Extreme gas mileage using non ethanol fuel

[ZABSMAV]

Yes, ethanol-free (E0) gas typically provides better mileage. Drivers generally see an improvement of about 3% to 4% in miles per gallon (MPG) compared to standard E10 (10% ethanol) fuel. [1]
While users on platforms like Pilots of America agree that you get better range, opinions on Reddit's Mechanic Advice indicate that the higher cost of ethanol-free gas often offsets the efficiency savings. [1]

Why the Difference?

• Energy Density: Pure gasoline packs more energy per gallon than ethanol. Ethanol contains about one-third less energy, so your engine has to burn more volume of an ethanol-blended fuel to produce the same amount of power. [1]
• Engine Tuning: Many modern vehicles are designed to efficiently run on E10, so the difference in MPG might be less noticeable. However, older vehicles and small engines often run more efficiently and avoid fuel-system corrosion using ethanol-free gas. [1, 2, 3]

Is it Worth the Cost?
It depends on how you use your equipment:

• Daily Drivers: The cost difference between regular E10 and premium ethanol-free fuel is usually larger than the 3% to 4% fuel savings you get at the pump. [1]
• Small Engines: It is highly recommended to use ethanol-free gas for lawnmowers, boats, chainsaws, and stored vehicles. Ethanol attracts moisture over time and can corrode fuel lines in infrequently used equipment. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

To see if it makes financial sense for your specific vehicle, compare local fuel prices and manually track your MPG for a few weeks on both fuel types. You can find local stations that sell pure gas by searching the Pure-Gas.org Database. [1]

You lost me with the quote from Reddit's Mechanic Advice that said "the higher cost of ethanol-free gas often offsets the efficiency savings".

The difference in price, where I live, for 88 octane ethanol-free Clear Gas is only 10 cents more than 87 octane gas with ethanol.

The lower compression of the internal combustion engine in a Ford Maverick hybrid, in normal around town driving, does not need anything higher than the 87 octane. According to Ford, 87 octane is standard for normal use.

Our 2023 has just the 2K tow but we will likely never tow with it since we have a real truck for truck towing needs, so the recommendation to emrun higher octane (91) while towing wouldn't apply to us.

Also won't waste money on the so-called "top tier" fuel. The ones that advertise that here are much higher per gallon than anywhere else.

Maverik Adventure Stops are extremely popular out west and are expanding further east. They are always packed with cars gassing up so their gas is always fresh. For the extranmiles per gallon for such a tiny difference at a fill up, we'll stick with the ethanol free gasoline.

I'll let our dealership shop tell us if it needs any additive when we have the plugs checked. Highly doubt it will.

Sponsored

 

[kevinmccune]

You lost me with the quote from Reddit's Mechanic Advice that said "the higher cost of ethanol-free gas often offsets the efficiency savings".

The difference in price, where I live, for 88 octane ethanol-free Clear Gas is only 10 cents more than 87 octane gas with ethanol.

The lower compression of the internal combustion engine in a Ford Maverick hybrid, in normal around town driving, does not need anything higher than the 87 octane. According to Ford, 87 octane is standard for normal use.

Our 2023 has just the 2K tow but we will likely never tow with it since we have a real truck for truck towing needs, so the recommendation to emrun higher octane (91) while towing wouldn't apply to us.

Also won't waste money on the so-called "top tier" fuel. The ones that advertise that here are much higher per gallon than anywhere else.

Maverik Adventure Stops are extremely popular out west and are expanding further east. They are always packed with cars gassing up so their gas is always fresh. For the extranmiles per gallon for such a tiny difference at a fill up, we'll stick with the ethanol free gasoline.

I'll let our dealership shop tell us if it needs any additive when we have the plugs checked. Highly doubt it will.

our 88 is 15% ethanol and its usually30-40 cents cheaper a gallon( what kills me is the subsidies the big AG companies get at taxpayer expense)

 

[MavStangVa]

You lost me with the quote from Reddit's Mechanic Advice that said "the higher cost of ethanol-free gas often offsets the efficiency savings".

The difference in price, where I live, for 88 octane ethanol-free Clear Gas is only 10 cents more than 87 octane gas with ethanol.

The lower compression of the internal combustion engine in a Ford Maverick hybrid, in normal around town driving, does not need anything higher than the 87 octane. According to Ford, 87 octane is standard for normal use.

Our 2023 has just the 2K tow but we will likely never tow with it since we have a real truck for truck towing needs, so the recommendation to emrun higher octane (91) while towing wouldn't apply to us.

Also won't waste money on the so-called "top tier" fuel. The ones that advertise that here are much higher per gallon than anywhere else.

Maverik Adventure Stops are extremely popular out west and are expanding further east. They are always packed with cars gassing up so their gas is always fresh. For the extranmiles per gallon for such a tiny difference at a fill up, we'll stick with the ethanol free gasoline.

I'll let our dealership shop tell us if it needs any additive when we have the plugs checked. Highly doubt it will.

I passed the closest station to me Sunday that has ethanol free gas. It is 15 miles away. Regular 87 octane, 10% ethanol was 3.49/gallon. Ethanol free, they did NOT list the octane which would make me skeptical, was $4.99/gallon. Prices vary widely. If I could get pure gas for 10 cents more I would if it was top tier. The point to using Top Tier is that manual actually says " We recommend Top Tier detergent gasolines, where available to help minimize engine deposits and maintain optimal vehicle and engine performance. " Wawa is very popular here, cars waiting in line at some locations, same with Sheetz. Their gas SUCKS. But hey it's usually a nickel/gallon cheaper so people buy it. I have found Shell works best in my Ford trucks going back to 1992 when I bought my Ranger. Other brands like Exxon Mobil Sunoco are fine, even BP but I prefer Shell.

 

[ZABSMAV]

I passed the closest station to me Sunday that has ethanol free gas. It is 15 miles away. Regular 87 octane, 10% ethanol was 3.49/gallon. Ethanol free, they did NOT list the octane which would make me skeptical, was $4.99/gallon. Prices vary widely. If I could get pure gas for 10 cents more I would if it was top tier. The point to using Top Tier is that manual actually says " We recommend Top Tier detergent gasolines, where available to help minimize engine deposits and maintain optimal vehicle and engine performance. " Wawa is very popular here, cars waiting in line at some locations, same with Sheetz. Their gas SUCKS. But hey it's usually a nickel/gallon cheaper so people buy it. I have found Shell works best in my Ford trucks going back to 1992 when I bought my Ranger. Other brands like Exxon Mobil Sunoco are fine, even BP but I prefer Shell.

You do know that the auto manufacturers have a financial stake and incentive to "encourage" use of so-called "top tier" fuels. And it isn't to ensure your engine somehow stays "cleaner". More like their bottom line stays more profitable.

 

[ZABSMAV]

I passed the closest station to me Sunday that has ethanol free gas. It is 15 miles away. Regular 87 octane, 10% ethanol was 3.49/gallon. Ethanol free, they did NOT list the octane which would make me skeptical, was $4.99/gallon. Prices vary widely. If I could get pure gas for 10 cents more I would if it was top tier. The point to using Top Tier is that manual actually says " We recommend Top Tier detergent gasolines, where available to help minimize engine deposits and maintain optimal vehicle and engine performance. " Wawa is very popular here, cars waiting in line at some locations, same with Sheetz. Their gas SUCKS. But hey it's usually a nickel/gallon cheaper so people buy it. I have found Shell works best in my Ford trucks going back to 1992 when I bought my Ranger. Other brands like Exxon Mobil Sunoco are fine, even BP but I prefer Shell.

Maverik Adventure Stops only charge 10 cents more between 87 octane regular and 88 octane Clear Gas ethanol free gasoline. The prices on the pump prove that. Don't understand why your area charges that much more for ethanol free except it might just be that in the corn belt areas they price ethanol free gasoline much higher to keep the farmers happy.

 

[MavStangVa]

Maverik Adventure Stops only charge 10 cents more between 87 octane regular and 88 octane Clear Gas ethanol free gasoline. The prices on the pump prove that. Don't understand why your area charges that much more for ethanol free except it might just be that in the corn belt areas they price ethanol free gasoline much higher to keep the farmers happy.

You have made that point many many times. Also the difference between 85 and 91 in your area is much lower.Yet it just seems impractical for me to drive to Utah to get my gas. It's great you can get it so cheap but most of the rest of us can not. Therefor the gain in mpg does not justify the cost. If someone prefers 100% pure gas that is fine with me but you can not argue it is not much more based on a limited availability. Here we do not have 85,87,91 we have 87,89,93 octanes. Virginia is NOT the corn belt. Virginia is ranked 25th for corn production. Sorry I don't believe the gas stations charge more for non-ethanol to keep the farmers happy. Gas stations operate to keep stock holders, owners happy.

 

[ZABSMAV]

our 88 is 15% ethanol and its usually30-40 cents cheaper a gallon( what kills me is the subsidies the big AG companies get at taxpayer expense)

Exactly. You hit the nail on the head. The same thing that was happening in the home solar business as well as the industrial solar plants. As soon as the artificial subsidies by taxpayers were taken away, they were not at all cost effective, and the companies quickly disappeared.

 

[26mavxlt]

It is odd, but the same type station (maverick) here in Washington state is 60 cents more for the ethonal free, we are a blue state with very high tax on our gas and well on everything really so just not sure why the big jump in some states for the E free gas compaired to Utah and Nev.

 

[ZABSMAV]

It is odd, but the same type station (maverick) here in Washington state is 60 cents more for the ethonal free, we are a blue state with very high tax on our gas and well on everything really so just not sure why the big jump in some states for the E free gas compaired to Utah and Nev.

It is certainly interesting why we only have to pay 10 cents more per gallon for Maverik's Clear Gas for our Maverick and a whole bunch of places around the country pay a whole lot more per gallon.

 

[mwelby]

So I usually get about 300 to 320 miles per tank. I do mostly highway driving. Get about 26mpg But I decided to conduct a little experiment, me and the family went to the newest buc-ees in ohio and I decided to fill up with their ethanol free gas
I was pleasantly surprised to find out that I got almost 445 miles out of that tank of gas. So if anybody is considering does non ethanol fuel really make a difference? Yes, yes, it makes that much of a difference. And I have repeated it with consecutive results.. Just a FYI for anybody who is considering it. It's worth the extra dollar on fill up per gallon

Wow. By federal law, I didn’t think anyone was allowed to sell ethanol free gas.!

 

[ZABSMAV]

Wow. By federal law, I didn’t think anyone was allowed to sell ethanol free gas.!

Why would anyone be required to buy gasoline watered down with corn alcohol?

Maverik Adventure Stops have sold their brand of ethanol-free gasoline called Clear Gas for years.

 

[mwelby]

Why would anyone be required to buy gasoline watered down with corn alcohol?

Maverik Adventure Stops have sold their brand of ethanol-free gasoline called Clear Gas for years.

Interesting. I know that years ago there was some kind of a deal between the federal government and the corn farmers.

 

[ZABSMAV]

Interesting. I know that years ago there was some kind of a deal between the federal government and the corn farmers.

Bingo!

 

[tiktokbrainrot]

Wow. By federal law, I didn’t think anyone was allowed to sell ethanol free gas.!

Yes, federal law mandates the blending of ethanol into the U.S. fuel supply through the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). Established by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and expanded by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, the RFS requires oil and gas companies to blend increasing volumes of renewable fuels, primarily corn-based ethanol, into gasoline and diesel each year. By 2022, the mandate required 36 billion gallons of biofuels, with up to 15 billion gallons allowed from conventional corn ethanol.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administers the RFS and enforces blending requirements, which have resulted in most U.S. gasoline containing about 10% ethanol (E10). In 2026, the EPA issued emergency waivers to allow E15 (15% ethanol) sales nationwide during summer months to increase fuel supply flexibility. While direct subsidies like tax credits ended in 2011, the RFS mandate continues to function as a regulatory requirement that effectively subsidizes ethanol production by compelling its use.

 

[ZABSMAV]

Yes, federal law mandates the blending of ethanol into the U.S. fuel supply through the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). Established by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and expanded by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, the RFS requires oil and gas companies to blend increasing volumes of renewable fuels, primarily corn-based ethanol, into gasoline and diesel each year. By 2022, the mandate required 36 billion gallons of biofuels, with up to 15 billion gallons allowed from conventional corn ethanol.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administers the RFS and enforces blending requirements, which have resulted in most U.S. gasoline containing about 10% ethanol (E10). In 2026, the EPA issued emergency waivers to allow E15 (15% ethanol) sales nationwide during summer months to increase fuel supply flexibility. While direct subsidies like tax credits ended in 2011, the RFS mandate continues to function as a regulatory requirement that effectively subsidizes ethanol production by compelling its use.

Nowhere in that does it prohibit refineries from offering pure gasoline without the energy robbing ethanol diluting the fuel. Evidently federal regulators, with pressure from the cornbelt states, sold the idea of increasing the U.S. supply of energy back in 2007 by adding ethanol from corn, when domestic oil production was severely limited by federal policies. That is certainly not the case now and oil production out of the ground is the highest in history in the U.S.

It appears that this may just be a regional thing, but once people have tried pure ethanol-free gasoline, like Maverik Adventure Stops' Clear Gas, and see the gas mileage benefits from it, for only 10 cents more a gallon, they never go back to the diluted gasoline.

Sponsored