flex-fuel

The price of gasoline may have gone down for now, taking sales of hybrid vehicles with it. But the CAFE rule that mandates auto manufactures average 35 mpg for their fleet of vehicles still applies, meaning more vehicles are being offered with an alternative fuel-capable engine.

At the Chicago Auto Show, GM is displaying 15 of its 20 vehicles available with E85-capable (85 percent ethanol, 15 percent gasoline) powertrains. Chrysler and Ford have also trotted out an impressive lineup of flex fuel-capable cars.… Read more

Lotus Engineering, the automotive consultancy division of Lotus, is back in the news again, this time with a new engine concept called the Omnivore. Lotus announced that it would be collaborating with Queen's University Belfast and Jaguar Cars to develop the engine, which is said to maximize fuel efficiency when running on renewable fuels. Essentially, the Omnivore is an engine that can run on almost anything, from gasoline to alcohol.

This engine design is expected to significantly increase fuel efficiency for sustainable bio alcohol fuels (such as ethanol or methanol) by using a combination of direct injection and variable … Read more

Presumed Republican presidential nominee John McCain on Monday proposed a $300 million prize to develop a car battery that will "leapfrog" today's plug-in hybrids.

In an energy policy speech at Fresno State University in California, McCain also called for an overhaul to existing policies that favor domestic ethanol production--one of the biggest differences he has with his expected opponent, Senator Barack Obama.

McCain said that, if elected, his administration would issue a Clean Car Challenge that would give give a $5,000 tax credit to people who purchase "zero-emissions cars."

There would be a sliding … Read more

Love him or hate him, Bob Lutz is somewhat of a celebrity in the automotive world. From GM to BMW to Ford and back again, Lutz has seen firsthand the growth, as well as the trials and tribulations, of the automotive industry over a span of more than four decades. Oh, and in his early days, he flew fighter planes in the Marine Corps.

When I told some of my colleagues I was invited along with a small group of bloggers to have dinner with "Maximum" Bob, some beamed in envy, others snarled in skepticism. After all, GM … Read more

While hybrid- and flex-fuel cars may be all the rage in today's proto-post-petroleum age, the same approach was being used over 100 years ago by the makers of La Marquise, claimant to the title of the world's oldest running car. Admittedly, the coal, wood, and paper that the steam-powered Marquise uses may not be as eco-friendly as the ethanol or clean diesel of today, but it was enough to get the car's first owner--the Count De Dion--around at a blistering 38 mph when it left the factory in 1884.

According to Autoblog, La Marquise has had … Read more

Arnold Schwarzenegger kicked off the second day of the LA Auto Show here today by telling carmakers that clean energy is the future of the auto industry. Surrounded by a collection of alternative-fuel vehicles, including BMW's Hydrogen7, Tesla's electric-powered roadster, and Honda's hydrogen fuel cell-powered FCX Concept, the California governor said that it was time for automakers to "get on the train" to alternative energy.

He also thanked car manufacturers for what they have done to date in their efforts to produce vehicles that run on alternatives to gasoline. A troupe of automotive executives joined … Read more