Why do Brazilian cars "drink" alcohol?
2 Answers
Brazilian cars "drink" alcohol to address the country's energy shortage issues; leveraging Brazil's abundant sugarcane production, alcohol is manufactured from sugarcane as raw material; there is vigorous development of alcohol-powered vehicles. Below are specific details about Brazilian automobiles: Overview: As one of the "BRIC" countries, Brazil is a significant economic power in South America, with the automotive industry being a crucial pillar of its economy, contributing 20% to Brazil's industrial output. The Brazilian automotive sector also drives the revitalization of upstream industries such as steel and auto parts. In 2013, Brazil's total automobile production reached 3.74 million units, ranking 7th globally, undoubtedly establishing it as a major automobile-producing nation. Investors: Germany's Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen; America's Ford, General Motors; Italy's Fiat, Iveco; Japan's Honda, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Toyota; France's Peugeot-Citroën and Renault; Sweden's Volvo, Scania, among others.
You know about Brazilian cars running on ethanol? It's mainly because we've got more sugarcane than we can handle! Our sugarcane fields stretch as far as the eye can see, and the extracted sugar can be turned into ethanol fuel. The government started promoting this policy back in the 1970s during the oil crisis, after all, sugarcane is a renewable resource. Nowadays, flex-fuel vehicles are everywhere—they can handle any mix of ethanol in the tank, even up to pure ethanol. The green pumps at gas stations dispense ethanol, which is about 30% cheaper than gasoline. During the rainy season when sugarcane harvests are abundant, ethanol prices drop even lower, and everyone rushes to fill up. Last week, I filled my tank for just 80 reais, saving nearly 40 bucks compared to gasoline.