Ford & M-Sport build E85 Fiesta rally car

Ford of Britain and M-Sport, the Cockermouth, UK based company that runs the BP-Ford FIA World Rally Championship programme, have developed an E85 bio-ethanol fuelled version of the 2-litre Ford Fiesta ST Group N rally car.

The project is intended to take the environmentally positive, high-performance fuel into the WRC when the cars competing in the Fiesta Sporting Trophy International series in 2008 will be required to use E85.

Following its introduction in 2006 the Fiesta Sporting Trophy (FST) has been developed around the world and there are currently eleven countries operating national FST championships in which more than 225 Ford Fiesta STs compete.

E85 has been the mandatory fuel in the Swedish FST (known as the Ford FlexiFuel Cup) since 2006.

Malcolm Wilson, managing director of M-Sport said, "The long-term environmental message is clear - reducing our reliance on fossil fuels and the overall reduction of CO2 emissions is a priority. The jury is out on the exact direction that the future will take with regard to the use of renewable fuel technology in road cars, but for the motorsport environment, E85 offers a solution that can demonstrate to the wider audience that 'going green' doesn't necessarily mean any reduction in the driving experience. With our experience of engineering WRC cars behind us, our company wants to use our capabilities to produce rally cars that are both fun to drive and environmentally friendly. The Fiesta Sporting Trophy will provide a great showcase to demonstrate this technology in action."

Source: [url=http://www.eemsonline.co.uk/news/27-06-07_23?s=-20disk4aswkmy25s]EEMS - Energy Efficient Motorsport[/url]