Ethanol drawbacks not insurmountable

In answer to the Detroit News comments below, we need to make clear that the great majority of research shows ethanol to have a much better energy balance than gasoline. Ethanol has more room for improvement as well, with technologies such as cellulosic ethanol, renewable process fuels, and better use of co-products. Secondly, Detroit can give us flex-fuel vehicles that get more miles per gallon on E85. The Saab 9-5 biofuel, already on Swedish roads, proves this point. Let's get busy making ethanol work! -- Jeffrey Goettemoeller
Ethanol is no silver bullet, has plenty of drawbacks, too - 02/15/06 - The Detroit News:
by John McCormick, The Detroit News
"The big problem is that ethanol, like other alternatives to good ol' gasoline, is no silver bullet. The first issue is that ethanol is energy intensive to produce, more so than gasoline, according to some experts. And more important, the fuel is less energy dense than gasoline, so that a gallon will cover about 30 percent fewer miles."