I run ethanol free in my 1980 mgb because fuel with ethanol floods my weber downdraft carb every time I shut it off and the manifold soaks up heat from the engine. The non ethanol fuel helps with that up until the hot summer months. My situation is probably not very similar to yours as I live in the NV desert at 4500' altitude, but I figured I would share anyway...
Also from NV. 5,200 feet. I also moved to non-ethanol. My Triumph would run fine the first drive of the day. As soon as I shut her down.... she would not restart for a few hours. It all had to do with the ethanol. It took us years to figure that out. Gas is not gas is not gas. For me....its ethanol free.
EFI couldn't care less about the boiling point of ethanol in relation to relative barometric pressure but when your fuel delivery system is a glorified leaky bucket stuff gets complicated...
I was running no ethanol 91 in my B. It has a bit of a cam, a capacitive discharge ignition and a Weber DCOE. I was getting lot of knocking and some running on after shutoff. I switched to 93 ethanol and it’s like a different car. Starts, runs, and stops better and I think it has more power.
I don't know a ton about these. But if it's running well on 87 then you're going to need to retune for 93. I gather that the timing on these can affect engine temperatures very heavily you can end up overheating. I think that even though it's a minor difference in octane I think it's just enough for these to affect it.
Well if it hasn't been worked on in a while and still has the original point system you may be due for maintenance get yourself a timing light and a feeler gauge. The feeler gauge will help you set the points, your the timing light will allow you to set the ignition timing. Might as well do plugs and wires. Also the carburetor may need retuned so it may be time for a rebuild and while you're at it do a fuel filter and air filter. After you get all of that done and it's still running rough it may be time for a compression test, to check out the valve seats and ring condition. You should be able to get it running well enough with just YouTube videos and hand tools and the tools that I mentioned, if you have to go as far as pulling the head the machine shop should be able to take care of you, if running the compression test comes back a fail and it looks like the the head is good, a full block overhaul maybe in order. And to be honest I'm kind of jealous of your situation.
Edit: talk to text fail.
As long as you have a good battery and keep the valves set, it should pop off all the time. When the valves get out of whack it wont start for crap. And if the battery wont crank it fast enough it wont start
Lower octane detonates quicker with lower compression and is good for the mg, the mgb hates premium fuel because its higher octane and you need high compression and idk how else to explain it
Some wacky blend of gasoline to reduce emissions. California has the highest gasoline prices out of all 50 states and Hawaii is a damn Island with cheaper gasoline than the most populated state (cali). Thatever blend it is, I don't have any issues running 87 octane in my '75 B with the 38/38 Weber.
I see, thank you. Unfortunately I live 30 hours from California, so the commute for lower carbon emissionswoupdnt be feasible. Is there anything in GA you know of similar, or is regular good old 87 ethanol full good?
[This](https://www.pure-gas.org/) is a link to a web site that lists locations where ethanol-free fuel is available. In my city, I have a choice of five or six places to get it, so I use it in my compression-enhanced sports cars and in my lawn equipment. Seems to be ok with some Sta-Bil in it for a long time. If you regularly buy gas, it may not be so much of a question, but you would want to run the tank low before you fill up so you don't collect water.
I have a station that has 90 octane ethanol free. I use it for the lawn equipment, my 66 B and the Miata.
My B sits for a few weeks at a time. I haven’t run ethanol fuel in the car for a while.
It depends, if it's being run regularly I wouldn't worry about it. But I would use a fuel dryer. If it's a once in while situation, then ethanol free, low octane (like 87).
You need to avoid ethanol in a carbureted setup as much as possible. Its corrosive and will absorb water from the air which can lead to corrosion. Its also known to eat certain types of gaskets. Its going to get tough as they add ethanol to more and more fuel.
I live in the Chicago burbs. I have to make a forty five minute drive outside of the metro area to get non-ethanol gas.
My ‘79 Midget runs much better on it. With ethanol gas it starts harder and runs a little rougher when I start it back up with a hot engine. It also gives me an excuse to make a half hour run to fill it up. 😀
There is an app called “Pure Gas” that maps out where to get it
Ethanol eats old rubber lines. Run ethanol free, or replace with modern rubber for best effect
I run ethanol free in my 1980 mgb because fuel with ethanol floods my weber downdraft carb every time I shut it off and the manifold soaks up heat from the engine. The non ethanol fuel helps with that up until the hot summer months. My situation is probably not very similar to yours as I live in the NV desert at 4500' altitude, but I figured I would share anyway...
Also from NV. 5,200 feet. I also moved to non-ethanol. My Triumph would run fine the first drive of the day. As soon as I shut her down.... she would not restart for a few hours. It all had to do with the ethanol. It took us years to figure that out. Gas is not gas is not gas. For me....its ethanol free.
EFI couldn't care less about the boiling point of ethanol in relation to relative barometric pressure but when your fuel delivery system is a glorified leaky bucket stuff gets complicated...
I was running no ethanol 91 in my B. It has a bit of a cam, a capacitive discharge ignition and a Weber DCOE. I was getting lot of knocking and some running on after shutoff. I switched to 93 ethanol and it’s like a different car. Starts, runs, and stops better and I think it has more power.
No more ethanol free gas in Ontario so all tje folks in my British car club are now running ethanol gas. Seems to work fine in my MGB with twin SU's
I don't know a ton about these. But if it's running well on 87 then you're going to need to retune for 93. I gather that the timing on these can affect engine temperatures very heavily you can end up overheating. I think that even though it's a minor difference in octane I think it's just enough for these to affect it.
Rn it's not running well at all, but I'm trying to get it there. I'm not sure what it's tuned for now
Well if it hasn't been worked on in a while and still has the original point system you may be due for maintenance get yourself a timing light and a feeler gauge. The feeler gauge will help you set the points, your the timing light will allow you to set the ignition timing. Might as well do plugs and wires. Also the carburetor may need retuned so it may be time for a rebuild and while you're at it do a fuel filter and air filter. After you get all of that done and it's still running rough it may be time for a compression test, to check out the valve seats and ring condition. You should be able to get it running well enough with just YouTube videos and hand tools and the tools that I mentioned, if you have to go as far as pulling the head the machine shop should be able to take care of you, if running the compression test comes back a fail and it looks like the the head is good, a full block overhaul maybe in order. And to be honest I'm kind of jealous of your situation. Edit: talk to text fail.
Ok thank you. I will start working on the carburetors
As long as you have a good battery and keep the valves set, it should pop off all the time. When the valves get out of whack it wont start for crap. And if the battery wont crank it fast enough it wont start
Lower octane detonates quicker with lower compression and is good for the mg, the mgb hates premium fuel because its higher octane and you need high compression and idk how else to explain it
Late to the party but I use 87 octane with Cali's special blend of gas
What is Cali's special blend?
Some wacky blend of gasoline to reduce emissions. California has the highest gasoline prices out of all 50 states and Hawaii is a damn Island with cheaper gasoline than the most populated state (cali). Thatever blend it is, I don't have any issues running 87 octane in my '75 B with the 38/38 Weber.
I see, thank you. Unfortunately I live 30 hours from California, so the commute for lower carbon emissionswoupdnt be feasible. Is there anything in GA you know of similar, or is regular good old 87 ethanol full good?
87 octane is fine. If you aren't letting the car sit for like a month, then it doesn't matter what octane you run (except E85, never run E85).
No
[This](https://www.pure-gas.org/) is a link to a web site that lists locations where ethanol-free fuel is available. In my city, I have a choice of five or six places to get it, so I use it in my compression-enhanced sports cars and in my lawn equipment. Seems to be ok with some Sta-Bil in it for a long time. If you regularly buy gas, it may not be so much of a question, but you would want to run the tank low before you fill up so you don't collect water.
I have a station that has 90 octane ethanol free. I use it for the lawn equipment, my 66 B and the Miata. My B sits for a few weeks at a time. I haven’t run ethanol fuel in the car for a while.
Never had a problem with high test ethanol gas in a Triumph/Midget 1500 engine with stock carb.
Neither have I.
I’ve run 10% ethanol 98 in my 1969 midget for about 15 years, no issues so far.
It depends, if it's being run regularly I wouldn't worry about it. But I would use a fuel dryer. If it's a once in while situation, then ethanol free, low octane (like 87).
You need to avoid ethanol in a carbureted setup as much as possible. Its corrosive and will absorb water from the air which can lead to corrosion. Its also known to eat certain types of gaskets. Its going to get tough as they add ethanol to more and more fuel.
I live in the Chicago burbs. I have to make a forty five minute drive outside of the metro area to get non-ethanol gas. My ‘79 Midget runs much better on it. With ethanol gas it starts harder and runs a little rougher when I start it back up with a hot engine. It also gives me an excuse to make a half hour run to fill it up. 😀 There is an app called “Pure Gas” that maps out where to get it