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MG MGB Technical - HEET

What does everyone think of running the car on HEET (MeOH) instead of gasoline to pass the smog test? I've heard of people saying it's worked like a charm, and others saying it ate through their fuel lines (which I'm not sure I believe, but I would like to get some opinions)?

Thanks,
-Jeremy
Jeremy

If I'm not mistaken, it will damage the carbs - at least in the long run. It will soften the needle tips and deteriorate the gaskets.
Jeff.

Jeff Schlemmer

This isn't a long term thing - just once to pass smog (and in another two years, I guess - after that I think I'll be in the clear :-)

-Jeremy
Jeremy

Pure methanol will make your MG run terrible, if at all. Methanol does not have the same burning characteristics as gasoline, and does not contain any sort of octane to control the rate at which it burns.
That said, it is also not a hydrocarbon, and as such does not leave behind any emissions when burned except water vapor.
All alcohol, including HEET and pure methanol, will dry out the natural oils contained in rubber and some gasket materials. This of course is over an extended period of time in a pure or highly concentrated state.
For your purposes, what does all this mean? Simple. Do not try to run your car exclusively on HEET. Do not leave any alcohol in your car's system for any length of time.

Now, to pass emissions. Dilute your gasoline with methanol. The more methanol you use, the worse your car will run, but the cleaner your exhaust will be. Considering that you will have to actually drive your car to the test sight and have it hold an idle for a certain length of time, having the car run good is a definate plus! With that said, dilute your gasoline by 30 to 50% using methanol. Drive immediately to the test sight and pass. Then drive home and disconnect your fuel line at the carburettor. Let your fuel pump empty the tank into a suitable container. Save this for your lawn mower or bring it to a hazzardous waste sight. If your HC levels are high, I can promise you that this will take car of them, even if they're in the 1200 PPM range! Trust me, mine were this bad. After the alcohol treatment, I drove straight back and passed easily. I personally witnessed others do the same. You can too. If you don't belive me, try it for yourself.

Scott
Scott Wooley

Scott,

As a lab scientist I have to pick you up about methanol. The formula for methanol is CH3OH, so you can see that it is a hydrocarbon, albeit a pretty simple one. So your exhaust will contain some CO2 and possibly some CO as well as the water vapour. I'm sure the rest of your message is fine (I have no experience of putting methanol in the tank), but let's get our facts right.

Mike
Mike Howlett

So (in California) they don't think to test the contents of your gas tank? I think I am going to go get a drum of HEET from the gas station right now - we'll see how all of this turns out. (assuming I can find some incompetent to test me who won't flunk me on visual inspection)
Jeremy

I have used it when i get aircared. I run about 3 tanks of it then fill it up once more throw on some studded tires (so they wont dyno test it) so all they do is an idle test. Have not failed yet even with all the mods I have
Ross

Jeremy,

I just went through my smog check with my '75 B a couple of weeks ago, and I used HEET as recommended by Scott W., i.e. about a gallon of it w/ tank of gas (perhaps 10%?). I was able to pass with a hollowed-out cat and 2 (I believe) burned valves. I didn't however drain out the alcohol right after the test, I just drove it until almost empty. I hope there's no harm from it, but now the engine idles quite fast after running a while and hot ("N" on the guage); as far as the fast idle goes, I did make some adjustments after passing the test that could be causing this: I plugged up the EGR, I advanced the timing a bit, and adjusted the tappet clearances. Other than the fast idle, the car runs better than ever; seems to run cooler, too. Yesterday it ran all the way through the Santa Cruz mountains in 4th gear and barely got above "N", which is much cooler than previously. If anyone has an idea about my fast idle problem, I'd very much like to hear from them. My car is bone stock with Zenith and all the smog pumbing attached (minus the catalyst and air diverter valve). And it has the manual choke conversion.

Cheers,
Dan
Daniel Vukmanich

Jeremy, Run your tank to almiost dry. Use one pint of HEET to one gallon of gas. Go get a sniff test then after you pass fill the tank up and drive away. It'll be so diluted after that it really won't do any harm. Make sure you use the RED HEET and not the YELLOW HEET. Thats important.
Victor Gardino

This thread was discussed between 28/03/2002 and 01/04/2002

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