Meth/ Alcohol Injection FAQ

Status
Not open for further replies.
The purpose of this FAQ is to provide a basic knowledge of meth / alcohol injection. For the sake of simplicity I will refer to this as simply meth injection from this point forward.

What all the hype is about:

Meth injection is a method in which meth or a meth and water is injected into the intake charge prior to the throttle body. The purpose of this is for the methanol and water mixture to mix with the fuel air mixture in the combustion chamber. This allows the octane to be increased as well as a chemical cooling effect from the evaporating of the water and burning of the methanol.

The benefits from meth injection:

There are multiple benefits to meth injection.
-A higher octane level
-chemical cooling
-More power (20-30 whp, 30-40wtq on a stage 2 application and more with a bigger turbo)
-The ability to obtain a leaner A/F ratio without detonation.
-An increased resistance to knock/ detonation
-A cleaner engine. The injection creates a steam cleaning effect on the internals of the engine.
-low cost (a meth kit with a failsafe can be had for under $700)

The potential risks of meth injection:

Because the majority of tunes for meth injection rely on the methanol to achieve the target AFR major damage could occur if the meth were not injected as intended when going WOT. Causes of this could be a clogged injector, bad pump, no methanol in the tank, ect.

This being said there is a solution to this risk. Modern meth injection kits such as the Coolingmist CMGS-FS that I have installed in my car have what is called a failsafe. This can be used to prevent harm to the engine if meth were to not be injected as intended. A failsafe will detect if there is an issue with flow (such as a clogged injector, bad pump, ect) or if there is no meth in the tank and send out a signal. On our cars what can be done with this signal is simple, effective, and just plane awesome. The failsafe signal wire can be spliced into the test connector under the steering column and will send the car into safe mode if a problem occurs. Safe mode pulls timing, reduces boost, and richens the AFR thus greatly eliminating the risk of damage to the engine if meth were not injected when WOT.

An example of this would be if I were to go out on the highway with very little meth in my meth tank. I could go WOT and hit my target boost and AFR up until I run out of meth. The moment my meth reservoir gets below a certain point the failsafe engages and puts my car in safe mode reducing my boost, pulling timing, and richening the AFR so that my car is no longer dependent on meth injection to run safely.

Methanol and Denatured Alcohol:

The two main alcohols used for meth injection are methanol and denatured alcohol. Both provide the same relative performance benefits however there are some advantages to one over the other. Denatured alcohol is less corrosive than methanol and more widely available. Practically every Lowes, Home Depot, and Wal-mart has it for sale in the paint section. Methanol on the other hand must be sourced from a chemical supply, motor sport, or specialist shop. Methanol on the other hand is cheaper by the gallon. The prices of both change over time but currently a 5 gallon drum of methanol is ~$30 where as Denatured alcohol is ~$50. For an individual gall on of denatured alcohol at a hard ware store expect to pay $14. Drums of denatured can be ordered at most paint supply stores to save trips and a little bit of money.

Personally I prefer denatured alcohol for the simple fact that I can get it anywhere if I were in a pinch. The cost difference is negligible IMO because when mixed with water you end up with $5-$7 a gallon which will last about 2 tanks of gas if driving civaly.

100% Meth or 50/50 Meth/Water

I personally recommend running a mixture of 50% meth 50% distilled water. This is due to the following reasons/ advantages.
-more for your money (1 gallon of water is $1)
-there is virtually no power loss from adding 50% water
-the 50/50 mixture is less flammable and dangerous
-a 50/50 mix is less hard on the meth kits components

More to come
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top