Don't want to appear too dumb but..

[NoSparkNeeded]

I've seen some threads that kinda drift around the fact that biodiesel
somehow is not as "good" for our motors as running petroD. I've read
all the poop on WVO, and decided not to pursue that.
Is there a downside to motor longevity if you run B100 as opposed to
dino? I know about the hose issues. How about engine life? 2 brand new
motors, 1 petroD, one B100. In theory which lasts longer under similar
use? More maintenance with bio? The same? Other than eco benefits,
is bio better worse or the same as dino?

[BoomInTheTrunk]

The bio atleast what i think would make the engine last longer. It provides better lubrication to diesel.

[Chad300tdt]

From what I've read, water suspended in the biodiesel is the possible long-term issue. There are water separator filters that can be used. Also colder winter temp pose another problem with fuel gelling.

I've also gathered that with proper filtering via centrifuge, you can remove all particles down to 1/2 micron and the water from WVO.

I'm considering filtering in this manner, then blending and using injector line heaters and a heated filter. In winter I will probably just run straight Dino.

As far as engine longevity, all the reading I've done suggests that biodiesel will keep your engine cleaner and the result should be longer life provided you have properly dewatered it and removed all the methanol.

Dino doesn't have any of those maintenance issues but you can't make it at home.

[vstech]

... my Injector/ pump mechanic says B100 leaves a residue on the pump that damages it... I am not sure he knows the diff between Bio and WVO though...

[Mustang_man298]

I'll say I haven't done a huge bout of research on it, but my present understanding of it, is that if you keep WVO properly heated you are ok, it's when it gets below a certain temp that it begins to form deposits and coke rings and such. I was pretty serious about making the jump as well, now I am wondering if it's worth it, the cost of a proper kit for the car vs the fact that WVO is now becoming a valuable commodity in most states quickly due to commercial bio producers now buying it from restaurants has made me wonder lately if it's even worth doing these days. I picture myself buying a kit then having to buy "fuel" very soon thereafter, countering the very reason to do it. We all saw the day coming, it was just a matter of how fast you got on the bandwagon that determined the amount of benefit and profit you got from it. I, unfortunately tend to be the type to hold off and take the "wait and see" approach to things, which kinda bit me this time, though, it DID get me finally into driving the Benz's I liked the looks of seeing drive by as a young kid....

[CoyoteStarfish]

If using biodiesel made properly,a bio and petro engine side-by-side should be equal in longevity.

LESS maintenance with bioD IN THEORY. According to my findings, engine oil in biodiesel powered engines can be used up to 200% of their recommended service life. I've serviced about 8 bio powered vehicles, running on straight bio for 5 years. Each vehicles oil was changed at twice the interval indicated on the FSM and oil manufacturers info sheets.

This is said to be atributed to the lower carbon and possibly sulfer content?

A small ammount of additive was used for the initial oil fills, "TuffOil".

Now the reality of this statement; I have no idea if it did damge to the engines or not. I was just instructed to do this at my bosses request. Prior to an oil change engine flush was used, then the charge was drained. Filled half way with new oil, ran for 1/2 hour. The drained again, then filled with 50:50 synthetic/standard.

All I know was, the oil came out ashy-grey looking. Not black. And the motors haven't siezed yet. So, why not.

That being said, back to Dino Vs Bio;
Another thing to note is that side by side, the bio engine will consume more fuel volume per unit of energy produced. This is due to BioD's lower BTUs and slower burn time, some of this power loss can be corrected with timing adjustments.

Better, same, worse? I would say slightly worse due to the power loss and ommision of eco-benifits.

Which the eco benifits themselvs are very fringe, as bio/WVO can produce more NOx emmissions, said to be 200-something times more potent of a greenhose gas by volume than CO2 is. Not going to stop me from greasing my benz though. Sigh.

[Jeremy5848]

I recently saw a thread reporting on the results of "water tests." The tester found that pump dino diesel had at least as much water in it as either pump biodiesel or home-made biodiesel. Home-brewers definitely need to make sure they've properly dried their biodiesel but I wouldn't worry about commercial stuff, they use an entirely different manufacturing process. Comment: this is part of the misinformation still going around about biodiesel. None of us are entirely innocent, including myself, we all tend to pass on unreliable information.

There are really only three significant concerns for anyone using commercial biodiesel in a Mercedes:
(1) make sure your rubber fuel lines are biodiesel-rated;
(2) keep an eye on your pre-filter for crud that the biodiesel might dissolve out of your fuel system and change filters a little more often at first;
(3) make sure you use a blend of bio and dino when temps start to drop. To determine how much, experiment in your refrigerator.

I am currently running every vehicle I own on biodiesel and have never had any serious problems since 2004. Even when hoses start to melt, it's a slow process. You have a lot more time than the Wicked Witch of the West had (she was gone in a few seconds, as I recall).

Jeremy

[TMAllison]

I personally believe there to be very little difficerence in longetivity using commercially prepared B99 vs D2, although the engine does appear to work harder using B99 as mpg's are reduced in my expirience.

I believe some amount of additional risk is introduced when using homebrew Bio and that more risk is introduced using a two tank, heated SVO/WVO system. Unheated SVO/WVO and unheated blenders are wack IMO.

[probear]

The latest information that I've seen as far as water is concerned, Biodiesel actually had less water than #2. Biodiesel also have more lubrication than #2 and at the same time, much less soot. Soot is probably the main contamination of diesel engine oil (at least for engines on #2)
The only downside of Bio is that is does have less BTU per gallon and in some engines, produces slightly more nitrosoxide, but otherwise, all other pollution levels are drastically reduced.
The other downside, which is primarily for older engines, is that older fuel lines are not made of materials that will last with continued use of Biodiesel, however, after 20+ years, it would probably be a good idea to replace them anyway.

And for the sake of clarification, I am talking about real Biodiesel, and not so-called 'bio-fuels', which are 'blended' fuels and not converted VO/WVO.

[LUVMBDiesels]

I have been running the SDL amlost exclusively on commercial B100 and it seemd to like it better than D2. I have no scientific proof of this, but the oil stays cleaner, the car does not smoke as much and my mileage has gone from 28mpg to 27mpg. Not a big deal...