Motorists who fill up with E85 petrol in France can cause major damage to their car’s engine. This fuel does not contain 85 percent gasoline and 15 percent biofuel, but the ratio is exactly the opposite.
Holidaymakers traveling to France by car are likely to encounter fuel pumps with E85 petrol this summer. About 40 percent of all French gas stations now sell the stuff and last year a record number of liters were sold. However, this is not the petrol we know here in the Netherlands, but a fuel that can cause a lot of damage to your car and is actually only suitable for cars with special ‘flexi-fuel engines’.
French cars extensively converted
With all the different indications for fuels at petrol stations abroad, a mistake is easy to make. That can be expensive, because this Super petrol consists of 85 percent ethanol. It is made from plants such as corn, sugar cane and sugar beets and that is good for the environment, but not for your car. Especially when this stuff makes up 85 percent of your fuel and only 15 percent gasoline is added.
This fuel is therefore only intended for cars that have been made suitable for this aggressive substance. E85 gasoline is about 2.5 times cheaper than regular fuel in France. Many French people have their car converted by purchasing a special kit, or they buy a flexi-fuel car. Ford in particular has many models that are suitable for this E85 gasoline.
Netherlands E10
In the Netherlands, ethanol is also added, but with this E10 fuel this only involves a maximum of 10 percent mixing. Only really older cars cannot handle it well because the mixed ethanol is quite aggressive and corrosive and can therefore damage various engine parts. However, modern cars can handle this fuel quite well, which is better for reducing CO2 emissions.
However, ethanol also dissolves plasticizers in rubbers, possibly causing certain pipes and sealing rings in older cars to become porous. As a rule, almost all engines made after the year 2000 can handle ethanol. An additional disadvantage is that ethanol attracts moisture. This causes the fuel to age much faster than normal E5 gasoline. On the website www.e10check.nl you can check whether your car is resistant to E10 fuel with ethanol.
‘Small amounts of ethanol no problem’
However, your car cannot handle E85. “Small amounts of ethanol are not a problem for most petrol engines, but just refueling with E85 is not a good idea,” says a car expert from the ANWB. “This fuel is only suitable for cars that have been specially adapted for this. In the Netherlands both those cars and the fuel are scarce, but in France and Scandinavian countries, among others, you can find E85 at many pumps. If you have accidentally filled up with E85, call the Roadside Assistance immediately for advice so that we can check for you or intervene immediately. is necessary.”
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