# E20 gasoline **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Created:** [June 24, 2009, 7:41pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337 "2009-06-24T19:41:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![sodaker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@sodaker](https://community.cartalk.com/u/sodaker)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2009, 7:41pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/1 "2009-06-24T19:41:35Z")
i can buy E20 gas that is rated 91 octane for 4 cents a gallon less than E10 i drive a '01 mustang gt with k&n cold air intake and flowmaster exhaust 3" catback. have gone through 1/2 tank of E20 and am getting ready to refuel. am i asking for any kind of engine or any other related problems? ---
**Author:** ![texases](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/texases/32/862_2.png) [@texases](https://community.cartalk.com/u/texases)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2009, 7:50pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/2 "2009-06-24T19:50:59Z")
Carmakers say current cars aren’t designed for E20, so there is some risk. How much, I don’t know. ---
**Author:** ![common-sense-answer](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/common-sense-answer/32/716_2.png) [@common-sense-answer](https://community.cartalk.com/u/common-sense-answer)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2009, 7:51pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/3 "2009-06-24T19:51:55Z")
Probably. This Should Be Addressed In Your Owner’s Manual. CSA ---
**Author:** ![Joseph\_E\_Meehan](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/joseph_e_meehan/32/21_2.png) [@Joseph\_E\_Meehan](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Joseph_E_Meehan)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2009, 8:23pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/4 "2009-06-24T20:23:53Z")
I agree with the first two replies, and will add: If that K&N is a oiled media filter, be very very careful when re-oiling it. Too little and the marginal filtering ability is lowered and if too much is used, it can cause damage to an MAF if you have one. It might be a good idea to tell us what make, model and year car you have as someone might now more about the answer to your question and it very well may be dependent on the year and model car you have. ---
**Author:** ![Whitey](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/whitey/32/24680_2.png) [@Whitey](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Whitey)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2009, 8:27pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/5 "2009-06-24T20:27:50Z")
He did tell us. It is a 2001 Ford Mustang GT. ---
**Author:** ![texases](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/texases/32/862_2.png) [@texases](https://community.cartalk.com/u/texases)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2009, 8:36pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/6 "2009-06-24T20:36:07Z")
Why buy it? If it’s 4 cents/gallon less, and you get about 3% worse mileage (based on ethanol BTUs), that’s about 9-4=5 cents a gallon of overall loss to you (if gas costs $3/gallon). ---
**Author:** ![galaxybeing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6bbea6/32.png) [@galaxybeing](https://community.cartalk.com/u/galaxybeing)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2009, 9:02pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/7 "2009-06-24T21:02:18Z")
Exactly, texases! ---
**Author:** ![FoDaddy](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/fodaddy/32/717_2.png) [@FoDaddy](https://community.cartalk.com/u/FoDaddy)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2009, 9:15pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/8 "2009-06-24T21:15:25Z")
E10 is about as high as Ford allows. BTW unless you are running forced induction or a custom tune, your Mustang will run happily with 87 octane, that’s the required and recommended fuel for your car. ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2009, 11:11pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/9 "2009-06-24T23:11:24Z")
See your owner’s manual. That has the correct answer. Unless this is a flex fuel vehicle you risk damaging fuel system components with E20. ---
**Author:** ![ken\_green](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/ken_green/32/816_2.png) [@ken\_green](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ken_green)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2009, 11:23pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/10 "2009-06-24T23:23:45Z")
Reading an '01 owner’s manual, written long prior to the existance of E20, won’t tell you anything reletive. This same time table includes the fact that engine and fuel system designs also pre-dated E20. With this and the other advice herein, I’d say NOT use it. ---
**Author:** ![Caddyman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/caddyman/32/23_2.png) [@Caddyman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Caddyman)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2009, 11:32pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/11 "2009-06-24T23:32:21Z")
E20?? Where do you find that?? Maybe your ECM has the flexibility to deal with it and maybe not…The ethanol manufacturers have reached a point where they are producing more ethanol than they can sell with the E10 blend. So they are using YOU to test their new product. Good Luck. What they SHOULD be doing is marketing E-100 at 120 octane to a new generation of 14 to 1 compression engines that can outperform gasoline engines in both power and mileage… ---
**Author:** ![sodaker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@sodaker](https://community.cartalk.com/u/sodaker)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2009, 2:46am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/12 "2009-06-25T02:46:48Z")
ah it is the basic 289 which ford has tweaked over th years how can e20 hurt it ---
**Author:** ![sodaker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@sodaker](https://community.cartalk.com/u/sodaker)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2009, 2:58am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/13 "2009-06-25T02:58:41Z")
i don’t know where u got your stats but i get the same miles per gallon but with more kick! besiseds i talked to an older gentelman from mn. who raced cars runing on ethanol gas and was a winner ---
**Author:** ![edb1961](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/edb1961/32/122_2.png) [@edb1961](https://community.cartalk.com/u/edb1961)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2009, 3:16am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/14 "2009-06-25T03:16:47Z")
I believe 1995 was the last year for the 302 (5.0) in the Mustang. After that the 4.6 liter modular V8 was put into service. Ed B. ---
**Author:** ![texases](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/texases/32/862_2.png) [@texases](https://community.cartalk.com/u/texases)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2009, 2:11pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/15 "2009-06-25T14:11:03Z")
E20 doesnt’ hurt the block/pistons/etc, it can damage all the plastics and rubber in the fuel system. That’s what has to be changed in a car to make it compatible with higher amounts of ethanol. ---
**Author:** ![texases](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/texases/32/862_2.png) [@texases](https://community.cartalk.com/u/texases)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2009, 2:13pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/16 "2009-06-25T14:13:14Z")
If the octane’s the same, it doesn’t give more kick. Race cars use ethanol because it has very high octane, so the engines can run a higher compression ratio, giving more power. But gas with the same octane rating would give the same ‘kick’, E20 or E0. Ethanol in gasoline reduces the energy per gallon, reducing mileage. ---
**Author:** ![MikeInNH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a587f6/32.png) [@MikeInNH](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MikeInNH)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2009, 2:30pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/17 "2009-06-25T14:30:33Z")
> Why buy it? It does burn cleaner…HOWEVER…If it E20 can cause harm I wouldn’t take a chance. I never heard of E-20…Just E-10 and E-80 used for Flex-Fuel cars. ---
**Author:** ![sodaker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@sodaker](https://community.cartalk.com/u/sodaker)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2009, 4:26pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/18 "2009-06-25T16:26:36Z")
thanks for the info. that sounds like a logical answer. guess i go back to using regular gas. the little extra kick isn’t worth replaceing fuel pump, lines, ect. thanks for enlighting me!!! 🙂 ! ---
**Author:** ![jtsanders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c2a13f/32.png) [@jtsanders](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jtsanders)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2009, 10:27pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/19 "2009-06-25T22:27:46Z")
E20 might not be discussed in the owner’s manual. A call to Ford might be in order. ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2009, 10:42pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337/20 "2009-06-25T22:42:26Z")
I’ve never personally seen E20, but that’s what the OP had in his question so that’s what I responded to. Your comment on the new generation 14:1 ratio engines running on E100 is interesting. Are these in the works other than for F1 race cars? If so, it’s new to me. [Next page](https://community.cartalk.com/t/e20-gasoline/32337.md?page=2)