|
Welcome to Race on E85.com
Presented by Daniel Drag Racing
Your parts and information source
for running your hot rod on this inexpensive, renewable,
American made, high octane fuel.
If you’re at this site, chances are you have heard of E85 that is becoming more and
more available at gas stations around the country. This 105 octane
ethanol based mixture cost the same or less than regular
unleaded and makes a GREAT alternative to both high
priced race gas and extremely corrosive methanol.
The reason I know this is because we have been burning it in our blown carbureted small-block Chevy powered 1952
Henry J (right) for the past two years with OUTSTANDING results. This site is dedicated to those who are already running
or are seriously considering switching to this renewable fuel source to power their hot rods now and into the future. Special
thanks go out to Mark Thomas and the Ethanol Performs Funny Car team for the inspiration and Car Craft magazine for
the technical information to get us started.
Q & A About E85:
Q: Where can I find E85 in my area?
A: You can find E85 in any area by logging onto www.e85fuel.com and just click on your state for a list of stations that carry it.
Q: Why should I switch to E85?
A: E85 is and American made, renewable fuel source that is also environmentally friendly. We have experienced it to provide the same or better performance as race gas at a fraction of the cost. Your engine will run cooler and your ETs will be less affected by atmospheric changes.
Q: What is the difference in ethanol and methanol?
A: Both fuels have an excellent intake air charge cooling effect. Ethanol (grain or ethyl alcohol) is a biofuel made through the distillation of renewable resources like corn, sugar cane and switch grass. Yes, this is the same process they use to make alcoholic beverages like liquor. Fuel ethanol is about 200 proof when produced. 15% regular 87 octane gas is added to E100 so you can’t drink it and to add a little lubricant as well as ease the initial cold startup. Methanol (wood alcohol) is produced through a chemical process. By its nature methanol is more corrosive and provides 35% less energy then E85 so you have to burn 35% more of it to make comparable power. E85 cost $3.00 - $3.50 a gallon methanol cost $4.00 - $5.00 a gallon.
Q: What type of performance can I expect from
making the switch to E85?
A: It has been our experience that E85 with its 105 octane rating and high resistance to knock is superior to premium pump gas and equal to and in some cases better than race gas. We picked up a tenth of a second and 2 to 3 miles per hour in the eighth mile with our combination after switching to E85 from 110 race gas. And our cool down period between rounds was cut in half.
Q: What will I be saving from running E85 over racing gas?
A: 110 race gas sells for $7.00 a gallon at the track; E85 is $3.00 - $3.50 a gallon at the pump. The cost of a conversion kit for a 4150 style carb is $200.00 let’s see: You burn roughly 1/2 gallon of fuel on a run so you would save $2.00 - $2.50 per run. Your commitment to racing on E85 will pay for itself even if you don’t win a round of racing. You will be going green both environmentally and financially every time you fire your race car.
Q: Don’t I have to replace all the “rubber” in my fuel system so it want be eaten up by the alcohol in E85?
A: NO!!! We started out on this journey with a complete gas system. We upped the flow 30% to compensate for the lower heat energy output of ethanol and left everything else the same just to see the effects. We switched to E85 at the end of the 2006 racing season and to date despite what we have read and heard from other people we have found zero deterioration or corrosion anywhere in our fuel system. We leave it in the system all the time. We don’t drain anything between races or use any type of fuel lube. We understand that "natural rubber" and cork gaskets may be effected by E85 over time, we just haven't experienced any issues with our modern day fuel system.
| Justus Daniel's '52 Henry J in action on E85 |
 |
| Joe Michael's Super Gas Plymouth Arrow on E85 |
 |
"Basic" E85 Tuning Tips:
1. No matter what type of fuel system
you are running you must increase flow (volume) by roughly 30% over a (gas) setup. This is more than just increasing the main
jets (in a carburetor) by 30%. Flow must be increased throughout the whole system and fuel curve.
2. Total timing
remains the same as on gas.
3. Water temp. needs to be 140 - 150 degrees when you pull into the water box and at
least 160 degrees when you stage. Your jetting is close when you gain about 10 degrees in the 1/8th and about 20
degrees in the quarter.
4. Stoichiometric ratio for E85 is 9.8:1 shoot for an air/fuel ratio of 7.0 (max power
rich) to 8.5 (max power lean) @ WOT for best (safe) power.
5. E85 has a high resistance to knock
but lights off easy so it is susceptible to pre-ignition. A one to two heat range cooler non protruding tip
plug is recommended. Autolite Racing plugs with the cut back strap work well for us. We run AR-133 with the blower, this is
a little cooler then you would need for natural aspiration.
Evening Heath,
The weather was good today so we were able to get the track manger lets us have a couple of hours on the track today while they were doing some work in the pit area, my timing controller was my missing issue. I made a few passes with the meth carb to set some base lines running 6.89, 6.90, 6.89. Put the 750 on drained the cell and put in the E85 went 6.871, 6.872, 6.871 and a 6.860. I noticed a big difference in my 60 foot times seems to be the biggest time difference. My sixty foot on the meth was 1.483, 1.501, and 1.47 when I changed to the E85 1.433, 1.444, 1.440, 1.399 and I gained 4 MPH down track not to mention I was just getting against my top end chip when I crossed the stripe. I will probably take the 4.88 out and put in the 4.56. I haven't changed the plugs and did not change the timing, did not have to time to try any of those changes. One of the math wizards of the group did some figuring and we put 86 jets in it, engine temps were running where you suggested. I believe there is room for improvement yet. When I get all my meth run out I will go full time on the E85 and I do think that the others will follow in do time. Once again thanks for your site and the input. I printed off a poster and posted at the tower about you guys.
Thanks
Gary
|
Monday, June 23, 2008 Daniel Drag Racing's E85 conversion shines bright in head to head testDaniel Drag Racing’s E85 conversions on a box
stock Holley 750 cfm double pumper list # 4779 carburetor goes up against both a highly modified 750 with billet metering
blocks and an aftermarket main body and another Holley 750 list 4779 on race gas. There was not much time for tuning due to
time constraints but the test was still a success. Thad Cook and his buddy Wes both made base line runs to start with.
Thad ran a 7.03 at 96.29 mph with his “highly” modified E85 carburetor then we bolted on the Daniel Drag Racing
box stock conversion which netted a 7.05 at 96.55 mph. This raised a few eyebrows around the pits. Then came time to match
it up with another box stock Holley 750 that just ran 7.93 at 84.39 mph on turbo blue, 110 octane race gas in the car Wes
was driving. The first pass with the box stock E85 converted carburetor was a 7.87 at 84.88 mph. We could tell that it was
way fat but only had time to make one jet change so we stepped the jets down 5 numbers and went back out for another pass.
This time the car went another 7.87 but at 85.05 mph so it was a move in the right direction. With enough time to get the
tune-up dead on I have no doubt that this combination would net our usual results of a decrease of at least a tenth of a second
and a gain of 2 to 3 mph in the 1/8thmile. Wes was so happy with the results that he kept the carburetor on
his car to run in this coming weekends PTRA race in Darlington SC. Good luck Thad and Wes and check back next week for
the results.
2:57 pm estTuesday, June 17, 2008 E85 Goes Head To Head With Race GasThis past weekend produced limited success on a small
scale for racing on E85. We entered a very limited street car based heads-up race at Pageland Dragway in Pageland S.C. with
an old bracket car we already had and just modified it to meet the rules. The rules called for a box stock Holley carburetor
with no billet metering blocks. We had to modify the stock ones to run on E85 and they worked flawlessly. We didn’t
have enough motor to be competitive but the combination proved it self by running a tenth quicker then it ever ran on race
gas. Since there are no power adders allowed it’s time to build a bigger motor! We were about ½ a second off
the pace with our little 327 but that’s going to change. This coming weekend is an off weekend for us then we’re
headed to Wilkesboro N.C. on June 28th for the third stop on the Carolina Gassers tour. I hope you all in the Midwest
are okay with all the flooding going on, please take care of each other and hopefully things will be back to normal soon.
11:56 am estTuesday, June 3, 2008 Running Strong on E85Hello again everyone. We are busy getting another car
ready to race in a new heads-up class started this year at one of our local tracks. We didn’t race this past weekend
but Thad Cook did. Here are his numbers: 7.001 for the #1 qualifying position then ran 7.006 first round, 7.001 second round
and 7.002 in the third round. That’s four 7.00 in a row, WOW! The only “throttle stop” Thad uses is a bolt
on the carburetor linkage to stop it at wide open throttle. There is plenty of racing coming up this weekend to report so
check back next week. Joe Michael’s just put a new transmission in his ’80 Plymouth Arrow and will be testing
it. And the 2nd Carolina Gassers race is this Saturday. Take care and have a good week.
3:55 pm estThursday, May 29, 2008 Good News!!!Hello everyone and welcome back. Needless to say we have been busy. Busy racing and talking to people all over the country about switching there race cars over to E85. I talked to a friend in Indiana and he went to pick up his weekly batch of E85 to race on and he said the price had actually dropped. Did you get that? Gasoline is going up everyday and E85 went down. More than likely the drop in price is due to the seasonal change over where less gasoline and more ethanol is used but whatever the reason is I’m all for it. People on the East Coast may be interested in knowing that construction has begun on a new ethanol plant in Raeford NC (just outside of Fayetteville). Soon the go juice we have grown to love will finally flow freely throughout the Southeast. We raced in Wilkesboro NC this past weekend. I am happy to say that I redeemed myself behind the wheel by matching reaction times with my opponent and running closer to the 6.0 index and taking the first round win. I didn’t fair as well in the second round however. The track cooled off and the Henry J really hooked. I took the strip but broke out with a 5.95. Get this. Two weeks ago we ran in Pageland SC and our last pass was a 5.88, the car sat for two weeks then went 5.89 first pass off the trailer in Wilkesboro NC. That’s two totally different tracks, two weeks apart. I’ll take that kind of consistence all year long. We are getting another car (’78 Camaro) ready to race in a new heads up street car class coming up June 14th at Pageland. We will probably be bringing a knife to a gun fight but we are going to get all we can out of the little 327 on E85 of course. Stay tuned for the results of that and some other testing that is being done as you read this with nitrous and E85. The early results are AWESOME to say the least. You don’t want to miss this! Until then, keep it clean and keep it green. Friday, May 9, 2008 1st Carolina Gassers RaceSorry, just now found the time to update you all on
the results from Pageland. We switched drivers in the Henry J to give me a much needed break from behind the wheel. We run
on an instant green tree which really levels the playing field for all racers. Your reaction is really your reaction. Can
you believe a .850 light was considered stellar? Most people were cutting .9 and 1.0 lights. It’s a whole different
ball game when you stage and just wait on the green light to come on before you leave. Guys that don’t normally go rounds
were knocking out the guys you see every week going rounds. The result was fun being had by all. The Henry was a little off
only running 6.12 and losing in the 1st round. We checked it out and couldn’t find anything wrong so we checked
the timing for the first time all season. It had moved from the 38 degrees that we originally set it at to 33 degrees. We
bumped the timing back up to 38 degrees total and it was like a whole new car. The very next pass produced a 5.87. Now we’re
talking! We are torn between going to the PTRA race this Saturday at Piedmont Dragway in Greensboro NC or going the open house
at Doug Herbert’s warehouse and race shop. Check back next week for the update. Oh I almost forgot, even though we didn’t
go any rounds at Rockingham we still go some ink, check out this link http://www.dragracingonline.com/raceresults/2008/x_5-civilwars-3.html
and thanks again for checking in. Racing on E85 is spreading across the country. We have a new customer that races in Denver
CO. so I’ll let you know soon how it works at altitude. Till next time, stay safe and stay strong, if you can’t
get E85 now it want be long.
10:42 am est |
|
|
2008.06.01 |
2008.05.01 |
2008.04.01 |
2008.03.01 |
2008.02.01 |
2008.01.01 |
2007.12.01 |
2007.11.01 |
2007.10.01
|
| Mark Thomas 7 time IHRA Funny Car Champion |
 |
*Click here to go to the Race on E85 Message Board*
Click here to find out were to buy E85 near you.
E85Forum.com - This is the place to go to talk E85.
ethanolperformance.com - message board
Ethanol from Algae? Check this out and you decide.
O2-Technology.com (great site, especially for those who run nitrous)
Check out Bruce's carbureted blow through supercharged E85 Thunder Bird!
GREAT E85 and carb conversion information WITH PICTURES - courtesy of Bruce with the Bad Bird.
Daniel Drag Racing and RaceonE85.com in Action at Rockingham Dragway.
