Gas mileage with ethanol free vs 10% ethanol

I have read that gasoline without ethanol has more but energy than gas with ethanol and will deliver higher gas mileage. So does that mean that the miles per gallon indicator ( either average or instantaneous) will show higher miles per gallon? It does not seem to change with gasoline type. Ethanol free gasoline costs about 25 cents more per gallon here in South Carolina- $3.72 per gal compared to regular 87 octane gasoline with ethanol $3.47 per gallon. Is it worth the premium?
The vehicle is a 2005 Honda Accord V6 LX

Are you saying that E10 (10% ethanol) is 6.7% cheaper? If so, then itā€™s very unlikely youā€™d save money using E0 (0% ethanol). E10 has about 3% fewer BTUs per gallon.

Thereā€™s a lot of confusion and disagreement (especially on this forum) about the dashboard MPG indicator.
IMHO, even if the indicator isnā€™t so accurate in the absolute sense it is repeatable (able to show changes).
So if your MPG indicator doesnā€™t change I would trust it.
You can verify by calculating fuel used vs distance traveled for a couple tanks of each type.

Ethanol releases ~30% less energy (heat content) when burned because it already contains oxygen and is pre-burned in a sense.
Some engines are more tolerant of ethanol than others, and other components in gasoline have varying amounts of heat content.
Also, the situation may change when the stations change to summer blend gas.

I have a 2005 Accord EX V6 but I donā€™t have the fuel computer. How did you get that on an LX if it isnā€™t available on the EX? I feel left out.

There are so many variables that effect fuel mileage, itā€™s almost impossible outside the laboratory to detect any difference in fuel mileage between E-0 and E-10 gasolineā€¦

Just bought gallon of no-alcohol gas for lawn mover @4.57 (E=0)
Regular gas is $3.79 (E=10)

I figure that I have more than 10% loss of mileage efficiency in E10. Thankyou GWB. Energy Independence just means that I also buy 10%+ more in oil and starve the planet in doing so.

With a MPG meter in both of our newer cars I have it without overly close study that we get 1 mpg more at about the 33 mpg level with no alcohol gas. For 1000 miles at 33 mpg we use 30.3 gallons that will cost $110.60 at $3.65 per gallon. 1000 miles at 34 mpg costs $110.29 at $3.75 per gallon. That could be called the break even point but at a higher mileage I donā€™t need to go back as soon to refuel which requires fuel. If you can buy no alcohol gas for a dime or less per gallon extra at the $3.65 price level, go for it!

I need a reason to cuss our food for oil program.

Are we talking about Alcohol or ethanol, or they about the same?

With a MPG meter in both of our newer cars I have it without overly close study that we get 1 mpg more at about the 33 mpg level with no alcohol gas.

Are you talking about the cars MPG computer?? If soā€¦stop using it. They are notoriously inaccurate. The BEST way to determine your gas mileage is to divide the number of miles driven since last fill-up by the number of gallons you just added.

@EllyEllis


So Iā€™m sure some say alcohol when they mean ethanol.

@dagosaā€¦ethanol is actually ethyl alcohol. I just call it ethanol but I hate it just the same.

@missleman
You are not alone. The senators in our state are trying to put together a coilition to fight increase in the ethanol content. Even 10 % has had a servere effect on our tourist/ small engine driven economy. Maine depends on chain saws, snow mobiles, outboards etc. for economic growth as much as any other state. Making these motors more expensive to maintain and operate may help dealers/ repair facilities short term, but will kill long term profits and the overall economy if it gets worse. Iā€™m in no mood to help the ethanol producing conglomerates at the expense of our quality of life.

@dagosaā€¦I donā€™t know if you heard it or not but early last year we had a mini disaster with ethanol in my neck of the woods. Marathon and a few other stations were pumping gas with 15-20 percent ethanol. A lot of vehicles had problems but the major problems were with small engines. Mowers, weedeaters and chainsaws were self destructing on the stuff. The enginesā€¦as I understand itā€¦were burning up as they ran at high rpm. As far as I knowā€¦Marathon and the others quietly paid for the damage but I never heard much about it after the first news reports.

ethanol or alcohol
either or. Iā€™m not too particular when I want a really good buzz.
But not for fine drinking.

@missileman
Iā€™m going to guess itā€™s another problem that will likely find itā€™s way in air cooled motors of ALL types. God help us if higher concentrations are mandated. Here come the electric everything, cords everywhere.

@longprime
Makeā€™n your own ? How do you define ā€œfineā€ drinking ?

bourbon at $16.99, which is the only way I drink corn. Otherwise I prefer Rye.

Chemistry lesson! Ethanol is one of many types of alcohol. If hydrogen is bonded to oxygen, and the oxygen is bonded to carbon, the compound is an alcohol. Other common alcohols are methanol, isopropanol, and ethylene glycol. BTW, donā€™t drink anything but pure ethanol if you buy the straight stuff. Other alcohols are poison. If you see ethanol labelled ā€œdenaturedā€, that means it has isopropanol or methanol at about 5% to make it poison.

Glycols are ā€˜diolsā€™, with 2 OH groups. Donā€™t think theyā€™re called alcohols (1 OH group).

Double the pleasure, double the fun! Still an alcohol. But donā€™t drink it. Itā€™s good for a lot of things, but not consumption.