TACLOBAN CITY, Leyte –
A jubilant President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo praised Ford Motor
Company for coming out with its line of Flexible Fuel Vehicles (FFV)
which are equipped with engines that can run on either conventional
gasoline or blended gasoline and bio-ethanol fuels.
The President has
every reason to be happy during her inspection of the flexible
vehicles in Cebu City Friday morning, as she has long been advocating
the use of alternative sources of fuel in order to lessen the
country’s dependence on imported fuel oil.
Ford's FFV is the car
manufacturer's answer to the President’s call and to growing worldwide
need for safer, cleaner and more energy efficient internal combustion
engines that rely less on conventional fossil fuel-derived gasoline
but on alternative sources of fuel "specially blended" with ethanol.
Data sourced from Ford
Motor Company's subsidiary in the country – Ford Motor Company
Philippines – its sedan line of vehicles, particularly the Ford Focus
1.8-liter and the Ford Focus 2.0-liter Sport, are now equipped with
engines that can run on either conventional gasoline or blended
gasoline and bio-ethanol fuels.
Both vehicles are E20
capable, meaning they can run on fuel composed of 80 percent gasoline
and 20 percent ethanol. Ethanol is a by-product of sugarcane after the
extraction process. Ethanol has been touted as the "new gasoline"
because in its purest form, it has a higher octane rating which means
it burns better and leaves little or no unburnt fuel molecules.
When mixed with
regular unleaded gasoline, the resulting blend increases the energy
efficiency of an engine and lessens harmful emissions to the
environment, ensuring a clean and green environment. The detergent
properties of this special blend are far more superior than that of
regular unleaded gasoline, thereby reducing the need for frequent oil
changes.
Indeed, this
breakthrough is the answer to some opinions that the vehicles today
are not really ready to use the gasoline-ethanol blend.
