Most of the world’s car manufacturers are gearing up for the switch to electric vehicles (Bidenmobiles).
But there is some good news for gearheads and muscle car enthusiasts.
That’s because Toyota and Exxon just announced a revolutionary plan to keep gas-powered engines alive.
Toyota has formed a partnership with ExxonMobil to test low-carbon fuel blends that could possibly help reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 75%.
Car owners are not ready (or willing) to trade in their gasoline-powered autos for Bidenmobiles
According to Toyota, the fuel blends are made from cleaner raw materials thus producing less carbon.
And Toyota says they have already determined “these innovative formulas are compatible with older vehicles as well as its current model line-up.”
These low-carbon fuels will also remain compatible with the current fueling infrastructure, according to Toyota.
That is huge news because it means existing gas stations wouldn’t have to change a thing, other than receiving the new fuel blend.
The move by the world’s 2nd largest car manufacturer is welcome news to car enthusiasts.
And it comes as Toyota says they are fully aware that not all car owners are ready or willing to trade in their current gasoline-powered vehicles for those that are purely battery-powered electric.
Still in the testing phase
These new fuel blends are still in the early testing phase.
And Toyota did not mention anything in their press release on the fuels about a potential launch date.
Not to mention, Toyota and ExxonMobil will also have to receive regulatory approval, a process that will bog it down in bureaucratic red tape.
Especially since U.S. regulatory agencies are all on board the Bidenmobile bandwagon.
It should also be noted that this partnership is not the first time someone has developed an alternative fuel blend.
Porsche has already done something similar with its synthetic fuel, which began production last December at a facility in Chile.
Their carbon-neutral fuel emits only the carbon used to make it, which results in a net zero carbon footprint.
Currently the price of this synthetic fuel is over $86 per gallon, so until Porsche can get the cost down it will not become widely available.
A cleaner more cost-effective product
But in Toyota’s case, its experimental fuels are essentially made from existing raw materials, such as ethanol.
They were just produced using cleaner processes.
It is not creating an entirely new fuel type from scratch like Porsche is doing.
That means the cost for such fuel will be within reach for most drivers, if not sold at roughly the same price as current gasoline.
This announcement by Toyota comes at an interesting time in its history.
The giant Japanese car manufacturer recently appointed a new CEO, Koji Sato, to take the place of Akio Toyoda, who will assume the role of Chairman of the Board of Directors.
Toyota has been very vocal about his hesitation to move completely to pure electric vehicles, particularly pure battery-powered electrics.
He has pointed out that the needed charging infrastructure does not yet exist around the world and governments are moving too slowly to get it ready.
Toyota has also expressed concern that there simply is not enough lithium, a chemical element essential to battery production, in the world to handle mass production of Bidenmobiles.
While it is still early in the process, car enthusiasts have more hope that the switch to only Bidenmobiles is still a long way off, and may even never happen as new fuel is developed.
