Development of an Engine for Flexible Fuel Vehicles (FFV)

Honda has developed a 1.8-L VTEC 4-cylinder engine for a Flexible Fuel Vehicle (FFV) capable of running on any mixture of fuel with an ethanol concentration ranging from 20 - 100%. The distinctive characteristics of this engine include its use of a VTEC mechanism to supplement combustion by putting one intake valve inactive, immediately after startup, when operating with a high concentration of ethanol, and to provide high power output by operating with two input valves after warm up. The system also learns the ethanol concentration of the fuel and controls the engine precisely in accordance with the concentration. Thus it provides good drivability in all environments expected to be encountered in Brazil. This paper describes the CIVIC FFV and the technology adopted for it.