2009 Chevrolet HHR
Chevrolet will offer a flex-fuel HHR for model-year 2009.

Detroit's automakers and President Bush say that using E85 fuel, a blend of ethanol and gasoline, is an essential ingredient in America's quest for energy independence. If you agree--and you want to show your support with your checkbook--you're in luck.

New-car buyers can select from among 24 models that can run on E85. Choices include cars, minivans, SUVs, and pickup trucks. Chrysler and its Dodge and Jeep divisions lead the industry in E85 ethanol-capable vehicles, with 10 models for 2008. General Motors is close behind at nine. Ford and Nissan offer two flex-fuel models, and Mercedes-Benz one.

With model turnover, that's a slight drop from 2007, when 27 E85 vehicles were available. But it's still up from 20 for the 2006 model year, and nearly triples the number available in 2000.

Regardless of make, model, or engine all these vehicles can run on conventional gasoline or the E85-ethanol blend with no modification and no difference in performance. It's this flexibility that gives them the nickname "flex-fuel" vehicles.

E85 Pros

There are a lot of pros to running your vehicle on E85 and many reasons to consider switching from a vehicle that runs on conventional fuel to a flex-fuel vehicle. You won't pay extra for an E85 vehicle or suffer a performance deficit. Your car will pollute less, and you'll support America's energy independence. Many believe that E85 is one way to end America's dependence on fossil fuel.

E85 is shorthand for a blend of combustible motor-vehicle fuel that's 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent conventional unleaded gasoline. Ethanol is derived from plant material, mostly corn. Because its raw materials come mostly from U.S. farms and are distilled in U.S. refineries, ethanol is touted as a renewable energy source that has the potential to reduce America's dependence on foreign oil.

E85 produces fewer harmful exhaust emissions than conventional gasoline. Proponents add that utilizing this renewable energy source helps stretch the earth's finite supply of fossil fuels. They also position E85 as a support for American jobs and agriculture. According to them, the homegrown fuel helps the nation's trade balance and reduces tax dollars and military resources needed to secure our supply of foreign oil.

And E85 costs about the same per gallon as conventional 87-octane gasoline. No manufacturer charges extra for E85-ethanol capability versus a model's gasoline-only counterpart, though if the gas-only counterpart is an extra-cost optional engine, the flex-fuel engine carries the same option charge.

E85 Cons

While owning an E85 vehicle certainly has its positives, there also are negatives.

Miles per gallon suffer when you run on E85 ethanol because it doesn't contain as much energy as regular-grade gasoline. According to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates, fuel economy suffers by some 20 percent running on E85 versus conventional pump gasoline. This 20-percent loss is on top of the lower EPA fuel-economy estimates instituted for the 2008 model year. These lower estimates are intended to present a more-accurate picture of real-world fuel economy, and the difference can be sobering. For example, with no change to the engine, EPA fuel economy estimates for a flex-fuel Mercury Grand Marquis are 11 mpg city/16 mpg highway for 2008. That compares to 13/17 for 2007. Running E85, the Chevrolet Uplander minivan rates 12/17 for 2008 compared to 13/19 for 2007.

Also, simply finding a place to fill up on E85 ethanol is a challenge because most pumps are located in the Midwest or on private or government property. American automakers, stung by criticism that they lag Japanese rivals in production of gas/electric hybrid vehicles, have embraced E85 under the umbrella of energy conservation and independence. Already having built several million E85 vehicles over the last decade, GM, Ford, and the Chrysler Group say they plan to put a combined total of 2 million more on the road each year. Their top executives have lobbied for increased government support of ethanol production. And the companies fund campaigns to promote the use of E85 and the installation of more E85 pumps at gas stations.

Critics deride the millions of dollars in tax subsidies provided ethanol producers, labeling them government handouts that go primarily to giant agricultural interests and big-corporation refineries.

Detractors also doubt the environmental benefits, noting that lots of nonrenewable diesel and gas is consumed to grow, transport, and process corn that becomes ethanol. Others maintain it requires more energy to produce ethanol than ethanol itself provides. Even the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency acknowledges that putting more flex-fuel vehicles on the road could raise levels of some types of harmful air pollution.

Lastly, if you're looking for an E85 flex-fuel subcompact or compact car, you're out of luck. Most of the 2008 flex-fuel vehicle fleet is mostly made up of full-size trucks and SUVs. However, GM's Chevrolet arm plans to offer a flex-fuel HHR for model-year 2009.

E85 Ethanol Vehicles: Flexible in Price and Power

There's a choice for nearly every budget on the 2008 roster of E85 ethanol flex-fuel vehicles. And with 320-horsepower V8s among today's E85 ethanol flex-fuel engines, you won't have to give up muscle to go green.

In this report, two-wheel drive and four-wheel drive versions of a vehicle are counted as variants of the same model. Under that formula, our report on 2008 E85 ethanol flex-fuel vehicles contains 24 entries: five midsize and full-size cars, nine SUVs (all with V8 engines), seven pickup trucks (all with V8s) and one minivan.

Price wise, the lineup starts with the Chevrolet Impala LS model, which includes a 211-horsepower E85 ethanol flex-fuel V6 in its $21,255 base price. The Dodge Avenger SXT model starts at $19,120, but adding the 190-horsepower E85 flex-fuel V6 costs an additional $1,350, for a total of $21,470. At the high end is the $44,630 Nissan Armada full-size sport-utility vehicle with a 317-horsepower V8. (Prices quoted do not include destination charges.)

Horsepower ratings range from 190 in the Avenger and its Chrysler Sebring counterpart, to the 320-hp V8 in General Motors' full-size pickup trucks and SUVs.

As for fuel economy, the most fuel-efficient E85 vehicle for 2008 is the Chevy Impala with the 3.5-liter V6. Its EPA ratings are 14 city/21 highway on E85 ethanol. Close behind, at 13/20 are the Impala with its 233-horsepower 3.9-liter flex-fuel V6, and the 2.7-liter Avenger and Sebring.

Trailing the pack, with EPA estimates of 9 mpg city/12 highway using E85 ethanol are the Dodge Ram 1500 and Dakota pickup trucks and the Dodge Durango and Jeep Grand Cherokee and Commander SUVs; all these used a 303-horsepower 4.7-liter V8. Also at 9/12 is the Ford F-150 pickup with its 300-horsepower 5.4-liter V8.