Re: 1988 Force 50 HP ethanol gas
Until the producers shake out and all switch to ethanol, you need to worry about using a combination of fuels with both ethanol and MBTE additives. When mixed together in the presence of moisture, they form a gooey Jello like substance that clogs fuel filters and carbs. The prevention is to always buy one brand of gasoline for the near future or only use gas from pumps labeled as containing ethanol.
The ethanol WILL cause earlier hardening of the fuel pump diaphragm, but even if you need to change a 3 buck part once a year (worst case), that's not going to hurt you. It will also cause the fuel line and primer bulb to eventually harden, but this takes at least a few seasons.
