This is a concept vehicle which few of us will ever drive. The Furai is Mazda’s next hope in the future of car racing. While going green on the race track is not exactly an eco-minded endeavor, we’re still intrigued that this vehicle can be fully powered by ethanol. The very cool looking performance sports car shows that if ethanol has a place in the auto industry, that place is in the car racing arena.
It is a powerful machine, capable of achieving 60mph in about 3.2 seconds, and its maximum speed is 172mph. Instead of working from a regular chassis, the manufacturer decided to begin with a fully formed Courage C65 chassis, Mazda’s chassis of choice. The vehicle weighs a bit less than a ton, and its engine produces around 460bhp.
The Furai, while fully functioning, is never going to make it past the concept stage. It is simply a promotional vehicle. But at least they fitted it with an ethanol engine. There is no doubt that ethanol is a dicey proposition as a fuel source for vehicles. The fact is, that it can cause a number of problems if it’s sourcing is not managed properly. However, it is a potential stopgap replacement to our energy problems.
