Vectra Flexpower runs on bioenergy

In the mid-term, Opel is committed to offering more variants that can operate on alternative fuels. At this year’s IAA, Opel displays the Flexpower, a Vectra sedan which appears unchanged from the outside, yet has a two-liter turbo engine that can run on E85 bioethanol fuel, conventional gasoline or any mixture of the two. The Flexpower’s engine management adjusts throttle position, air volume, injection and ignition point depending on the fuel mixture. The result of this continuous calibration is reliable, high performance. Despite the differences between gasoline and bioethanol when it comes to knocking resistance and energy density, the Vectra Flexpower’s 2.0t engine produces 129 kW/175 hp and 265 Nm of torque at 2500 rpm.

As bioethanol is produced from renewable crops, the Flexpower’s propulsion delivers a balanced carbon dioxide level. This is because the amount of CO2 released from E85 during combustion is practically identical to the level of carbon dioxide the plants absorbed from the atmosphere through photosynthesis when they were growing.