alcohol=methanol?

JRW31526

Member
are alcohol and methanol race gas the same? if so where can i buy some, usually how much a gallon online?
 
Methanol is alcohol, some people also call it alky, you can usually get it at your local speedshop, or if you have a drag strip near you can get it there. If you don't have either you can buy it from places like VP racing by the 5 gallon pales or whole barrels. Price ranges online are usually run from 50 up to 400 bucks that's if you buy it by the pales or barrels. But I recommend before you buy online to check on here. Theirs lots of good guys on here that can tell you more than I can, and is more than willing to help you out :).

NOTE: If your going to buy online, check if their is going to be additives in the fuel, cause some tracks won't allow additives in alky.
 
i do have a couple race tracks about 1/2 an hour away from where i am like auto city speedway in clio mi, but they dont sell alky to "normal people" which pisses me off, would it be worth it to go with alky over race gas, either way im paying about the same
 
In my opinion I like alcohol better because its a cleaner burning fuel than gasoline, but I run flatheads and have blueprinted carb to run alcohol. What kind of motor do you have?
 
i have a open gx200 running a pretty big carb cam and valves, i hear that it will make my engine run way cooler and gain hp over race gas but the race gas potential is higher... i would have to pay 10$ a gallon and i cant buy only 1 or 2 gallons of alky and i have a sunnoco right down the street from me that sells 109 race gas... on the other hand i could drive to lansing mi (i live near flint mi) and buy "alky" race fuel from a speed way for $3.00 a gallon, hmmmmm choices choices
 
Buying a barrel of VP M-5 would be the route if available, and if you used it all.
alky/meth makes good power and cooler engine temps.
 
Methanol over gas every time! More power you can't go wrong with that. Methanol is cheaper upfront but you will burn more meth than gas so the price is similar.
 
There are places to buy methanol, you just don't know it. Many oil and lubrication distributors carry it in 5 gallon buckets, about $5 a gallon. You want pure methanol, anything out of a gas pump is not going to be what you want. That's generally drag racing alcohol with additives and top end lubricants. Generally it's ethanol alcohol and is not what you need.
Ethanol = corn base alcohol
Methanol = wood base alcohol

Only ask for methanol, buying based on the word alcohol can get you a whole bunch of wrong fuel.

You will also need to do the standard modifications like advanced ignition timing, proper spark plug, and a 50% increase in fuel flow. It's not a dump in and go affair.

-Shannon
 
I'd start here : Alternative Fuels 3163 Curtis Dr, Flint, MI 48507 phone 820-230-2550
If they don't sale to the public ask them who does. Methanol is widely used, just find a kart track nearby and ask where everyone buys it.

-Shannon
 
You will need a really good racing gas to make the power of meth (like VP Q16, which is around $18.00 a gallon), and it probably still wont be as good. Also, the plug stays clean on meth! The torque is really the best benefit on meth from what I have seen.
 
An important question that no one has asked is what are you doing with this motor? It sounds like you are not racing it at a track.
 
I'm running Methanol in my modified clone. It runs very cool and makes good power. It's also less prone to detonation when you raise the compression level.

Methanol is, however, very corrosive to aluminum. If you leave it in your engine it will eventually clog up your carburetor with a white powder (aluminum oxide).

Fortunately, that problem is easily remedied: Bring a spare fuel container with you to the track. After the races, disconnect the fuel line from the input side of your fuel pump. Connect a fuel line from your spare fuel container to the pump. The spare fuel container should have gasoline and some top oil or 2- stroke oil. Just fire up the engine and run it for about 30 seconds. That will flush out all of the alchy from the system. You will need to use the throttle to keep the engine running, as a carb jetted for alchy dumps about twice as much gas as the engine wants.

Alchy can also get past the rings and into your oil, so it's even more important to change the oil.
 
I'm running Methanol in my modified clone. It runs very cool and makes good power. It's also less prone to detonation when you raise the compression level.

Methanol is, however, very corrosive to aluminum. If you leave it in your engine it will eventually clog up your carburetor with a white powder (aluminum oxide).

Fortunately, that problem is easily remedied: Bring a spare fuel container with you to the track. After the races, disconnect the fuel line from the input side of your fuel pump. Connect a fuel line from your spare fuel container to the pump. The spare fuel container should have gasoline and some top oil or 2- stroke oil. Just fire up the engine and run it for about 30 seconds. That will flush out all of the alchy from the system. You will need to use the throttle to keep the engine running, as a carb jetted for alchy dumps about twice as much gas as the engine wants.

Alchy can also get past the rings and into your oil, so it's even more important to change the oil.

^^ good post. I run meth in my RWYB, and use top lube (which is illegal in most other classes). If allowed I suggest running the top lube, as I have tested it on the dyno with no power loss. I use 1oz per gallon.
 
There are places to buy methanol, you just don't know it. Many oil and lubrication distributors carry it in 5 gallon buckets, about $5 a gallon. You want pure methanol, anything out of a gas pump is not going to be what you want. That's generally drag racing alcohol with additives and top end lubricants. Generally it's ethanol alcohol and is not what you need.
Ethanol = corn base alcohol
Methanol = wood base alcohol

Only ask for methanol, buying based on the word alcohol can get you a whole bunch of wrong fuel.

You will also need to do the standard modifications like advanced ignition timing, proper spark plug, and a 50% increase in fuel flow. It's not a dump in and go affair.

-Shannon

You also got to think about the carb, having it jetting correctly with the right air to fuel ratio makes a whole world of difference.
 
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