I’ve heard a lot of Social Media rumblings lately that there is a “new push” to “get people to buy new cars” by our government. You know, the new cars with all the cameras inside, the kill switches, etc. And people make intriguing cases that this is an attempt by “Big Brother” to reach further into your privacy.
And how they are doing that is coming up with a new form of gasoline that older cars can’t use. The new type of gasoline is called E-15 gas. It is a 15-percent ethanol blend rather than the customary 10-percent blend.
The “new” E-15 gas would burn a bit hotter and is a bit more corrosive to fuel lines in older cars. And, thus, could damage older vehicle fuel systems. This forces a lot of Americans to purchase a new car.
But you can take off the Tin Foil Hats. The move to E-15 has been in the works for a long time now.
How do I know? I covered E-15 gas all the way back in 2010. Some 16 years ago.
At the time the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Department of Energy (DOE) were looking into increasing the gas supply by augmenting a portion of gasoline sold with an additive and was hoping E-15 gas would be the best option. And, as noted in my report, it has an added bonus of burning hotter and, thus, cleaner. A win-win in the eyes of the EPA.
“Thorough testing has now shown that E-15 does not harm emissions control equipment in newer cars and light trucks,” said EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson said in October of 2010. “Wherever sound science and the law support steps to allow more home-grown fuels in America’s vehicles, this administration takes those steps.”
But President Obama didn’t start this. This was all set up under President Bush.
E-15 TIMELINE
The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 mandated an increase in the overall volume of renewable fuels. The goal was, by 2022, that there would be nearly 36 billion gallons in total from biofuels. Ethanol is considered a renewable fuel because it is produced from plant products or wastes and not from fossil fuels. Ethanol is blended with gasoline for use in most areas across the country.
The move to specifically provide E-15 was made via a petition submitted to EPA by Growth Energy and 54 ethanol manufacturers in March 2009. In April 2009, EPA sought public comment on the petition and received about 78,000 comments.
A provision to the Clean Air Act allowed the EPA to waive the act’s prohibition against the sale of a significantly altered fuel if the petitioner shows that the new fuel will not cause or contribute to the failure of the engine parts that ensure compliance with the act’s emissions limits.
And since the testing showed that newer cars could handle it just fine, the EPA moved forward with it for those cars only.
Fast Forward to 2012. when the government set a goal to help fueling station owners install 10,000 blender pumps by 2017. The goal was just 10,000 across the entire country by about nine years ago. And most of these pumps were in the Midwest. This was the slow rollout and testing phase.
But still, in order to use E-15 gas in the national supply not just at select pumps, gasoline producers needed some sort of government waiver.
Then, in 2019, President Trump directed the EPA to allow E-15 take advantage of the “1-psi Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) waiver” for the summer months that has historically been applied only to E10. That waiver is the reason why Ethanol is more likely to be blended into gasoline in the Summer.
Ultimately, the goal was to change regulations for E-15 even more by removing all regulatory barriers to sell E-15, year-round, as apart of the national supply — not just in the summer. Full transparency here, I found conflicting press releases from our government about whether this did or did not happen.
For example, EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler said this in 2019: “Following President Trump’s leadership, today’s action is a step forward in expanding the market for biofuels and managing this important program responsibly. Just in time for the summer driving season, it will be easier for gas stations to sell E-15 year-round, giving drivers more choices at the pump.”
Yet, three years later, in 2022, President Biden had to direct the EPA to issue the same “1-psi Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) waiver” to allow E-15 gasoline to be sold during the summer driving season.
In 2026, 16 years after the ball got rolling, the EPA and DOE issued that very same temporary emergency fuel waiver to allow nationwide sales of E-15 and to remove all federal impediments to selling E10 across the country.
WHY USE E-15 AT ALL?
I get it. Why not just use regular gas? It has to do with what is happening inside your engine when your turn the key. This is the -general- chemical equation that describes turning gas into Co2 & Water vapor:
And here is the same reaction for straight ethanol:
I’m far from a chemist. But I can note here that since the chemical equation is structured differently, it allows Ethanol to participate differently in the combustion process. At the molecular level, combustion occurs through a rapid chain reaction involving highly reactive fragments known as free radicals. Ethanol’s chemical structure already contains oxygen, which can promote a more complete combustion process. This helps convert more of the fuel into carbon dioxide, water vapor, and useful energy, while reducing some of the byproducts associated with incomplete combustion.
On top of that, Ethanol has a naturally higher octane rating than gasoline, which helps resist engine knock and allows many modern engines to operate more efficiently. Because ethanol also absorbs more heat as it evaporates, it can help create a cooler, denser air-fuel mixture inside the engine, which can improve performance under certain conditions.
WHO CAN USE E-15 GAS?
But it is important to point out that while we may have “more gasoline” for many folks, Some folks shouldn’t use it this new blend. According to the DOE…
Vehicles approved for E-15 use:
– Flexible fuel vehicles
– Conventional vehicles of model year 2001 and newer.
Vehicles prohibited from using E-15:
– All motorcycles
– All vehicles with heavy-duty engines, such as school buses and delivery trucks
– All off-road vehicles, such as boats and snowmobiles
– All engines in off-road equipment, such as chain saws and gasoline lawn mowers
– All conventional vehicles older than model year 2001.
How can you avoid E-15?
Pay for Premium Gas. Which is, as we all know, ridiculously more expensive.
SO WHAT NOW?
Well, this introduction of E-15 gas during the Summer has happened before and, by the looks of it, it will happen more frequently in the future. But, if you have filled up your car during the Summer months in years past, there is a good chance you’ve already put E-15 gas into your car before.
If you have an older car, there are mixed results during testing about what could or could not happen to your car’s fuel system over time. But the important note there is the effects are shown “over time” and are not immediate.
Gaskets, rubber hoses, seals, and any plastic parts in-between are likely to be the most impacted by deterioration. Oxygen sensors may also struggle since the chemistry of the fuel is slightly different.
If you have to fill up with E-15 gas a few times but you run the car frequently and the gas moves through your system and doesn’t “sit” you may be less likely to have problems in the short term. Mixing in Premium gas with Regular fuel may also help.
But the ultimate answer is “it depends” on time.
But, if it were me, I’m not sure I’d lose too much sleep over all of this. Simply spend the extra few bucks on occasion to “flush” your fuel system with Premium gas during the Summer months or during times when E-15 is apart of the national blend.
And don’t worry about Big Brother trying to force you to buy a new car by changing the blend of gasoline by five percent. That simply isn’t the case.
