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By
EWAN KENNEDY
25 June 2007
We have just spent a fascinating week in a car that could point
to the way of the future in automotive engines. A Saab 9-5 BioPower
station wagon, a car that can run on petrol blends with up to 85 per
cent ethanol.
The 2.0-litre, turbocharged BioPower engines will run on any
mix, from straight petrol through the 10 per cent ethanol that is
becoming relatively common in service stations, all the way up to
85 per cent ethanol. With all ethanol/petrol combinations in
between.
Petrol with more than 10 per cent ethanol is not yet available
for general sale in Australia but Saab’s argues that if the
demand is there, the fuel companies will begin to market it.
Ethanol can be made from almost any plant matter. Unlike
petrol, it is a renewable resource. Saab says it reduces the
amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere because the plants
grown to produce ethanol absorb as much CO2 from the air in their
growth process as is produced when the fuel is burned.
Extremely large areas of land would have to be set aside to
grow fuel for ethanol production if it was to become a major part
of the fuel supply.
Ethanol can have a corrosive effect on some metals and on
rubber fittings in cars. The Saab 9-5 BioPower has, of course,
been modified to suit these new demands. Converting existing cars
to cope is complicated and expensive and not necessarily
completely successful. So if 85 per cent ethanol was to be
introduced in the future it’s likely it will only be used in
cars specifically built to burn it.
The E85 fuel has a higher octane rating than petrol. The
2.0-litre turbocharged BioPower engine produces 132 kW of power
compared to 110 kW for the same engine running on petrol.
Acceleration from a standing start to 100 km/h takes 8.5 seconds
for the BioPower engine running on E85, compared to 9.8 seconds
for the pure-petrol version.
Initially, the BioPower isn’t on general sale in Australia.
The Queensland government, which stands to benefit from the use of
otherwise wasted by-products of the refining of Queensland-grown
sugar cane to produce the ethanol, already has ordered some of
these Saabs.
Cars are being lent to selected journalists for evaluation,
hence our week in the BioPower wagon.
The engine churned over for a few seconds longer than usual
during early morning cold starts. As soon as it kicked over it
idled smoothly and felt like a conventional petrol unit.
Subsequent starts during the day were indistinguishable from those
of a normal engine. There was some smell from the exhaust, a
slightly sickly one, but it was no worse than that of a cold
petrol engine and certainly kinder to the nose than diesel fumes.
Driving showed the E85 engine to have about the usual amount of
turbo lag, once that was past it felt stronger than the Saab
petrol engine and was almost sporting in its acceleration.
Overtaking was swift, safe and effortless.
Our test car had a five-speed manual gearbox. Hardly the
transmission of choice in an expensive luxury car and presumably
fitted to get the best performance and lowest fuel consumption.
Gearing is very high, so much so that top gear is all but useless
in the suburbs as the engine is only doing 1600 rpm at 80 km/h.
This doesn’t necessarily mean the engine is less economical in
suburban work just because it’s in fourth or lower gears.
Fuel consumption is high, too high to our way of thinking.
During suburban running and shopping trips it was generally in the
13 to 15 litres per hundred kilometres range. That’s for a
manual car, remember, an automatic transmission is likely to lift
fuel usage by about five to ten per cent. Our driving was mostly
done in the Brisbane and Gold Coast regions with moderate traffic
congestion. Heavy commuting traffic in Sydney or Melbourne would
probably lift the consumption towards the 16 to 17 litres per
hundred kilometres mark. On motorway driving and easy paced
country running the fuel consumption dropped to a more respectable
10.0 litres per hundred kilometres.
These are V8 type figures and perhaps reflect the fact that
these are early days in the new technology. But if things can’t
be improved…
What about the car itself, the Saab 9-5 station wagon? Though
it’s one of the oldest designs on the market it continues to
look reasonably modern thanks to a comprehensive facelift midway
through 2006.
Inside, there is good interior space and four adults can be
carried in comfort, five without an objectionable amount of leg
and shoulder rubbing. The wagon has a particularly useful load
area as the Swedes have long taken the point of view that wagons
are meant to be functional not fashionable.
The body doesn’t feel as solid or refined as that of much
more recent designs, but noise levels are acceptable, even on
rough roads.
Handling tends to understeer, but you have to be going faster
than average before this really shows up. The steering is too
light for our taste and there's not a lot of feedback. But this is
a family wagon not a sports sedan so many will find it works well
enough.
AT A GLANCE
SAAB 9-5 MODEL RANGE
9-5 Linear 2.3-litre turbo four-door sedan - $57,900
9-5 Vector 2.3-litre turbo four-door sedan - $70,900
9-5 Linear Sport Estate 2.3-litre turbo five-door wagon - $62,400
9-5 Aero 2.3-litre turbo four-door sedan - $82,900
9-5 Aero Sport Estate 2.3-litre turbo five-door wagon - $84,900
Biopower prices - TBA
FEATURES
ABS Brakes: Standard in all models
Air Conditioning: Standard in all models
Automatic Transmission: $2500 option on Linear sedan, standard on
all other models
CD Player: Standard in all models
Central Locking: Standard in all models
Cruise Control: Standard in all models
Driver Airbag: Standard in all models
Passenger Airbag: Standard in all models
Side Airbags: Standard in all models
SPECIFICATIONS (Saab 9-5 Vector 2.3-litre turbo four-door
sedan)
ENGINE:
Capacity: 2.290 litres
Configuration: Four cylinders in line
Head Design: DOHC, four valves per cylinder
Compression Ratio: 9.3:1
Bore/Stroke: 90.0 x 90.0mm
Maximum Power: 162 kW @ 5500 rpm (Biopower approximately 154kW)
Maximum Torque: 310 Nm @ 1900-4500 rpm (Biopower approximately
310Nm)
DRIVELINE:
Driven Wheels: Front
Manual Transmission: Not offered
Automatic Transmission: Five-speed
Final Drive Ratio: 4.05:1
DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES:
Length: 4828mm
Wheelbase: 2703mm
Width: 1792mm
Height: 1501mm
Turning Circle: 10.8 metres
Kerb Mass: 1533kg
Fuel Tank Capacity: 75 litres
Towing Ability: 1800kg with braked trailer
SUSPENSION AND BRAKES:
Front Suspension: MacPherson struts, anti-roll bar
Rear Suspension: Independent, multi-link, anti-roll bar
Front Brakes: Ventilated disc
Rear Brakes: Disc
PERFORMANCE:
0-100 km/h Acceleration: 7.8 secs
Standing 400 Metres: 16.0 secs
FUEL CONSUMPTION:
Type: Petrol 91RON
Combined Cycle (ADR 81/01): 9.6 L/100km
STANDARD WARRANTY:
Three years/unlimited km
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Marque Publishing Company
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