1998 Ethanol Vehicle Challenge: E85 Vehicles Surpass E0 on Dynamometer Tests for Mileage Efficiency

Biofuels Engine Design, Competitions, Contests, Education, Energy, Federal Agency/Executive Branch, Infrastructure

September 26, 2013

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(Argonne National Laboratory) Sponsored by U.S. Department of Energy, General Motors Corporation, Natural Resources Canada
In the Advanced Vehicle Technology Competitions sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, college engineering students work together to design, build, and evaluate a state-of-the-art vehicle. For the 1998 Ethanol Vehicle Challenge, the goal was to convert an award-winning Chevrolet Malibu sedan into an optimized vehicle fueled solely by E85 (a blend of 85% denatured ethanol and 15% gasolinelike hydrocarbon primer). The competition required that the vehicle have improved fuel economy, low exhaust emissions, and excellent cold starting, without sacrificing driveability and performance.
Each of the 14 schools selected to participate in the Challenge received a 1997 Malibu powered by a 3.1-L V6 engine, plus a spare engine from General Motors for development purposes. Student teams replaced or upgraded major engine and fuel-system components for ethanol operation.
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Fuel Efficiency: Most vehicles tested on the dynamometer exceeded the fuel efficiency of the stock Malibu, with the best schools showing efficiency improvements of 13 to 15%. In fact, in the city portion of the dynamometer testing, all
the vehicles demonstrated a higher fuel efficiency than the stock Malibu. READ MORE and MORE (DomesticFuel.com See Comments)

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