ABATE of Wisconsin Has Concerns Regarding E25 Fuels, Autonomous Vehicles, and Right to Repair

Wednesday, May 13th, 2026 -- 1:01 PM

The rise of E25 fuels and autonomous vehicles has caused some concerns for motorcyclists.

I spoke with Shannon Kayhart, with ABATE of Wisconsin, and, although not opposed to either of those items, he discussed some issues they’re causing for motorcycle riders and enthusiasts.

Listen to the interview with Shannon here!

Again, Shannon wanted to stress that they’re not opposed to E25 fuels and autonomous vehicles, they just want to make sure they have their needed fuels and motorcyclists are safe on the roads.

(AI assisted transcription via Otter.ai)

Shannon: "Motorcycles, along with many other recreational vehicles, are mandated to E10 or less. If we put something in that's more than E10, it actually voids the warranties. So, if you have a newer vehicle and you void the warranty, it gets kind of expensive."

Riley: " What kind of issues could you see with with some of these recreational vehicles, if that E25 fuel is used on them?"

Shannon: "Well, it's not good for the engine. It messes with the carburetor. It messes with the injectors. It's just not good for what it sits in and it destroys the rubbers. We need to keep the E10 fuel in there."

Riley: "I know a lot of states are, even the country, is kind of pushing these e 25 fuels, but the premium fuels are better for your vehicles. Is that correct?"

Shannon: "Correct."

Riley: "What would you say to an individual that's pushing that E25 that fuel?"

Shannon: "So, ABATE Wisconsin's stand on this is we can have E25 and that's fine, but we need access to E10 and other fuels. We can't go to everything as ethanol. We need fuels for our motorcycles and boats and lawn mowers and anything small engine. Chain saws. We're fine with it. We just need to have access to our own fuels."

Riley: "And now another thing that's a big push around the nation and coming into Wisconsin as well, are the autonomous vehicles. And now it's not 100% sure if they recognize vehicles like motorcycles. Can you touch on that?"

Shannon: "So, autonomous vehicles are trying to use Wisconsin as a test date on some of the bigger roads and anything that's been printed and brought forth. It lists people, cars, trucks, dogs, animals, but it never anywhere lists the motorcycle."

"And so the fear that we have, and we know autonomous vehicles are coming, but we need to make sure that it recognizes a motorcycle. So, if it comes upon a situation where it sees a pedestrian and a car and a motorcycle, well it doesn't recognize the motorcycle and that's what it takes out for the lesser of three evils."

Riley: "Anything else?"

Shannon: "I would like to bring up one more topic, which is ABATE of Wisconsin is pushing our Right to Repair bill. This would be our third congressional session trying to get this bill in."

Riley: "And can you explain what that is?"

Shannon: "So, our Right to Repair bill is like for motorcycles. Harley Davidson won't work on a motorcycle that is more than 20 years old and they won't give us access to tools or technology as our equipment gets older."

"If we can't get access to tools and parts to fix them, we're going to get stuck buying new vehicles. And a lot of our guys are, they're old, they like their old flatheads and their old motorcycles. And if they can't get the access to the parts, that's what we're trying to fight, is so that we can get access to this to these parts and tools."

Feel free to contact us with questions and/or comments.