Alcohol concentrations of more than 10% in fuel can be detrimental to fuel system components and may cause driveability problems such as hesitation, lack of power, stall, no start, etc.

The problems may be due to fuel system corrosion and subsequent fuel filter plugging, deterioration of rubber components, and/or air-fuel mixture leaning.

Various types and concentrations of alcohol are used in commercial fuel. Some alcohol is more detrimental to fuel system components than others. If an excessive amount of alcohol in the fuel is suspected as the cause of a driveability condition, the following procedure may be used to detect the presence of alcohol in the fuel.

The fuel sample should be drawn from the bottom of the tank so that any water present in the tank is detected. The sample should be bright and clear. If the sample appears cloudy, or contaminated with water (as indicated by a water layer at the bottom of the sample), this procedure should not be followed, and the fuel system should be cleaned.

1. Using a 100 ml specified cylinder with 1 ml graduation marks, fill the cylinder with fuel to the 90 ml mark.
2. Add 10 ml of water in order to bring the total fluid volume to 100 ml and install a stopper.
3. Shake the cylinder vigorously for 10 to 15 seconds.
4. Carefully loosen the stopper in order to release the pressure.
5. Re-install the stopper and shake the cylinder vigorously again for 10 to 15 seconds.
6. Put the cylinder on a level surface for approximately 5 minutes in order to allow adequate liquid separation.

If alcohol is present in the fuel, the volume of the lower layer (which would now contain both alcohol and water) is more than 10 ml. For example, if the volume of the lower layer is increased to 15 ml, this indicates at least 5 percent alcohol in the fuel. The actual amount of alcohol may be somewhat greater because this procedure does not extract all of the alcohol from the fuel.