2002-2005 Ethanol free fuel or not? | Ford Thunderbird forum club group 1955-2005 models

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2002-2005 Ethanol free fuel or not?

  • Thread starter Thread starter MPGollotto
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MPGollotto

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Just wondering what advice anyone has regarding use of ethanol free fuel or not. I know in older cars ethanol destroys carburetor innards and have experience with that. looking up the owners manuals only say use premium but doesn't mention ethanol use.

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I've deleted all the posts that erroneously stated the manual said not to use ethanol. It says do not use fuel containing methanol! Methanol and ethanol are different types of alcohol or chemicals and they have different properties and uses.

The owner's manual absolutely does not say not to use ethanol. If you speak to a mechanic, they will tell you that engines that run on ethanol are very clean compared to running non-ethanol fuel aka "pure gas". Once upon a time I would pay extra for non-ethanol gasoline, but I no longer do that after mechanics explaining ethanol fuel keeps the engine cleaner.

This is not a classic car. Modern cars are designed to run on ethanol fuels since most gasoline sold for decades has ethanol in it.


There is more related information in this thread-

forums.fordthunderbirdforum.com

Which octane rating of gas do you use?

When I picked up my new Thunderbird, the dealer told me that I could simply use the lowest gas octane and the car would be fine. But the owner's manual indicates that it's best to use a higher octane level. Because of that, I've been using "Premium" gas ever since, but it does eat into the...
forums.fordthunderbirdforum.com forums.fordthunderbirdforum.com

Ford-Thunderbird-Fuel-Page1.jpgFord-Thunderbird-Fuel-Page2.jpg
 
Last edited:
Biddle is correct about ethanol use. I run E85 in all my vehicles with a conversion kit. Except my SHO as direct injected engines can't be converted. Fords have lots of positive fuel trim so you can run 50-50 mix of gas and E85 with no conversion kit. Gives you premium fuel for less and a much cleaner engine.
 
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