Where can I get a car the runs on corn starch?

Question

Well the top pretty much says it all LOL

Oh and besides saving the earth what are the pro's and con's of these kinds of cars?

Answer 1

im sure the others here have told you where to get a car that runs on corn starch but i wanted to notify you of some other info also

when getting a car that runs on corn starch, it can also run on: greasy cooking oil, veggie oil, grains, and many other sources of fuel

its something new to look into. thought this wouldve helped you, good luck

Answer 2

First of all they are called Flex-Fuel vehicles. You can buy them new or used. Here is a list of all the : year, makes & models :

http://www.e85fuel.com/e85101/FFVlist200...

The fuel that you are reffering to is not actually corn starch.

The starch from corn is converted to sugar & then the sugar is distilled into an alcohol called ethanol, the ethanol is mixed with 15% gasoline & the result is E85 fuel.

Here is a slide show depicting the process:

http://images.businessweek.com/ss/07/05/...

For the pro's & cons  - I'll refer you to my answer to another Question ( which I am going to copy & paste rather than re-type)

****************COPY>>>>>>>>>>>

FlexFuel vehicles are vehicles that are designed to run on regular gasoline and/or ethanol . E85 is an alternative fuel which consists of 15% gasoline & 85% ethanol. Neither is new.

The first FFV's were released by Ford in 1994 (1995 Taurus)

They have produced cars, trucks, & SUV's each & every year since then that can run on either fuel. Ford has more FFV's on the road than any other manufacturer. (I will give you a link later to list all FFV's available)

Chrysler also came on board in 1998 (mini-vans)

& GM also started producing FFV's in 2000 (S10 & Sonoma pick-up trucks)

Mostly just American Auto Manufacturers (& their affilliates) have produced these vehicles, until just recently.

The List of which (yrs., makes, models) vehicles can be found here:

http://www.e85fuel.com/e85101/ffvlist200...

Now about the fuel:

E85 fuel has been around for many years as well. But untill the last few years, it wasn't "readily" available to the public.

Most of the ethanol in the US comes from corn. It is distilled (much like beer) from feed grade corn. The starches in corn are converted to sugars & then converted to alcohol (ethanol)

The by-product of the process is called 'distillers grains' & is a high protein feed which can be sold back to livestock farmers to feed cattle,etc.

here's a link to a slide show depicting the process:

http://images.businessweek.com/ss/07/05/...

There are pro's & cons of this alternative fuel. But there is MUCH MUCH more MISinformation & propaganda out there.

I have studied it for YEARS. I am in the Auto industry so I make it a point to research extensively.

The benefits

renewable fuel (vs fossil)

made here in the US (vs OPEC)

cleaner air:

plants such as corn, actually need the CO2 released to grow, so we are in fact recycling carbons rather than releasing fossil carbons into the atmosphere.

Reduces dependancy on foreign oil

note: E85 is generally cheaper than gas, however MPG's are less. The oil companies (& affiliates) have put out A LOT of 'skewed' studies & propaganda !

"They" say you will get 20% less MPG with E85......

Well.... MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE differs !

I have run lengthy experiments myself on various FFV's (FORDs) & I only lost an average ONE mile per gallon !

The availability of E85 fuel to the general public is rapidly growing. In Illinois there was only 12 gas stations in the entire state that offered it 2 -3 years ago. Now there are over 150 stations !

Well I could go on & on but I think I've said enough for now.

For more details please go to

http://www.e85fuel.com/index.php...

Oh yea, there are federal tax incentives ($2000 ?) available to those buying NEW FFV's

& some states also offer incentives to USE E85 ( Illinois offers up to $450 a year for each of the 1st 3 years of ownership of a FFV, that can pay for a lot of fuel !)

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<END COPY*****************

Source(s):

in the auto industry since 1983

Answer 3

You'd have to build it.  Build an electric car, then add a small engine to recharge the batteries "on the road".  That makes it a strong-hybrid and solves the battery-range problem.

Where to get a corn-starch engine?  Not sure but diesels have run on solid fuels, and it would be possible to make a turboshaft engine which burns just about anything.   That would be a challenging engineering project.  The hardest part would be getting an engine small enough for a car.

Answer 4

thats a hard question i dont really know who can answer that maybe look up corn starch cars online or somthing

Answer 5

Didn't you just ask about Hybrids?  Oh well, here's a list of E85 "flex fuel" corn ethanol capable vehicles:

http://www.eere.energy.gov/afdc/afv/afdc...

As far as corn starch, I haven't heard about that one yet, but let me know how it turns out.  :)