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I think you just need to run it through. E85 has a high octane rating already. Car runs like crap because its not tuned to use it. take it easy on the car until the tank is VERY close to empty, then fill with your choice of top tier 91-93 premium.
The problem with E85 is that it has a much lower energy density than normal octane fuel. It is likely your engine is running super lean as your fuel system is unable to flow enough E85. When folks convert to be able to run on E85 the biggest thing is that they have to increase the capacity of the fuel delivery system to provide something like 50% more fuel flow rate.
My suggestion if it is possible is to try and siphon as much of the fuel as you can out of the tank and dilute the rest with a full tank of normal fuel. If you cannot get a siphon working then I guess you only other option is to drive it like a total granny until you burn all of that E85 out of there.
I've been driving like grandpa for a few days now....feel like I'm running in a " most MPG " contest.
Might be the most frustrating few days I've encountered..... ( outside of every COVID WFH day........ )
Just add a can or portion to your fuel tank.
Never used it any other way,
I have 234K miles on same engine/parts....I dump a can into a full tank twice a year or every 30K miles.
OK, just filled up with my 2nd tank of the right gas ( 98 )....drove another 200km's or so and it seems to be a lot better.
Can wind it out to red line in 1st, 2nd and 3rd gear, no pinging / CEL / detonation......thats a really good sign.
But, a pull in 4th gear still exhibits some detonation and ECU intervention ( cutting gas / timing etc ).
Maybe load related?
Higher gear, lower RPM, same load, less acceleration....ping....
E85 requires ~30% additional fuel when compared to standard gasoline to maintain a stoichiometric A/F ratio. I'm unsure if the Mini's stock fuel system can even keep up with this demand but the larger issue here is that the fuel system isn't E85 safe and the HPFP's are known to fail when running it due to corrosion/degradation of the rubber seals. Before you go out and flog your car again, especially since you're getting detonation, do some logging. Check your fuel rail pressure at idle, cruise and light load until you can verify it's where it should be.
Edit: Meant to also mention this but if the above checks out, do yourself a favor and do a leakdown and compression test. If you were tracking this car when you accidentally threw in E85 and the fuel system couldn't keep up it's possible some damage was done. Hoping not so but it is a possibility.
E85 requires ~30% additional fuel when compared to standard gasoline to maintain a stoichiometric A/F ratio. I'm unsure if the Mini's stock fuel system can even keep up with this demand but the larger issue here is that the fuel system isn't E85 safe and the HPFP's are known to fail when running it due to corrosion/degradation of the rubber seals. Before you go out and flog your car again, especially since you're getting detonation, do some logging. Check your fuel rail pressure at idle, cruise and light load until you can verify it's where it should be.
Edit: Meant to also mention this but if the above checks out, do yourself a favor and do a leakdown and compression test. If you were tracking this car when you accidentally threw in E85 and the fuel system couldn't keep up it's possible some damage was done. Hoping not so but it is a possibility.
@Cab00se Good idea. Went for a spin today, fuel rail pressure is 720 PSI at idle and in all gears goes up to 1700 PSI at WOT.
4th and 5th gear still exhibit a misfire, and when they do, I'm at 4500 + RPM and WOT...
OBDscanner data below - looks like cylinder 4 issue.
Car Scanner ELM OBD2 DTC report Selected brand: Mini VIN: WMWMS31040TX78213
============1============== P0304 Raw code: 0304 ECU: Engine control unit Status: Pending OBDII: Cylinder 4 - misfire detected
Mini: Cylinder 4 Misfire Detected
I changed all spark plugs 3 weeks ago, swapped positions of coils 4 and 1, stays on 4.
Maybe an injector?
Will run some fuel cleaner ( like Seafoam ) and see if that helps clear it up.
Haven't checked intake, I'm sure it's full of carbon like N14's are prone to do.
Has 80,000km's on clock, it's due for a cleaning.
Quick update - I cleared all the codes when I put the fuel cleaner in, never got another CEL or specific cylinder misfire, just the 2D52 super knock code.
Same issue with car though, fine in 1st and 2nd to redline, in 3rd and 4th, especially on a hill and under load, it will detonate a bit and the ECU kicks in, cutting fuel and spark.
Decided to go back and check coils and spark plugs.
Plug electrode for cylinder 2 was deformed.
Top of electrode looks to have melted and moved to side.
Could have happened when it first detonated at the track after I dumped E85 into the tank.
Any of you seen this before?
Anyway, popped a new one in, cleared the codes again and will go for a run again and see if this is it.
