E100 Flex-Fuel Rules Explained: Which Vehicles Can Use High-Ethanol Fuel?
India has amended its vehicle rules to recognise E100 fuel for specially designed flex-fuel vehicles. The change creates a certification route for vehicles that can use very high ethanol blends; it does not make every petrol vehicle compatible, and it does not require owners to modify cars already on the road. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways updated the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989, to include E100 alongside E85 in emission certification provisions. E85 is a blend containing up to 85 per cent ethanol by volume. The “E” identifies ethanol and the number indicates its share in the blend. E100 refers to fuel consisting predominantly of ethanol. The amendment sets out how eligible vehicles can be approved under the rules; it is not a mandate for motorists to switch fuels. A flex-fuel vehicle is engineered to operate on a range of petrol-ethanol mixtures using one tank. Its fuel-system materials and components are selected for the blends it is designed to handle, while eng...