Increased Ethanol in fuel coming soon

With the government announcement that standard 95 octane petrol will see an increase from E5 to E10 ethanol at all petrol stations scheduled in September this year, what does this mean for us Classic VW owners?

Whilst it’s good news for the environment with the goal of expected reduction in carbon dioxide by up to 750,000 tonnes a year or an estimated 2% fewer greenhouse gases, it’s not that friendly or that good for our old VWs unfortunately.

The increase will cause standard fuel hose, seals and plastics to corrode or degrade at a faster rate, corrosion to brass parts in carburettors, which can cause fuel leaks that in turn, can lead to premature engine wear and in extreme cases even engine seizure. Our top quality supplier of engines and good friends at The VW Engine Company have reported seeing more and more of this when dismantling surcharge units when doing engine strip down assessments.

Good news is that E5 will remain available at garages for the foreseeable future, but only in the higher 97 octane that’s more expensive, but for how much longer?

What is ethanol?

Ethanol is an alcohol based fuel produced from the fermentation of plants like sugar cane, waste wood, grain and their by-products.

E10 is a biofuel made up of 90% regular unleaded and will contain up to 10% ethanol, currently it is 5% hence the E5 name.

E10 is currently widely in use in Europe, like France, Belgium and Germany and has been for a few years now, Brazil is currently already using up to E28 biofuel mix.

What do we recommend?

• Change ALL your fuel lines to 100% ethanol safe fuel hose. The hose we sell is the same as fitted to modern production cars like Audi, Merdedes, BMW and VW and whilst it is expensive, trust us it’s worth every penny. Not only will it lasts for years and years and good for 100% ethanol, so very future proof, but it will seriously reduce the chance of an engine fire so common in poorly maintained vehicles with deteriorated fuel hose.
• Use a good quality ethanol inhibitor additive and regularly add it to your fuel tank
• Use the vehicle regularly to agitate the mixture in the tank and flush carburettors of separated fuel/ethanol.
• Check and replace your oil regularly even if the vehicle is stored or has been standing for some time.

100% Ethanol Safe Fuel Hose + Bundle Kits

Our 100% ethanol safe fuel hose is available by the metre and in 3m bundle kits with clips and filter, a kit including a fuel tank connection, and a kit with a t-piece for twin carbs

Check out our recent blog with all the links and more information about our 100% ethanol safe fuel hose

Ethanol Inhibitor

We also sell top quality LUCAS Safeguard ethanol fuel treatment by the bottle, enough to treat over 300 litres of fuel.