Of the 1,076,350 alternative-fuel automobiles made available in the U.S. in 2009, nearly 75 percent (805,777) were flex-fuel capable (E85) vehicles, according to the report “Alternatives to Traditional Transportation Fuels 2009” recently released by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). The EIA notes that most of the E85-burning vehicles manufactured in 2009 were sold to private individuals and not to commercial or government fleets.
The conventional gasoline-electric hybrid came in second, with available vehicles listed at 261,312. Compressed natural gas vehicles were third (3,770) and electric-only autos placed fourth (2,255). Down at the bottom of the EIA’s list, with only 26 units made available in 2009, is the hydrogen-fueled vehicle.
The Energy Policy Act of 1992 mandates that the EIA annually collects data on alternative-fueled vehicles made available in the U.S. by automakers and that it estimates the number of alt-fuel vehicles in use in the States. Anyone got guesses for the 2010 and 2011 numbers?
[Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration]
