I have a 2011 skoda fabia 1.2 tsi, I want to convert it to run on e85 ethanol, is it possible to convert the 1.2 tsi engine to run on this?

Hi!

I have a Roomster 2001 1.2 TSI 105. I have also been searching for a conversion kit, but have not yet found any that works with the TSI engine. I have tried mixed fueling (putting both E85 and regular fuel), and up to 60% ethanol my car runs fine. This means that I can add 2 gallons of E85 for every gallon of fuel. The car's ECU will automatically adjust for the increased need for fuel. So far I have run ~1500 miles with varying mixtures of ethanol in the tank without problems. I tested almos pure E85, but that resulted in engine warning light. I guess the E60 (60% ethanol) is about maximum what the car can handle.

How does that affect fuel economy and performance?

Performance: better torque on low revs, the DSG keeps higher gears. I rarely floor the pedal, so I cannot say that I have noticed any difference on higher revs and during hard acceleration, perhaps the car is even more willing to rev up, and sounds more sporty under load. During low revs the engine sounds more soft and even more quiet. Cold starts are more difficult, you need to run the starter for a couple of seconds even with +13 degrees. Once it starts it runs fine.Also warm starts are no problem.

Fuel economy: 60% ethanol seems to require ~22 % more fuel when driving in town, At constant cruising speeds the consumption is 15-20% more than on petrol. I have an ELM327 OBD-II dongle and the Android app Torque to monitor the fuel trims, so I can see the different behaviours.

In Finland the E85 (where the ethanol is produced from food industry leftovers) the price per litre is around 1,07 Eur whereas the 95 octane fuel (that itself can contain up to 10 % ethanol) costs around 1,60. so this is still cheaper than regular fuel.

it is recommended to change oils more frequently when running on ethanol, so longlife is not adviced. The "standard" 1 year or 15 TKM is fine also for ethanol use.