Its funny, everyone complains about the price per gallon but no one talks about the cost per month, or trip. Even though E-85 isn't the answer the research is looking good for additional sources of ethanol and more efficient vehicles. A 100 MPG SUV is right around the corner.
brendan,
The local News station did a report on E-85.
"KARE 11 took a road test to find out if ethanol really is a practical alternative to gas. We drove a flex-fuel Dodge Durango, one of about six million vehicles on the road today specially designed to run on either E85 or gasoline, and started with a full tank of pure E85. We drove until the tank was empty.
Using E85, we drove a total of 351.4 miles. The Durango's tank held 28 gallons. That means our fuel efficiency with E85 was 12.55 miles per gallon.
After the tank had been drained, we re-filled at a gas station in Wisconsin, where the regular unleaded contained no ethanol. We drove back to Minnesota, and with no ethanol in the tank, the car felt the same on the road. But the difference in miles per gallon was huge. With gas containing no ethanol, we averaged about 20.41 miles per gallon.
In other words, with E85 in the car, our mileage was 39 percent worse.
The result actually was worse than we expected. Consumer Reports magazine conducted a similar road test and found mileage was 27 percent worse with E85.
Either way, the money you save at the pump does not offset the difference in mileage. At the time of our road test, E85 cost 19 percent less than gas. So with E85, you have to spend more money to drive the same distance."
Ethanol: Fuel of the future?
Ethanol Part II - Our E85 road test