Fuel - No Start, Driveability, Excessive Alcohol Content
85olds3SUBJECT DRIVEABILITY CONDITIONS DUE TO EXCESSIVE NUMBER: 85-T-17
ALCOHOL IN FUEL
DATE: March 5, 1985
MODELS/YEARS ALL MODELS
SECTION: 6C
SERVICE PROCEDURE FOR DETECTING ALCOHOL IN FUEL
Certain driveability conditions such as reduced performance, no start, etc., may be caused by an excessive amount of alcohol in fuel. The conditions may be due to fuel system corrosion and subsequent fuel filter plugging or deterioration of rubber components such as the accelerator pump and/or air-fuel mixture leaning effects..
Various types and concentrations of alcohols are used in commercial gasoline. Some alcohols are more detrimental to fuel system components than others. If an excessive amount of alcohol in the fuel is suspected as the cause of a driveability condition, the procedure outlined in this bulletin may be used to detect alcohol in the fuel. In this procedure, water is used to extract the alcohol from the fuel. However, this procedure WILL NOT identify the type of alcohol, i.e., methanol vs ethanol.
The fuel sample should represent the fuel in the bottom part of the tank so that any water, if already present, can be detected. A fuel sample can be obtained from the vehicle using the fuel return line or a siphon hose. If the fuel return line is used, discard enough fuel to ensure a representative sample from the bottom part of the tank. The sample should be bright and clean. If the sample appears cloudy or contaminated with water as indicated by a water layer in the bottom part of the sample, this procedure should not be used. The fuel system should then be cleaned if contamination is evident.
SERVICE PROCEDURE
1. Using a 100 ml cylinder with 1 ml graduation marks (suggested part Kimble No. 20039), fill with fuel to the 90 ml mark.
FIGURE 1 AND FIGURE 2:
2. Add 10 ml of water to bring the total fluid volume to 100 ml and install a stopper. See Figure 1.
3. Shake vigorously for 10 to 15 seconds.
4. Carefully loosen stopper to release pressure.
5. Close the stopper and shake vigorously again for 10 to 15 seconds.
6. Carefully loosen stopper to release pressure.
7. Put the graduated cylinder on a level surface for approximately 5 minutes to allow adequate liquid separation.
If alcohol is present in the fuel, the volume of the lower layer, which would now contain alcohol and water, will be greater than 10 ml. For example, if the volume of the lower layer is increased to 15 ml (Figure 2), it would indicate at least 5 percent alcohol in fuel. The actual amount of alcohol may be somewhat greater because this procedure does not extract all of the alcohol from the fuel.
One source that the 100 ml cylinder is available from is:
SARGENT-WELCH
S-24747 CYLINDERS - Single Graduated, Stopper, KIMAX (Kimble No. 20039). Graduated and provided with stopper closure. With heavy molded hexagonal base. Calibrated to contain at 20~C. For replacement stoppers, see S-77416.
Cap., Subdiv, Stopper
Cat. No. ml ml No. Price/Pkg of Price/Case of
S-24747-B 10 0.2 13 14.55 2 142.82 24
S-24747-C 25 0.5 13 17.99 2 132.39 18
S-24747-D 50 1 16 22.58 2 110.81 12
S-24747-E 100 1 22 25.96 2 84.93 8
S-24747-G 250 2 27 34.02 2 111.29 8
S-24747-H 500 5 32 21.97 2 107.76 6
S-24747-J 1000 10 32 30.80 1 100.74 4
S-24747-K 2000 20 38 45.93 1 75.12 2
Skokie, Illinois 60077
7300 North Linder Avenue
P.O. Box 1026
Telephone - Skokie - (312) 677-0600
Telephone - Chicago - (312) 267-5300
TWX - 910-223-4541
TELEX - 72-4442
Anaheim, California 92803
1617 East Ball Road
Telephone - (714) 772-3550
Telephone - L.A. - (213) 860-8584
TELEX - 65-5425
Birmingham, Alabama 35202
3125 7th Avenue, North
P.O. Box 10404
Telephone - (205) 251-5125
TELEX - 5-9711
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70767
1550 Commercial Drive, Port Allen
P.O. Box 798
Telephone - (504) 344-1335
Cincinnati, Ohio 45215
10400 Taconic Terrace
Telephone - (513) 771-3850
TELEX - 21-4459
Cleveland, Ohio 44125
9520 Midwest Avenue Garfield Heights
Telephone - (216) 587-3300
TELEX - 98-5319
Dallas, Texas 75235
5915 Peeler Street
P.O. Box 35445
Telephone - (214) 357-9381
TELEX -7-3328
Denver, Colorado 80207
4040 Dahlia Street
P.O. Box 7196
Telephone - (303) 399-8220
TELEX - 4-5535
Livonia, Michigan 48150
27501 Schoolcraft
Telephone - (313) 425-9400
Springfield, New Jersey 07081
35 Stern Avenue
Telephone - (201) 376-7050
Telephone - N.Y.C. - (212) 349-3454
TELEX - 13-8448
Washington, D.C. 20760 (Sales-Service Center)
8709 Grovemont Circle
Gaithersburg, Maryland
Telephone - (301) 948-1162
SARGENT-WELSH SCIENTIFIC OF CANADA, LTD.
Toronto, Ontario, Canada Montreal, Quebec, Canada
285 Garyray Drive (Sales -Service Center)
Weston, Ontario M9L 1P3 3300 Boulevard Cavendish
Telephone - (416) 741-5210 Montreal, P.Q. H4B 2M8
TELEX - 06-527129 Telephone - (514) 481-0119
TELEX - 055-66396
INTERNATIONAL DIVISION
7300 North Linder Avenue
P.O. Box 1026
Skokie, Illinois 60077 U.S.A.
Telephone - (312) 677-0600
Cable -SARWELSCI
TWX - 910-223-4541
TELEX - 72-4442