More E-85 Automobiles Hitting Road
The
National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition reports that Union Electric of St. Louis has
purchased 35 E-85 Ford Taurus' models to comply with the alternative-fuel
vehicle requirement of Energy Policy Act of 1992.
The engines in
the Taurus flexible fuel vehicle models can run on either E-85 fuel, on gasoline
blends with less ethanol, or on straight gasoline. The engines have computer
chips that sense the type of fuel being used and adjust the engines accordingly.
The dashboards include indicators of what type of fuel or blend is being
used.
Montana's Ethanol Producers and Consumers group has also purchased
a 1996 E-85 Taurus to demonstrate ethanol's use as a clean alternative
fuel.
In other E-85 news, the Chrysler Corp. has asked the Ethanol
Vehicle Coalition for a list of gas stations selling E-85 that can be used
during a cross-country test of E-85 minivans.
Also, Ford Motor Co. is
modifying up to 15 of its 1995 Windstar minivans to operate on E-85 fuel. The
costs of modifying the vans' engines is being funded in part by the Governors'
Ethanol Coalition through a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. Several
Windstars will be purchased by the General Services Administration to be leased
to the U.S. Postal Service, which will mark the agency's first use of alcohol
fuels for its vehicles. Reports of the van's success by the Postal Service could
prompt Ford to begin selling the vehicles to the public in the near
future.
