Q: What should I know about starting the engine in cold weather with E85?

If your vehicle is designed to be a flexible fuel vehicle (not all are), you may encounter some problems starting the engine in very cold weather. This is particularly true if you’re running E85. Here’s what you should know:

• Crank the engine for no more than 10 seconds.

• If the engine doesn’t crank on the first attempt, try it again.

• If the engine still doesn’t start:

  • Press the accelerator halfway down and hold it.
  • Crank the engine
  • Let go of the key and slowly let off the gas pedal as the engine picks up speed.

Tip

Flex fuel vehicles can use any combination of E85 and normal gasoline. If you’re struggling to get started in cold weather, you can also add more unleaded gas to the tank to get things running.