What's the difference? Ethanol and MTBE
 

I was going to the pump earlier on today to get some gas and I noticed that most gas pumps have MTBE. When I went to Unocal 76, they have Ethanol as opposed to MTBE. What are the differences between the two for my Maxima.

Gasoline producers are required to add a fuel oxygenate to reformulated gasoline to reduce air pollution, especially carbon monoxide. MTBE is the most common fuel oxygenate used in more than 80 percent of oxygenated fuels. MTBE is credited with contributing to significant reductions in carbon monoxide and ozone levels in many of these areas. Ethanol is used also but made from corn.

MTBE in your water can kill you ( it takes a while, usually cancer )and in the last 10 years or so has become a major issue for the epa due to those underground storage tanks which seemed to leak a lot, the ethanol probably not.

Dallas

DOM your sig scares me :laugh:

I saw a segment from 60 minutes (i think that's what it was) on MTBE. It took place in some town out west, and a gas station had been using MTBE and a tank started leaking. Contaiminating water and people started getting sick from it. It was pretty bad. They put it in for emmissions purposes.

Okay thanks for some of the background stuff but what i am trying to ask for is what is the difference between MTBE or Ethanol IN my car. Why does 76 prefer ethanol over MTBE? Performance wise, which is better? Better gas mileage?

Well both will probably give you worse gas mileage because they are putting additives in. Try and search the internet, I am sure somewhere they have a comparison.

The FED's don't mandate which has to be used. The states which are required to use oxygenated fuels usually decide what they want used. Seems like Illinois is big into ethanol and I think Minnesota, probably the states with the most corn. I think Canada banned MTBE outright several years ago, it used to be produced by the Ethyl company but when people started getting sick......you can guess the rest. Ethyl spun off that subsidiary, one of my friends worked for them which is why I guess I even remember all of it.

Dallas

Re: What's the difference? Ethanol and MTBE
 

Ethanol is definitely the better of the two. You could literally run your engine on ethanol if you had too ( it would end up destroying it though). It also helps support our corn farmers...


Here's some more info on ethanol:

http://www.iowacorn.org/em.htm

Wouldn't ya know it's a website by Iowa corn farmers...

76 gas is also known for selling top quality gas. I don't think you can go wrong with them.