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Hybrid Vehicles Hybrid Vehicles - Archived Discussions Will ethanol E85 catch on in the US? Will we Live Green and Go Yellow? 
2104 messages, Last post on Oct 27, 2006 at 5:34 AM
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Replying to: seniorjose (May 15, 2006 7:52 am) I think we are closer on this than I first suspected. I am for alternatives to oil. I don't believe we will ever be oil independent. We can take a bite out of the imports. For ethanol to be practical it has to be processed close to the market. This last energy bill with the kneejerk mandate for ethanol to replace MTBE is directly raising the price of gasoline across the nation. When you have to truck millions of gallons of ethanol to the West Coast it is no wonder that we are paying $3.35 for unleaded gas. Biodiesel is a viable alternative to diesel. It also has limitations that have to be considered when switching from fossil diesel. We are also on the same page agreeing that we have the best Congress money can buy. I don't think you would be quite so exuberant about ethanol if you were getting the ethanol shaft as we in CA are. Dumb small farmers are a thing of the past, being paid to not work on government welfare. Owning a small MN farm and having several friends that actually live off of their farms, I find your harsh assessment incorrect. I do not know of a one that lives off of government welfare. Especially not to the extent of what we give to mega farmers and corporate giants like ADM. All the farmers I know have small to medium dairy farms. They work 365 days a year to produce enough milk to survive. We have price controls on milk in CA because all the small dairy farmers were run out of business by big operators. Then they tried to rip off the public. It looks like we will see the same thing happen with ethanol. |
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Replying to: gagrice (May 09, 2006 7:53 am) E85 is now starting to sell for 85 cents a gallon less than regular gasoline, about $2.00 or less a gallon. At least the Hybrid Rube Goldberg designed excess costs are not going to impact the Ethanol market, what a disaster in the making. Remember that Hybrids were brought to market only to maximize additional auto manufacturers profits. These troublesome vehicles have been with us long enough to make the over $5,000 battery pack replacement a very nervous time for owners. Minnesota now leads E85 pumps with Iowa, Wisconsin and Illinois not far behind. With the additional 400,000 GM mostly and small number of Ford vehicles coming on line, E85 is becoming a part of the Midwest energy scene. ...one E85 pump in southern California? I am surprised because Ethanol is not a viable product for California. Water is too valuable a commodity in the dessert environment than to grow corn, switch grass or whatever is the new product for Ethanol...seems like energy independence will be a regional solution. "As an aside, an experimental usage of tight bundles of common ordinary grass to fire an electric generating plant that normally uses other sources of energy is being evaluated in Southern Iowa. Initial results are very encouraging...hmmm, grass for electricity too! At least the midwest is looking for solutions, not screeching and whining and throwing temper tantrums as politicians are wont to do!" E85 (Ethanol) is not he end all to beat all, but a viable (here now) alternative to Osama Bib Laden's energy policy. There will be more alternatives for different regions of the United States, one size does not fit all. It may affect population shifts in the USA, after all, we cannot make the dessert bloom forever using high priced energy.
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Replying to: seniorjose (May 15, 2006 8:45 am) RTC is owned by Pearson Ford. They have been a leader in alternative transportation and fuels. I checked a couple days ago and they are now selling E85 for $2.99 vs unleaded at $3.35. I have no idea how many vehicles they serve. It may be for fleet services. |
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Replying to: gagrice (Mar 31, 2006 10:50 am) ADM and agriculture in general are solving the MTBF debacle. Ramping up will take time. However, ADM and other companies are owned by average Joe stockholders who expect a profit from their investment...and they don't have to worry about dry holes in the ground. It is a viable solution whose time is now, for how long we do not know. At least the average auto can use ethanol, not like the huge price premium on the Rube Goldberg hybrids that nobody can repair...their teething problems are downright legendary.
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Replying to: seniorjose (May 16, 2006 9:08 am) They do know what it is and that is why they are dragging their feet. Just suppose they allow the permits to build a still in a given location. Do you recall the hassle in St Paul with an ethanol plant there? They STINK to high heaven. Also many of the new ethanol plants on the drawing board are using coal as an energy source. That adds more STINK to the location. I would rather have a nuclear facility on my farm than an ethanol plant any day of the week. I don't think you are assessing this whole ethanol situation realistically. Or you own a huge chunk of ADM. |
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Replying to: snakeweasel (May 15, 2006 5:55 am) Now, now, SW. Hiliary's a homegirl, give her a break  - I had to get you on that one. Arkansas (I mean WalMart-land) isn't that bad. Besides WalMarts on every corner it's given us the hangin' judge from Ft. Smith, White Water scandal...well, maybe it is bad 
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Replying to: jae5 (May 16, 2006 9:51 am) Can't give her a break, she turned traitor on us and started attending Maine South, why anyone in their right mind would want to go to Maine South High School is beyond me. |
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| Go, Corn Racer: GM Pressing NASCAR To Use Ethanol | |
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The biggest obstacle to transistioning to E85 and biodiesel it getting the lay public to understand their usefulness, and trust them as reliable consumer products. The audience that posts here doesn't qualify as "lay public" when it comes to cars. We are enthusiasts, and as such have a deeper background (both good and bad) to build on. NASCAR's popularity is growing fast, it would be a huge deal in terms of ligitimizing E 85 as a viable alternative fuel source to the general public. Oh and GO Jeff GO! Been a fan since the "rainbow warrior" days. Tony Stewart should be banned! Let the insults come.
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Replying to: catam (May 16, 2006 8:09 pm) Now if, E85 becomes available enough and is cheaper than reg gas, for some unknown reason the public will find it.
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