Ethanol and classic/historic cars

 The classic car press has reported on the issues that E5 has had on classic/ historic vehicles in great depth. Perhaps, for this reason, all of the parliamentary discussions that we have seen (at the time of writing) about E10 have focussed on incompatibility with historic vehicles and not the majority of passenger cars that are on Britain’s roads. According to the Department of Transport, E10 is likely to corrode carburettors, block fuel filters, damage pumps and cause further issues with flexible fuel hoses. The government agency estimated that the costs to convert an historic vehicle to E10 in 2018 would be between £236 and £1342.

Politicians’ overall conclusion at the time of writing is that classic cars are the only road vehicles to be affected by E10 but, because their owners run them as hobbies, they can afford to make the technical modifications. Additionally, a ‘protection grade’ E5 is mooted to be available when/if E10 appears.

However, from the documents and consultations that we have seen, it is likely to be in a super-unleaded (97+RON) grade, available for between two and five years before its future is reassessed. Consult the FBHVC for advice on fuels about using E10 on classic cars and motorcycles.