Results from the second year of operation of the federal methanol fleet at Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory

Abstract

This interim report describes the second year's operation of the methanol fleet at Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory (LBL) in Berkeley, California. The fleet consists of five 1984 methanol-fueled Chevrolet Citation sedans paired with five comparable gasoline-fueled Citations for comparison. Data have been collected and tabulated on fuel consumption, maintenance records, oil sample analyses, and driver perceptions of vehicle operability. Fuel efficiency was slightly improved as compared to the first year for both the methanol and gasoline vehicles. The methanol vehicles continued to experience slightly less energy efficiency than the gasoline vehicles. Maintenance data reveal that the methanol vehicles required substantially more service than the gasoline vehicles, which may be due partially to a greater sensitivity on the part of users about methanol vehicle problems. Oil sample analyses revealed that engine wear rates are lower for the second year as compared to the first year and are probably not cause for great alarm. Drivers still rate all of the vehicles quite highly, but the methanol vehicles were rated not as highly during the second year of operation as in the first year. 5 refs., 1 figs., 16 tabs.