We have been hearing that flex fuels are going to be a reality real soon. As major automakers are making the move towards producing mass marker flex-fuel cars, Maruti Suzuki has revealed their first prototype in the form of the Wagon R.
This Wagon R, which runs on a variety of ethanol-diesel blends from 20% to 85%, was unveiled at a recent event in Delhi in the presence of Shri. Nitin Gadkari. This is the first mass-market prototype that supports E20 to E85 blends of fuel. The government had set a target of implementing 10% ethanol-blending petrol by the end of 2022 and 20% ethanol-blending fuel by 2030. However, as per the latest notification, the target has been advanced to 2023.
The Wagon R Prototype
The Wagon R Flex Fuel prototype vehicle is designed with new fuel system technology to use higher ethanol-blended petrol. Beyond just mere compatibility, it also has upgraded components like engine management systems, fuel pumps, and fuel injectors to ensure engine and vehicle durability. To comply with more recent regulations, Maruti Suzuki has created an emission control system that meets the stringent BS6 Phase-II emission norms.
Being the first-time development of such a technology for Indian conditions and being targeted to fully meet the stringent emission norms, Maruti Suzuki plans to do an extensive evaluation of this technology in the Indian market with Indian ethanol-blended fuel.
What is Flex-Fuel?
As the name suggests, flex-fuel is basically different varieties and blends of fuel that can work with the same engine platform. As of now, India is using a 7% ethanol blend in its fuel. This means that the fuel we get is 93% petrol and 7% ethanol. Researchers are working on different blends of fuels that can be a viable alternative to fossil fuels. To reduce the dependency on costly fuel imports, India wants to achieve 20% ethanol-blending in fuel sold across the country by 2023.
Also Read: 20% Ethanol Blended Fuel By 2023 – How Does It Affect You?
Other Initiatives
In line with the Government of India’s focus on promoting clean-fuel vehicles, Maruti Suzuki is working on a variety of technologies including Electric, Hybrid Electric, CNG, Bio-gas, Ethanol, Flex-Fuel, etc. The company has already announced its commitment to making its entire product range E20 fuel material compliant by March 2023.