ecoFLEX in GM Europe

General Motor’s European company announced on Friday that they will be pushing to have its main production line more environmentally friendly. GM says it would place cleaner engines in traditional cars and provide many more cars that can utilize e85 ethanol.

GM named the plan ecoFLEX and said it would provide an ecoFLEX variation with lower emissions in each production of cars, starting with the 2008 Opel Corsa 1. 3 CDTI from its European brand.

The automobile will breathe 119 grams per kilogram of carbon dioxide, which is under the proposed EU median measure of 130 grams per kilogram. An important goal for GM to work towards will be to develop vehicles with the same operation standards and that cost the same as other traditional vehicles.

Saab, a Swedish brand that is also owned by GM, would too enlarge its scope of biofuel engines. GM’s luxury brand Cadillac will also provide an example of an E85 engine by the end of 2007.

GM said they would pay more attention on environmental concerns with many technologies instead of just using only one. GM said they were moving forward in creating automobiles that operate on hydrogen fuel cells, while new technology could merely better the operation of current gasoline buring engines.

One instance was Eco-Turbo engines that take smaller cylinder displacements but develop equal ability and efficiency via turbocharging the engine.

GM Europe said it would produce 16 original GM Europe engine families and 10 original transmissions by the year of 2012.

Custom e85 chopper

Orange county choppers revealed a very green chopper, a first of its kind. This chopper runs on e85 ethanol. It was the first one that they have built which only uses e85.

OCC e85 ethanol custom chopper
America’s First Renewable Energy Chopper

Some of the features from the bike are as follows:

Wind Turbine Spokes
Here’s where the Teutuls paid homage to the wind. Iowa ranks third in the nation for wind power, with over 900 wind turbines across the state, with plans for another 300 more. Right now we can harvest enough wind to power 250,000 Iowa homes. Wind energy is the cleanest renewable energy source and reduces more then 1.5 million tons of carbon dioxide per year.

E85 Gas Cap
This bad boy runs on e85. E85 or 85% ethanol ethanol blended gas burns cleaner, which reduces green house gases, can be grown right here in Iowa and helps increase our energy independence.

Soybean and Corn Paint Detail
Even though the bike runs on e85 and not biodiesel, the Teutuls still wanted to call out Iowa’s biodiesel industry. The fuel is clean-burning, biodegradable fuel typically produced from soybeans or animal fat. It is also great for the environment since it reduces sulfur and carbon dioxide emissions.

Corn Head “Scoop”
Orange County Choppers designed the corn-head to represent the part of the machine used to harvest our main crops; the combine. Iowa farmers lead the nation in corn and soybean production and their hard work and dedication make our nation’s renewable energy movement a reality.

E-85 Logo
You might see this very same logo at gas stations all around Iowa. If you have a flex-fuel vehicle, this is the fuel to use because 85% of it was made right here in Iowa. If you don’t see this logo at your local gas station, be sure to ask them to start selling e85.

Livestock Seat
For ethanol plants to be successful and efficient, having livestock nearby is very important. Cattle eat what’s left over from making ethanol: Distillers Grain and Solubles (DGS). By feeding this coproduct to cattle, ethanol plants save money on transportation costs (they don’t have to ship it out of state), and livestock farmers save money on feed costs.

Farm Bureau Logo
Why did we have this bike built? Well, as Iowa’s largest general agriculture organization, our members expect us to promote and celebrate their efforts on the farm. And what better way then taking all the great things they grow and use for renewable energy and rolling it all into the look and feel of a custom OCC Chopper!

Ethanol Plant Piping Exhaust
These custom pipes were designed to look like some of the pipes used in Iowa’s modern ethanol plants that help Iowa the nation’s leader in ethanol production.

Can e85 be mixed with regular gasoline?

Can e85 be mixed with regular gasoline?

This question is asked very often. Since e85 is already a mixture of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline, it is just fine to mix the two fuels.

Let’s say that you fill up with e85 before a trip then continue to your destination. When you are ready to leave, you notice there are no e85 stations around. You have less then half a tank left of e85, and you need to fill up. Filling up your tank with regular gas is just fine for your flex fuel vehicle.

Filling up will regular gas will only dilute the e85 ethanol from the original fill up. With a rough calculation, if you have half a tank of e85 and fill up with regular gas, you will have approximately 40 percent ethanol and 60 percent gasoline in your tank.

If your vehicle is a flex fuel vehicle, it will be able to take any combination of e85 and gasoline.