How much ethanol is bad?

Rstark · May 10th, 2022, 09:19 AM

Hi all, I was thumbing through my owner’s manual(OM) (1st time I read it &#128514

. Earlier, I’m not sure where but I read something that said you should use 91 octane. That’s when I dug up the OM. It confirmed 87 octane was the way to go. I run only 89 octane non-ethanol. I could switch to 91 octane, but I seriously don’t think I will get any gains or pluses in doing so. I don’t want anything but gas, minus the ethanol.

So my question is how much ethanol fuel do you go through before you see any signs? (On average) A couple that come to mind are rubber fuel hoses and injector clogging. I’ve only found two non ethanol gas stations and one more station several miles away. Sometimes you are simply not in the area of non-ethanol gas stations and need gas. So how bad or good is ethanol?

thedrewski86 · May 10th, 2022, 09:37 AM

I've seen manuals specify 91 RON fuels which are close to the US 87 octane rating. RON is just a European rating. Ethanol really sucks if you have carburetors; it has very noticeable effects after a bike sits for just 3 weeks. You probably won't notice it as much with your fuel-injected 300. I run Sta-bil in both my bikes now as I don't get many miles on them. My carb'd 250 really needs it as the ethanol fuels degrade so much faster.

DannoXYZ · May 10th, 2022, 02:57 PM

Yeah, any amount of ethanol is bad for carb bikes. Due to vented tank and carbs, moisture sneaks in from outside and causes separation of ethanol from gasoline.

On EFI bikes, not that big a deal since systems is fully sealed.

jkv45 · May 11th, 2022, 06:53 AM

Use whatever is the lowest octane gas you can get without ethanol.

No need for anything more than 87 for the Ninja, unless you have to go higher to get away from ethanol. Excessive octane reduces power.

Gas without ethanol will make a carbed engine run richer than gas with ethanol - which usually means better.

I don't run gas with ethanol in anything with a steel tank, or any small 2-stroke.

Gas with ethanol goes bad quicker than gas without.

If tuned precisely for it, gas with ethanol can produce slightly more power, but it's not significant in most applications and doesn't offset the disadvantages, IMO.

Alex · May 11th, 2022, 08:49 AM

Ethanol free gas is not available to huge portions of the population. Any large metro area isn't going to have it nearby. It's only available where many people *aren't*. This site catalogs stations that sell ethanol free gas by state: https://www.pure-gas.org/

jkv45 · May 12th, 2022, 06:52 AM

Sta-Bil makes a couple additives to treat ethanol gas if that's all you can get.

I believe it's Sta-Bil 360 and Sta-Bil Marine.

May 10th, 2022, 09:37 AM	#2
thedrewski86 ninjette.org guru Name: Drew Location: SoCal Join Date: Jul 2013 Motorcycle(s): 2007 SV650S 2005 EX250F Posts: 485	I've seen manuals specify 91 RON fuels which are close to the US 87 octane rating. RON is just a European rating. Ethanol really sucks if you have carburetors; it has very noticeable effects after a bike sits for just 3 weeks. You probably won't notice it as much with your fuel-injected 300. I run Sta-bil in both my bikes now as I don't get many miles on them. My carb'd 250 really needs it as the ethanol fuels degrade so much faster. __________________________________________________ Don't think, look!
	2 out of 2 members found this post helpful.

May 11th, 2022, 08:49 AM	#5
Alex ninjette.org dude Name: 1 guess :-) Location: SF Bay Area Join Date: Jun 2008 Motorcycle(s): '13 Ninja 300 (white, the fastest color!), '13 R1200RT, '14 CRF250L, '12 TT-R125LE, '15 CRF110F, '13 TT-R50E Posts: Too much. Blog Entries: 7	Ethanol free gas is not available to huge portions of the population. Any large metro area isn't going to have it nearby. It's only available where many people aren't. This site catalogs stations that sell ethanol free gas by state: https://www.pure-gas.org/ __________________________________________________ Montgomery Street Motorcycle Club / cal24.com / crf250l.org / ninjette.org ninjette.org Terms of Service Shopping for motorcycle parts or equipment? Come here first. The friendliest Ninja 250R/300/400 forum on the internet! (especially Unregistered)
	2 out of 2 members found this post helpful.

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May 10th, 2022, 09:19 AM	#1
Rstark ninjette.org member Name: Rick Location: Honolulu, HI Join Date: Mar 2022 Motorcycle(s): 2016 Kawasaki Ninja 300 ABS KRT Posts: 18	How much ethanol is bad? Hi all, I was thumbing through my owner’s manual(OM) (1st time I read it &#128514. Earlier, I’m not sure where but I read something that said you should use 91 octane. That’s when I dug up the OM. It confirmed 87 octane was the way to go. I run only 89 octane non-ethanol. I could switch to 91 octane, but I seriously don’t think I will get any gains or pluses in doing so. I don’t want anything but gas, minus the ethanol. So my question is how much ethanol fuel do you go through before you see any signs? (On average) A couple that come to mind are rubber fuel hoses and injector clogging. I’ve only found two non ethanol gas stations and one more station several miles away. Sometimes you are simply not in the area of non-ethanol gas stations and need gas. So how bad or good is ethanol?

May 10th, 2022, 02:57 PM	#3
DannoXYZ ninjette.org certified postwhore Name: AKA JacRyann Location: Mesa, AZ Join Date: Dec 2011 Motorcycle(s): CB125T CBR250R-MC19 CBR250RR-MC22 NSR350R-MC21 VF500F CBR600RR SFV650 VFR750F R1M Valkyrie-F6C Posts: A lot. MOTY - 2018, MOTM - Nov '17	Yeah, any amount of ethanol is bad for carb bikes. Due to vented tank and carbs, moisture sneaks in from outside and causes separation of ethanol from gasoline. On EFI bikes, not that big a deal since systems is fully sealed.

May 11th, 2022, 06:53 AM	#4
jkv45 Rev Limiter Name: Jay Location: WI Join Date: Jul 2013 Motorcycle(s): '06 SV650n, '00 Derbi GPR, '64 CA77 Dream 305, '70 CL450 Scrambler, numerous dirt bikes Posts: A lot. MOTM - Jun '18, Oct '16	Use whatever is the lowest octane gas you can get without ethanol. No need for anything more than 87 for the Ninja, unless you have to go higher to get away from ethanol. Excessive octane reduces power. Gas without ethanol will make a carbed engine run richer than gas with ethanol - which usually means better. I don't run gas with ethanol in anything with a steel tank, or any small 2-stroke. Gas with ethanol goes bad quicker than gas without. If tuned precisely for it, gas with ethanol can produce slightly more power, but it's not significant in most applications and doesn't offset the disadvantages, IMO.

May 12th, 2022, 06:52 AM	#6
jkv45 Rev Limiter Name: Jay Location: WI Join Date: Jul 2013 Motorcycle(s): '06 SV650n, '00 Derbi GPR, '64 CA77 Dream 305, '70 CL450 Scrambler, numerous dirt bikes Posts: A lot. MOTM - Jun '18, Oct '16	Sta-Bil makes a couple additives to treat ethanol gas if that's all you can get. I believe it's Sta-Bil 360 and Sta-Bil Marine.