A Dash of the Hard Stuff Improves Fuel Efficiency
Just as president Barrack Obama announced regulations that that require the fuel efficiency of all new cars and trucks to be raised by an average of 30% by 2016 the Ford Motor company revealed test results of a unique ethanol assisted engine that make it as fuel efficient as a petrol-electric hybrid.
The new engine, called a direct-injection ethanol engine, runs primarily on petrol. But when the engine needs some additional power, to climb a hill or accelerate to overtake, the engine management system adds a dash of ethanol to the fuel.
Test results have shown that this results in an improvement in fuel economy of around 23% for an average car. This is due to the fact that the engine operates at a higher compression ratio. The compression ratio is a measure of how much the fuel and air mixture is compressed before being ignited. Higher compression ratios would normally result in premature ignition which is commonly called knocking. Adding ethanol to the fuel-air mixture suppresses knocking.
A pick-up truck fitted with one of the new engines, along with an additional ethanol fuel tank, showed a 23% improvement in fuel efficiency while maintaining performance levels. Tests indicate that a 40 litre supplementary ethanol fuel tank will last for about 30,000 kilometres.
It is expected that the next phase of testing and evaluation will see the new engine used in a variety of vehicles. Tests will be carried out to verify that the engine doesn’t become unusable if the ethanol runs out.
A key factor in favour of this new technology is that the extra cost of these new ethanol assisted engines is around one third of the extra cost of a hybrid petrol-electric engine. Hybrids typically deliver an improvement in fuel economy of between 25 and 35%. The new direct-injection ethanol engine looks like it is a strong contender that will meet Obama’s projected fuel efficiency figures.
On May 19th Barrack Obama announced: “The goal is to set one national standard that will rapidly increase fuel efficiency, without compromising safety, by an average of 5 percent each year between 2012 and 2016″.
The new rules would require vehicle’s average fuel economy standards to be 35.5 miles per gallon by 2016. Specifically, an average of 39 miles per gallon for cars and 30 miles per gallon for trucks. For reference, this year (2009) the average fuel efficiency is 25 miles per gallon.
Inevitably, these new regulations will mean additional costs for motor manufacturers which will be passed on the consumer. But although people will be paying more for their cars and trucks they will be paying less for fuel. Obama said that it was estimated that the average driver would save as much as $2800 by improving their gas mileage.
One way that anyone interested in a new car can save money is to consider financing their new transport using a car lease. Business customers have enjoyed the benefits of car leasing for many years by many individuals are only just becoming aware of the financial advantages. Looking out for new model Fords using the new direct-injection ethanol engine on a Ford lease could be a practical way to save a small fortune.
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