Australia’s First Ethanol Production Car
11 Oct, 2007
3 Comments 
Saab is well known worldwide for its leadership in biofuel research. With the Swedish government setting high standards for emission reduction, Saab is the go-to brand for Ethanol production cars.
All the grants from the Swedish government have gone to good use, Saab today unveiled Australia’s first ethanol production car at the Australian International Motor Show.
Labelled “Saab BioPower”, the green Saabs are based on the company’s 9-5 as is capable of running on E85 (a mix of 85 per cent ethanol and 15 per cent petrol) or petrol, in any combination, from the one fuel tank.
Of course there is one big problem with using E85, its not currently sold commercially in Australia! However Saab says there are a number of ethanol-compatible pumps established around the country, which are capable of switching to commercial sale.
So given the current lack of E85 fuel in Australia, Saab has designed the car to be capable of running completely on Petrol when necessary. Saab believes this is important in the take-up phase of an alternative fuel.
“Saab BioPower is the first production ethanol fuel vehicle for sale in this country,” Director GM Premium Brands, Parveen Batishsaid.
As with all new things. there are some downsides. The Saab will use more E85 per kilometre than standard petrol (although emission offsets are still by far in favour of E85) , and of course there is the whole argument of the actual production of E85, which is producing more pollution than E85 is offsetting!
Thankfully though. that hasn’t stopped the government, ethanol producers and the general public from showing massive interest in the Saab.
“Based on this positive feedback we believe Australians are willing to invest in BioPower, which will help stimulate the demand needed to convince fuel retailers and regulators to facilitate the introduction of E85 fuel pumps at service stations locally.”
The actual car it self produces up to 80 per cent less carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions compared to standard fossil fuel cars.
If you’re expecting a power downgrade, you’d be wrong, the BioPower series of Saab’s actually produce more power! Saab 9-5 BioPower generates roughly 154 kW and 310 Nm of torque on E85, up from 136kW and 280 Nm on petrol.
Saab offers BioPower in 9-5 Sedan and SportEstate body-styles, with a 2.3 litre, four-cylinder turbocharged engine.
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October 12th, 2007 at 10:01 am
****PRIMO!****
The sooner SAAB [And VOLVO] are back in Swedish hands the better.
I will NEVER buy one when its owned by NFI Yanks and just cloned GM product underneath.
Can happen, Subaru where part owned by GM, how back in sage Jap hands, Toyota actually!
Cheers
F-0
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October 14th, 2007 at 1:45 pm
The difference is though that GM didn’t own all of Subby. With Saab however GM owns the whole company.
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November 21st, 2007 at 12:31 pm
Frugal One is quite right, although the SAAB’s look good and represent an overall good package their quality has declined since GM took ownership. I have had eight SAAB’s and have seen the quality decline since GM took ownership. I recently traded my SAAB 95 estate for another car make because my wife’s current model convertible has had a number of build quality issues I have not previously experienced with a SAAB. I think GM have no idea what to do with SAAB and will lose sales until they commit themselves to building a quality vehicle. In the interim Holden prestige buyers have benefitted from many SAAB safetly/comfort features so I guess somebody is a winner.
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