Saptarshi Mondal
Joint Minister of Road Transport and Highway Nitin Gadkari has urged automakers to launch flexible fuel vehicles in the Indian market within one year.
- Nitin Gadkari emphasizes the rapid launch of Flex-Fuel vehicles
- Can use 100% gasoline or ethanol, or a mixture of the two
- Currently available in markets such as North America and Brazil
Focus on launching flexible fuel vehicles
Nitin Gadkari has called on the CEO delegation of SIAM (Indian Automobile Manufacturers Association) to launch flexible fuel vehicles that can use 100% ethanol or gasoline in the Indian market within one year. A “flexible fuel engine” is an internal combustion engine that can run on a variety of fuels and mixtures.
“Today I met with the SIAM CEO delegation in New Delhi. It was emphasized that flexible fuel vehicles (FFVs) capable of using 100% ethanol and gasoline need to be quickly launched within a year to enter the Indian automotive market,” the minister said in a tweet.
Generally, a mixture of gasoline and ethanol or methanol is used, and the engine can automatically adjust any percentage of the mixture due to modifications such as the fuel composition sensor and appropriate ECU programming. Flex fuel engines can run on 100% gasoline or 100% ethanol, and are already on the market in countries such as Brazil, the United States, and Canada.
India has already used ethanol blended gasoline with a doping level of 5% at the beginning, and it is currently about 10%. Earlier last month, the government set a goal of producing 20% ethanol blended gasoline (E20) within two years from 2025 to 2023.
According to the official statement, the CEO delegation includes private, commercial and two-wheeler manufacturers. The delegation met with the minister, introduced the latest developments in the automotive industry, and even requested the postponement of emissions-based regulations, such as the second stage of Bharat Stage 6 and the second stage of CAFÉ regulations.
As of now, the CAFE-2 specification will take effect in 2022, and the second phase of BS6 specification will take effect in April 2023. Within two weeks,” the ministry said.
It is recommended to include 6 airbags
During the meeting, for passenger car safety, the Minister of Transportation also urged all private car manufacturers to provide at least six airbags for all vehicle variants and market segments.
See also:
Tesla can’t exempt India’s high electric car import tariffs
COVID-19 has played a destructive role, delaying the 2022 Auto Expo
The automaker announces a price increase from August 2021