You might be wondering about the recent introduction of E10 Petrol, and how this could affect your car.
An important thing to note, before you read on, is that if you own a diesel vehicle you will not have to worry about this. E5 and E10 are both types of petrol, not diesel.
E5 petrol is made up of 95 per cent unleaded petrol plus 5 per cent ethanol (which is why it’s named ‘E5’). E10 petrol is much more beneficial to the environment, containing 10% ethanol and 90% regular unleaded petrol – and was introduced to help the government meet its climate change targets.
The result of this change is that CO2 emissions from our vehicle are cut down. In fact, E10 petrol could cut transport CO2 emissions by 750,000 tonnes a year. That’s the equivalent of taking 350,000 cars off our UK roads, which will go a long way to contributing to said targets before the ban on petrol and diesel cars comes into effect in 2030.
Great news if you’re a Ford driver: E10 is cleared for use in all petrol driven Ford models sold in Europe since 1992 excluding:
•Ford Mondeo 1.8 SCI from 2003 to 2007. This particular model, and Ford models sold before 1992, should continue to use E5.
On top of this, 95 per cent of petrol-powered vehicles on the road right now can use E10 petrol. All cars built since 2011 are compatible. This means the whole new Ford car range are compatible too. If your car does fit into the 5 per cent that are not compatible with E10 petrol, you will still be able to fill up with E5 fuel by purchasing the ‘super’ grade petrol.
Personal imports that are not approved by Ford of Europe are not included in this statement. You can check if your car is E10 compatible on the UK Government’s website here.
As we mentioned earlier, E10 petrol has been introduced for environmental reasons – but how does it compare performance-wise to E5 petrol.
Generally, most drivers won’t see much of an impact, and could in fact save money in the long run as E10 is cheaper. When it comes to fuel economy, the UK Government has stated that there would be around a 1-2% reduction in fuel economy, so most drivers won’t see any change.
You do need to take care when filling up. Try to ensure you use the correct kind of petrol. If you do accidentally fill up with the wrong type, don’t worry too much. The Department for Transport has stated that mixing the two together won’t cause issues.
In its guidelines, the Department for Transport said:
“If your vehicle is compatible with E10 petrol, there’s no reason you can’t mix the 2 grades of petrol (E5 97+ and E10 95+). It’s perfectly safe to mix them in the same tank or fill up with E5 if E10 is not available.”
As soon as there is room for more petrol, fill it up with the correct one. It isn’t like filling up your petrol car with diesel, or vice versa. You won’t need to drain the car, but it could potentially cause long-term damage if you repeatedly do so.
We have a wide range of new and used cars for sale across all of our dealerships. Feel free to visit your nearest dealership to browse our range of vehicles and even learn more about E5 and E10 petrol.
