With rising prices at the pump, the French are beginning to change their habits.

Conversions of vehicles to bioethanol (E85) have thus been multiplied by seven in France in the first quarter of 2022, according to registrations published on Tuesday by L'Argus and the firm NGC-Data.

However, volumes are still quite low, with 9,220 private vehicles adapted to ethanol out of more than 1.3 million cars traded on the second-hand market during the same period.

But these conversions of gasoline vehicles, carried out using a box, have taken off in parallel with gasoline prices, while the E85 is currently evolving below 80 euro cents per liter, against some 2 euros for the SP98.

Ford, Jaguar and Land Rover dominate the new market

These transformations mainly concern older vehicles, underlines NGC-Data, in particular among the leading brands of the French market such as Renault, Peugeot, Citroën and Dacia.

Ten Porsche sports cars have also been converted, a first according to NGC.

For new vehicles, 6,846 Ford, Jaguar and Land Rover cars running on bioethanol were registered between January and April, representing 1.4% of the market, according to the Automotive Platform.

Contested ecological benefits

Sales of bioethanol, an automotive fuel in which pure alcohol largely replaces gasoline, rose sharply in France in 2021, but its environmental benefits remain disputed.

Indeed, made from wheat, corn or sugar beets, bioethanol emits less CO2 per liter than traditional fuels, but a vehicle converted to bioethanol consumes on average 15 to 25% more fuel than a car. essence.

Over the entire cycle, the biofuels used in Europe have a carbon footprint only 2% lower than that of gasoline, estimated the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) in a major comparative study published in 2021. , ethanol production reinforces the harmful effects of industrial agriculture on soil, water and air.

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