3 shift. I had been running a 10% blend of 93 octane. I went to ethanol free 91, and it's working great. My issue with the hot starts went away as well. When the engine was hot, it would act like it was flooded. The only way to get it to start was to floor it and crank for like 10 seconds.

Ethanol ****ing sucks.

[68azbird]

Originally Posted by Navy Horn 16

I was also having the issue of the engine running out of fuel right before the 2-3 shift. I had been running a 10% blend of 93 octane. I went to ethanol free 91, and it's working great. My issue with the hot starts went away as well. When the engine was hot, it would act like it was flooded. The only way to get it to start was to floor it and crank for like 10 seconds.

Ethanol ****ing sucks.

X2
Sorry tree huggers life was much better with MTBE's

[rohrt]

Both my old Pontiacs I drive turn into pingers with the ethanol.

I have not noticed any real issue with the starts. One still starts really easy and the other is a PITA. Hold the peddle 1/2 down and pray while you crank. Takes 4-5 seconds.

[Region Warrior]

Closest non-ethanol station is 43 miles from here.
Even 91 octane doesn't seem to help.
Only one name brand station(Shell) left in home town. Don't like go'n there do to location and awful traffic 10-15 minutes one way, but only thing my 20HP mower runs decent on.
Same with town I work in. Have to go 5-6 miles out of way to only Shell station.
Also noticed fuel milage has gone down alot 2-3(?) years ago.
Wonder if they made some kind of change back then?

[Chris65LeMans]

Originally Posted by panhead59

puregas.org lists gas stations, by state, all over US. that sells non ethanol gas. It's pretty accurate to because anyone can update or add/subtract stations.

You probably mean http://pure-gas.org/ The one you linked led to an "invitation" to download a virus to my system.

[Doug Hopkins]

Originally Posted by Region Warrior

Closest non-ethanol station is 43 miles from here.
Even 91 octane doesn't seem to help.
Only one name brand station(Shell) left in home town. Don't like go'n there do to location and awful traffic 10-15 minutes one way, but only thing my 20HP mower runs decent on.
Same with town I work in. Have to go 5-6 miles out of way to only Shell station.
Also noticed fuel milage has gone down alot 2-3(?) years ago.
Wonder if they made some kind of change back then?

About the same here in Ohio. The only places I am finding on the pure-gas site are marinas, and not gas stations. Yesterday I drained all the gas from my car and filled it with Turbo Blue 110 race gas (leaded). Expensive at $7.25 a gallon, but it has zero ethanol and my car is very seldom on the street. Turbo Blue has a 100 octane unleaded ($7.00 gal.) but it has a small amount of ethanol. My car does not have O2 sensors or a computer, so why not. I will find out Saturday if it helps the performance at Kil-Kare dragway.

[Doug Hopkins]

Originally Posted by Region Warrior

Closest non-ethanol station is 43 miles from here.
Even 91 octane doesn't seem to help.
Only one name brand station(Shell) left in home town. Don't like go'n there do to location and awful traffic 10-15 minutes one way, but only thing my 20HP mower runs decent on.
Same with town I work in. Have to go 5-6 miles out of way to only Shell station.
Also noticed fuel milage has gone down alot 2-3(?) years ago.
Wonder if they made some kind of change back then?

A big problem for those of us in Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky the law no longer requires our stations to tell us if the are using ethanol. I went to Marathons website and found they own a ethanol plant in Greenville, Indiana and they have been using ethanol blended fuels for the last twenty years. I went to a few Marathons and Speedways (owned by Marathon) and sure enough there were no ethanol stickers on the pumps. So it's buyer beware ! 455rebel you are lucky in that Tennessee still requires an ethanol warning.

The following states no longer require warning labels for ethanol blended fuel : OH, KY, IN, D.C., CA, KS, NH, MD, MI, MN, MO, and NV.

[Region Warrior]

Have 2 stations that use Marathon although their not "Marathon stations".
Fuel seems no better then the no-name brands.

[Doug Hopkins]

Originally Posted by Region Warrior

Have 2 stations that use Marathon although their not "Marathon stations".
Fuel seems no better then the no-name brands.

Not trying to beat up Marathon, but the only thing I will use it in is my lawnmower. Back in the 90's I built a 400 SB Chebby for my tow truck and the only premium grade gas that would detonate (ping) was Marathon. I could use any premium gas but theirs.

[Ben M.]

Originally Posted by Doug Hopkins

So it's buyer beware ! 455rebel you are lucky in that Tennessee still requires an ethanol warning.

Unless you are going to a station that specifically advertises no ethanol fuel, you are a fool to assume there isn't any ethanol in gas these days in any state across the country.

I've been buying the non-ethanol 87 for my cars for the last year and it's been great. I buy it mostly because my older cars sit for longer periods of time and the gas doesn't go bad anywhere near as fast as the ethanol stuff does. Amusingly enough my Prius gets up to 51MPG with ethanol free fuel and as little as 41MPG but around 44MPG average with ethanol laced fuel in the same driving conditions (a years worth of trips and tracking).

[455rebel]

After hearing u all my 8-9 mile one way sounds pretty good.
In Tn unless they advertise , No ethanol ,then u just take for granted it does.
Theirs mabe 3 stations with in 15 mile of here and all advertise on Big signs.
It is usually about .40 cents higher for regular, and 60-70 cents higher for high test.
Tn farmers coop is where I get mine, lots of traffic their ,so I figure it is fresh.
Ps not uncommon to have to wait in line behind some pickup with 12-15 five gal cans to fill.
These farmers probably learned years ago not to burn alcohol ( drink it instead) lol.

[1969GTO]

FASTTRACK gas station in NY has non-ethel 91 octain

[72projectbird]

There's only a handful of stations in MA that sell 100% gas. I had major issues with fuel evaporating out of the carb once I got to where I was going. It was kind of embarrassing when you had to crank the car for 30-45 seconds before it'll fire.

[455rebel]

Anyone know of any additives to raise the boil point in ethanol ?
Bet we could sell some if it wasn't too expensive.
Ps yes the 20-30 second start time doesn't impress anyone!
If I was at a cruise in and stopped to look at cars, I would not even think about trying to start my car for 45-60 min.

[leeklm]

Originally Posted by Doug Hopkins

Not trying to beat up Marathon, but the only thing I will use it in is my lawnmower. Back in the 90's I built a 400 SB Chebby for my tow truck and the only premium grade gas that would detonate (ping) was Marathon. I could use any premium gas but theirs.

Interesting... when I first got my 66 with an old crappy holley and low compression 400, it generally would run fine, expect I would get the fuel boil when sitting at times.

One day after driving about 30 miles after fill-up (at a Marathon station 3 years ago) the car started running terrible, and really had to keep my foot in the throttle to keep it running at all. I spent the day troubleshooting everything from compression to ignition. Finally disconnected the fuel line, and filled the bowls with generic ethanol gas from the fuel barrel on the farm. Started right up and ran fine!

Meanwhile, we put the "bad" gas in a 1987 van with TBI, and it also ran fine. Come to find out, I had one of the old defective holleys that was falling apart from the inside (which holley replaced). I built a qjet and had far fewer heat related issues, and then further reduced those issues with a good pump with bypass.

Just last winter my father-in-law filled his newer Kia van at a Marathon station, and had to limp it home the last 100 miles. Turned out to be bad gas.

Go figure, I always assumed 90% of our gas comes out of the same barrel. Just a coincidence with Marathon?

[BruceWilkie]

Keep in mind either type gas is blended for the expected season.... "winter" gas needs to vaporize easier... Not really a new problem...I've been driving since 69...

I've had my share of vapor lock issues in the spring when weather was warm to hot and stations hadnt finished selling off their winter blends...

yep even in the good ol' days lol.

Agree ethanol blends are more sensitive because of ethanols boiling point being lower... (changeover to winter blend in fall isnt as notable because a) its getting cooler, b) you tend to use your old car less!)

If you are stuck using it do all you can to keep it cool. Electric fuel pumps help and if return style regulator is used a cooler in the return line may help keep fuel in tank from heating. A cool can before the carb helps a bunch. so do carb insulators and blocked ex heat crossovers.