E85 real world impressions ??

LakeSurfer · 08-08-2019, 11:04 AM

hey,
I’m worn out and confused by all the information regarding E85 in our M3’s and am hoping to hear some real world opinions by those who run it.

I have a decent understanding of the how’s and whys it works well and gives a power boost and there are several stations near me that sell it but……

My E93 is catless with x pipe, Active Autowerke exhaust and im told it has been tuned by AA but I’m not sure what exactly that means.

I do not want to switch the pump gas and e85 tunes back and forth as I would prefer plug and play. This brought me to the AFD ProFlex E85 Flex Fuel kit. The claim is adding about 25 WHP all for the low low price of $1200. It sounds like to can run straight E85, pump gas or a blend. Some say that a blend of 60% e85 works the best per data logs and others say straight e85 is better. It always seems like the claims are made by those who have not made the commitment.

Anyway, I would love to hear your input as $1200 for 25 whp seems pretty nice considering the NA of my Engine.

Thanks in advance

-Mark

bmwm3s65 · 08-08-2019, 12:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LakeSurfer

hey,
I’m worn out and confused by all the information regarding E85 in our M3’s and am hoping to hear some real world opinions by those who run it.

I have a decent understanding of the how’s and whys it works well and gives a power boost and there are several stations near me that sell it but……

My E93 is catless with x pipe, Active Autowerke exhaust and im told it has been tuned by AA but I’m not sure what exactly that means.

I do not want to switch the pump gas and e85 tunes back and forth as I would prefer plug and play. This brought me to the AFD ProFlex E85 Flex Fuel kit. The claim is adding about 25 WHP all for the low low price of $1200. It sounds like to can run straight E85, pump gas or a blend. Some say that a blend of 60% e85 works the best per data logs and others say straight e85 is better. It always seems like the claims are made by those who have not made the commitment.

Anyway, I would love to hear your input as $1200 for 25 whp seems pretty nice considering the NA of my Engine.

Thanks in advance

-Mark

Hey Lakesurfer,

I do not have a flex commander but I am running alex alpines straight e85 tune and i think it makes a noticeable difference. It pulls harder especially after 5k and burbles and pops if you let off after 5500k, sounds amazing and i dont have the full burble tune which is not recommended anyway. it seems to keep the exhaust cleaner too. I notice very little carbon build up if any on the exhaust tips between washes and i like the ethanol smell when starting the car. I have pulleys, test pipes megan exhaust, eventuri intake and full e85 and i believe it makes over 400hp to the wheels. I have not dynoed it yet though. Since i have just a tune and not a e85 piggyback ecu like the flex commander, i have to switch the tune back and forth while at the gas station if i want to switch octanes, however it only takes about 7-10 minutes. from the research i have done, i believe that a full e85 tunes yields more hp than the flex commander, however i do not believe it is significant and the ability to switch on the fly is a huge benefit especially if you dont have e85 station close to you. I bought the tune during a group buy which they appear to have often. With the standard tune and the e85 tune added on it cost me about $500. Even at normal price i believe Alex alpines tune with e85 is still a bit cheaper than the flex commander. Amazing tune and recommend it to anyone.

LakeSurfer · 08-08-2019, 12:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by glacket

Hey Lakesurfer,

I do not have a flex commander but I am running alex alpines straight e85 tune and i think it makes a noticeable difference. It pulls harder especially after 5k and burbles and pops if you let off after 5500k, sounds amazing and i dont have the full burble tune which is not recommended anyway. it seems to keep the exhaust cleaner too. I notice very little carbon build up if any on the exhaust tips between washes and i like the ethanol smell when starting the car. I have pulleys, test pipes megan exhaust, eventuri intake and full e85 and i believe it makes over 400hp to the wheels. I have not dynoed it yet though. Since i have just a tune and not a e85 piggyback ecu like the flex commander, i have to switch the tune back and forth while at the gas station if i want to switch octanes, however it only takes about 7-10 minutes. from the research i have done, i believe that a full e85 tunes yields more hp than the flex commander, however i do not believe it is significant and the ability to switch on the fly is a huge benefit especially if you dont have e85 station close to you. I bought the tune during a group buy which they appear to have often. With the standard tune and the e85 tune added on it cost me about $500. Even at normal price i believe Alex alpines tune with e85 is still a bit cheaper than the flex commander. Amazing tune and recommend it to anyone.

Seems like solid advice, I appreciate it.

I was thinking the flex commander would be nice simply because it adjust everything automatically. So i could run a tank of 93 and then half and half or full E85 without doing anything but i would be relying on the gear to work properly sooo theirs that. I read an article by someone who races with E85 and he said that he'll run a tank of pump gas every 5 or 6th fill up just to "clean" things up a bit and that it helps a lot. so far Ive found about 10 stations within 15 miles from my house that carry E85 so it almost seems like id be crazy not to run it, right? especially at $2.30 per gal when 93 is closer to $3.

-Mark

pbonsalb · 08-08-2019, 12:58 PM

The proflex is not an e85 performance tune so you won’t get the gains of a straight e85 aftermarket tune that raises timing targets. You will still get some benefit from the oxygenated fuel, but I seriously doubt it will be 25 rwhp. Maybe half that on a naturally aspirated S65. But it is still a gain and gains are hard to come by on this already high strung motor.

bmwm3s65 · 08-08-2019, 06:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LakeSurfer

Seems like solid advice, I appreciate it.

I was thinking the flex commander would be nice simply because it adjust everything automatically. So i could run a tank of 93 and then half and half or full E85 without doing anything but i would be relying on the gear to work properly sooo theirs that. I read an article by someone who races with E85 and he said that he'll run a tank of pump gas every 5 or 6th fill up just to "clean" things up a bit and that it helps a lot. so far Ive found about 10 stations within 15 miles from my house that carry E85 so it almost seems like id be crazy not to run it, right? especially at $2.30 per gal when 93 is closer to $3.

-Mark

Alex recommended the same thing, that i swap back to 93 every couple tanks, which i do, however one guy said he ran it for over a year no problems and hes supercharged. you get more gains from e85 when supercharged but na motors still make some hp from it. I say go for it. I think you will notice the difference. probably the only downside is that you don't get as many miles out of a tank of e85, but its like drugs for the car. turns it into an absolute beast.

Grip Addict · 08-09-2019, 06:29 PM

From my automotive circles, E85 is great for when you want to show off and quote your kill mode, but until every gas station has E85 it is a pain in the butt for people.

Rolling with jugs of E85 in VP Racing or knock off containers in your performance car isn't that safe as well.

pbonsalb · 08-09-2019, 07:20 PM

Nearest E85 to me is 75 miles away. At least we have 93 pump. But if I lived in a place where E85 was common, I would run it. Instead, I run water/meth injection on my turbo 99M3 and my n/a 08M3.

Adriano917 · 08-11-2019, 11:18 PM

I have the proflex commander and it works great, as far as making 25whp don’t know haven’t dynoed the car, but it felt better when I made the switch on higher RPM. What I like is that I can use E85 or 91 at any moment.

sdbmwcoding · 08-12-2019, 12:59 AM

I've ran both, flex fuel kit and gintani's 100% E85 tune. I ran the E85 tune for a year straight and the flex fuel kit with e40-e70 mixes for 6 months straight. I will say the flex fuel kit seemed just as fast and the full E85 runs when comparing butt dyno and actual test runs with other cars. It sounds like you don't want to deal with the hassle of changing between tunes so I think the flex fuel kit will be more beneficial to you. I am selling my APE E85 flex fuel kit for $500 shipped ($750 retail) if you're interested. Kit was tested by tuner Dardan and it made an extra 30 whp on e70. 100% stock baseline was done, e70 fuel added and within a few pulls it made an extra 30 horsepower. All the flex fuel kits are literally the same, power module, fuel line and harness for injectors. I wouldn't personally pay $1200 for the AFD kit when there are other options out there on the market. Feel free to check my APE E85 flex fuel kit for sale thread on my account to get more info on the testing, product and user application interface

fatalelement · 08-12-2019, 10:40 AM

Used to run a different platform, but even at much lower HP (less than half at the crank of an M3) an aggressive timing change due to E85 running a lot cooler in the cylinder and the E85 itself was a big difference. Measurable easily, and you could definitely see it even before the dyno.

I had a small tablet I kept in the car that could swap the tunes, I lived near E85 but it was not convenient to do road trips without lugging fuel canisters (I was happy to do it, but the refueling took a long time and was awkward). Swapping tunes at least on my old car took like 1 minute, really wasn't a big deal.

Remember also that if you are running E85, despite it being "cheaper," in almost any car it is more expensive per mile. You will get noticeably worse MPG - any tune for it compensates for the fact that you need to run more E85 per mile. E85 has less energy content than gas - about 20% or more - so you will chug through it pretty quick. Add an aggressive tune (aka using even more E85) and you will be surprised, especially in an M3, how quick you go through it. If I got 25% worse MPG, I'd be getting 12. That's less than 200mi to a tank.

Just a thing to think about.

08-08-2019, 11:04 AM	#1
LakeSurfer Captain 822 Rep 684 Posts Drives: bicycle Join Date: May 2019 Location: Florida iTrader: (0)	E85 real world impressions ?? hey, I’m worn out and confused by all the information regarding E85 in our M3’s and am hoping to hear some real world opinions by those who run it. I have a decent understanding of the how’s and whys it works well and gives a power boost and there are several stations near me that sell it but…… My E93 is catless with x pipe, Active Autowerke exhaust and im told it has been tuned by AA but I’m not sure what exactly that means. I do not want to switch the pump gas and e85 tunes back and forth as I would prefer plug and play. This brought me to the AFD ProFlex E85 Flex Fuel kit. The claim is adding about 25 WHP all for the low low price of $1200. It sounds like to can run straight E85, pump gas or a blend. Some say that a blend of 60% e85 works the best per data logs and others say straight e85 is better. It always seems like the claims are made by those who have not made the commitment. Anyway, I would love to hear your input as $1200 for 25 whp seems pretty nice considering the NA of my Engine. Thanks in advance -Mark
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08-08-2019, 12:58 PM	#4
pbonsalb Lieutenant General 5287 Rep 10,682 Posts Drives: 18 F90 M5, 99 E36 M3 Turbo Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: New England iTrader: (4)	The proflex is not an e85 performance tune so you won’t get the gains of a straight e85 aftermarket tune that raises timing targets. You will still get some benefit from the oxygenated fuel, but I seriously doubt it will be 25 rwhp. Maybe half that on a naturally aspirated S65. But it is still a gain and gains are hard to come by on this already high strung motor. Last edited by pbonsalb; 08-08-2019 at 07:02 PM..
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08-09-2019, 06:29 PM	#6
Grip Addict Banned 1082 Rep 713 Posts Drives: ///M3 Join Date: Jun 2018 Location: PA iTrader: (9)	From my automotive circles, E85 is great for when you want to show off and quote your kill mode, but until every gas station has E85 it is a pain in the butt for people. Rolling with jugs of E85 in VP Racing or knock off containers in your performance car isn't that safe as well.
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08-09-2019, 07:20 PM	#7
pbonsalb Lieutenant General 5287 Rep 10,682 Posts Drives: 18 F90 M5, 99 E36 M3 Turbo Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: New England iTrader: (4)	Nearest E85 to me is 75 miles away. At least we have 93 pump. But if I lived in a place where E85 was common, I would run it. Instead, I run water/meth injection on my turbo 99M3 and my n/a 08M3.
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08-11-2019, 11:18 PM	#8
Adriano917 09 M3 e93 VF650, e30 e85, Remus, Federal’s 595rs 205 Rep 329 Posts Drives: BMW M3 Join Date: Jun 2019 Location: El Paso, Tx iTrader: (0)	I have the proflex commander and it works great, as far as making 25whp don’t know haven’t dynoed the car, but it felt better when I made the switch on higher RPM. What I like is that I can use E85 or 91 at any moment. __________________ 09 M3 E93 - VF650, AFD e30 e85, Remus Race, Federal’s 595 rs-pro’s.
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08-12-2019, 12:59 AM	#9
sdbmwcoding Captain 185 Rep 782 Posts Drives: BMW M3 Join Date: May 2019 Location: San Diego iTrader: (0)	I've ran both, flex fuel kit and gintani's 100% E85 tune. I ran the E85 tune for a year straight and the flex fuel kit with e40-e70 mixes for 6 months straight. I will say the flex fuel kit seemed just as fast and the full E85 runs when comparing butt dyno and actual test runs with other cars. It sounds like you don't want to deal with the hassle of changing between tunes so I think the flex fuel kit will be more beneficial to you. I am selling my APE E85 flex fuel kit for $500 shipped ($750 retail) if you're interested. Kit was tested by tuner Dardan and it made an extra 30 whp on e70. 100% stock baseline was done, e70 fuel added and within a few pulls it made an extra 30 horsepower. All the flex fuel kits are literally the same, power module, fuel line and harness for injectors. I wouldn't personally pay $1200 for the AFD kit when there are other options out there on the market. Feel free to check my APE E85 flex fuel kit for sale thread on my account to get more info on the testing, product and user application interface
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08-12-2019, 10:40 AM	#10
fatalelement Private First Class 174 Rep 137 Posts Drives: 2008 E93 Space Grey M3 DCT Join Date: Oct 2018 Location: San Francisco, California iTrader: (0)	Used to run a different platform, but even at much lower HP (less than half at the crank of an M3) an aggressive timing change due to E85 running a lot cooler in the cylinder and the E85 itself was a big difference. Measurable easily, and you could definitely see it even before the dyno. I had a small tablet I kept in the car that could swap the tunes, I lived near E85 but it was not convenient to do road trips without lugging fuel canisters (I was happy to do it, but the refueling took a long time and was awkward). Swapping tunes at least on my old car took like 1 minute, really wasn't a big deal. Remember also that if you are running E85, despite it being "cheaper," in almost any car it is more expensive per mile. You will get noticeably worse MPG - any tune for it compensates for the fact that you need to run more E85 per mile. E85 has less energy content than gas - about 20% or more - so you will chug through it pretty quick. Add an aggressive tune (aka using even more E85) and you will be surprised, especially in an M3, how quick you go through it. If I got 25% worse MPG, I'd be getting 12. That's less than 200mi to a tank. Just a thing to think about.
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