slamd02ranger wrote:MCOjerry wrote:Um, I'm sure that the majority of the E85 comes from the middle east...or some other country...I doubt that all the oil used to produce it comes from the US.
E85 is a 85% Ethanol and 15% gasoline mixture. Ethanol is made from corn, which is grown in the US. Why would we buy corn from another country and make E85 here? Or buy E85 from another country when we can make it right here and keep the profit? A big reason why ethanol is getting more popular is because it decreases our dependence on foreign oil.
Also, a lot of gas stations in the midwest have up to 10% ethanol is all grades of gasoline sold. Once again, to help with our dependence on foreign oil.
This is not true. E10 was made to reduce emissions as a replacement for MTBE. MTBE is an additive to reduce emissions, but was found to possibly cause health issues, and seeps easily into water systems from refineries rather easily. The government said the refining companies were liable for any issues that come from MTBE, and so companies are phasing it out. They replaced it with 10% ethanol to still meet emissions standards necessary for gasoline, yet stay within the limits that allows it to work in standard fuel systems without harm.
Also, E85 has about 15% less energy than Gasoline, so even with a flex fuel vehicle, your mileage drops with E85 right off the bat. Then, to save at the pump, E85 has to be at least 15% cheaper per gallon, actually even more so to account for the lower time between fillups. And to top it off, the price of corn is going up, and I'm sure the production of E10 in mass amounts to replace MTBE is a large contributor. Its jumped about 5% in the last 3 weeks and increasing costs of your primary input is not what you want when you need to undercut your competitor to compete.
by slamd02ranger » Thu Sep 07, 2006 9:51 am 
