CONWAY -- Searching for the cheapest gasoline to fill up with could hurt you in the long run.
Ethanol free gas costs about 10 cents more at the pump than gasoline with ethanol such as E10 and E85 blends.
"You can't just look at the price of fuel," says Tucker Oil General Manager Buck Sprite. "Because you are comparing gas without ethanol to gas with ethanol." Gas stations don't often show whether or not they have ethanol on their marquees.
Mason's Tire and Auto Manager Don Scalzott says ethanol fuels could do more harm than good.
"Fuels with ethanol burn a lot faster," says Scalzott. "When fuel burns quicker, you lose mileage that you're getting for that gas."
Scalzott says mileage isn't the only place that ethanol can hurt your pocket book. "In some older vehicles, (ethanol fuel) eats away the rubber tube for your gas line."
For those looking to save the planet by using ethanol, Scalzott says there's no difference in how gas with ethanol and without ethanol burn other than the speed. "It's not burning any cleaner either way. You can see it for yourself. When burning the fuels right next to each other, there's no difference in the flame which is a way you can test for emissions."
Do you check to see if the gas you're putting your tank has ethanol? If you've used both gas with and gas without ethanol, have you noticed a difference?
Leave your answers as comments below.
