Read up here:
http://www.pureenergysystems.com/news/2005/03/17/6900069_Acetone/http://www.lubedev.com/smartgas/additive.htmI've done a heck of a lot of research lately, and some people have done tests on the longevity of engines and fuel system parts. It looks like there is no damage at recommended concentrations of about 0.3%. Actually, there has been more than one test on parts with acetone concentrations at 10-15% (up to 50 times the recommended amount) and there was no damage.
Some people have run acetone for incredible amounts of miles with no problems. One guy ran 200,000 miles with acetone and had over 400,000 total miles on the car. I would tend to think that any potential problems would present themselves by 200,000 freakin' miles. I have found ZERO reports of acetone causing damage when used in this manner. Zero. You'd think *some* idiot would ruin their car with it, but I guess it's pretty safe for most (if not all) cars.
Oh.. by the way, if you're still wondering about damage to your engine...
Fact: Many popular fuel additives contain 15% or higher concentrations of acetone as a primary effective ingredient (although many companies hide this on the label by stating that they contain a proprietary or patented blend of chemicals). By the time you add them to your tank with the recommended minimum of fuel, you have a similar concentration. Although the other chemicals in the bottle may raise the octane to levels that will reduce the benefit of the acetone, or cause the same result through other effects.
I have found many, many people attesting to definite mpg gains with acetone, some with no effect, and only a rare few who experienced drops in performance. I would tend to think from this that it works in pretty much all engines, as long as you find decent quality gas, use the right amount of acetone, and don't use ethanol which will reduce the effects of the acetone.
Also, the guy who wrote the above "paper" isn't trying to sell anything or even make a single penny from this, which makes me believe him a bit more. What would he really have to gain by lying?
I'm going to try this in my "new" $1000 '98 Cavalier that I'll be picking up tomorrow, after I establish a good baseline fuel economy, of course. I'll be doing things objectively and averaging
several tanks of gas to determine mpg with 0 to 3 oz. of acetone per 10 gal of regular gas (87 octane around here with no ethanol). I'll also try to keep my driving habits the same, and eliminate the tankfull from the average if I deviate considerably (for example, my upcoming 500+ highway-mile round trip). I'll let everyone know what my results are, but it will take a long time to burn that much gas with regular driving.
JP