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Ethanol will get you free parking at Vikings games, sort of

Here's the problem with flex-fuel vehicles. Also known at E85-capable, flexfuel rides can burn straight gasoline or a gasoline/ethanol blend that is up to 85 percent ethanol. But, since they don't need ethanol, the reality is that most people fill up with petroleum pure and call it a day (in most of the U.S., ethanol isn't all that easy to find, although it's easier now than ever before). The latest numbers available from the U.S. government say that that about 300,000 E85-capable vehicles actually used E85 in America in 2006, out of the five ... Read more →

Frankfurt Preview: Saab 9-5 wil come with five engine options Sebastian Blanco

The new Saab 9-5 sedan that's coming to the Frankfurt Motor Show in a few weeks features a lot of snazzy interior upgrades – heads-up display, adaptive cruise control and lighting and ...

Why is there ethanol in gasoline? Jeremy Korzeniewski

Today, we take another look at ethanol for our weekly Greenlings post. You've probably noticed that many vehicles are labeled with a Flex Fuel badge from the manufacturer, indicating that the car ...

VIDEO: Lazareth creates an E85-powered, 500-horsepower quad Jeremy Korzeniewski

French automobile and motorcycle builder Lazareth has managed to shoehorn an entire BMW V12 engine into one of his crazy Wazuma quad-like machines. Admittedly, there isn't much that's ...

Congressional Republicans call out Stephen Chu for flex-fuel vehicle remarks Sebastian Blanco

Six Republican members of Congress have taken issue with DOE head Stephen Chu's call for all American vehicles to be E85-capable. Chu – who once said that ethanol, as it is made today, "is not ...

Does the government know if ethanol cars qualify for Cash-For-Clunkers? 4 months ago on Autoblog Green

AutoblogGreen reader Michael recently sent in a question regarding the about-to-start "Cash for Clunkers" program. Officially known as the Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS), the program allows owners of some older and inefficient vehicles to trade them in and get a rebate check worth up to ...

HP2G acrimoniously drops out of Auto X Prize 5 months ago on Autoblog Green

January was a simpler time for the relationship between Doug Pelmear/Horse Power Sales (makers of the HP2G engine that was in the Mustang we saw in Detroit a few months ago) and the Automotive X Prize. Back then, the two were happy neighbors in the NAIAS basement (the smelly, smelly basement). No ...

Sign of the times: Ethanol almost 40 cents cheaper than gas 5 months ago on Autoblog Green

Driving around mid-Michigan over the weekend, I couldn't help but notice how much gas prices have jumped in the last few weeks. According to AAA, the national average price for a gallon of regular gas has jumped up 50 cents in the past month to $2.50. Well, this is a good time to have a flex-fuel ...

One lucky Hoosier gets ethanol, wins the lottery 5 months ago on Autoblog Green

Don't say ethanol never paid off for anyone. Summitville, Indiana resident Pamela Smith stopped off to buy E85 earlier this month and dropped a few bucks into the Indiana lottery. Luck was with her, and she won the $2.5 million Hoosier Lotto jackpot. "I was looking for Ethanol gas," Smith in a ...

GM: Mascoma ethanol process works as promised in laboratory testing 6 months ago on Autoblog Green

Back in February, Mascoma opened its first pilot plant for the production of cellulosic ethanol. According to General Motors, which invested in Mascoma and its unique method for producing the alcohol, Mascoma's consolidated bioprocessing process has proven successful in a laboratory environment. ...

GM makes the case for testing E15 ethanol blend 6 months ago on Autoblog Green

GM has long been a proponent of using high-level ethanol blend, E85, in motor vehicles. But, with all of the talk of putting E15 or E20 (gasoline with 15 or 20 percent ethanol blended in) into the national supply - see these earlier posts about the EPA, the Minnesota Ag Department, the Secretary of ...

What is cellulosic ethanol and how does it fit with green cars? 9 months ago on Autoblog Green

There is a lot of controversy surrounding biofuels. Various studies have shown that crop-based biofuels contribute to global warming more than they help prevent it, that ethanol is no better than gasoline, and that South East Asian rainforests are suffering for biofuels, to name just three. The ...

Efforts to increase ethanol concentrations in gasoline face UL hurdle 9 months ago on Autoblog Green

A decision made last month by Underwriters Laboratories could put a big speed bump in efforts by states like Minnesota and the USDA and EPA to increase concentrations of ethanol in gasoline beyond the current maximum of 10 percent. Many states and municipalities require UL listings for fuel pumps. ...

Ethanol-powered Mustang reaches 252 mph 10 months ago on Autoblog Green

Want to prove that ponies like ethanol? Give Oklahoma corn farmer Brent Hajek a call. He helped get a FR500C Ford Mustang running on E85 up to 252.78 mph on the Bonneville Salt Flats is Utah back in September. The record-setting drive (well, almost. It still needs to be duplicated to make the ...

Indiana police department abandons E85 test for cost reasons 11 months ago on Autoblog Green

In spite of all the promotion from General Motors of E85 as an alternative fuel, the reality for most people has been that is simply doesn't make sense from an economic perspective. As the West Lafayette, Indiana police department found out last summer, the numbers didn't add up. There is of course ...

EPA ups America's Renewable Fuel Standard to 10.21 percent for 2009 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

In 2009, the U.S. will use at least 11.1 billion gallons of renewable fuel. This was the pronouncement of the EPA today regarding an increase in the Renewable Fuel Standard Increased from 7.76 percent (the 2008 number) to 10.21 percent, an increase of 2.45 percentage points or about 2 billion ...

Platts Cellulosic Ethanol Conference - sitting down with Coskata's Wes Bolsen 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

As promised, we got a chance to sit down with Wes Bolsen, the CMO and vice president at Coskata, during last week's Platts Cellulosic Ethanol Conference in Chicago. We wanted a little more information on the $1/gallon number for the Coskata process "cellulosic" ethanol (yes, Bolsen pointed out that ...

Platts Cellulosic Ethanol Conference - updates from Coskata, Novozymes and SunOpta 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

Thursday at the Platts Cellulosic Ethanol Conference saw three of the cellulosic ethanol plant builders give updates on their strategy for converting biomass to fuel and where their companies are today. The speakers were Wes Bolsen, CMO and vp at Coskata, Christopher Veit, senior marketing manager, ...

Platts Cellulosic Ethanol Conference - industry overview 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

If you get into a room with a lot of people who make up part of the cellulosic ethanol industry, things can get a little technical. This is the situation here in Chicago for the Platts 3rd Annual Cellulosic Ethanol and Biofuels conference. A few hundred representatives from a lot of companies in ...

Welcome to the Platts Cellulosic Ethanol and Biofuels conference, here's your Escalade 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

When Toyota invited reporters to Portland last month for the Sustainable Mobility Seminar, we were greeted at the baggage claim with tickets for the Portland public rail system. Here in Chicago for GM's biofuels conference, we were met at the airport by a driver in an Escalade (and not the hybrid ...

ABC Extreme Makeover winner gets flexfuel F-150 and a year's supply of E85 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

I wonder just how much money and time has been spent by national organizations promoting flexfuel vehicles - even though we all know that E85 fuel is pretty hard to find. Whatever the calculation, we need to add in the cost of a new F150 crew cab flexible-fuel vehicle (around $36,000) and a year's ...

Got no gas? Use E85 to escape the hurricane 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

Photo by Pixthree. Licensed under Creative Commons license 2.0. While Hurricane Ike caused gas to shoot up to $5 a gallon in some areas, one problem in the direct path of the storm was a total lack of gasoline. But, for one University of Houston mechanical engineering student, the absence of ...

Find more ethanol with DriveFlexFuel E85 station locator 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

One of the problems major automakers cite as a reason that more ethanol isn't used in their flex-fuel vehicles is that the people who own the cars just don't know that you can put E85 into the tank. But there is another problem: not having any E85 available in your area. If you want to find out if ...

Ethanol takes a stage at Republican National Convention 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

Not to be outdone by those Coors ethanol vehicles at the DNC, Republicans will get their own ethanol-dose during their national convention this week. On Tuesday night in the Twin Cities, the Minnesota Agri-Growth Council will host a "celebration" called AgNite (because you know that farmers are the ...

Ethanol being blamed for small engine failures 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

It's certainly true that most ethanol opponents can find plenty of fuel for their arguments. Some claim that food prices have been adversely affected by ethanol production. Others point to the fact that most cars get worse fuel mileage when running E85. Obviously, there have been many debates ...

Convert Your Prius to Run on E85 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

You've heard about plug-in hybrid conversions to the Toyota Prius. Now, a new company offers another eco-upgrade - E85 conversions. A Dutch firm named GreenFuelSystems has created an E85 bio-ethanol conversion kit that is available for 549 Euros. While the English-language version of the company's ...

Gas prices causing drivers to blend their own ethanol 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

Because certain subsidies and incentives allow many gas stations to sell ethanol for less money than regular gasoline, the fuel is becoming a popular choice among motorists, even if their vehicles are not certified for flex-fuel use. All vehicles sold in the U.S. today are capable of accepting ...

85-cent E85 coming to Massachusetts on Thursday 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

Here in the Northeast, you're more likely to spot the Loch Ness monster in your neighbor's kiddie pool than you are to find a fuel pump that dispenses E85 Ethanol, a situation that always makes me chuckle at the various "FLEXFUEL" badges I increasingly see on area vehicles. Well, as of this ...

Ethanol promoters attack Big Oil, OPEC in Nashville 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

Oh, the poor ethanol industry figures. Maligned for their reliance on corn, blamed for rising food prices and having to resort to subsidized fuel sales to attract attention, ethanol is an easy target these days.. Ethanol can't even get any love from the chickens. Last week, ethanol promoters ...

Chickens against corn ethanol 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

Photo by mrebert. Licensed under Creative Commons license 2.0. Last month, Texas asked the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to halve the nationwide renewable fuels standard (RFS) because it believes "implementation of the RFS would severely harm the economy or environment" of Texas. Basically, ...

Are high gas prices "forcing" Americans toward ethanol? 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

Here's an interesting way to phrase things. The Ethanol Promotion and Information Council (EPIC) is trying to reframe America's current high pump costs with this headline: "Gas Prices Force Americans to Push for Ethanol Fuel." O rly? See, EPIC commissioned a survey (conducted by Luth Research's ...

Toyota peers into E85 in Thailand 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

Although Toyota is the undisputed leader in hybrid sales, it has shied away from offering E85-capable vehicles in the United States. In other markets, though, where ethanol is widely available and popular, such as Brazil, Toyota has seen fit to offer vehicles which are able to run on the alcohol ...

GM readies all 2009 Cadillac Escalades for ethanol 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

2009 hybrid Escalade. You can put canola oil in a Cadilac. You can almost get an Escalade with a hybrid powertrain. And, now, you will be able to get the behemoth (either the Escalade, the Escalade EXT or the Escalade ESV) with an ethanol-ready flexfuel engine. GM announced today that all 2009 ...

Colorado gets a chance at cheap (subsidized) corn ethanol 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

I guess they've got to pretty much give it away: E85 fuel will be on sale for just 85 cents a gallon for two hours in Colorado next week. Domestic Fuel says that the special sale on the biofuel for flexfuel cars will take place in the town of Fowler from noon until 2 p.m. on Tuesday, June 12. The ...

Over a dozen cellulosic ethanol plants going up in the U.S. 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

Photo by Eric Charlton. Licensed under Creative Commons license 2.0. Everyone who follows the biofuel industry knows that the future of ethanol lies in cellulose. While corn is today's big feedstock, the potential to make ethanol cheaper and with less of an impact on food prices and the environment ...

Atlanta-area E85 will be cheap tomorrow - $1.85 a gallon for two hours 1 year ago on Autoblog Green

click picture to enlarge Sorry to anyone in Atlanta who could've used this information today, but I just noticed it now: a half-dozen fuel stations are offering E85 for $1.85 a gallon tomorrow. The low price - subsidized/sponsored by the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council (EPIC), Clean FUEL ...

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