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A new report shows the number of E85 ethanol pumps in the U.S. has grown nearly 28% in the past year, surpassing the 1,800 mark with 1,693 available for public use. The states with the most E85 pumps are, as you'd expect, in the corn belt, including Minnesota, Illinois and Missouri. Just don't expect to find them in every corner of the country: Despite the growth in E85 availability, seven states still don't have any E85 pumps, including Alaska. Considering E85 expansion is part of our current national energy policy, it makes us wonder if Governor Palin should revise her favorite chant to "distill, baby, distill." But, of course, the problem with ethanol remains one of economics rather than availability. E85 costs about 18% less nationwide than a gallon of gasoline despite containing 23-28% less energy. When the cost to grow, process, distill and transport that ethanol is taken into account, the math just doesn't work out in favor of corn likker . But we are glad...
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There is no good reason at all for Nissan to take their fuel-cell-powered X-Trail to the Nordschleife, but that's what they've gone and done. An 11-minute, 58-second lap time and putting a fuel cell-powered SUV on the 'Ring are both patently ridiculous. Enough. Nissan, it was great when you blasted round the 'Ring with the GT-R , but now you've just Fonzied yourselves. [ EdmundsInsideLine ]
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There is no good reason at all for Nissan to take their fuel-cell-powered X-Trail to the Nordschleife, but that's what they've gone and done. An 11-minute, 58-second lap time and putting a fuel cell-powered SUV on the 'Ring are both patently ridiculous. Enough. Nissan, it was great when you blasted round the 'Ring with the GT-R , but now you've just Fonzied yourselves. [ EdmundsInsideLine ]
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While the 2011 Chevy Volt is proceeding down the path from vaporware to successful range testing to production ready, its price seems to remain stubbornly in the land of the lost. The original goal was to have it on the road for around $30,000, in April, Maximum Bob dropped the bomb saying the price may come in at $48k . Well, Minimum Rick seems to be following his "Wait a month and clean up after Bob" modus operandi yet again. Wagoner, who definitely gives a shit about global warming, is now saying the Volt may actually come in below the original target. How much lower? That's a silly question to ask considering how GM seems to keep mixing the messages themselves. An $18,000 price point difference makes for a mighty different business case though, especially considering gas will only be available with live organ exchange by 2010. [Translated from German: FAZ.net ]
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In today's episode of The Holy-Shit-Gas-is-High Alternative Fuel Chronicles, we encounter researchers in Romania and Turkey that have devised a way to turn the circuit boards from old electronics into a potential fuel source. The process uses a combination of catalysts, high temperatures and chemical filtration to extract toxins from old electronic junk that could be a fuel for vehicles and more. In 20 years will you be cramming old, outdated iPhones into the gas tank of your flying car? We'd bet against it, but it shows that it's not just the United States thats freaking out about gas prices. [ Live Science via Giz ]
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For those that just can't get green enough, here comes a new accessory that will make your Prius even more deadly . The SEV Solar Roof Module is essentially that. What makes this vehicular solar panel a bit better than the average bear is the fact that it installs seamlessly onto the Toyota Prius roof. The entire roof-panel is replaced with these solar cells and can provide 20 miles of electric range as well as upward of 29-percent increased fuel efficiency. This module is capable of fitting 2004 through 2006 Prius models. Watch out, deaf kids! [ SEV via TFRJ ]
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Kings of ethanol and new GM buddy, Coskata, has announced it has broken ground on an new cellulosic ethanol plant in Pennsylvania that could be churning out the alternative fuel as early as next year. Coskata claims it can produce the two carbon alcohol at a cost of $1 per gallon so unless they aren't interested in getting to step three, expect pricing on the more renewable fuel to be higher than that. Regardless, it will likely beat the hell out of that $5.40 gallon gas bullshit going on in California. The plant location in question is in Madison, PA, and when complete will be capable of producing 40,000 gallons of ethanol annually. Consider this as just the start for Coskata, as they have even bigger plants planned for 2011. Color us unimpressed at this point, as 40,000 gallons is about enough to get a flexfuel Suburban to the Trader Joe's and back. [ CNET ]
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Let's just get this out of the way up front so you can come back later: Bentley brought no new luxurious nor mega-costly glistening sheet metal hand-rubbed to a burnished sheen by ambidextrous master craft-rubbers at their lush production palace factory in Crewe, England. Instead, at this New York Auto Show they touted their new partnership with an atmospheric molecule of fraught reputation: CO2. They thoughtfully provided me with a 17-page outline of how they're going to change the relationship between high-performance V12 engines and global warming. I'm halfway through it and will return later with a summary. But until then, let's talk about those hawt English accents. galleryPost('2008nyautoshowbentley', 6, 'Glistening Bentley Goodness'); Oh, yes, the same damn thing happened at the Rolls-Royce press conference at the Detroit Auto Show. A highly competent looking man of British descent stood up and said things, not new things, but things that were full...
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A couple of days ago, we received an email from Lumeneo's PR rep Isabel giving us the business about the all-electric, leaning Lumeneo Smera we brought you. She claimed the car was not as our American eyes could clearly see, a single seater, but in fact a two seater! 'Impossible!' we said, 'Prove it with a picture.' And so she has. Seated inline, inside that tiny little car are father Daniel and son Thierry Moulène, President and Technical Director respectively. galleryPost('lumeneosmera', 18, 'The Apparently 2 Seat Lumeneo Smera '); We promise there are no tricks of photography, no tricks, this is a real picture and two grown men are in the Smera. You can look for pixels yourself with this full size image . Guess that explains the funny shape of the lower seat cushion. We thought the press release was in error when it said two passengers. So now we have a two seat, all electric, four wheeled, leaning micro car that will get to 62 MPH in 8 seconds, top...
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Tucked into a lightly trafficked back corner of the show is this awesome little scooter-sized concept car called the Lumeneo Smera . The Smera is a single seat, super-narrow electric car that fits into the same footprint as most of the scooters Europe's more suicidal drivers use as daily drivers. With those huge windows and Buck Rogers steering wheel, the cabin doesn't feel quite like the claustrophobe's nightmare it should, and while cargo space is tight, it's also not as bad as we'd expected. But, what did meet expectations was the fuel economy and range. The Smera... galleryPost('lumeneosmera', 9, 'Single Seat Electric Powered Lumeneo Smera'); ...is capable of 80 MPH and goes for a range of up to 93 miles. Best of all, it leans into turns just like a motorcycle so we're assuming driving it has got to be a riot. The little car is powered by two 20 BHP electric motors feeding off of lithium ion batteries capable of a rechage by way of standard domestic...
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We've been saying for years the only efficient hybrid with current technology is one mated to a diesel engine, and now it looks like another automaker is jumping into the conceptual fray. Our little news yesterday on the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics X5 -- translated from Bruce, that appears to be an X5 outfitted with a 2.0-liter twin turbo common rail diesel mild hybrid (wow, that's a mouthful, ain't it?) -- appears to be wholly true. BMW will be revealing this little concept in environmentally friendly CUV-ing at the Geneva Motor Show next month and they've now seen fit to reveal the rest of their press shots and the full press release, which we've got below the jump. Feel free to read through it if you're suffering from a strong desire to fall back into bed. For now, here's the gist of it -- hybrid + diesel + BMW = Over 100 HP per liter (total of 204 HP), 295 lb-ft of torque between 2000 and 2500 RPM. Exciting, isn't it? galleryPost('BMWVisionX5Geneva'...
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Rather than focusing vehicle-development and alternative-energy resources on finding different kinds of fuel , students and researchers at Georgia Tech are taking a couple steps back and looking at the emissions problem. The project currently being worked on involves a car that still operates on standard liquid fuels, but the kicker is the carbon emissions. The car will collect those and shuttle them back to a processing plant that can convert them back into fuel, taking out two birds with one stone. Eventually the team is looking into a long-term strategy that would involve creation of a truly and completely sustainable system. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the process as well, so take a gander at the press release below and see if you can figure out all of the eggheady scientific jargon. ATLANTA (February 11, 2008) --Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have developed a strategy to capture, store and eventually recycle carbon from vehicles to prevent the pollutant...
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Just over a year ago, we told you about General Motors' plan to put 100 fuel-cell vehicles on the road by the end of 2007. It appears GM still plans to meet that goal, as they recently reiterated the claim at the Frankfurt Auto Show . Under the name "Project Driveway," Chevrolet Equinox Fuel Cell Vehicles were to be delivered to those with eco cred and who live near a hydrogen refueling center in the US, Germany, Japan, China and South Korea. GM says most of the recipients were influencers like government officials, celebrities and the military. Apparently GM will also give some of the vehicles to the public, with recipients picked from a pool of online applicants. Details on where or how to sign up, however, don't appear to exist. With the 100 vehicles, GM claims it'll have the largest fuel-cell fleet on the road, but there's no need to worry about another EV1 incident -- these things only have a shelf life of 50,000 miles. We're offering a hearty pat on the back to the reader who guesses...
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Ethanol will not make cars "greener." Period. [ Economist ]
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