Taking fuel to the racetrack?

Are there any regulations regarding how much fuel you can have on your say, your race car trailer?

The Miata will become track-only next year and I'm building a VVT engine for it. I'm also strongly considering running E85 as well for the extra HP and cooler operating temps, but I suspect there is a legality problem with a civilian traveling with 55 gallons of E85 in/on a trailer.

Am I correct in assuming this? Or am I being overly cautious.

I don't know of any regulations. If you were hauling it to sell, that would be one thing. But personal use usually falls under different regulations.

Probably need to check the laws in the states you plan to travel.

You might want to check with your insurance carrier too.

New Jersey requires red cans for some reason so if njmp is on your list don't buy the purple ones unless you hide them inside. We brought 140 gallons of fuel to the last enduro.

A quick search comes up with you being allowed to carry up to 100 gallons without needing a Hazmat certification. So you should be okay. Still wouldn't hurt to check with your state to be sure.

81cpcamaro wrote: A quick search comes up with you being allowed to carry up to 100 gallons without needing a Hazmat certification. So you should be okay. Still wouldn't hurt to check with your state to be sure.

Excellent, would you mind pointing me to where you found that?

My Google-Fu failed me this morning so I decided to come to the hive.

I believe some tracks also have a track policy on how much you are permitted to bring on site. I have never seen this enforced though.

Doesn't E85 go bad quickly?

81cpcamaro wrote: A quick search comes up with you being allowed to carry up to 100 gallons without needing a Hazmat certification. So you should be okay. Still wouldn't hurt to check with your state to be sure.

I would suspect that carrying 5 gallons in two 55 gallon drums would qualify as "more than 100 gallons" so be careful about that. These are the kind of rules that you don't want to mess around with.

monsterbronco wrote: I believe some tracks also have a track policy on how much you are permitted to bring on site. I have never seen this enforced though. Doesn't E85 go bad quickly?

Not sure, I would suspect it's more hygroscopic than gasoline because of the alcohol content.

Essentially I would fill up the jugs Thursday night/Friday morning, go to the track for the weekend and hopefully use it all up so I wouldn't have to store anything at the house.

We use to hall 2 55g drums on the back of the pickup that was towing the race car. Never had any issues.

I would be more woried about them when they are near empty and full of fumes then when they are full of fuel.

I have nothing useful to add except that I worry when I carry a 5 gallon container of gasoline for the lawn mowers in the trunk. So I would definitely be concerned hauling that much.

Use the smallest number of large containers you can get, it's safer and the fuel won't degrade so quickly.

It might be a good idea to take only enough that you will be using. I filled the tank and a 5 gal. can. always plenty enough. depends on the event of course.

DOT requires placarding when you haul 2 or more 55 gal. drums of any hazardous substance, hence the 100 gallon allowance that requires no placard.

iceracer wrote: It might be a good idea to take only enough that you will be using. I filled the tank and a 5 gal. can. always plenty enough. depends on the event of course.

That's the idea. While I don't know how much fuel the car will burn once the new engine is in, I do know that ~16 gallons of E85 would very likely not last the 10 20 minute sessions of the average track weekend.

The car now will do 5 sessions on a full tank and show below E when I pull it in, add 30% for E85 and it seems I'll need roughly 30 gallons for a track weekend with E85.

I'd definitely like to have some sort of larger container attached to the trailer, then pump it into a 5 gallon jug for putting in the car.

z31maniac wrote:

81cpcamaro wrote: A quick search comes up with you being allowed to carry up to 100 gallons without needing a Hazmat certification. So you should be okay. Still wouldn't hurt to check with your state to be sure.

Excellent, would you mind pointing me to where you found that? My Google-Fu failed me this morning so I decided to come to the hive.

I found it on various sites/forums. Your state DOT site would be a good place to check. Most of the regulations are for commercial vehicles, so you really shouldn't have any issues.

Well, typical 1.6 in Spec Miata trim average about 10 mpg in a race here in CA.

A 5 gallon jug is usually more than enough for a 20 minute sprint race at Thunderhill for example which is a 2.86 mile lap I think.

This is relevant to my interests.

I just started looking around for 55 gallon drums. I think we'll be able to get away with one 55 gallon drum, four 5 gallon quick-fill jugs and a car with a full tank to start. But, we'll still have to make one or more trips for fuel during very long races.

Thanks for all the input!

I think I know how I'll handle it now.

Anyone used one of those fuel tank/pump things that goes in the bed of a pickup? I think they're generally used for hauling diesel for construction equipment, but is it reasonable to use one for other fuels? I've occasionally thought about running E85 in my turbo Miata, but the number of stations selling it around here are really limited, and you can't get it at the track at all. The in-bed tank seems like it might be a good choice for that.

In reply to codrus:

Keep in mind that a car tuned to run on E85 uses fuel ~70% more quickly than gasoline. I'm a big fan of E85, but it really limits your range and the practicality of the vehicle if you use it for anything other than short drives or sprint races.

Meh..., back in the day Big Daddy, Cha Cha, and all the rest of the top fuelers used to carry barrels of unmarked nitro meth and no one died. I personally wouldn't give it a second thought.

i always just used those regular fuel containers you buy at the gas station, nobody ever said anything. I always bring E36 M3 like oil and brake fluid as well. Had a car once that boiled so much brake fluid it was undrivable (350z), never again.

JohnyHachi6 wrote: In reply to codrus: Keep in mind that a car tuned to run on E85 uses fuel ~70% more quickly than gasoline. I'm a big fan of E85, but it really limits your range and the practicality of the vehicle if you use it for anything other than short drives or sprint races.

70% more?

Care to back that up with any info? Everything I've read puts it between 30-40% more.

And as I mentioned in the OP, it will be strictly a track car, so I'm not concerned about range.