The arguments for and against gas-powered cars are turning away from these vehicles. What if a new low-carbon fuel could change all that?

Its not unusual for Toyota or Exxon to work on some seriously advanced ideas that might turn out to be nothing at all. That said, the two companies are working together to develop a new fuel that could cut greenhouse gas emissions from internal combustion engines by as much as 75% compared to the same engine using regular gasoline. If all it takes is a different fuel, this could be a real game changer.

Phasing out ICE vehicles will take a long time

How old is your current vehicle? Even if you just bought a new ride, if it has a gasoline engine, you could drive that vehicle for twenty years with proper maintenance. If you trade in that gas-powered machine, it will become part of the used car market and have a new owner. The point is that gas and diesel-powered vehicles will remain on our roads for many years to come. Unless the government bans these vehicles altogether, we’ll see them for a long time. Because of this, it makes sense to find a way to make these engines cleaner.

EVs are the future; but they don’t have to be

It’s pretty easy to see that electric vehicles are the future of the automotive world. Many governments, including our own, are behind a transition to EVs. In a bubble, electric vehicles don’t require any fossil fuels to operate. Unfortunately, we don’t live in a bubble, and much of our electricity still comes from burning coal and natural gas. That said, we know that running an EV using coal-produced electricity leaves a much smaller carbon footprint than driving a gas-powered vehicle. What if that could change?

What is this new low-carbon fuel?

So far, we don’t have much information because the team working on the project tells us the fuels are still very much in the test phase. Exxon and Toyota have formed a partnership to test low-carbon fuel in gasoline engines to learn if they can cut the greenhouse gas emissions and still offer a fuel that works with the existing fleet. This could be a big deal, especially with stricter emissions regulations and the movement toward electric vehicles. If this new fuel can be a direct replacement for regular gasoline, the possibilities are endless.

Initial trial results were positive

The initial results when using Toyota vehicles showed this new fuel to be compatible with the vehicles. No changes were required to the Toyota vehicles tested, which is huge. Before this new low-carbon fuel can move forward, the project will need government policy support to make it commercially available to the public. The new fuel is mostly a mix of existing feedstocks, including renewable biomass and ethanol, that produces a cleaner process and much lower emissions. This is an exciting discovery, but it’s too early to get worked up over it.

Let’s keep our wits about us

Exxon is the company that thought algae would become the sustainable alternative to diesel and told us so for many years. Toyota has invested heavily in hydrogen-fueled vehicles. Toyota is still planning to offer some hydrogen models, which could eventually become a viable, sustainable alternative, but the point is that these two companies have taken us down the proverbial rabbit hole before. Until we can see some proof of concept and proven longevity of this new fuel, it doesn’t make sense to get too excited about it.

Could this new fuel be affordable?

Another hurdle for this new low-carbon fuel will be its price per gallon. Most of us grumble every time we see gas prices go up a few cents; how will we feel if this new clean-burning fuel costs two to three times as much as a gallon of regular gasoline? Do you go to the station with the lowest price, even if it’s across town? You certainly won’t want to pay higher fuel prices for a new fuel simply because it burns cleaner than gasoline.

Although this new low-carbon fuel is in the testing phase and might not ever make it to the next stage of its development, it’s interesting to think that a new fuel could cut greenhouse gasses by 75 percent and be used in our current fleet of gas-powered vehicles. If this fuel becomes an affordable reality, do we really need electric vehicles on the road?