E85 Tuning Questions

[MaxCarnage]

So I've been contemplating getting an E85 tune in the future for my Redeye and I was wondering if anyone had experience with Curt Dusterhoff? I've talked to him recently about a few things. He said he currently has an E85 tune for the Redeye, but the flex fuel tune for the Redeye won't be ready for a remote tune, until he does a one or two locally first. So that said those that have had Curt as a tuner and the flex fuel tune on your Hellcat, can you please give me some feedback about how it's different than just a E85 tune. A real flex fuel tune should adjust as per the alcohol content it sees all the way down to pump gas. Not sure if this is exactly what that does, or if it just allows you to run pump gas if needed but you can't go WOT? I know he said with the E85 tune, you can go as low as E75 but any lower and you'll have to swap to a E70 tune. So our factory wideband sensors compensate a bit for alcohol content, but we don't have an ethanol sensor in our cars to detect and adjust like a true E85 tune would do. Curt seems like a good guy and so far I'm interested, just want to know what I'm getting into before I pull the trigger.

I also just pretty much locally and weekend drive my Redeye, so I likley would run E85 all the time (Except in winter when I put pump in it and store it).

 

[moparjim]

So I've been contemplating getting an E85 tune in the future for my Redeye and I was wondering if anyone had experience with Curt Dusterhoff? I've talked to him recently about a few things. He said he currently has an E85 tune for the Redeye, but the flex fuel tune for the Redeye won't be ready for a remote tune, until he does a one or two locally first. So that said those that have had Curt as a tuner and the flex fuel tune on your Hellcat, can you please give me some feedback about how it's different than just a E85 tune. A real flex fuel tune should adjust as per the alcohol content it sees all the way down to pump gas. Not sure if this is exactly what that does, or if it just allows you to run pump gas if needed but you can't go WOT? I know he said with the E85 tune, you can go as low as E75 but any lower and you'll have to swap to a E70 tune. So our factory wideband sensors compensate a bit for alcohol content, but we don't have an ethanol sensor in our cars to detect and adjust like a true E85 tune would do. Curt seems like a good guy and so far I'm interested, just want to know what I'm getting into before I pull the trigger.

I also just pretty much locally and weekend drive my Redeye, so I likley would run E85 all the time (Except in winter when I put pump in it and store it).

There is probably nobody better to ask than @Phast Hemi .
His cat was and his Redeye is tuned by Curt.
You are lucky. I don't have a choice. No e85 around me except for what vp sells. And that's not at all convenient for me to get.

 

[Demon1]

So I've been contemplating getting an E85 tune in the future for my Redeye and I was wondering if anyone had experience with Curt Dusterhoff? I've talked to him recently about a few things. He said he currently has an E85 tune for the Redeye, but the flex fuel tune for the Redeye won't be ready for a remote tune, until he does a one or two locally first. So that said those that have had Curt as a tuner and the flex fuel tune on your Hellcat, can you please give me some feedback about how it's different than just a E85 tune. A real flex fuel tune should adjust as per the alcohol content it sees all the way down to pump gas. Not sure if this is exactly what that does, or if it just allows you to run pump gas if needed but you can't go WOT? I know he said with the E85 tune, you can go as low as E75 but any lower and you'll have to swap to a E70 tune. So our factory wideband sensors compensate a bit for alcohol content, but we don't have an ethanol sensor in our cars to detect and adjust like a true E85 tune would do. Curt seems like a good guy and so far I'm interested, just want to know what I'm getting into before I pull the trigger.

I also just pretty much locally and weekend drive my Redeye, so I likley would run E85 all the time (Except in winter when I put pump in it and store it).

I know @Marc0779 works with Curt, but I'm not sure if he's using E85. Let's see if Marc responds.

 

[MaxCarnage]

There is probably nobody better to ask than @Phast Hemi .
His cat was and his Redeye is tuned by Curt.
You are lucky. I don't have a choice. No e85 around me except for what vp sells. And that's not at all convenient for me to get.

No I am very much NOT lucky lol. I have almost zero sources of E85. In fact I have exactly 1 source. A local company gets E85 from about 2 hours away off the pump (from another one of their sources) and sells it in 55 gallon barrels. They said I can test it before I buy a barrel. Assuming it's consistent threw out a race year I'd be good with doing that considering my car is only a weekend car anyway. I wish their was a better source, but alas the only local E85 pump here died in 2009 (RIP).

According to Curt, PhastHemi is on an E85 tune, but not the flex fuel tune. I'm just trying to figure out the best way to go for my Redeye. I like the idea behind E85, if I can run it at the track and go WOT and street drive it as well that would be great. I just need to know even on the flex tune what are my limitations I should be careful about when I race? Curt said I can go as low as E75 on the E85 tune, so does that mean if a batch tested at E75 on my E85 tune I would be okay to race it, but not any lower than that? That's also where I need to know what the flex fuel tune specifically does over just an E85 tune. I don't want my engine to go POP! I hear good things and bad things about E85. Sounds like almost all engines that go pop on E are from owners not testing fuel and allowing the levels of E to go to low while under WOT. I want to make sure that doesn't happen, so I just want to know exactly what my limitations are, so I can do my job and keep an eye on that E content.

Also to keep things very simple to start. I'm looking at just an E85 tune, stock pulley. I want to race and have fun with the least amount of risk to my engine, but I don't want to stay stock forever ahaha

*Edit* Technically I have another E85/E98 source from a company that sells it as their own brand called Thunderbolt Racing Fuel. I haven't looking into much, but from what I remember their cost is a good deal higher around $6-$7 a gallon

 

[TMAC]

Here in AZ, E85 has been very hard to find consistently and reliably. But, the situation has improved as there are now 3 stations close to me that seem to have it all the time. One is a mile from my home.
I wouldn't convert this year, because I am doing a lot of other things to the car already. But if more stations start making it available, I will be converting.

 

[MaxCarnage]

Here in AZ, E85 has been very hard to find consistently and reliably. But, the situation has improved as there are now 3 stations close to me that seem to have it all the time. One is a mile from my home.
I wouldn't convert this year, because I am doing a lot of other things to the car already. But if more stations start making it available, I will be converting.

This is kind of what I am hoping for, while I am researching this more options become available! lol. The issue is there are no refineries really in this area, so the cost of E85 is higher here and the regular person won't want to run it when it costs about double what regular fuel costs and burns roughly 30% faster. Hopefully that changes, but my area seems to be embracing electric options more so than anything else.

 

[MaxCarnage]

Another alternative I've been thinking about is having 2 tunes. 1 for pump fuel street driving and 1 E85 tune for racing. More research is needed lol.

 

[DGatzby]

Guys I am lucky to have the stuff all over the place for just over $2 now. They sell it right outside the gate at BIR. Anyway, we put a E85 tune on my '06 SRT! Hardly anyone was doing it. It worked. I suppose my friend who owns it could use that tune. But it was a simple deal, run your tank down low, fill with the different fuel and switch the tune. Looks like they may be able to do it with a push button on the RE. As long as you could at least test your E-85 or they have a circuit to sense the alcohol content, that would be a sweet set-up.

 

[Blkout]

So I've been contemplating getting an E85 tune in the future for my Redeye and I was wondering if anyone had experience with Curt Dusterhoff? I've talked to him recently about a few things. He said he currently has an E85 tune for the Redeye, but the flex fuel tune for the Redeye won't be ready for a remote tune, until he does a one or two locally first. So that said those that have had Curt as a tuner and the flex fuel tune on your Hellcat, can you please give me some feedback about how it's different than just a E85 tune. A real flex fuel tune should adjust as per the alcohol content it sees all the way down to pump gas. Not sure if this is exactly what that does, or if it just allows you to run pump gas if needed but you can't go WOT? I know he said with the E85 tune, you can go as low as E75 but any lower and you'll have to swap to a E70 tune. So our factory wideband sensors compensate a bit for alcohol content, but we don't have an ethanol sensor in our cars to detect and adjust like a true E85 tune would do. Curt seems like a good guy and so far I'm interested, just want to know what I'm getting into before I pull the trigger.

I also just pretty much locally and weekend drive my Redeye, so I likley would run E85 all the time (Except in winter when I put pump in it and store it).

I've been running E85 daily since April of 2018. My car has Curt's flex tune on it. No issues at all and love the flexibility to run whatever fuel I want without swapping tunes.

And by the way Curt is great!

 

[moparjim]

No I am very much NOT lucky lol. I have almost zero sources of E85. In fact I have exactly 1 source. A local company gets E85 from about 2 hours away off the pump (from another one of their sources) and sells it in 55 gallon barrels. They said I can test it before I buy a barrel. Assuming it's consistent threw out a race year I'd be good with doing that considering my car is only a weekend car anyway. I wish their was a better source, but alas the only local E85 pump here died in 2009 (RIP).

According to Curt, PhastHemi is on an E85 tune, but not the flex fuel tune. I'm just trying to figure out the best way to go for my Redeye. I like the idea behind E85, if I can run it at the track and go WOT and street drive it as well that would be great. I just need to know even on the flex tune what are my limitations I should be careful about when I race? Curt said I can go as low as E75 on the E85 tune, so does that mean if a batch tested at E75 on my E85 tune I would be okay to race it, but not any lower than that? That's also where I need to know what the flex fuel tune specifically does over just an E85 tune. I don't want my engine to go POP! I hear good things and bad things about E85. Sounds like almost all engines that go pop on E are from owners not testing fuel and allowing the levels of E to go to low while under WOT. I want to make sure that doesn't happen, so I just want to know exactly what my limitations are, so I can do my job and keep an eye on that E content.

Also to keep things very simple to start. I'm looking at just an E85 tune, stock pulley. I want to race and have fun with the least amount of risk to my engine, but I don't want to stay stock forever ahaha

*Edit* Technically I have another E85/E98 source from a company that sells it as their own brand called Thunderbolt Racing Fuel. I haven't looking into much, but from what I remember their cost is a good deal higher around $6-$7 a gallon

I didn't realize you had no e85 easily attainable either.
My only concern with having a 55gal drum of the stuff. Is how long it would take to go through with a car used occasionally.
It doesn't exactly have a great shelf life. And will tend to absorb moisture before you work your way through it. This would also be not a good thing for the longevity of your motor.

 

[Demon1]

I didn't realize you had no e85 easily attainable either.
My only concern with having a 55gal drum of the stuff. Is how long it would take to go through with a car used occasionally.
It doesn't exactly have a great shelf life. And will tend to absorb moisture before you work your way through it. This would also be not a good thing for the longevity of your motor.

Can't you use a stabilizer in E85? I thought you could.

 

[MaxCarnage]

I didn't realize you had no e85 easily attainable either.
My only concern with having a 55gal drum of the stuff. Is how long it would take to go through with a car used occasionally.
It doesn't exactly have a great shelf life. And will tend to absorb moisture before you work your way through it. This would also be not a good thing for the longevity of your motor.

Agreed. Although you go threw E85 faster than gasoline. I think I've heard the shelf life of E85 in a barrel is around 60-90 days, unsure though. I was told to keep the barrel off the concrete so it doesn't absorb moisture. Although this is why I wouldn't mind a flex tune either, especially if I buy my E85 from this other company that makes it themselves and sells it in pails or barrels.

 

[moparjim]

Can't you use a stabilizer in E85? I thought you could.

You could. But then you are introducing yet another product. How this affects the fuel for say our purpose I dont know.
I wouldn't want to take a chance with my motor. The effects might be minor but so is some variation in e content in fuel.
Which seams to be an issue in some cases.

 

[Jack_Toepfer]

Friend of mine went with Curt's flex tune but they couldn't get the fan to shut off. It was constantly on HIGH... super annoying. They decided to ditch the flex tune and just go with the dedicated e85 tune. No problems since.

 

[Demon1]

You could. But then you are introducing yet another product. How this affects the fuel for say our purpose I dont know.
I wouldn't want to take a chance with my motor. The effects might be minor but so is some variation in e content in fuel.
Which seams to be an issue in some cases.

I'd like to do some research on that and hear if anyone on here has experience with stabilizing E85. I'm working with Demon Performance on a new build and we are leaning toward E85. I was concerned about storing fuel, but he said it can be stabilized. I'll need more info.

 

[moparjim]

I'd like to do some research on that and hear if anyone on here has experience with stabilizing E85. I'm working with Demon Performance on a new build and we are leaning toward E85. I was concerned about storing fuel, but he said it can be stabilized. I'll need more info.

I am far from any form of genius on the subject. It would be something I would check into further if I needed to.

 

[Speedy!]

Curt does good work from what I've seen. Good dude too, talked to him several times.

The fans not shutting off seems odd since they're controlled in a their own part of the calibration.

 

[MaxCarnage]

Okay so I had a chat with a localish company around here called Thunderbolt Racing Fuel (Based out of Oregon). They make dried fruit and the excess sugar waste gets turned into E85/E98. They told me their Ethanol is consistent drum after drum. They also said if I used an E tester the E85 would read higher than it really is, right around E89. They told me those testers aren't super accurate and can be off a few percentage. I also asked them about storage of Ethanol. They told me as long as the drum is sealed back up after each time you open it to refuel your car that the ethanol in the drum will be good for 1-1 1/2 years (Moisture being the big concern).

So that said I'm either going to wait and see if the flex tune is worth it, once Curt gets it ready for the Redeye, or I will just have him give me 2 tunes. 1 for the pump (street driving), and 1 E85 tune for racing. If the flex tune works the way I want it to, I'll be able to drive around on pump gas IF I desire too. Then, when I want to go racing I'll burn the pump gas down to low, put E85 in it and run around until it smells like E85, then go race it.

Next year would be the earliest that I'd make the switch to E85 anyhow, just doing some research on Flex Fuel, E85 in general, and from anyone who has been tuned by Curt before. So far Curt is my #1 choice for a tuner, but there are lots of tuners who are good that I could choose from if needed. I just prefer someone like Curt who has lots of experience with E85.

 

[Phast Hemi]

Yes, I have lots of experience with Curt...all good. You don't even need to take my word for it. Time slips from my cars that he tuned speak for themselves

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[Phast Hemi]

Can't you use a stabilizer in E85? I thought you could.

No need for "stabilizers" if it is good quality fuel that is properly stored. Shelf like is 6 months plus.

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