Volvo brought a Bi-Fuel S80 to the Challenge Bibendum.

The Volvo S80 Bi-Fuel shown in Shanghai has a five cylinder, 2.4-liter bi-fuel engine powered by compressed natural gas (CNG) or biogas with gasoline as a back-up. The engine uses separate fuel systems.

The engine automatically switches to the back-up gasoline system should the car’s primary gas supply run out. Typically, a tank of CNG or biogas will give a range of 250-300 km (155-186 miles), and the reserve petrol tank provides an additional range of about 350 km (217 miles).

Volvo offers a five-cylinder 2.4 liter Bi-Fuel engine option for its Volvo S80, V70 and S60 models.

The Volvo S80 Bi-Fuel vehicle delivers 140 hp. Luggage space is unaffected due to the placing of the gas tanks under the rear load space floor.

A Bi-Fuel Volvo driven on biogas, a renewable source of energy generated from biomass, reduces greenhouse gases close to 100%. Driving on CNG reduces greenhouse gas carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 25% compared to gasoline, according to Volvo’s figures.

Volvo Car Corporation believes it is very much exploring the future already today with its biogas cars. Biogas is a completely renewable source of energy as well as a technological stepping-stone towards using hydrogen. Biogas’s growing popularity also is helping to speed the building of an infrastructure for gas fuel stations. Volvo’s Bi-Fuel cars are certainly a greener choice available today.

—Staffan Johannesson, Volvo Product Strategy Manager, Alternative Fuels and Powertrains

According to Volvo, the operating costs of the bi-fuel cars are between 20-60% less than gasoline models, and 20-40% less than diesel.

A Swedish green consumer organization, Gröna Bilister (Green Motorists) named the Volvo S80 Bi-Fuel model the best Environmental Car in the large-car category both this year and last 2003.