8th digit of my VK56DE VIN is 'B".
Does this mean the car and fuel system ae E85 compatible?
I understand it does with Titans (this is a 08 Pathfinder)

If so, would this not imply bigger injectors as the E85 needs 30% greater fuel flow?
Does the ECU have another seperate fuel/timing map it switches to for when it "sees" E85, or does it simply adjust in steps?
What are the other differences?
Fuel lines more robust or merely different?

Anybody know?

PS: It's also a CA emissions vehicle

Dunno about the VIN, but Flex vehicles usually have two major modifications from the basic powertrain, different tube and seal material and a wider "map" for injector timing. Alcohol can cause deterioration in regular neoprene seals, so Flexies usually use Viton or some other alcohol-resistant material instead. Some do have larger injectors but many simply leave them open longer. If you put E85 in a non-Flexie the result is predictable, the ECM goes rich-rich-rich until it hits 125% Alpha and runs out of rich, at which point it throws a "system lean" code for the engine or bank.

Thanks for the info.
I had a feeling you might be the one to answer.
I had read on a Titan forum that for the VK56DE vehicles such as the Titan the 8th digit, "A" indicated regular fuel only an d "B" flex fuel capable.

Now this makes me wonder.
If during an apocalyptic breakdown and no gas availability I might be able to run the car on moonshine (at least short term) if it is indeed a E85 capable car.

The purest alcohol you can make with distilling methods is 95.63% (The azeotropic point for a water/Ethanol mix)
But in practice 85-90% is more realistic if done by a moonshiner I think.
Even so, there are a lot of moonshiners near my hacienda and I thought maybe an alternate fuel.

Enough moonshine to fill a tank of fuel would be expensive under normal prices.... but then they would have no longer have to be careful to keep it safe to drink either.... this would save them time/effort compared to regular production, which might bring the price down..

And I'd still sprinkle a couple gallons of old gas with the moonshine.

Correction it's supposed to be the 4th digit not the 8th ( both are B in my case)

PS: Am finding out some more detail in this thread:
https://www.titantalk.com/threads/nissa ... cs.149907/

I just bought the Moroney online w/ my VIN and it said nothing about it being flexfuel
I also lack the fuel fill door marker FFV are supposed to have.

Maybe that 4 digit "B" means flex only holds for Titans?

So I guess Question is were ANY V8 Pathfinder delivered as Flex fuel?

Digit 4 usually indicates the engine package. On Alties from gen2 to gen 5, for instance, a 1N4AL indicates the base QR25, a 1N4BL indicates the VQ35. I've never noticed whether Flexies count as a different engine package. They might, but in your case it would be a C. The stock package for your Pathy was the VQ40, so the B just means you have the VK56.

Ok. That would explain it I guess wit the engine packages..

With the Titans "A" is normal and 'B" is flex fuel.
I was hoping it be the same with the Pathy but it appears not.
It may also mean that no pathfinders were were flex fuel.

Figure if a vehicle is flex fuel it should show on the Moroney without fail correct?

PalmerWMD wrote: ↑

Sat Apr 03, 2021 6:27 pm

Figure if a vehicle is flex fuel it should show on the Moroney without fail correct?

Not necessarily. Not everything shows up in the VIN, a lot of additional stuff is encoded in the VID string in the door-sill sticker. For the '17+ Titan, I'm pretty sure it's A for VK and B for Cummins diesel.

Maybe I need to ask Nissan corporate.
But I think your explanation is a good one.
for my MY A would have been the V6 , B would ahve been the V8. If there had been aflex fuel V8 It likely would have been C .
The 2008 Titan had A for regulars gas and B for flex fuel.

This likely means that no pathfinders were made as flex fuel ever

PalmerWMD wrote: ↑

Sat Apr 03, 2021 7:32 pm

The 2008 Titan had A for regulars gas and B for flex fuel. This likely means that no pathfinders were made as flex fuel ever

Sounds like a right assumption. Although, since you essentially have a Titan engine in a Pathy, many of the needed components to convert it would probably be interchangeable. Besides the rubber parts and possibly injectors, the Titan ECM firmware might be the only other thing required.

It should not be too hard to flash the ECM firmware from a Titan FF on it via UPrev.
But according to the titan guys the injectors are also a different part number.
Then what's left would be gaskets and fuel lines.

PalmerWMD wrote: ↑

Sat Apr 03, 2021 8:03 pm

It should not be too hard to flash the ECM firmware from a Titan FF on it via UPrev. But according to the titan guys the injectors are also a different part number. Then what's left would be gaskets and fuel lines.

Yep, that's what I'm thinking. A little costly and a little complicated, but a lot less than most motor swaps.

E85 wont hurt much of any gasket or seal stuff, unless your E85 is different to ours here in NZ

and additive will help stop it crystalizing in the fuel lines which I bet it already is added at the pump where you buy it

I mix my own at the moment using Ethanol ( covid took all our locally produced ethanol for hand sanitizer) , 15% 98 pump gas and the additive, I run this in a S6 RX7, my VH45 skyline and an old FJ20 nissan engine, all of these run stock gaskets and orings and the FJ20 is from 1983 and none of these suffer any of the oring or gasket failure that has been talked about

when swapping my fuels from E85 back to pump gas its basically fuel and timing that shifts in the ECU

holeset wrote: ↑

Sun Apr 11, 2021 12:59 pm

when swapping my fuels from E85 back to pump gas its basically fuel and timing that shifts in the ECU

Tell that to the '17 Frontier we serviced last week with mystery lean codes in both banks. The owner thought it was flex but it wasn't. Most Nissan ECM's won't support enough increase in A/F-alpha to run E85 without coding-out.

Thanks Hole and VStar.

Hole thanks for letting us know our gaskets o- rings and lines are pretty robust even in the non flex vehicles.
And thanks VStar for your usual level of high fidelity data from the front lines..

VStar650CL wrote: ↑

Sun Apr 11, 2021 1:04 pm

holeset wrote: ↑

Sun Apr 11, 2021 12:59 pm

when swapping my fuels from E85 back to pump gas its basically fuel and timing that shifts in the ECU

Tell that to the '17 Frontier we serviced last week with mystery lean codes in both banks. The owner thought it was flex but it wasn't. Most Nissan ECM's won't support enough increase in A/F-alpha to run E85 without coding-out.

woops you are right , I should have added i swap 1 Link G4 ecu between all the vehicles and maps, none of these vehicles run a stock ecu

holeset wrote: ↑

Sun Apr 11, 2021 4:35 pm

VStar650CL wrote: ↑

Sun Apr 11, 2021 1:04 pm

Tell that to the '17 Frontier we serviced last week with mystery lean codes in both banks. The owner thought it was flex but it wasn't. Most Nissan ECM's won't support enough increase in A/F-alpha to run E85 without coding-out.

woops you are right , I should have added i swap 1 Link G4 ecu between all the vehicles and maps, none of these vehicles run a stock ecu

It was still good info for us.
Thank you.