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Lubricity of Reformulated & Oxygenated Gasolines (1997):
"In the past few years there have been a number of compositional changes to gasoline to comply with the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA). Such changes have included wintertime oxygenated fuel programs in carbon monoxide non-attainment areas and year round reformulated gasolines in certain ozone non-attainment areas. Reformulated gasolines also contain oxygenates (MTBE or ethanol). These compositional changes to gasoline have prompted some inquiries about any possible reduction in the lubricity of gasoline.
The lubricity requirements of gasoline are generally much lower than for diesel fuels. Diesel fuel pumps operate at much higher pressures than their gasoline counterparts and rely on the fuel for part of their lubrication. Gasoline engines inject fuel upstream of the inlet valves and therefore operate at lower pressures. Nonetheless, there have been anecdotal reports of fuel pump failures, in recent years, which some have attributed to low lubricity gasoline.
Because fuel lubricity has not technically been an issue for gasoline applications, little research work has been done in this area. In fact, there is no standard industry test for determining gasoline lubricity. Most researchers use a modified version of test procedures used to assess diesel fuel lubricity. Consequently, there is little published technical work on gasoline lubricity. Among work that has been published, there are conflicting results. For instance one technical paper found that both aromatics and the oxygenate MTBE enhanced lubricity. In yet another study, gasoline containing the same additive gave slightly less lubricity. This would seem to imply that other variables are at play and may indeed be more important. Work by Ford Motor Company found that reformulated gasoline with oxygenates and high aromatic content gave slightly lower lubricity but concluded, "These data suggest that the lubricity characteristics of CaRFG and variations of it are not unusual or markedly different from other commercially available gasoline." Still other work exploring the lubricity benefits of detergents stated, "The incorporation of oxygenates does not appear to significantly improve lubricity and may well detract from it", while yet another study found that oxygenated fuels may provide better lubricity. Obviously these constantly conflicting results make thorough assessment difficult. To further complicate such assessment, fuel lubricity is affected by a number of other factors including detergents and other additives as well as sulfur content of the fuel."
2007 Ford Edge SEL, Powerstop F/R Brake Kit, TXT LED 6000K Lo & Hi Beams, W16W LED Reverse Bulbs, 3BSpec 2.5w Map Lights, 5W Cree rear dome lights, 5W Cree cargo light, DTBL LED Taillights
If tuned: Take note of the strategy code as you return to stock (including 3 bar MAP to 2 bar MAP) -> take car in & get it serviced -> check strategy code when you get car back -> have tuner update your tune if the strategy code has changed -> reload tune -> ENJOY!
