Special Report: Electric Vehicles And New Alternative Fuel Available In El Paso

From hybrids to electric cars to alternative fuel vehicles, El Paso has more options than you might think when it comes to environmentally friendly transportation.

In fact, you might be driving an alternative fuel vehicle and not even know it.

Many newer vehicles are flex-fuel compatible. Flex-fuel vehicles are capable of using an 85 percent ethanol blend called E85 that boasts reduced emissions and is anywhere from 25 to 75 cents cheaper than gas.

But cheaper isn’t always better.

That’s because E85 typically gets between 25 and 30 percent less mileage than traditional gasoline, depending on the vehicle.

For example, the EPA says the 2011 Chevy Silverado gets 25 percent less mileage using E85. That means E85 has to be at least 25 percent cheaper in order to save money in comparison to gas.

Nationally averaged, the current savings is only around 17 percent. That means going green won’t save you money at the pump.

As for availability, the only location that currently sells E85 is a new Valero station on the city’s far east side near Joe Battle Boulevard and Pebble Hills Boulevard.

Valero says they expect more to be added around the city soon.

“El Paso is one of the new markets where we have introduced this fuel. We expect it to be very popular there. If it’s popular in El Paso, it will catch on everyplace else too,” said Valero spokesman Bill Day.

But who wants to spend hundreds of dollars a month on gasoline when you could be skipping the pump entirely?

The new Chevy Volt is an electric car powered by a lithium-ion battery, which is the same technology used in a laptop battery.

If your daily round trip is less than 35 miles, it’s possible you could never have fill up your gas tank when driving the Volt.

The Volt can be plugged into any standard three-pronged outlet for a full 10-hour charge. With a special 240 volt station, it can be charged in as little as four hours. Each full charge only uses 98 cents worth of power in El Paso.

But don’t get too excited. With a base price of $41,000, you would have to drive more than 100,000 miles to save at least $12,400 in gas. Also, replacing the battery can be costly if the warranty has expired, which can reduce the resale value of the car by thousands of dollars.

Cars aren’t the only thing going green in El Paso.

Sun Metro has been powering public transit with alternative fuels like natural gas for more than a decade.

“It’s cleaner; it’s about 50 percent less pollutants than a private vehicle, so you have less damage on the environment. You’re also carrying more people, which means less cars on the streets,” said public affairs coordinator for Sun Metro Laura Cruz-Acosta.

That means if you are looking for a way save money and be green in the Sun City, it’s only a bus ride away.

For a list of E85 compatible vehicles, visit this website.