Hitchcocks Forum

I found this useful demonstration of a simple test that determines the ethanol content , if any, of petrol. For those concerned about the effects of ethanol on tanks, sealants, pipes and seals etc it may be worth giving it a go. Fabricating my own test equipment utilising a measuring cylinder from a home brewing kit ( I just hope I can get rid of the petrol smell from it) I have concluded there is no ethanol in BP Ultimate 97 RON. Until the petrol companies make it plain what their petrol contains on the pumps this would seem a good way to avoid it for the time being at least. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsSQSuCiUjE

Frank, thanks for that! Very interesting, it confirms what I found when twice last year I had real problems when going onto reserve on my 1995 BMW. The fuel was so contaminated by water in this way that the second time the battery actually went flat trying to restart, even after draining off as much of the cloudy fuel as possible, the engine still wouldn't run. Later I emptied the tank and tried the fuel as an experiment in my RE Trials bike which has magneto ignition. It ran fine!
REgards, Mark

Thanks for that frank,interesting stuff. It worries me somewhat that this carp will gradually be foisted upon us abit like in the states, where it is causing all sorts of problems to small engined, occassional use machinery such as mowers,generators, outboard boat engines,etc. things were its not always convenient to drain and clear fuel lines and tanks every time it may not be used for a few weeks. Have a listen to Ken, a mechanic and one man operation in virginia. Not a great orator and his organisation skills are akin to mine but he raises some interesting points and solutions. This could be us in a few years......http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=en ... QO5-0&NR=1

I mentioned similar worries about ethanol in petrol on another post about 97 octane petrol (reproduced below). Has anyone had experience of running Enfields using 5% or 10% ethanol mixtures. It looks as if that is all we will be able to get over here before too long and I am a little concerned about any problems it may cause. Mick.

"Over here in France they have just introduced 95 Octane E10 and 98 Octane E5. The E10 and E5 is the percentage of ethanol added to the petroleum mixture and is in the process of being introduced in the UK. Apparently the 95E10 is not compatible with some engines over approximately 15 years old but should be ok on modern engines but, funnily enough not on lawnmower engines or some boat engines. So. is 95E10 ok to run a modern Enfield? Could be bad for the older and vintage models. Looks like I will be using the 98E5 with less ethanol just to be on the safe side at the cost of another 4c a litre. Confusing, isn't it....?"

Our 1992 Bullet 500 ran fine for 6 weeks and 3600 miles on yankee E10. I tend to use BP or Texaco at home. No problems other than the yank E10 dissolved a UK repair to a tank leak. responed well to JB Wels & is still holding up 2 years later

Mick, older Enfields (well, Redditch ones anyway,) run fine on this stuff as it's at least the octane rating of ordinary petrol of the time. The problems are to do with plastic components, ie, some tank sealers, petrol pipe, fuel tap internals etc. I'm sure manufacturers will catch up with suitable materials eventually although I'm suspicious of some parts being sold as Ethanol proof at the moment. Some high performance bikes may need carb settings adjusting for best performance (I'm currently running in an Interceptor and may need to experiment with jetting,) so I'll let you know. It's disappointing that we can't rely on the original Amal specifications any more as I always found that provided the carb and engine were in good condition the original spec was spot on.
REgards, Mark

They tried forcing us to use ethanol out here but due to buyer resistance it has been removed from most service ststions. Proves people power sometimes works

Due to a violent storm last week, my regular petrol station had to close because of a power failure. This forced me to fill the bike up at Tesco's. I opted for Tesco's 'Momentum', 99 octane, with 10% ethanol, I believe. This mixture sure makes the bike deliver power, but it is too explosive, the exhaust sounds even louder than usual. Will change back to non ethanol 95 again when the tank is empty.

I have developed a fuel leak around the fuel tap/feed pipe on my 1965 RE bullet and the pipe feels very soft/sticky could this be due to the type of fuel being used.

taper, most probably the hose isn't fuel resistant