Non ethanol or ethanol gas for a 99' 125 Merc. outboard?

[cfred7873]

New boat owner pushing a 19' Proline center console with a 99 125 Merc. 2 stroke. I was wondering how much of a difference or if it really matters running
non-ethanol or ethanol gas. I usually run non, but I could use the savings not having to buy from the marinas, any advice would be appreciated. Thank you gentlemen!

 

[GA_Boater]

Try some E-10 and see how it runs.

 

[Woodonglass]

Ethanol is bad on the rubber seals etc. If you run it I'd recommend adding the additive to the fuel to counteract this tendency

 

[wired247]

Zero difference.Be smart and change your rubber hoses with ethanol compatible hoses every 3 or 4 years and you won't have a problem. Mercury's position on E-10 is that it helps flush water out of the fuel system and they are 100% correct.

 

[racerone]

Not sure what it costs for a gallon of corn juice.---Soon it may be cheaper to just sell 100% gasoline again

 

[Watermann]

Even with fuel prices dropping big time? Why worry about spending a couple bucks more per tank of fuel? Additives would cost more than the non E fuel. In the big scheme of things a few bucks means little, just use good non E premium fuel and skip worrying about pumping the that corn juice in your tank.

 

[wired247]

Not sure what it costs for a gallon of corn juice.---Soon it may be cheaper to just sell 100% gasoline again

They dont add corn squeezins because it makes the gas cheaper. They add ethanol because midwestern congressman had the provision added to federal law mandating its use to benefit their corn growing constituents. It makes zero economic sense to use ethanol in fuel. It takes more energy to produce ethanol than it returns when it burns. Gasoline on the other hand costs a fraction of what ethanol does to produce. Market forces keep the price up but the actual production costs from ground to tank of gasoline is less than $1 a gallon.

 

[GA_Boater]

Guys - Please stay away from the reasons we have ethanol in our gas. We have it, we can't do anything about it within the confines of this forum and we have to live with it for the time being. cfred asked a simple question about using E-10, so please stay on topic. Thanks.

 

[Sea Rider]

For me non E all the way, thin rubber parts as carb o'rings & fuel pump diaphragms, will last near forever compared to E fuels which tend to deform ballooning them in a very short time period.



Happy Boating

 

[Tnstratofam]

Is the marina the only place you can find non ethanol gas in your area? We have service stations in various places that still carry 100% gasoline. None of them are chain stores. Also when you get further away from town most stations here offer it.

 

[Frank Acampora]

OH BOY! Here we go again! Let's also discuss oil and additives. There are as many opinions as there are elbows and a** holes on this forum.

Forget the horror stories! Use whichever fuel makes you feel best. The engine won't care! Modern engines all use rubber parts made to resist ethanol in fuel. Thus it is very unlikely that you will get stuck on the water due to ethanol in the fuel and very unlikely that you will need to change all the engine hoses.

 

[Scott Danforth]

welcome aboard

my take prior to pulling out the popcorn bucket.

if you want to save fuel owning a boat, own a kayak, canoe, or row boat. I will not debate E-0 vs E-10 here (BTDT, own the tee shirt). regarding avialabilty of etither - there are many places you can get either (even in Florida) that are not on the water. use the fuel you want, for the reasons you want. in the end, the difference in fuel cost is insignificant in the bigger scheme. If you want to avoid ethanol, and do not want to buy E-0 from a marina, head to a gas station near your local race track.

 

[Texasmark]

Service manual for that engine says that it is built to run E 10. My recent boat was 12 years old and still had OEM engine hoses. However, changing out at that age would have been a good. However the OEM gray fuel line from the tank to the engine did degrade and I changed it after 10 years.

Mark

 

[boobie]

I still go the non E route for my boat.

 

[O-F]

Lets say you DO decide to go with E10... Is it better to fill up with premium 93 Octane? Or is it the exact same as filling up with regular 85 octane?

 

[Sea Rider]

93 & 85 should have same 10% proportion per gallon. Higher octane has better fuel additives if price per gallon isn't an issue. Although all modern engines can handle E 10 fuels, the Company that makes E won't say a thing about thin rubber parts being degraded and or ballooned faster than non E fuels, they all give a shite as long they keep making huge profit out of corn.

Happy Boating

 

[GA_Boater]

I wish a booze industry guy could tell us how they manage to keep the rubber bits working with far higher concentrations of corn alcohol. Or even the ethanol making folks. Distilleries and ethanol plants must leak like sieves.

 

[Scott Danforth]

distilleries work on stainless piping with flange connections and silicone gaskets

 

[boobie]

I would say the same as it's still E 10.

 

[joetheis]

my '91 Rude 70 says it can run 10% ethonel.
In Clayton N.Y., they have a gas station that has non E high test that I PREFER to run.
Either way I always use high test in me boat motors, (that's just me)
My Dodge Dakota (318 V-8) get better mpg on that. I would guess my boat SHOULD run better on it.
Try it, use the additive to keep the water from being asborbed.
I'm gonna THINK that if they say you can run it, the rubber must be E proof, but then again............
Joe
As always take any advice I give with a beer er 2!