DRIVE TIME! MOTORING NEWS

VRT Clarity

With all this talk of VRT, CO2 emissions and whether or not to wait until July to buy, 2008 will be remembered as the year the Irish motorist was utterly confused.

One of the changes that was outlined in last December’s Budget was that there is to be a capping of the VRT discount on Hybrid and Flexifuel (car’s that run on E85 bioethanol) from what was a 50 per cent reduction in VRT to a maximum of €2,500 off the VRT. This means that from July, the price of some of these vehicles is likely to increase. So if you plan to buy one, then now is really the time.

So Volvo’s launch of two new models which run on E85 bioethanol are just in the nick of time and as they are two of Volvo’s larger models, then the savings are to be made now, before this new taxation system comes into place.

BIOFUEL

Flexifuel models can run on E85, which are 85 per cent bioethanol and 15 per cent petrol. Bioethanol is a renewable biofuel that can be produced from biomass such as sugar cane, wheat and other crops. In the United States there are firms working on ways of producing this from household waste. In the future, it will also be made of cellulose from forest industry residue, energy wood and deposit fibre. The carbon dioxide emissions from combustion of bioethanol are part of the natural cycle. Any carbon dioxide released from this cycle is already part of the ecosystem and won’t contribute to green house gas levels in the atmosphere. There are 26 stations stocking E85 bioethanol around the country, with three more planned for this year and the fuel is 73 per cent less than the price of unleaded but is also just 71 per cent as efficient as unleaded.

RANGE

Volvo’s larger executive car, the S80 and their family estate, the V70 now come in versions that can run on E85. You can choose between either a 2.0-litre Flexifuel with 145hp and a 2.5-litre turbocharged version with 200hp. The larger engine comes with the option of a six-speed Geartronic automatic transmission.
Running both of these cars on E85 means that they will use slightly more of the fuel, but the fuel is a little less expensive and if you run a business you can claim the VAT back on the fuel. Servicing costs are slightly higher too as the fuel is a little more corrosive but overall, Volvo reckon that you will still save in the long run compared to their diesel versions.

USER-FRIENDLY

There is no perceivable difference in the way these cars drive from the regular S80 and V70 models, which themselves are incredibly easy to live with and seriously user friendly.
The likelihood is that we will see more cars in the future running on some version of bioethanol. For now, if you are interested in saving what can amount to €7,084 on the V70 and €6,735 on the S80 by buying now then the clock is very much ticking

ROAD TAX

According to David Baddeley, Managing Director of Volvo Car Ireland, car buyers would still do better to buy now, rather than wait until July:
"Figures from Volvo show that even allowing for the difference in Road Tax over 3 years, buying an S40 Flexifuel now could save as much as €3,500 when compared to the 2.0 Diesel versions in July and as much as €5,700 on the New Volvo V70," says Baddeley.