The Society of Automotive Engineers for the past 3 years have held fast to one message: making regular-grade gas with higher octane will bring about immediate fuel economy gains and a reduction in CO2.
Automakers are now lobbying lawmakers to increase regular-grade gasoline from 87 octane to 95, so the OEMs can get from today’s corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) of about 26 miles per gallon to the proposed 2025 requirement of 54.5 miles per gallon.
powertrain executives from General Motors, Ford, Fiat Chrysler and Honda agreed that higher octane gasoline, about 95, will be needed. http://www.autonews.com/article/20160413/OEM05/160419947/powertrain-executives-press-for-higher-octane-gasoline-to-help-meet
Higher octane, plus higher compression (easily engineered into the engine design) will reduce CO2 by 6%, and increase fuel efficiency by 6% also.
And this has fuel companies looking at increased profits, and a never before found opportunity to make money... Chevron cooked up some numbers that they want you to believe, that it will cost you a lot more to buy 95 instead of 87 octane (more than it already does, they want to charge more if they have the 95 octane be made the norm, and get ridiculously more profits without doing more work)
http://www.thedrive.com/news/3128/automakers-say-premium-gas-is-the-new-regular?xid=hl
And the Ethanol CEOs see an increased need for their crap in the future " with a blending octane rating of 113, ethanol offers more engine knock resistance per dollar than any other gasoline additive on the planet,” RFA President Bob Dinneen said in his state of the industry address at the Renewable Fuels Association’s National Ethanol Conference in New Orleans last week.
Why do I say crap? Ethanol is horribly corrosive to engines. Petroleum, isn't. Oil, good for engines! Alcohol? Nope.
Vehicle engines would have to be redesigned to tolerate the more corrosive higher ethanol blends.
While many automakers have begun to warranty their vehicles for E15 — a 15% blend of ethanol with gasoline — experts say blends of E25 or E30 would likely be necessary to meet the higher octane standard.
Whatever the solution to the higher octane problem, it will almost certainly be a lengthy transition process. The switchover from leaded to unleaded gasoline took 12 years before leaded gasoline was fully phased out in the US.
http://blogs.platts.com/2016/02/22/ethanol-race-higher-octane-standards-us/
Automakers are now lobbying lawmakers to increase regular-grade gasoline from 87 octane to 95, so the OEMs can get from today’s corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) of about 26 miles per gallon to the proposed 2025 requirement of 54.5 miles per gallon.
powertrain executives from General Motors, Ford, Fiat Chrysler and Honda agreed that higher octane gasoline, about 95, will be needed. http://www.autonews.com/article/20160413/OEM05/160419947/powertrain-executives-press-for-higher-octane-gasoline-to-help-meet
Higher octane, plus higher compression (easily engineered into the engine design) will reduce CO2 by 6%, and increase fuel efficiency by 6% also.
And this has fuel companies looking at increased profits, and a never before found opportunity to make money... Chevron cooked up some numbers that they want you to believe, that it will cost you a lot more to buy 95 instead of 87 octane (more than it already does, they want to charge more if they have the 95 octane be made the norm, and get ridiculously more profits without doing more work)
http://www.thedrive.com/news/3128/automakers-say-premium-gas-is-the-new-regular?xid=hl
And the Ethanol CEOs see an increased need for their crap in the future " with a blending octane rating of 113, ethanol offers more engine knock resistance per dollar than any other gasoline additive on the planet,” RFA President Bob Dinneen said in his state of the industry address at the Renewable Fuels Association’s National Ethanol Conference in New Orleans last week.
Why do I say crap? Ethanol is horribly corrosive to engines. Petroleum, isn't. Oil, good for engines! Alcohol? Nope.
Vehicle engines would have to be redesigned to tolerate the more corrosive higher ethanol blends.
While many automakers have begun to warranty their vehicles for E15 — a 15% blend of ethanol with gasoline — experts say blends of E25 or E30 would likely be necessary to meet the higher octane standard.
Whatever the solution to the higher octane problem, it will almost certainly be a lengthy transition process. The switchover from leaded to unleaded gasoline took 12 years before leaded gasoline was fully phased out in the US.
http://blogs.platts.com/2016/02/22/ethanol-race-higher-octane-standards-us/
Gasoline is just as corrosive as alcohol. They just design for it already. And raising octane is the cheapest solution to improve co2 emissions.price will go up but not much because they will replace 87
ReplyDeleteIn Brazil more or less 70% of the cars run on ethanol. It is a pain when the temperature is lower than 12 celsius (53F) and it DESTROYS the oil. Some cars need oil change each 3,000 miles.
ReplyDeleteThe 95 octane gas is already available, if people choose to buy it. The higher octane will only improve emissions and efficiency on engines that are designed to use it. The automakers are probably worried that they'll be blamed if an owner chooses to run lower octane fuel to save money. Most cars that require higher octane now detune the engine for the lower octane fuel, so the automakers might be trying to get around this.
ReplyDeleteMandating that 95 becomes "regular" and getting rid of 87 Octane would force the rest of us with older cars to pay more for gas that our cars don't need.
Yup.. money grab situation is my take on the whole situation
DeleteThat seems to be the up shot of it Jesse, but why do the consumers not reel at this fuzzy math and deceit, and nail down there representatives with out rage over the debacle spawned buy the industry? Damn, I forgot. Lobbyist take precedent over "We the People". Either that or we are all to FAT, DUMB AND HAPPY to give a shit!
DeleteSome fuel companies now offer non ethanol gasoline to the consumer(Fastrac being one), and it has an octane rating of 91. This is pretty good and I get it for my older bike and cars when I can. It's a little more expensive then the 87, but it really does make a difference in the way my vehicles perform. Except when the gas companies go to winter blend. Then everything gets shitty mileage.
ReplyDelete