HR 5180 is coming up for vote and knowing how some folks feel about ethanol in fuel, this would be a good time to let your congressman know your feelings. There are powerful arguments for both sides, some actually supported with facts. I have already let my congressman know how I want him to vote.
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Mistake-Sorry
I can live with 10 %,no more in the gasoline blends please (I used to go out of my way to find gas blended with ethanol) 10% seems to work fairly well ,please dont increase it.
I have a vendor (used to work for Her ) that sells hi test and touts it as ethanol free,I am not too impressed with Her business practices,but is she really telling the truth about ethanol free hi test? I thought most high octane blends contained some ethyl Alcohol .
Since I buy ethanol-free fuel for my motorcycles and yard equipment, I should support this bill. It’s not that my machines run better on ethanol-free fuel, it’s that my machines often sit for weeks at a time.
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I have reservations about this one. Ethanol is IMHO a farce IMHO, a disguised farm supplement bill, however I’m not sure everything bad needs to be controlled by more laws. Laws mandating ethanol are how we got into the situation we’re in, and I oppose that too. I believe the amount of ethanol in the product should be mandated to be clearly labeled on the pumps, and limits to the amount a car can ingest without problems should be clearly labeled at the fill spout and the free market should decide.
Ethanol is, in fact, a renewable fuel (it can even be distilled at home), and while it contains less energy than gasoline and studies have shown it may actually use more dead dinosaurs in its production than it saves, if a consumer chooses to get a “flex fuel” vehicle and use 85% I believe that should be their choice. The laws should IMHO address full and clear disclosure, not interfere with freedom to choose.
Paradoxically, Henry Ford originally wanted the Model T to run on ethanol. In 1920 GM’s legendary research boss Charles Kettering drive a Chevy running 70/30 ethanol/gasoline. He promoted ethanol as a wondrous new automotive fuel.
In short, I don’t like being forced to use ethanol at even 10%. I also don’t like being banned from using ethanol at 85% if I choose to buy a flex fuel car. What I want the laws to support is freedom of choice AND full disclosure on both the pump and the car (for the next owner’s benefit) to make that choice.
Usually people go out of their way to avoid ethanol. I usually have to buy the high test gas for my small engines in order to get non-oxy gas, but we had a 62 cent off deal from the grocery store and was surprised to see the “no ethanol” signs on the pump.
Now if they can just get rid of the other 9.7%.
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LOL, I agree missileman!
I’d guess that if the feds hadn’t mandated that the oil refiners use a mandated amount of ethanol there wouldn’t be enough demand on the market to have supported it. It would no longer be on the market.
Interesting. I guess I’d be more inclined, should a law be needed, that the requirement not be the maximum %, but that a sign be posted right along side the sign where they advertise the price per gallon of each octane version, the same size letters as the price per gallon, what % ethanol that blend is.
So the sign you’d see driving past the gas station would look like this. Then the blenders could blend however they liked, and folks in need of a fill-up could decide for themselves whether to stop there for gas or not.
$2.69 4 %
$2.79 6%
$2.89 2%
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All the pumps I’ve seen in the midwest just say up to 10% ethanol added. I think part of the problem is trying to determine what exactly the percentage is from one truck to the next. It might be a chink in the fed’s armor though since they were trying to push 15% which would ruin boat motors. A couple years ago a tanker had way more than they should and there were some very high repair bills from the various stations the cars had bought gas from. At any rate, yeah I think there should not be ANY regulations on it, although I’ve known some farmers that did quite well on investments in ethanol processing plants. No more though.
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Are you being forced? Do any gas stations or fuel delivery companies in your area offer ethanol-free fuel?
I buy my ethanol-free fuel locally from a fuel service and delivery company that sells it at 90 octane and labels it “recreational fuel.” If I wanted to, I could map out my trips so I could use ethanol-free fuel, but it would be more expensive and I might have to go out of my way a bit.
With the price of wholesale, untaxed gasoline now down to around $1.50 a gallon, the ethanol producers must be in a major price / profit squeeze…Even with massive government subsidies, the cost of production makes ethanol production a marginal operation…
The big benefit with ethanol, we don’t have to import it. The money stays in this country…
No, whitey, they don’t. Ergo, I AM being forced.
Using ethanol-free gasoline (called “marine gas” up here) for over-the-road vehicles is illegal in NH. How’s THAT for being forced?
I was about to sympathize with you for having such an oppressive state government, but I’m not sure you do.
It’s not that I don’t believe you. I do believe you, but I find it strange that, according to pure-gas.org, there are 17 gas stations in NH that sell ethanol-free fuel, some from unmanned credit card-operated machines at gas stations, and some at truck stops.
Might it be the case that the law was repealed and you didn’t know about it?
Could it be the person who told you it was illegal for over-the-road use was mistaken?
I’ve searched the internet to find any NH laws that forbid using ethanol-free fuel on public roads, and although I found NH’s rules of the road, I didn’t find any references to ethanol-free gasoline.
I can’t comment on all those gas stations… But the one in Lee NH only has the non ethanol pumps on during race day at the Lee race track. And to fill up the car must be on a trailer. You just can’t pull up and fill up.
I wonder if there might be something special about that race day fuel other than it being ethanol-free that makes it illegal for street use.
Personally I have no problem with 10% ethanol. It burns cleaner, thus better for the environment. The only argument against is some say it causes engine problems. I’ve been using ethanol gas for decades with hundreds of thousands of miles on many different vehicles with no problems what-so-ever. No problems with any of my mowers or snow blowers either.
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I don’t think being non-ethanol is what makes it illegal. From what I can tell, most of the “pure” gas sold in NH (and other states) is either marine, aviation, or race fuel and is probably not subject to the federal and state fuel taxation that normal “over-the-road” fuel is. Same reason it’s illegal to use off-road diesel on the road.
Some of these non-ethanol fuels are sold in 1 or 5 gallon containers and the prices are beyond outrageous.
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Yes, but federal laws require that off-road diesel fuel be dyed red so the authorities can look in the tank and tell if someone is using it on public roads illegally. The ethanol-free gasoline I buy is as clear as water.
You might be able to buy a few gallons here and there. But the gas station will stop you if you pull up in a car and try to fill up. I’d be surprised that the 24/7 stations either
A. Someone there to monitor or
B. The non ethanol pumps are turned off when no one is rhere