The Great Ethanol Scam

[nivek]

The Great Ethanol Scam
http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/c ... e+subindex


Not only is ethanol proving to be a dud as a fuel substitute but there
is increasing evidence that it is destroying engines in large numbers

By Ed Wallace

"Does the average citizen understand what this means? In from 10 to 20
years this country will be dependent entirely upon outside sources for
a supply of liquid fuels … paying out vast sums yearly in order to
obtain supplies of crude oil from Mexico, Russia, and Persia."—Yale
Professor Harold Hibbert, ethanol promoter, 1925

More than one major transportation-based industry in America besides
Detroit is on the ropes. For the fourth time in our history the
ethanol industry has come undone and is quickly failing nationally. Of
course it's one thing when Detroit collapsed with the economy; after
all, that is a truly free-market enterprise and the economy hasn't
been good. But the fact that the ethanol industry is going bankrupt,
when the only reason we use this additive is a massive government
mandate, is outrageous at best.

Then again, the ethanol lobby and refiners have a solution to
ethanol's failure in America: Hire retired General Wesley Clark as
your point man and lobby the government to increase the amount of
ethanol in our fuel to 15%. The problems with that proposition are
real—unlike ethanol's benefits.

Where's the Logic?

First, the primary job of the Environmental Protection Agency is, dare
it be said, to protect our environment. Yet using ethanol actually
creates more smog than using regular gas, and the EPA's own attorneys
had to admit that fact in front of the justices presiding over the
Third Circuit Court of Appeals in 1995 (API v. EPA).

Second, truly independent studies on ethanol, such as those written by
Tad Patzek of Berkeley and David Pimentel of Cornell, show that
ethanol is a net energy loser. Other studies suggest there is a small
net energy gain from it.

Third, all fuels laced with ethanol reduce the vehicle's fuel
efficiency, and the E85 blend drops gas mileage between 30% and 40%,
depending on whether you use the EPA's fuel mileage standards
(fueleconomy.gov) or those of the Dept. of Energy.

Fourth, forget what biofuels have done to the price of foodstuffs
worldwide over the past three years; the science seems to suggest that
using ethanol increases global warming emissions over the use of
straight gasoline. Just these issues should have kept ethanol from
being brought back for its fourth run in American history.

Don't let anybody mislead you: The new push to get a 15% ethanol
mandate out of Washington is simply to restore profitability to a
failed industry. Only this time around those promoting more ethanol in
our gas say there's no scientific proof that adding more ethanol will
damage vehicles or small gas-powered engines. With that statement
they've gone from shilling the public to outright falsehoods, because
ethanol-laced gasoline is already destroying engines across the
country in ever larger numbers.

Got a Spare $1,000?

Last July was bad enough for motorists on a budget—gasoline prices had
shot up to more than $4 a gallon. But for some the pain in the
pocketbook was about to get worse. At City Garage in Euless, Tex., for
example, the first of numerous future customers brought in an
automobile whose fuel pump was shot. A quick diagnosis determined that
that particular car had close to 18% ethanol in the fuel. For that
unlucky owner, the repairs came to nearly $900. The ethanol fun was
just beginning.

City Garage manager Eric Greathouse has found that adding ethanol to
the nation's gasoline supply may be a foolish government mandate, but
it has an upside he'd rather not deal with. It's supplying his shop
with a slow but steady stream of customers whose plastic fuel intakes
have been dissolved by the blending of ethanol into our gasoline, or
their fuel pumps destroyed. The average cost of repairs is just shy of
$1,000.

It gets better. Scott Morrison is the owner of the City Garage chain
in North Texas and he related the story of his technical director's
run-in with ethanol; in December he filled up his E85 Flex Fuel Chevy
Suburban at the Exxon station in Ovilla, just south of Dallas. His
Suburban died on the spot, because even an E85-equipped vehicle will
not run on the 100% pure ethanol that Exxon station was pumping that
day. In that case it was not Exxon's fault but a mistake at the
distribution center, and Exxon (XOM) quickly made good for the cost of
repairs.

On Jan. 16 of this year, Lexus ordered a massive recall of certain
2006 to 2008 models, including the GS Series, IS and LS sedans.
According to the recall notice, the problem is that "Ethanol fuels
with low moisture content will corrode the internal surface of the
fuel rails." In layman's terms, ethanol causes pinpoint leaks in the
fuel system; when leaking fuel catches your engine on fire, that's an
exciting way to have your insurance company buy your Lexus. Using
ethanol will cost Toyota (TM) untold millions.

An Unpublicized Trend

Though the media is ignoring it, one can easily find many stories on
BMW (BMWG.DE) blogs relating similar problems with fuel systems
damaged by the use of ethanol. Certainly that was the case with
Christi Jordan and her 2007 Mini. For weeks it was difficult to start;
Moritz BMW in Arlington, Tex., inspected it and found severe carbon
buildup inside the engine. On her second trip to the mechanics they
decided to test the ethanol content of Christi's fuel and found it was
much higher than the federally mandated limit of 10%. This time the
fuel pump had been destroyed by the ethanol. The repair bill came to
$1,200: As in all cases where vehicles are damaged by ethanol, legally
the factory warranty no longer applied.

Jim Keppler, Moritz's fixed operations director, said he's had at
least 10 other cases of ethanol poisoning in Minis over the past six
months. Christi was one of the lucky ones; Moritz covered her repairs.
But there's no telling how many motorists across the nation have had
to pay for fuel pumps, or fuel systems, that ethanol damaged. Most
were probably unaware of the real culprit behind the breakdown,
because virtually no repair shop tests the level of ethanol in the
gasoline when these fuel system problems occur.

And there are active lawsuits from boat owners; ethanol broke down the
resins in their fiberglass gas tanks, destroying their marine engines.
Additionally, those who deal in small gas engines for lawnmowers,
edgers, and weedeaters have quickly learned that, as Briggs &
Stratton's (BGG) Web site warns, "Ethanol-blended gasoline can attract
moisture, which leads to separation and formation of acids during
storage. Acidic gasoline can damage the fuel system of an engine while
in storage. B&S strongly recommends removing ethanol-blended fuels
from engine during storage."

Like motorists, if landscaping tool owners put gasoline with more than
10% ethanol in their small engines, that immediately voids any factory
warranties. In the case of the Lexus recall, using just a 10% ethanol
blend was found to be destroying many of these engines also.

Another Government-Mandated Mistake

It now appears that in just a few years since the government forced
ethanol use on the country, engine and fuel system failures caused by
ethanol are causing major damage to more and more new and used
vehicles. This means the hapless owners are not only paying for snake
oil in lower fuel efficiency and more smog, but pay again when it
damages their vehicles and lawn mowers.

We seem to have forgotten, but the promise of turning over farmland
for fuel production was to reduce our nation's demand for imported
crude. But until this massive economic slowdown, as Gusher of Lies
(PublicAffairs, 2008) author Robert Bryce pointed out, even while the
ethanol mandate was being ramped up we were increasing our imports of
foreign oil.

Translation: The entire politically stated purpose of using ethanol
had already been proven to be a false one before the program even got
fully under way.

No surprise there. The premise that ethanol could give America the
freedom to one day stop importing oil has always been fraudulent.
Another fun fact: If we outlawed gasoline and diesel, thereby removing
every last car, truck and SUV from our highways—no vehicles anywhere
on any road in the country—America would still have to import oil
because we would still use more crude than domestic production can
supply.

Why is that? Crude oil is also used to make fertilizers, aviation
fuel, home heating oil, and many other products. Not to mention
polyester suits for car salesmen.

Comment Now, Public!

Pushed into it by the corn growers' and ethanol refiners' lobbying
organizations, today the EPA is starting to go through the public
comment phase on increasing the level of ethanol in our gasoline from
10% to 15%. Time and time again we have heard from these groups, who
now claim that there is zero scientific evidence that a 15% blend of
ethanol would do any damage whatsoever if the mandate for ethanol were
raised. As with all statements made by vested interests, few outsiders
have actually taken the time to look and find out whether this
statement was true.

In fact, it's false.

Not one mechanic I've spoken with said they would be comfortable with
a 15% blend of ethanol in their personal car. However, most suggest
that if the government moves the ethanol mandate to 15%, it will be
the dawn of a new golden age for auto mechanics' income.

One last thought: Most individuals who have had to repair their fuel
systems in recent years never had the gasoline tested to see if the
ethanol percentage might be the problem. Today most repair shops and
new-car dealers are still not testing for ethanol blends. They're
simply repairing the vehicles and sending their unhappy and less
wealthy customers on their way. But, where dealer and repair shops are
testing the gasoline, ethanol is becoming one of the leading culprits
for the damage.

Sadly, when a truly bad idea is exposed today, Washington's answer is
to double-down on the bet, mandate more of the same, and make the
problem worse. Only this time around motorists will be able to gauge
the real cost of ethanol when it comes time to fix their personal
cars.


Ed Wallace is a recipient of the the Gerald R. Loeb Award for business
journalism, given by the G. and R. Loeb Foundation, and is a member of
the American Historical Society. His column leads the Fort Worth
Star-Telegram's "Sunday Drive" section. He reviews new cars every
Friday morning at 7:15 on Fox Four's Good Day, contributes articles to
BusinessWeek Online, and hosts the top-rated talk show Wheels
Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on 570 KLIF.

[MSeriesRebuild]

Good information, thanks for posting it. We've seen over the past several years what today's gasoline blend does to various components, especially if left in the tank too long. People need to be educated, but ironically most seem to just pay it no attention. The fact that our government is pushing something is more than enough to make me stop & take a second look, however I've learned that I must be one of a few in that respect. I don't think we would have the administration we have in power now if people would have paid attention. What will it take to wake some folks up? Apparently a lot more than their car engines being destroyed in order to boost the profits of a few. All this brings a serious thought to my mind, I read in the Bible years ago that time would come when the majority of people in the world would view "right as wrong & wrong as right." Are we there yet?? In my view, we are watching it unfold right before our eyes.

[HingsingM37]

Nivek, good post.

Charles, Amen..I used to say they walked among us, now it is like we are trapped among them. The green fuel mandates are bad enough, this whole "mandated" HDTV thing frightens me also. Many experiments were done in the 60's to present day dealing with "enhanced mind control & subliminal suggestion through visual stimuli" . Its getting creepy out there....

[Lifer]

George Orwell saw it coming clear back in 1945, didn't he?

Is it time for the "Three Minutes Hate," yet?

[m-37Bruce]

What are our options, how can we circumvent this outrageous mandate?

[MSeriesRebuild]

What are our options, how can we circumvent this outrageous mandate?

That's a good question, let me know when you get it figured out.

[MSeriesRebuild]

I have a little more time to elaborate this morning, my view.

What good is ethanol? More costly to produce, less efficient, pollutes more than regular gas, causes major issues with engines, on & on. How on God's green earth is any of this helping major world issues in the fore front at this time? I as a commoner have failed to see any benefit, but quite the contrary. Sounds like it's doing more damage in the very areas where Al Gore & Crew are sounding the alarm so loudly. Oh & by the way, global warming is largely a CROCK based on all the reliable facts I've been able to gather. Don't forget all the millions of our tax dollars that go directly & indirectly to support Al's agenda that we know has NO sensible basis at all. Mad yet?

Back to the issue of padding the bank accounts of a few. That's all I see in it, getting all the pushers of ethanol together, lobbying government to mandate & push this stuff by force, outrageous campaign contributions in return to keep all the crooks in office. They get elected again next round, the push gets even more serious & so on. I sincerely hope the voters in this country will open their eyes, we'll see. What do you see down the road after this mushrooming effect goes on for a while? Does it begin to look like the US manufacturing base does today? What do I mean? Take a long look around, manufacturing in America is largely gone & what is left is dwendling fast. Why? Government mandates have played a huge role in where we are today. Government rules, regulations, taxation, etc. have driven many a company out of business completely or onto foreign soil. A large # of these businesses didn't relocate because they wanted too, they were forced into it as a means of survival. This has left a severely crippled manufacturing capability behind in the US. We are fast getting in the groove the Chinese & others want to see, where is that? A US manufacturing base so far gone that it will be financially impossible to start it back up. As if the financial issue isn't enough, the government regulation is also working overtime to insure it can't happen. Why? All in the effort to pad the pockets of the few. Al Gore knows he's being untruthful in a huge way, his supporters are totally brain washed, but does that matter, NO, not as long as the millions keep on rolling in. I hope he enjoys it here in this life, cause when he's gone he will have a special place designated as payment for all the bad he has been directly responsible for on this earth. I expect he will decide rather quickly & wish he had never been on that payroll, OOPS, is it too late for me to change my course? Sorry Al, it's all over for you now, what you see is what you get, but how long is my sentence here? Eternity Al. What will his GREEN speeches be like then? I imagine something like this. Well can't I go back & tell all my followers I was wrong & they need to change? No need Al, they won't listen, the millions of $$$$ are too good on earth; they'll join you here later. You can discuss where you went wrong with them day in & day out for all eternity, there will be no happy days, just misery. But I don't understand, lots of people listened to my GREEN speeches. That was a huge portion of the problem Al, they believed your lies, you are responsible for the misleading of millions, but the money was good then. What is the money worth now Al? The circle of the few continues to go round. What do you think?

The issue of the importers laying in wait for the right moment is one we have yet to witness in a huge way. When will it happen. could be any day I guess. What am I talking about? With the US options of becoming self sufficient again being all but eliminated, China & others will have free rein to increase the cost of everything. The government, owing such huge debt will likely see the need to say uh, tax the imports driving cost even higher for the end user. Can they really do that? What course do you see out ahead, can they? They've already taken over banks & auto maufacturers. A bill was signed yesterday that has the potential of vastly increasing cost for credit card use, though only for the folks that use them responsibly. Can they? What are we as a country going to do when they do it? Will we have the ability to do anything about it? Yes even many items most think are US products are coming directly from there these days. Many of the household names we have come to know & trust over the years are right there today. The products are adorned with the same trusted name label, however if you read the fine print, you will see the trusted company has been forced out of the US & now resides in China or other foreign land. Why? Either that or the old faithful trusted name would be long gone. Why? Largely we have the good old USA CROOKED government & huge lobbyist organizations to thank. Have we been sold out from within right under our noses? Well you know what I think, you can look around & make up your own mind.

The ethanol issue & farmers, another huge issue. Farmers are wanting to get on board because of higher prices paid at harvest. As long as the government keeps forcing ethanol through your injectors, they can't lose. Wait a minute now, think about the long range. Farmers are falling quickly away from producing food crops, cash crops for ethanol production are looking sweeter to the farmers bottom line every day. Where are our food crops going to come from with the huge crop for ethanol push growing? Foreign lands possibly? No quality control of food, who knows what chemicals may have been used in the growing of it, how deadly to humans will it be? How many huge health issues will be at the fore front after the US population eats this stuff a few years? We've already seen food stuff panic situations, a number of them fairly recent. Will this get more common? Few are looking to the good of mankind, but only to the millions they invision rolling in. What do you think?

Government regulation at work. I recently heard a story about some of the most fertile farm land in the US being lost, California if I remember correctly. EPA regulation has closed off the valve that furnished water in the canals that made this fertile land productive. Why? All in the name of saving some tiny fish some brain surgeon added to the endangered species list. Looked like what we call minnows around here. Is this utterly stupid or what? The fish need to thrive, so what if a huge chunk of land used to produce food in this country has now turned into a barron desert. Can we survive eating minnows? Not so fast!! Al says "sorry not lawful to eat these, they are on the endangered species list."

Round & round it goes with hands of the few at the controls. How do you see all this lining up?

[Wayne64]

"Round & round it goes with hands of the few at the controls. How do you see all this lining up?"
Charles you nailed a lot of the problems and unfortunately so much damage has already been done that it will play out even worse than the mess Carter caused with his misguided management. Some of his programs have haunted us for 25 years. It's a terrible feeling that I'm actually glad I will only live a decade or two more, at most. My grown Son's will have to survive with what I taught them; hunting, fishing and camping may be their salvation.

[MSeriesRebuild]

"Round & round it goes with hands of the few at the controls. How do you see all this lining up?"
Charles you nailed a lot of the problems and unfortunately so much damage has already been done that it will play out even worse than the mess Carter caused with his misguided management. Some of his programs have haunted us for 25 years. It's a terrible feeling that I'm actually glad I will only live a decade or two more, at most. My grown Son's will have to survive with what I taught them; hunting, fishing and camping may be their salvation.

Maybe, maybe not. The fate of firearms, hunting on public lands, (private too for that matter), & the fact that you would dare use a minnow for bait is still hanging in the balance. I wonder.

Jimmy Carter in my opinion was about as far out of touch with common sense & reality as one could get. Somehow I'm afraid that record is about to be shattered. Hard to believe, or maybe I just hate to think about the possibility (probability), but I'm thinking we are about to see it take place & in a HUGE WAY.

[MSeriesRebuild]

Well it seems what I mentioned about Al Gore and his GREEN garbage crew in a previous post in this thread is being brought to light more than ever. I understand his Company stands to make literal millions if Obama can get his cap and trade, (cap and tax, cap and con), bill shoved through the house and senate. Guess who will be furnishing the money for Al to sweep up? You got it, the AMERICAN TAX PAYERS for generations to come. All we can hear, if this doesn't pass, the environment is toast. The truth is if it doesn't pass, Al can't rake in millions. I hope people will open their eyes that this isn't about the environment at all, but about him getting richer. I also understand his net worth has gone up by 5,000% in the last short while, sound like an honest business man in these economic times to you? Goldman-Sachs is making a mint off of it also, who by the way paid not a dime of federal income tax in 2008. Wonder where they spent all the big bucks they got from the bail out program? Mad yet?? Get mad enough to vote you conscience in the 2010 mid term elections.

[m-37Bruce]

I could be wrong, I have many times already..... I've read that it takes 1.5 gallons of gasoline to make one gallon of ethanol, is that some bull $hit or what.
My billy goat has mostly plastic internals for a carburetor, it's gotten brittle and is disintegrating as we speak, I'm thinking a need a different carburetor, all this new stuff don't stand a chance w/ corn in the fuel!
JMHO,

[refit1701]

All of this is very depressing. I look at my four year old daughter...so happy and carefree. She is more than likely going to grow up in a world where FUN is illegal and slavery is legal.

Democrats...Republicans....there is no longer a difference. It's just how fast they enslave us that separates the parties.

Very Depressing.