Can You Mix Ethanol and Non Ethanol Gas in Car? (Explained)

Mixing fuels is a common practice among automobile owners. Blending multiple fuels impacts the ease of grinding fuel. It also allows you to deal with the shortage of fuel more efficiently and affordably. But many people still seem to be confused about the mixture of ethanol and non-ethanol gas in cars.

Now, we will discuss whether it is safe to mix ethanol and non-ethanol gas in cars. We will also discuss what happens if you make the mix. So read ahead to clear your confusions and learn all about it.

Can you mix ethanol and non ethanol gas in car?

You can mix ethanol and non ethanol gas in a car. Rest assured that it will not create any disturbances for your car. In fact, mixing ethanol and non-ethanol gas in a car eases the use and grinding fuel in the engine. Non-ethanol gas is good for your car, but they are not available everywhere.

Mixing ethanol and non ethanol gas in cars is absolutely fine. This is a widely used method. Because as much as we’d love to use non ethanol gas, they are not available everywhere.

You can mix ethanol and non ethanol gas in your car without any worry. In fact, most commercial fuels are generally a mix of different types of fuel. Most regular fuels are a mix of ethanol and gasoline. So you do not have to worry about the functionality of your car after mixing the gas.

Your car will work just fine after you have mixed ethanol and non ethanol gas. In fact, it is often preferred as mixing gas will help you better the grinding power of the fuel in the engine. As a result, your car will function even better.

Mixing gas will help you reduce the cost of gas well. You will be able to buy a mix of affordable and costly gas, reducing the cost of gas. Otherwise, if you had to buy costly gas at a stretch, you would have to break your bank.

Premium gas, most of which are non ethanol gas, are on the more expensive side. You will have to count a lot of money to run your car with just that. In addition, non ethanol gas is not widely available. So you will have to mix ethanol and non ethanol gas in such a case. 

Note that most cars are designed to run on a blend of fuels. Most of the cars on the roads today can run on a mix of 15% ethanol and non ethanol gasoline. Moreover, the flex fuel vehicles can run on up to 85% ethanol gas without any trouble. 

Is it okay to mix non-ethanol fuel with ethanol fuel?

Yes, it is okay to mix non-ethanol fuel with ethanol fuel. It is definitely much better to run your car on a non ethanol fuel. But if you have your car’s tank filled with some ethanol gas, then you should not worry. You can refill with some non ethanol gas without any trouble.

If you have your car’s tank filled with some ethanol gas, especially E85 or something similar, then you should not hesitate to put in some non ethanol gas. Most cars today are designed to run on a mix of 15% ethanol and non ethanol gas. So rest assured, your car will face no trouble with the mix.

However, you will have to keep one warning in mind. Mixing ethanol and non ethanol gas will prolong the time alcohol is in the car’s gas tank.

Is it better to run non-ethanol gas in a car? Does non-ethanol gas make more power?

It is better to run non ethanol gas in a car. It clearly has a lot more benefits than ethanol gas. Let’s discuss the benefits of running your car on non ethanol gas.

Most cars today run on a 10 to 15% mix of ethanol in their gasoline. But more and more drivers are switching to non ethanol gas for a number of reasons. There are both pros and cons to it.

Non ethanol gas is considered better because it has more mileage. In comparison to regular fuel and premium gas, non ethanol gas has a lot more mileage. It also causes less harm to the car’s engine. Non ethanol gas also has a longer shelf life than ethanol gas.

Non ethanol has also make more power for your car. Non ethanol gas contains about one third more energy than ethanol gas. While it seems like a very small quantity, the number is still measurable.

2 reasons why you can mix ethanol and non-ethanol gas in car

Mixing ethanol and non ethanol gas in a car is a very common practice. While most commercial and regular fuels come as a mix of ethanol and gasoline, users later make a mix themselves as well. This is done for various reasons.

In the following section, we will note down two of the most prominent reasons why you can mix ethanol and non ethanol gas in a car.

Less harmful emissions:

Most regular and commercial gas are a mix of ethanol and gasoline. Ethanol is used as an additive to gasoline in order to help the fuel burn completely.

It has proven that the ethanol-infused gases produce clean emissions. The Department of Energy recommends that you mix 15% ethanol, instead of just 10%.

While non ethanol gas is believed to produce a lot more power than ethanol gas, a mix of these two will help you produce less harmful emissions. So you will end up causing less trouble for the environment. This is why you should mix ethanol and non ethanol gas in your car.

Easy to find:

Another reason why you should mix ethanol and non ethanol gas is that this mix is rather easy to find. Non ethanol gas is not so easy to find. Although non ethanol gas produces greater energy burning lesser fuel, you will not be able to find these gas everywhere. They are not widely available yet.

So it is better to make a mix of ethanol and non ethanol gas and produce an easy to find solution for your car.

What happens if you mix ethanol and non-ethanol gas in a car?

It is quite a common practice to mix ethanol and non ethanol gas in a car. But many people are not aware of the consequences. In the following section, we will discuss what happens when you mix ethanol and non-ethanol gas in a car.

Harmful emissions reduced:

Ethanol is a biodegradable gas that is also dissolvable in water. It is also non-toxic. So this gas produces less harmful emissions. On the other hand, non ethanol gas will produce a handful of harmful gas. So when you mix ethanol and non ethanol gas in a car, you will be able to reduce the amount of harmful emissions from your car.

Thus mixing ethanol with non ethanol gas will help you minimize harmful emissions in the air. Thus it will result in a better air quality.

Less energy:

Purely non ethanol gas produces at least one third times more energy than the mix. So when you produce a mix in your car, you will be able to derive less power and energy from the gas.

This is what happens when you mix ethanol gas, even the 10% or 15% of ethanol, with non ethanol gas.

Availability:

Non ethanol gases are still not widely available. So you will have to struggle to find fuel if you solely rely on non ethanol or premium gas. Instead, a mix of ethanol and non ethanol gas will be relatively easier to find.

What to do if you mix ethanol and non-ethanol gas in a car?

Let’s find out what to do if you mix ethanol and non ethanol gas in a car.

Lower the ethanol content:

When you mix ethanol blended fuel with non ethanol blended fuel in a car, you will lower the content of ethanol in the car. This will produce more harmful emissions.

On the other hand, if you’re mixing ethanol to a non-ethanol fuel, then you are creating an ethanol blended fuel. This will help you produce less harmful emissions.

Blend at the right ratio:

You will face issues if you use non ethanol gas for too long and then fill up the gas tank with ethanol gas. It will dissolve the sludge in the gas tank. This is where you will face issues.

So find the right ratio for your car and make a blend every now and then in order to avoid issues. 

Final Thoughts

You can mix ethanol and non ethanol gas in your car without any trouble. Mixing has its benefits, including less harmful emissions, less dependence on fuel-imports, et. While non-ethanol fuel will produce more energy than the blend, the blend is better for your car, bank balance and the environment.