Volvo C30 E85 bioethanol racer

Motor racing isn’t the ‘greenest’ of activities and its been copping its fair share of flack over the last year or two by those who know best. There have been murmurs about Formula One going diesel and the rise of the Audi and Peugeot diesel powered Le Mans racers. Volvo may not be the first brand that comes to mind when you think of motor-racing but they are involved in the Swedish Touring car series and have recently developed a ‘green’ racer based on their lovely C30.

Volvo are currently campaigning an S60 in the Swedish Touring Car Championship but have made the decision to move to the smaller, lighter and more efficient C30. Assisting the C30 racers green credentials is a 2.0-litre five-cylinder engine tuned to run on E85 bioethanol and good for 215Kw and 230Nm.

"The decision to leave this year's racing car, a Volvo S60, was fairly simple. The Volvo C30 is a somewhat smaller and more agile car with excellent driving characteristics, even in the standard version," says Derek Crabb, head of Powertrain and Engine at Volvo Cars and the man recently appointed to lead Volvo's Racing Department.

Volvo are keen to point out that their eco-technology extends to production cars with a Flexifuel version of their C30 in production and a super-efficient diesel version to follow soon. Dubbed the 1.6D Efficiency, it is said to be capable of 4.5L/100km (62 mpg) with CO2 emissions under 120 grams per kilometer.

VOLVO C30 E85 FIA SUPER 2000 TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS:

Body: A standard C30 body reinforced by a safety cage and side impact protection on the driver's side, developed in collaboration with Caran

Aerodynamics: Front splitter (the lower section of the bumper) and a rear spoiler wing developed by Polestar in Volvo's wind tunnel.

Engine: An aluminium, transversely mounted, 5-cylinder, inline, four-valve, 1999cc engine. Only minor modifications are permitted on the cylinder block and cylinder heads, while valves, cam shafts, pistons, connecting rods, and the crankshaft have been replaced by racing-specific components.

Oil: Castrol 5W-30

Power/torque: 215kW+ at 8750 rpm - approx 230Nm at 7300rpm.

Fuel: E85

Exhaust system: Stainless steel with catalytic emission controls, specially manufactured by Ferrita

Driveline: 6-speed sequential gearbox with straight-cut gears, manufactured by Hewland. Front-wheel drive Mechanical differential with a torque-controlled ramper and friction discs. SACHS 184mm two-disc carbon fibre clutch

Oil: Castrol TWS 10W-60.

Weight: Minimum weight 1134kg including driver (58-60 kg)

Front wheel suspension: Öhlin's struts developed with Polestar. Racing-specific support arms and adjustable anti-sway bar.

Rear wheel suspension: Multilink with coil springs and Öhlin's dampers. Racing-specific support arms and adjustable anti-sway bar.

Front brakes: Performance Friction Four-piston callipers with radial and axial ventilated discs 332x32mm.

Rear brakes: Alcon two-piston callipers with axial ventilated discs 290x10mm.

Steering: Servo-assisted rack and pinion

Wheels: 17x10-inch BBS wheels

Tyres: Michelin 17-inch slicks (no tread) or grooved rain tyres

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Steane

[Source: Volvo]