India's first flex-fuel car will be launched on Wednesday. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari spoke about the flex-fuel car launch. Over 20 million flex-fuel cars are operating in the US. At the same time, auto giant Toyota will launch India's first flex-fuel car.
The specialty of the flex-fuel car is that the vehicle will also run on ethanol and other fuels including petrol. Ethanol is being sold in India at Rs 55 per liter.
Kenichi Ayukawa, President of, the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers said that India has set a target to become the top global producer in all segments of the vehicle. With India’s flex-fuel car initiative, the country will achieve this target in the coming 25 years.
Apart from Toyota, other automobile companies in the country are also planning to launch cars like India’s first flex-fuel car. However, people in India will have to wait a long time to buy these cars from the showroom.
If we talk about India’s first flex-fuel car then flexibility as the name suggests. The main question is What is Flex-Fuel Technology?
'Flex-Fuel Technology' car will work on fuels with up to 83% ethanol mix including petrol. These cars are currently running in the US, Brazil, and Canada.
According to a report, there were more than 21 million cars in the US as of 2018. The US Department of Energy reported that the car's performance was seen to improve when a high ethanol blend was added to the fuel.
Most of the parts of this car are similar to the petrol car. These have an internal combustion engine, which will also work on petrol or up to 83% ethanol mixed fuel. This makes India’s first flex-fuel car so different from a petrol one. However, some of its components are only compatible with fuels containing ethanol.
Some modifications have been made to the fuel pump and fuel injection system. To use the high oxygen content of ethanol, an engine control module was installed in it. This module will monitor and control the fuel mixer, ignition timing, and emission system. The engine will give a warning on overuse and will also detect other problems in the vehicle.
India’s Flex-fuel car owners can switch vehicles to ethanol whenever they want. They will have more options than petrol vehicles and they will be able to choose cheaper fuel. While petrol is costlier than Rs 100 a liter in India, ethanol is being sold at Rs 55 a liter. The use of these cars will also reduce India's fuel dependence on other countries.
